The Tyrant's Wife

290 One last chance

“You will not change a single thing by throwing a tantrum. Let’s talk about it and find a solution. Come here.” Alyssa grabbed her hand in vain and didn’t give up when she couldn’t get the woman to stop. “Angela, the most important person here is Rosaly. If you are rash...”

“I know what’s best for my daughter, Alyssa. Unlike you, I still have power over my child. I have no daughter-in-law causing chaos and trying to ruin our relationship. We are on different boats.” She left after letting Alyssa know she knew what she was doing.

“Damn it.” Alyssa cursed under her breath. Angela was harder to deal with now than she was before. Not that she could be blamed. She had received all sorts of colorful promises about being able to get back together with Desmond if she let him know they had a daughter together. Not only had that failed, but her daughter had been taken away too.

She stayed in the restaurant for a while longer, contemplating her next move. Pushing Angela was out of question. If she pushed too hard, she might end up turning Angela into a foe instead of a friend and if she chose to approach her gently, that may take ages.

“Are you still thinking of what to do?” A haunting voice pulled her out of her thoughts moments before her gaze fell on the woman who had just made her way over to her and was now sitting on the chair that Angela was on a moment ago.

“Ximena.” Her breath quickened.

“Don’t be scared, dear Alyssa. I don’t plan to do anything to you, really. Unless, of course, the little meeting you had with Angela a moment ago had something to do with hurting my best friend.”

“No. Of course not.” Alyssa knew she was not being believable so she sighed. “Fine, it was about her. But now that you are here, I think we might come to some agreement on friendly grounds.”

Ximena laughed with a snort and covered her mouth with the back of her hand. “Pardon me. Am I to do anything on a friendly note? Me?”

.....

Now that she put it that way, Alyssa realized she was asking for the impossible. If there was any reason why Zaria and Ximena were friends, it was probably because Ximena was everything like Lucy. Shrewd, rutheless and a lone wolf. She would only make an ally if the benefit of it greatly outdid those of being on her own.

“Think about it.” Her head spun as she tried to come up with something on the spot. “I have nothing against Zaria as a person. To be quite honest, she is a smart woman. She is also carrying my grandchild. If I hurt her, not only would I lose the only chance to reconcile with my son, but I would also miss out on my second grandchild.”

“So who is your real enemy, Alyssa?” Ximena was not interested in her beating around the bush.

“Lucy.” She gritted the name out venomously. “Everyone hates that woman.”

“Is that so? You hated Zaria ages before you found out she is Lucy’s daughter.” Ximena questioned.

“She looks so much like Lucy, doesn’t she? She kept reminding me of her but that’s besides the point.” She sipped her tea. “Ximena, I was like you years ago. A young woman with dreams and ambition. I did my best to fulfill them, only for them to be crashed like they were nothing. Lucy has damaged many families all in the name of revenge. She has this void in her heart that can perhaps only be filled if she successfully destroys every opulent family in Imperium. Someone has to stop her before she ruins us all.”

Ximena listened on curiously and raised a brow. “You think one woman would go against an entire country and win.” She burst into laughter. “Seriously, Alyssa. Not even the president’s wife would achieve such a feat.”

Hearing her words, Alyssa knew no amount of convincing would get Ximena on her side. She rested her elbow on the table to inch closer to the woman. “All you saw was Angela and I having a meeting. You could have left immediately but you didn’t. What do you want?”

“Why is Angela Aguilar still alive? I want to know that, as well as the reason why you are still alive.” Ximena insinuated with a gentle smile. “I should have killed you ages ago. I could do it now.”

“You will go to prison.” Alyssa warned, but fear rose in the pits of her stomach. This woman was a psycho. Hell knew she could do it and not even the bars of prison would make her regret it.

“I won’t have to, if you come to your senses.” She picked a cookie out of Alyssa’s tray and took a tiny bite. “You know, my parents aren’t really my parents. I wouldn’t call them anything but a sperm donor married to his corresponding egg donor. They had me but they have never been my parents.”

Alyssa listened with horror. Why was this about her parents? Yet when she caught Ximena’s expression, her heart broke.

“I was in the choir when I was little and we would have performances and all the parents in school would be invited. Every single time when it ended, I would look in the crowd and Uncle Theo would be there, cheering me on like I’m his daughter. He would take me and Zaria out for ice cream all so I would forget that the man who should have been there cheering me is my father.”

She forced a laugh. “And every night there was a thunderstorm, he would read me stories over the house telephone so I could get to sleep again. It never occured to me that I could have knocked on my parents’ door. My brain was wired to call him because my own father didn’t even know I had trouble sleeping. He didn’t know I was scared of thunderstorms when Uncle Theo started following the weather forecast just so he would know when to have Zaria call me for a sleepover.”

“I’m so...” Alyssa started speaking, only for Ximena to shush her.

“Don’t. It doesn’t matter. I’m a grown up woman now. I will get married and my husband will take over where my father didn’t do his job, right? If I’m scared he can read me. And when I have kids, I will have to learn on the spot how to be a mother since I had no example to learn from.”

Ximena then smiled to push it all down. “He never says it to anyone but I know a broken child when I see one-even in his adulthood. Your son needed you, Alyssa. You were meant to guide him into the world but instead, you abandoned him. And now that he found his own way, you want to take away the one thing that matters to him. Have you no heart?”

“Don’t you make assumptions about things you don’t know.” Alyssa snapped. “I’m sorry you felt that way growing up but my son always had us. We were there for him.”

“Yet he still ended up finding comfort in anything and anyone but his parents. Have you ever tried to find out how he truly felt?” She shrugged when Alyssa remained silent. “I thought so. You only ever care about you and the kind of flattery you would receive from everyone for mothering the smartest child.”

She walked out of the café, leaving Alyssa confused and deep in thoughts. She had not intended to come back in this manner. When she noticed a disguised woman and recognized her as Angela from her silhouette, she had wanted to finish the scheming duo. What had started as an interrogation had ended as her pouring her heart out over matters she thought she had long buried.

“I gave it my all, didn’t I?” She laughed to herself as she stared into the mirror. Her freshly washed face looked back at her, her eyes still slightly reddened. “This is your last chance, Alyssa. If after this you still don’t give up your stunts, don’t blame me if my knife accidentally slips and lands right through your heart.”

_____

AN

Do you think Alyssa could ever turn over a new life? If she can, does she deserve a second