Chapter 6 Alex

(Sybil’s POV)

Ignoring John’s request, I continued walking down the stairs and out of the house. I couldn’t wait until this marriage - if you could even call it that - was over and done with.

I stormed back to my place. Even after marrying John and moving in with his family, I had decided to keep the apartment where I had been living ever since I started working for him. It was better for my sanity if I had a way to escape from Mrs. Rutherford. I could only handle so much of her incessant demands and criticism. Plus, it was nice sometimes to have time to myself, where nobody could bother me.

I sat down at my computer and wasted no time in preparing the divorce agreement and my letter of resignation. As my fingers angrily pounded the keys, I reflected on what a mistake I had made agreeing to this marriage. I couldn’t wait until John was out of my life for good!

My phone rang. I sighed with frustration, thinking it might be John, but my spirits instantly lifted when I saw who it was. “Alex!” I exclaimed, happy to hear from him. John’s cousin Alex and I had met at school, and were close friends. He was the only son of John’s uncle, and had been in charge of the Rutherford Corporation’s overseas department for the past three years. The last time I saw him was at my and John’s wedding. We still kept in touch, but it wasn’t the same. 

“Hey, Sybil,” he said.

I smiled at the sound of his voice. “Hi, Alex. It’s so good to hear from you.”

“How’s my dear cousin John,” he asked, sarcasm in his voice, “still being his usual self with a stick up his ass?” He and John had never gotten along.

I laughed, which felt good after the events of the last few hours.

“I’ll take that as a yes.” I could picture the smirk that was probably on his face. Then he became serious. “Seriously, though, is everything okay?” Maybe he could tell from my voice that there was a problem. He’d always been very perceptive.

“Oh, the same old thing,” I replied. I didn’t feel like talking about what had just happened, and I especially didn’t want sympathy from him or anyone.

“Well, fear not,” he said, “for I have good news.”

“Really, what is it?” I was intrigued.

“I’m coming back,” he said.

“Alex, that’s wonderful news!” I hadn’t seen him for so long. This couldn’t possibly happen at a better time!

“Would you mind helping me with the logistics?” Alex asked. “You always took good care of me.”

“Of course,” I said, “it would be my pleasure.” It felt kind of bittersweet knowing that booking his ticket would be my final task before leaving the company for good.

“Thank you, Sybil,” he said, “I can’t wait to see you again.”

“Same here.” We talked a bit more, then after hanging up, I finished typing up my documents.

It was almost 2:00 in the morning at that point, so I decided to go to bed.

When I woke up, I decided that I should go and visit Amelia in the hospital. After a quick breakfast, I got ready to go. I was kind of dreading it, because I knew our conversation wouldn’t exactly be easy for her. Or for me, for that matter.

As soon as I stepped into the hospital lobby, I could see Mr. and Mrs. Rutherford getting out of the elevator and making their way toward the gift shop. Luckily, they didn’t see me. I wasn’t in the mood to deal with them at the moment.

When I got to Amelia’s room, I opened the door and walked in. She looked much better than she had the night before. She turned her head and smiled weakly at me. “Hi, Sybil!”

I smiled back. “Hi, Amelia. How are you feeling?”

“A bit better,” she answered, “I don’t have a fever anymore.”

“That’s good to hear!” I sat on the edge of her bed. I took a deep breath, wishing that I could have a bit more time with her before telling her what I had to say next, but I didn’t know how long I had until her parents came back. I had to do this as quickly as possible. “Listen, Amelia, I have to talk to you about something.”

“Did I do something wrong?” Amelia looked at me, her big brown eyes staring intently at me. I couldn’t help noticing how much her eyes resembled John’s.

“No, not at all!” I gave her hand a reassuring squeeze. “I came here to tell you that it’s over between me and John. We’re getting a divorce.”

“Oh.” She didn’t seem surprised about this.

“There’s more,” I added, moving closer to her. “I’m leaving.”

She looked confused. “Why are you leaving?”

“I have to do this, Amelia,” I replied. “John and I won’t be married anymore, so I’ll no longer be part of the family.”

“I don’t want you to go!” Amelia latched onto me. Ever since the age of five, she’d been emotionally dependent on me. I was sure that it had something to do with the fact that unlike her parents, who demonstrated their love for her by buying everything she could ever want, I showed her genuine affection.

“I’m so sorry.” I held her close. “I don’t want to leave you, but I have to.” I wanted to tell her that we could keep in touch, but I couldn’t get her hopes up like that. Her parents, and especially John, would never allow it.

I tried another tactic. “Do you remember your cousin Alex?”

“Sort of,” she sniffled.

“He’ll be home soon!” I smiled at her. “He’s a funny guy. He’ll cheer you right up!”

Amelia wasn’t convinced. She cried even harder, tightening her grip on me. “Why do you have to go?”

I heard the door open behind me. I panicked, thinking that I would have to face my soon-to-be former in-laws after all. I turned around.

There stood John, anger in his eyes. “Don’t worry, Amelia,” he said, staring at me. “I will never let her go, no matter what she says.”