Chapter 63 An Addiction

"I began to see him at other events, everyone said that Maximiliano was a new millionaire, there were many of those at that time and those who belonged to the most important families, used to avoid him because they did not believe him worthy... I felt bad for him, he seemed like a good man, respectful and kind who everyone rejected without knowing him, so I accepted an invitation to go out with him... I knew I had to be careful, if all the families rejected him, it meant that my parents wouldn't want him either, so I saw him secretly and I started a furtive relationship with Maximilian... "

Marian was telling, lost in her world.

"At that time, the economic situation was difficult, especially for the most powerful families, everyone was losing companies and money, at the same time that new entrepreneurs appeared... Soon after, due to the economic crisis that the Collins family was going through, I found out that my parents had arranged a marriage for me with your father, Isabella..." Marian looked at the young woman momentarily with some embarrassment. - I didn't want to, I didn't accept it, your father was a good man, an ideal candidate, but I... I was already in love with Maximilian... And my parents. They wanted to force me to marry Albert by an agreement made with the Sinclair’s. Marian confessed, with a tone full of resignation".

"So, you knew about the relationship between the two families?" Isabella asked calmly, trying to remain calm.

"How do you know about that?" It was a secret agreement that was not carried out. Marian replied, visibly confused.

"My grandmother told me..." Isabella clarified. The surprise in Marian's eyes was evident. "What I don't understand is, why didn't you accept that marriage, if you knew the difficult situation of both families and knew the deal they had made?" She could have separated from my father in three months.

"Yes, in three months, only if both families recovered their fortunes." Do you know what that meant? With the recession that existed, it could take years for that to happen... Look, Isabella, I met Albert, your father, I appreciated him, but I couldn't risk being trapped forever with a man I didn't love... So, I fought for love. Marian smiled sadly. "I strongly opposed my parents, and to our good fortune, the Sinclair’s never claimed their share of our breach of the covenant. Back then, I assumed that fate had helped me unite my life with Maximilian..." Isabella looked at her with compassion while Marian looked down, embarrassed. - What can I tell you, at that time I was an innocent and romantic young woman.

Isabella swallowed thick as she remembered that, in reality, the Sinclair’s never claimed, or sued the Collins, because her father had already secretly married her mother, but that was something that did not need to be told.

“So, my parents found out about my romance secretly with Maximilian and obviously opposed it, but with the economic situation declining faster and faster and with Maximilian, a millionaire in full swing insisting that they accept him, my parents had no choice, they accepted the marriage, but of course, they imposed certain conditions on me.

"Conditions?" Isabella asked curiously.

"Nobody knew who Maximiliano was until he appeared making money, nor did I ever know it myself, he was always a very reserved man in that aspect and that's why my parents didn't trust him... So, one of the most important conditions was that our descendants would bear the surname Collins, and the other was that I would be the head of the family, I would be in control of everything, and that Maximilian could not lead any part of the family.

"And what happened?" Isabella asked with a bad feeling.

"Maximiliano accepted, he seemed to agree, even though he had to inject almost all his money into our family to recover our fortune, which seemed to me an unfair deal, but at that time, he did not refuse, nor did he complain, Maximiliano used to say that he accepted only because he wanted to be with me, which I thought was the most romantic... We got married, during the courtship and the first months, Maximiliano was a gentleman, he was attentive, kind, affectionate, he was always aware of every detail of me, he accompanied me everywhere and I looked proud, we were happy, and I could swear that I had the perfect life...

Marian declared and Isabella's heart began to race, remembering that Máximo acted just like his father, affectionate and kind, making her fall in love and her herself came to think the same as Marian, who had a perfect life.

“ Even when I was in Máximo's state, Maximiliano talked to my parents so that they would be more flexible and allow him to support me in my responsibilities... But it was not until Emily's birth that Maximilian convinced my parents to give him a leave of absence as head of the family, so that I could dedicate more time to my children... My parents trusted him more, so they signed a power of attorney for him...

"A power?"

"Therefore, I believe that it is the right time for you to leave everything in my hands and sign my power of attorney as a leader, as we agreed..." those were the words that Isabella had heard in that conversation and that she had not forgotten, the young woman noticed a pattern, there were more and more similarities.

"Yes, a power of attorney that would allow him to take part as the head of the family," Marian clarified.

“And what happened next?

"After that, my parents died in an accident and everything went to waste," Marian said, letting out a tear that she quickly wiped away.

"What do you mean?"

“Maximilian changed completely. He became a cruel, despotic, rude man... He didn't stop yelling at me, mistreating me..." The tears began to flow with more intensity. “It was horrible, and I lived in fear, I only worried about protecting my children from all that...

"And why didn't you do anything about it?" Isabella asked, horrified.

“Report it? Bring everything to light? Make a fuss and make my children the center of the press and media? I couldn't. I would never have exposed my children to something like that, they were so young..." Marian wiped away her tears in despair. - Besides, I was still in love with Maximilian, and I hoped that... He would be the same as before. He thought it was the stress of running the family that was in a bad mood and that when I took my position again, this time by his side, everything would go back to normal.

"So, did you continue to endure it?" Isabella asked stunned.

"Yes..." he blurted out in a sigh. "But it got worse every day. I began to suffer from stress, anxiety and depression, and Maximilian... He took me to a doctor, who started medicating me.

"To medicate him?"

"Yes, to control my anxiety attacks and moods, but..."

"But what happened?" Isabella asked, impatiently.

“As the situation worsened, I took more medication for anxiety and that... became a... an addiction “Marian confessed, lowering her gaze in shame. “I did it, above all, because I didn't want my little children to see me suffering...

"What?"

"As you saw a moment ago..." Marian pointed to the empty teacup.

Isabella remembered the pills Marian had taken, her mouth open with shock. He detailed Marian from top to bottom, observing her face with dark circles and her thin and tired appearance. Was that why?

"I can't live without my medicines, and Maximiliano always provided them to me. So, when I decided to take my position as ringleader again, he didn't allow it..." Marian declared, leaving Isabella stunned.

"How?"

“It was horrible. She told me that she was disgusted, that she was an addict, that she didn't even deserve to be with my children, and I think that, in that respect, she was right..." Marian said hugging herself. "He sent me to confine myself in this house and, in exchange, he began to send me the medicines...

- Do you live here secluded and let your children be taken away just because of those pills? Isabella asked stunned.

"No... Marian covered her face and approached to speak to Isabella in a low tone. "When I got up and wanted to recover, and get my life back, he told me... Maximilian told me..." Marian shuddered, she seemed to have gotten stuck.

"What did he say to you, Mrs. Collins?" Isabella whispered, taking his hand firmly, trying to give him courage. "I promise you that not a single word will come out of my mouth... Go ahead, you can say, take out what you have been storing for so long.

"He told me..." Marian continued in a thread of voice. - That if I tried to get up or do something against him, he would finish me off like he did with my parents...

"What?" Isabella exhaled, feeling her heart stop.

"You said that no one would miss an addict like me and that..." even my children could pay the consequences. Marian's voice broke into a shudder, and she began to cry like a child.

Isabella hugged her, feeling tears of anger and helplessness begin to pour down her face.