Moments That Change Lives

“What are you doing in my room? Answer me April! And what’s that shirt doing in your hands, huh? Are you crazy or what?” Mira couldn’t stop herself. One thing was to help an ill person and completely the other to put up with an ex-girlfriend’s mad actions.

“Mira?” April jumped from the bed. “This is my room! I slept here! Do you know how I cuddled with Henry in this bed…”

“Stop it! How dare you? After everything I’ve done for you. I don’t deserve this…” Mira shouted.

“The world is full of injustice, little whinnying girl. Like the bas*ard you carry in your belly…”

“Don’t ever…” Mira raised her hand.

“What? You’ll tell me that I don’t have the right to carry Henry’s child? Why should it be you? When I love him so much!” April approached her hysterically waving her arms around her head.

“You’re mental! And to think that I confronted Henry to get you here. I’ll never learn, will I? I want you out of this house. I don’t care about anything anymore. Ill people lie in the hospital not in mansions.” Mira spoke, fury evaporating from her.

“Ouch… Look who became the mistress of the house. You think I don’t know…” April threw the lamp from the nightstand onto the wall. “That he picked you up from a deserted rainforest and showed you what a man looked like…”

“OUT!” Mira screamed. “Get your pathetic ass out of my house. Yes! This is my house now. Mine and my son’s. Henry’s son! Better remember that. We love each other, April. The sooner you accept that the better it’ll be for your poor soul. You know what he told me when we met. That he was happy to finally escape the relationship with a bi*ch that kept him chained for so long. That’s what you are to him, dear. A bi*ch! Nothing more!”

“Then why does he give presents to a bi*ch, huh?” April roared. “Why? He came in my room the other day and left me this.” She pulled a necklace from her pocket. It had a wild rose as a pendant and that made Mira’s blood freeze in her veins. No. It wasn’t possible. The Henry she knew would never do that. But… A wild rose… It was their inner joke. Their thing. How dare he?

“You’re lying!” Mira scowled at her.

April laughed evilly. “You are convinced of that? You think that Henry’s so in love with you that he won’t look at another woman. You’re new to this, dove. We’ve been together for three years and that’s not something you forget easily.”

What if she was right? What if…? Mira didn’t even want to consider it but the facts were right before her eyes. And a few days ago she remembered spending the night alone as Henry supposedly had had some work to do in his study.

“You’re so naive.” April didn’t stop. “He wants the baby not you!”

Mira ran out of the room slamming the door as hard as she could behind her. She leaned against the cold wall in the corridor and took a deep breath. Her stomach was going wild and she felt dizzy. It was impossible. No. She couldn’t handle another disappointment. No. She couldn’t live through another destiny’s game. No. She couldn’t accept that her life was a lie once again.

“Welcome, sir!”

She heard Alicia’s voice from downstairs and readied herself. Henry’s fast footsteps reached the second floor in seconds and he stood before her all smiling. “There’s the most precious thing in my life!” He exclaimed cheerfully leaning to kiss her but she turned her head away.

“Me or the baby? Who’s the precious thing?” Mira coldly asked.

“Honey… What happened now?”

“Can we talk?” Without waiting for his answer Mira led the way to his study at the end of the corridor and once he entered, she shut the door.

“Will you tell me what’s up or…?” Henry sounded confused. That damn womanizer. He always knew how to trick her.

“I should’ve known from the rainforest. A man like that doesn’t change. A man who wanted to lie with me on a Goddamn tour even though he barely knew me…”

“Whoa, whoa! Don’t go down a road you’ll regret, Mira! What do you want to say? I… I don’t understand anything.” He mumbled coming closer but she pushed him away.

“Maybe this’ll help you! I know everything! I know about you and April!”

“Me and April?”

“Don’t act stupid! I know you gave her the bloody necklace…” She couldn’t stop the tears from rolling down her face. “With a wild rose… How could you, huh? Lie to me, to my face while screwing your ex next to my room.” Her whole face was burning.

“You’re both mental. MENTAL! Are you aware of your words? Do you know what you just said? I-I never thought that you were that kind of woman…”

“You have them sorted out, don’t you? The stupid Mira who’ll carry my child, the sexy April, the clever who-knows-what-girl!” Mira went over the edge, jealousy and fury clouding her eyes.

Henry went ablaze by her words, too. He hit the desk with his fist. “You disappointed me, Mira! Fully! I… No, I won’t even bother to explain it to you. I see you have everything sorted out! Bravo! You… I never expected this of you…” He lowered down his look devastated. That made Mira stop a little.

“You brought her here and now you blame me for a thing I couldn’t possibly do! You know what? I don’t care anymore. Do as you wish! To hell with the both of you!” He left the mansion with a loud boom of the entrance door while Mira fell on the floor sobbing. It was truly a miracle how little was needed for a whole life to tumble down.

*****

Henry Masters drove the jeep faster than ever before until all sweaty he hit the brakes at a clearing in the middle of the mountain surrounding the city. Still in disbelief, he was panting, Mira’s words a sharp spear stabbed in his heart. The woman of his life. The one he would die for. The mother of his only child had said all those awful things to him. She didn’t trust him at all since she had been able to accuse him of adultery just like that.

He could guess that April filled her head with that nonsense but still he never expected to see the disbelieving look in her eyes. If only she had known that he had bought that necklace for her. To surprise her on their anniversary. And damn April must have stolen it. He always knew that it was the worst idea to let her in his life again but then again he did it for Mira. The same Mira who marked him as an adulterer a few hours back.

The phone buzzing like crazy in his pocket brought him back to reality. The name of the private investigator that he had hired to follow April as he had never trusted her, appeared on the screen.

“Yes? Did you find anything?”

The voice on the other side sounded distressed. “Sir… I have very bad news!”