Chapter 14

Adrian’s POV

“Damn, man! What is your plan?” Eric whined, pulling the curtains apart.

I shielded my eyes from the burning sunlight. I haven’t been out of bed since last night. I had spent the last few hours thinking about my life and where I went wrong. I am still in shock at the information reaching me. It’s quite unbelievable.

“Get out of bed, Adrian,” Eric said.

I sucked my teeth loudly. “Don't you have things to do at your house? Why are you here so early?”

“It’s noon already and it's the weekend. So I am here to hang out with my supposed friend. If I knew I would be taking up the job of a nanny I wouldn’t be here.” He snickered.

“I don’t remember promising to hang out with you.”

“I never need your permission. Get yourself out of bed, I ordered lunch.” He mused, leaving the room.

I sat up and held my head with both hands, hangover setting in. I had a few to drink yesterday. I sat still for a moment before getting out of bed and freshening up. The headache hit hard with the water touching my body.

“There.” Eric gestured at the kitchen island with a glass of water and aspirin. “The food just arrived.” He announced, unpacking the food.

I grumbled a thank you, swallowing the pill and gulping down the water. I soon settled on the stool to eat the served chicken wraps. I took a large bite, shutting my eyes to savor the taste.

“You always play the card of the mum when you are up to something,” I said after eating half of the wrap. “Did my mum put you up to this?”

Eric dusted off his palm with his mouth full. “Why are you so paranoid? You don’t think I can do things like this for you without any outside influence?”

I stared at him suspiciously. “You aren’t that selfless.”

He snickered. “She did call to say she is worried about you. And I have also noticed how distant you have been these past few days. I felt she had a valid reason to be concerned, so I took it upon myself to play Superman.”

“Stupid!” I hissed, getting off the stool to pour myself a glass of wine.

“You haven’t even had enough food and you are about to get drunk again.”

“It’s my liver, you know.” I retorted, reaching for my plate. “Meet me in the study.”

“Stop ordering me around.” Eric snapped, coming after me. He whistled loudly when he entered the study, eyes glued to the scattered files and pictures on the floor. “What happened here? Is this what kept you awake all through the night?” He asked, reaching for one of the pictures. “This is Briar. Don’t tell me you are at it again, Adrian. She is no longer here. Why are you doing this to yourself?”

I sat on the couch, crossing my legs as I sipped my wine. “I kept repeating that to myself. I insisted that I was just lost in my emotions. But last night I had to affirm that I wasn’t crazy. Facts don’t lie, Eric.”

“Speak in English.” He said, taking a seat.

“I just couldn’t ignore my thoughts, Eric. My Briar and this new woman at my workplace have the same birthmark on the neck. When I confronted her, she had that look on her face that showed I wasn’t hallucinating. But that was enough for me to hire a private investigator to help trace her roots using the company’s database that we have on her.”

He sat up, his face showing interest. “Okay. What did they find?”

“The accident did happen. But she didn’t die. She started a new life in Florida and started working at Ford’s Interior over four years ago. She is the same person, Eric. The same woman whom I mourned for five years.” I put down the glass, running my hands through my hair. “What I don’t understand is, why? Why would she do this to me? Lie to my face and pretend like we don’t have a history together? She carried my child, Eric. We were married.”

“You never know what truly happened, Adrian. She might have lost her memory. The accident was fatal.”

“No damn way! She did not lose her memory. We have her medical report, Eric. Briar is fine and alive. I can’t believe she lied to her own family. What the hell was she thinking?”

I gnashed my teeth, fighting back the tears that filled my eyes. I couldn’t believe it when the report came back. Briar didn't die, she was alive all these years. Living on another identity without taking a look back at the home she left behind. I feel betrayed and broken. I feel fooled. No one has ever done such a thing to me before. I am angry, hurt, frustrated, and disappointed. It’s shocking that Briar would do a thing like that.

“Do you know what happened to the pregnancy?” Eric asked.

“There was no information on that. I am sure if she had a child, he would have gotten something. I guess she lost our child in the accident.”

“Do you think that might be why she chose to cut ties with you? It’s quite a hard loss for a woman who loses her child.”

“Still, playing dead for five years is not an excuse. You know what happened to me. Because of her I have become a shadow of myself. I can’t even sleep right. And all along she was living her best life. Even now that she is right under my nose, she plays the oblivious card. How cruel can one be to do such a thing?”

Eric exhaled slowly. “I must say that I am stunned by this situation. I want to believe she has her reasons. But at the same time, your feelings are valid. You said you confronted her.”

“I did. She looked me right in my eyes and told me to see a therapist because I was being delusional.”

“That's cold!”

“Fucking old. Her eyes were blank, Eric. She had no emotions in them. It felt as if she didn't even have me in her memory bank. Like she is determined to forget that I exist.”

“What do you plan to do now, Adrian?”

I reached for the wine glass again, chugging down the entire contents. I had slept off brooding on how best to make her pay for what she had done to me. She is obviously having too much fun playing with my emotions. I will not sit still and watch her mock me again.

“Since she is so determined to put her past behind her. I might as well show her that a traitor doesn’t have a place in my world.” I seethed.

“Didn’t you say she is the perfect person to work on the new project? You have been scouting for a long time.”

I held up a half smile. “I do know that. I won’t take her out myself. Instead, I will make her beg to be forgiven. I won’t let this go. Briar will pay for making a fool of me.”

“Is that necessary? Can’t you just talk to her and resolve this? It’s not like you were the perfect husband to her years ago.”

“So you think I deserved to be forced into mourning for five years?”

Eric shook his head. “No, you don’t.”

I clenched my fist, breathing slowly with my eyes glued to the image of her lying at my feet. “She will regret messing with me. And I hope she is more than capable of paying the price. Because I will be merciless.” I gritted.