Chapter 14 Vera's story

• ~ MISHKA~
• I can’t even imagine, what pain she must have gone through, when her husband brought his girlfriend, when she found his girlfriend was pregnant, and when she witnessed her son calling another woman “mother”
• How can someone hurt themselves so much to save someone’s house? How can she leave her child, whom she carried inside her for nine months? I didn’t realize I was crying the whole time while listening about Aunt Vera. Dadu wiped my tears with his thumb and smiled sadly.
• “What happened after that? Did she die?” I asked, fearing his answer.
• Leo looked down, and taking a deep breath, he replied,
• Soon the ambulance arrived, and we took her to the hospital. Because of excessive bleeding, doctors performed immediate surgery. We were waiting outside the operation theatre when a nurse came from inside and gave us a letter that Vera was clutching in her hand tightly before going unconscious. I opened the letter with my shaky hands.
• “What was written in the letter?” Mishka asked, looking at Leo nervously, and her question brought back all the painful memories.
• Dear Mom & Dad,
• If you are reading this letter, then I am sure I am no more in this world anymore, but before going, I would like to thank you for bringing an orphan like me to your home and loving me like your own daughter. I know the word thank you is just not enough for all the things that you have done for me, but I have nothing more to offer.
• The day I married Luke, I loved him from all my heart but as you know I have always been unlucky, I couldn’t make Luke fall for me, but trust me, I really tried hard to win his heart but it seems I failed. I have no complaints against Luke. I want him to marry the person he always loved, and lead a beautiful life ahead.
• But it really hurts…. I tried to ignore Luke and Jennifer’s lovey-dovey acts, but it left wounds inside me. Day by day, it was getting very hard for me to encounter their romance, but I still tried to remain unaffected.
• The thought of leaving Chris was breaking me from inside. I killed my motherly feeling for Chris. I behaved like a horrible stepmother to him because I wanted him to hate me and accept Jennifer as his mother, and today he did call her mother. I thought I will be fine with time, but my tears are just not stopping while writing this letter.
• I want to take Chris away with me, but I know I cannot give him the life he deserves as the heir of Knights, and I don’t want to snatch his entire family from him, just because of his parents. My baby is very innocent. He understands the value of family, and it’s unfair to him to live like an orphan like I lived all my life.
• I wanted to do so many things with him, I wanted to see him growing up and turning into a good-looking guy. I wanted to go to Disney land with him, I wanted to see him wearing a graduation cap, I wanted to see him getting married, but sadly, my story has not a happy ending.
• I still love Luke, but I don’t trust him with my innocent child. If he can forget his wedding vows, his wife, then I am sure he can forget his son, too. That’s why I am giving Christian’s responsibility to both of you. I don’t have to say this, but still, please take good care of him for me. It’s my last wish.
• Please don’t let Chris ever know what happened to me. I don’t want him to hate his father because his father is his role model. Let him hate me as much as he wants. That’s the only way he will be able to live his life happily.
• Lastly, I want no one to be blamed for my suicide. It was my decision, and no one forced me.
• Mom, Dad, I love both of you. If I get a chance to be born again, I would like to be your daughter.
• I love my Chris, but please don’t let him know this.
• Yours Forever,
• Vera
• I and rosella were crying while reading her letter when the door of the operation theatre burst open and the doctor came running out in our direction. I wiped my tears. “How is she?” I asked in a panic.
• “She is in a coma and we don’t know when she will wake up, and we are extremely sorry to inform you, but we couldn’t save the baby.” The doctor said, pursing his lips.
• I looked at him in pure horror. “Baby? Was she pregnant?”
• “Yes, Mrs. Knight was two months pregnant, you didn’t know?” He asked, and I shook my head in no.
• Luke running in our direction and as soon as he reached, I slapped him right across the face and threw the letter on his face. As soon as he started reading, he turned pale, and the letter fell from his hand.
• I raised my finger at him. “You are a killer. You killed her and your unborn child. Now go from here before I kill you from my bare hands.” I roared, and he left quietly without uttering a single word.
• After a few days, doctors allowed us to meet Vera, but when we entered her room. She was lying on the bed like a dead corpse with her eyes wide open, looking at the ceiling with an oxygen mask on her mouth.
• Looking at her in that state broke our hearts, but we could not do anything. According to doctors, she was not responding to the medicines like she wanted to die, but God was more stubborn than her. The more she wanted to die, the more god wanted her to live.
• After a few years, all her internal organs recovered gradually and doctors said that she is completely fine but she is still like a corpse. She has completely closed herself from the outer world. She can see and listen, but she can’t speak or move. So, the answer to your question is, “Yes, Vera is still very much alive but like a corpse.”
• ~ MISHKA ~
• I swallowed the lump forming in my throat. Hearing a story where nothing good happened to the main lead is really depressing. I have only seen someone as selfless as Aunt Vera in television serials and movies. How can God be so cruel?
• “Where is she right now?” I asked Dadu, removing my tears.
• “She is in the west wing of the mansion.” He answered, looking up at me.
• “I want to meet her. Can I?” I asked.
• “Sure. No one has gone to meet her in so many years except me, Rony and Rose, so I think she will be happy to see you,” Dadu said, and I looked at him, furrowing my eyebrows.
• “Chris never went to meet his mother in all these years?” I asked.
• “No, he absolutely hates her. He didn’t want to see her,” Dadu said, and I nodded my head. “Anyway, I will take you to her tomorrow morning,”
• “Sir, we have reached.” The driver said, cutting off our conversation.
• “Mishka, you go inside. I need to talk about something important with Pasha.” Dadu said, and I nodded my head, leaving them alone in the car.
• ~ Leo ~
• “What happened, Pasha? You were so quiet during the entire ride?” I asked.
• “Nothing, I was just thinking.” He replied, pursing his lips.
• “About what?” I asked, raising my eyebrows.
• “I don’t know, Leo. I mean, I knew Vera’s story, but listening to it again today brought back all the old memories.” He paused. “I hope we are not ruining another innocent soul. I hope the past will not repeat itself.” He said, and I froze when his words clearly registered in my mind.
• I looked at Mishka’s slowly disappearing figure, “I won’t let Chris ruin Mishka. I won’t let this story repeat itself!”