32/33
– ~TELL ME LIES~
Chapter 32
Unedited
Three months later,
Friday evening I pu-ll up in front of Rissa’s house, and step out of the car before heading for the door. She asked me to come over for dinner so we can talk and catch up. Rissa has been busy with her project in Kabwe- we haven’t had enough time to spend together over the last three months. But things are looking out for her, she is healing from the Gabriel/ Cedrick drama and her businesses are blooming.
‘’Hello! Is anyone home?’’ I call out, pushing the door open.
No answer
‘’Rissa!’’ I call out again but still get no response.
When I enter the living room, I am surprised to find a trail of rose petals leading up to the staircase. Following the trail, it leads me to one of the rooms. There is a small table at the center of the room with light candles illuminating it. There’s also some food and bottles of Champaign. My heart skips a bit when I sp©t Godfrey leaning forward on one knee holding a ring towards me, ‘’The first time I saw you, I knew I was done searching, I know we have only been d@t!ngfor three months but that’s enough for me to know you are the one I want to spend the rest of my life with, Iris. C Hadebe, will you be my wife.’’
‘’I will,’’ I smile.
Godfrey has been amazing and I am more than certain he will make a great husband.
Sliding the ring on my f!nger, he stands up and pu-lls me against him, ‘’ you have made me the happiest man on earth, I love you.’’
‘’I love you too.’’
With that, Rissa, our parents and friends, appear from the other side of the room, cl@pping and cheering on for us, ‘’congratulations guys.’’
‘’Oh God!’’ I exclaim before tears begin to run down my face.
‘’you are overcome with emotion,’’ Rissa says.
‘’Yes, I am I didn’t expect this, so you knew all along.’’
‘’Yes sister! At least one of us had to end up with the right p@rtner.’’
*
Saturday, I awake to the sound of my ringing phone, I gr-ab it, at the same time stealing a glance at my watch. It’s morning alre-ady, I t©uçh the other side of the be-d expecting to find a slee-ping Gabriel, instead it is empty and the sheets are cold. I went to be-d late last night because I was waiting for him but he didn’t show up,his phone was off and I couldn’t get throu-gh to Gina, I guess he didn’t come home. Sitting up, I ru-b my eyes and place my phone to my ear.
‘’Hello.’’
‘’Linda Zimba?’’
‘’This is she, how can I help you?’’
‘’Cedrick on the line, I am sure you don’t know who I am but I have some information that could be of interest to you, it has to do with your fiancé Gabriel.’’
SO Gabriel moved in with me two months ago and we got engaged a couple of weeks ago. Preparations for the wedding are actually un-derway. We will be getting married soon. Gabriel wanted us to wait a bit before tying the knot but I don’t have the time to wait. My biological clock is ticking, I want to get married and start a family as soon as possible.
My heart races, ‘’Is Gabriel okay? Did anything happen to him?’’
He laughs, ‘’Gabriel is fine and nothing has happened to him.’’
‘’So what is this about?’’
‘’Gabriel has been cheating on you?’’
‘’Excuse me? What do you mean Gabriel is cheating on me? Is this some form of a joke or something?’’
‘’I know that Gabriel didn’t sleep home last night, he went out with his girlfriend and sister last night and they sle-pt at her house.’’
‘’Are you serious with what you are saying?’’
‘’Yes, I can s£nd you the address of his girlfriend’s house. If you go there now you will find him and Gina there. That man has been cheating on you all along with different women, this is what he does- he meets women and acts like he loves them but in actual s-en-se he just uses them for their money.’’
‘’Are you serious what you are saying?’’ Hatred and anger begins to boil around my heart and I can almost feel it ha-rd en.
‘’I will s£nd you the address right away.’’
‘’Thank you but what’s your interest in all this?’’
‘’I am just a good citizen looking out for you, I have daughters as well and I wouldn’t want them to go throu-gh what Cedrick is ma-king you go throu-gh.’’
Then he ends the call and s£nds me Gabriel’s location and videos of him, Gina and some woman from the club- must I mention that Gabriel and that woman look so cozy together, laughing, drinking, k!ss!ngand chatting? Closing my eyes briefly, I take a de-ep breath then I get out of be-d and head to the bathroom. Taking a cold short shower, I get dressed quic-kly, put my gun into my h!ppocket and head out.
Several thoughts run throu-gh my mind as I drive towards the location that Cedrick s£nt me, the thought of Gabriel being with another woman s£nds chills down my spine, despite what my eyes have seen, my heart is still in denial. I told Gabriel I don’t take cheating lightly- they should be an explanation to all this.
An hour later, I park a distance away from the woman’s house and get out of the car. Pushing the door open, I head for the front door and knock. I wait before a young woman dressed in a maid’s uniform opens the door and holds it open, obviously waiting for me to introduce myself, eyeing her from head to toe, I push her aside and march in.
‘’Madam!’’ She calls after me but I ignore her and head for the stairs.
I open the first door and find it empty. When I open the next one, Gina is fast asleep with a man next to her, cl!çk!ng my ton-gue, I open the other room and my heart sinks.
– ~TELL ME LIES~
Chapter 33
‘’You can’t do ugly things to people and expect to live a beautiful life.’’
I open another room and my heart sinks at the sight before me. Gabriel is fast asleep fully n-ked with an equally n-ked woman fast asleep in his arms. For a moment there I stare at the pair and as I do that, I feel a familiar pain I had felt when Jimmy cheated on me with my best friend, the pain I felt when I walked in on them having S-x. Jimmy was the first man I ever loved but he entirely betrayed me. We d@t£d for years and were about to get married when I found out he and my best friend were having an affair behind my back.
A week later those two were found dead in different locations, it’s been a couple of years and no one knows who killed them, I don’t think they will ever know. I was a suspect in their case but due to lack of evidence, I was written off the list. I told Gabriel I don’t take cheating lightly, he should have listened to me, I love this man and I have done the very best to be a good woman to him, I don’t know why he chose to pl@yme like this.
pu-lling the gun out of my pocket, I aim it at Gabriel then I shout his name at the t©p of my voice- both he and his p@rtner awaken with a start and look around the room.
‘’Babe? Linda? It’s not what you think it is,’’ he quic-kly pushes the woman aside.
‘’So you thought you would pl@yme? It’s always been about the money? This is what you and Gina do? Gabriel I trusted you, I gave you my heart, b©dy and soul, I took care of all your nee-ds- financially inclusive and this is how you choose to repay me?’’
‘’What are you doing with that gun? plea-se drop it, I can explain.’’
‘’I told you, I don’t take cheating lightly, I warned you.’’
He gets out of the be-d and tries to get close, ‘’don’t you dare come near me, stay right where you are!’’ I warn.
He gr-abs a be-d sheet and wra-ps it around himself.
‘’But you said you were single!’’ The girl says and I shoot her a serious look before warning her to shut up before I b!ow off her br@ins, she instantly keeps quiet.
‘’Do you have any last words? I ask.
‘’I am sorry babe, I didn’t mean to cheat on you.’’
‘’Oh! So you cheated on me?’’
‘’I do love you Linda, I don’t know what got into my mind. This woman here means nothing to me, I just picked her up from the night club and–.’’
‘’Gabriel!’’ the woman angrily stares at him.
‘’Shut up Shazzy! Shut up, now is not the time,’’ Gabriel says to her.
‘’Do you have any last words?’’ I ask again.
‘’Babe you don’t have to do this. Give me a second chance.’’
I smile, ‘’Men like you don’t deserve second chances,’’ I respond pressing the trigger, the two sh0ts sound almost as one- the first gets throu-gh to the woman’s arm and the second shoots throu-gh Gabriel’s abd0m£n and he instantly falls to the ground.
‘’What is going on here?’’ Gina asks, rushing into the room.
‘’Gabriel!’’ she yells when she notices him bleeding on the floor.
‘’Linda, what have you done?’’
‘’I could shoot you too right now but I won’t, your brother’s death will be punishment enough for everything that you have done to me and the other women you have duped.’’
She begins to cry, ‘’Gabriel plea-se don’t leave me.’’
‘’I hope he rots in hell,’’ I laugh before I walk out. Once I leave that house, I drive straight to the police station and report myself. I really have nothing to lose, I am glad I did what I did. I hope Gabriel dies, men like him don’t deserve to be alive. ‘’This is for all the women he has ever duped and lied too.’’
*
‘’What time will the doctors give us any information?’’ I ask George, George is the man I was in be-d with, he and I have been d@t!ngfor some time now. He drove us to the hospital after Linda sh0t my brother and Shazzy. Shazzy is doing much better at the moment but Gabriel has been in the ER for the last couple of hours. I have been restlessly pacing the hallway back and forth waiting for news from the doctors but to no avail.
‘’Be patient babe, let the doctors do what they can.’’
‘’Do you think he will survive? He lost a lot of blood before we brou-ght him here.’’
‘’He will survive, your brother is strong.’’
‘’I don’t know what I will do if I lose him, Gabriel is all I have. I swear I will make sure Linda pays for what she has done.’’
‘’The doctors are doing everything they can for him, he will get throu-gh this.’’
‘’I am so scared.’’
He is about to respond when one of the doctors walks out.
‘’Gabriel?’’
‘’I am his sister,’’ I say, rushing towards him.
The doctor stares at me with a pained expression and my heart sinks. He is gone, I can feel it, this doctor is about to deliver some bad news to us.
‘’Doctor how is he doing?’’ George asks.
‘’I am sorry, we did everything we could but he didn’t make it.’’
‘’Doctor! What did you just say?’’
‘’Your brother is dead,’’ he responds.
‘’Doctor you are lying.’’
‘’I am sorry for your loss,’’ he pats my shoulder.
‘’I am sorry babe,’’ George says.
I stare at him confused before reality hits in and I sink to the ground and begin to wail.
*
Tbc