Chapter 3

DUNCAN POV

The white whooshing sound of the engine as it churned to get the vehicle in motion filled the little cabin of my car as I drove down the bizarrely empty streets of Meadowood Drive. I stole a quick glance at the clock mounted on the dashboard, then nodded to myself upon realizing it was a little after 3 am, and I was only driving home.

Home?

Well, that caused me to chuckle and shake my head in mockery. 

You see, any typical 32-year-old male has reached that point in his life where he has settled down. A house with a big backyard, a pool with a hot tub on the side, a very stable job, a lovely kid or two, and a beautiful wife whom he drives back to at the end of the day. If not that, one has a lovely fiancee and they are probably planning a wedding which will be not less than a year later. That is like, the ultimate dream of every guy out there, or at least fools who think love is all they need in this life.

You see, I was once that fool. And how did it actually turn out?

 Six years of a sham of a marriage with unending fights and utter exasperation. 

There was a time in my life when I thought I needed that kind of love, that kind of element to get me settled in my life and live a life with purpose. And how did it play out?

 Not wanting to dwell further into the thoughts of my miserable life, I decided to revert back to the night I had.

There are no words to describe how horrible it is for a married man to stay out that late, but then again, not every married man is actually in a happy marriage. Anyway, the night I had, had to be the best night in history. I don’t remember the last night I ever felt… like myself. I was even shocked that THAT  part of me still existed, and all it took was that little girl to stir it awake.

I have gotten used to the dry life that I even forgot I used to live like a master, talk like one, and act like one. And just the mere thought of it made me even resent my marriage to further extremities because I had to bury that part of me just to make sure the marriage worked. And despite the sacrifice, despite all the things I had to change, all the things I had to give up and put aside just to be enough for one person, nothing ever worked for the better.

The idea alone was so enraging that my knuckles turned white against the steering wheel. Begrudgingly, I sped down the quiet street until I came in front of a fancy, neatly maintained driveway and pulled through. I killed the engine took a good moment trying to gather my thoughts and readying myself for whatever it was I was going to find behind the closed doors of my house. 

After a good mental pep talk, I stared through the window of my car and nearly died of happiness when I realized that the entire house was as dark as night. With a tap on my feet, I exited the car and walked towards the front door which was locked, signaling that everyone had long retrieved back to their beds. I fished my keys from my pocket and unlocked it, then helped myself inside. I made sure that I had relocked it before placing my keys on the small rag placed on top of the wooden cabinet that was right by the doorway, then started to walk further into the house.

I had just placed one foot on the first stair when the lights from the dining room flashed on, and right there on the table was none but my dear Medusa with a whiskey bottle that was almost down to the bottom, a glass in her hands and surprisingly, her snakes on the head sleeping. However, the killing aura that resonated from her was so deep that I felt glued to where I stood.

“You’re still awake.” My tone was just as cold and as empty as my insides. I didn’t feel even a simple modicum of empathy for her anymore or even try to care what it was that was going through her head as she sat there looking like she was an inch from snapping my neck.

“Well, I was waiting for my husband to get back from a strip club.” She mentioned, and that’s when my brows furrowed from confusion,

"How..." Before I could even complete the sentence, anger completely morphed into exasperation. In a split second, I knew how she even came to know that I was at a strip club.

“You put a tracker on me.” I accompanied the words with a huff and then rolled my eyes.

“Somebody had to.” Her response snapped something inside of me, and defeatedly, I shook my head and placed my foot on the next stair.

“I’m off to sleep.” Its all I said as I began climbing the stairs to the bedroom.

“Don’t you dare turn your back on me, Duncan!” Expectantly, she thundered, then started to chase after me. I stopped in my tracks before turning to stare at her.

“What do you want, Felicia?” I asked, drastically throwing my hands in the air and showing just how fed up I was. I had a very good night and I swear I wasn’t going to have this right now. 

“You go to a whore house, come back at three in the morning, and just pretend like it's normal?” She screamed, and I hated it even further because she was so inconsiderate.

“You will wake Aurora. Tune it down.” I said through clenched teeth, and oh my God. How I wish I hadn’t.

Her face twisted as her eyes snapped, her whole body trembling and her snakes snarling and hissing. I swear at that moment, she looked like a true Medusa. She went in and threw the glass she had in hand, right at me, hitting me right on my shoulder before it drops. The liquor in the glass stained my shirt before the glass fell on the carpeted stairs, then shattered into millions of pieces.

“So you do know that you have a daughter? You do know that she is asleep? Where were you when I tucked her in bed?” And just like that, my very beautiful night descended into an ugly long mayhem.

“Go to sleep, Felicia. We have a session tomorrow.” I spun on my heel, then walked further up the stairs and disappeared. Her angry roars followed me behind as I rushed into my daughter’s room, the only safest place in this entire house. I was quick to slam the door right in her face and even lock it, then leaned against it for a good moment and listened as she raged from the other side. 

The peace and quiet reigning in this room were enough to lull all the ugly sounds that came from the outside, and I stood there absorbing the love and peace that was in abundance.

“Daddy?” a small, sweet angel-like voice called from the other end of the dark room, and a small smile etched on my face.

“Yes, sweetheart?” Despite wanting to scream my head out, my voice came out soft, as calm as the waves of the ocean on a beautiful summer day. The effect this little girl had on me…

“Can you sleep with me tonight?” The voice called out, and in it, I heard a very distant cry and longing for a perfect family. The cry for a normal mom and dad who were not always in cahoots with each other. I heard the cry of loneliness, and that shattered my heart into million pieces.

“Of course, princess.” I unglued myself from the door and took off to the corner where her bed was. I threw my coat to the floor, took off my shoes then climbed into the small, cramped bed of my daughter. Her little body quickly found mine and she snuggled into my hold, my big body cocooning her. I laid a protective arm over her, and in an instant, the small space was filled with the sound of her peaceful snores.

The peace that reigned next knew no bounds. I wasn’t troubled anymore. Because I had her. The only reason why I would burn the entire world, and the only reason why I was still in this sham of a marriage.

“I love you, baby.” I smoothed out kissing her small cheek in the dark.

“I love you too, daddy.”

What more could I ask for?