Our Wicked Lies by Gledé Kabongo (books for new readers TXT) 📕

“It’s the truth.”

A heavy weight rested on his chest. He couldn’t quite name it, but it sent chills all over his body. He wished time could speed up so this awful night would end quickly. But that would make him a coward, running from the muddled chaos of his life. Eliot was no coward. He would face the music.

“Well, you’re consistent. I give you points for that,” Alicia said coolly.

“What does that mean?”

“It means, Eliot, that I can no longer trust a man who is able to look me straight in the eyes and lie to me with no conscience,” she shouted, pointing an accusing finger at him. “That’s what it means. I asked you before, and you lied. And I’ve just given you another chance, but no. Faith is not some random woman who’s obsessed with you. It’s Kat who’s obsessed with you, and you with her.”

He gulped. Her words were the equivalent of being throat-punched by a raging bull. He slowly backed away from her to put some distance between them. He yanked his tie off completely and let it slide to the floor.

“Are you going to deny it?” she challenged. She got up from the rocking chair and took a few paces toward him. She shot him a venomous glare.

“Are you going to deny that you aborted my son?” he shot back.

She stumbled backward. Her face went pale, as though someone had just danced on her grave. Her mouth fell open, then drew into a tight line.

“So, we’re comparing sins? Is that where we are now, Eliot?” Uncertainty rang in her voice.

“You tell me. My perfect, shy, sweet wife, who had my child butchered by Jack Witherspoon, passed it off as a miscarriage, and then watched me mourn his loss. Now who’s diabolical, Alicia?”

“How dare you?” she said between uneven breaths. “You know nothing. I didn’t want to come back after it happened. I wanted to die, so I could be with him and tell him how sorry I was. I still miss him, every day.”

She collapsed back into the rocking chair. She appeared frail and helpless, her arms wrapped around her body as if holding it together.

Eliot didn’t understand his emotions. He was frothing with grief, fury, pain, and yet, he wanted to cradle her in his arms like he had done during those dark days after their loss. How was it possible to feel compassion for someone he hated so much in that moment?

And yet, part of him wanted her punished. She had denied him his son. She had gone behind his back and consulted a divorce lawyer. She’d forced him to confront the harsh reality that his perfect angel was capable of indescribable treachery.

“How convenient that your guilty conscience was absent before you made the decision, before you walked into Jack’s office and had him rip our child from your womb.”

“Stop it! Stop it!” She covered her ears and rocked back and forth.

His words had hit their mark. He wanted her to suffer, to feel his pain, to feel the weight of what she had done and have it haunt her for the rest of her life. She had put it behind her. He would make sure she never forgot.

“Answer me, Alicia.” He took slow steps toward her, once more. “Why did you get rid of our son and lie about it? We could afford more children. We could have hired an army of nannies if that’s what you needed. Lily and Marston were already in their teens. They didn’t need constant attention or supervision. You knew how happy it made me that we were having a boy.”

Her entire body shook. She wept loudly and noisily. But he would not rest until he got a satisfactory answer. He walked over to the nightstand, grabbed a box of tissues, and thrust them at her. He waited while she wiped her tears, got her breathing under control, and calmed down.

She clutched the box of tissues on her lap. “I was scared of you. You were turning into a jackass. I saw what happened to Joan after she and Kevin divorced. I couldn’t go through that.”

His head flinched back slightly. He swallowed several times. “I scared you? Joan and Kevin? Kevin moved out of state years ago, and Joan remarried. You’re not making any sense, Alicia.”

She took a long deep breath, as if gathering the courage and strength to speak. Finally, she said, “During the time leading up to the pregnancy and even afterward, you treated me like a second-class citizen. I could have your babies, cook your meals, and keep an immaculate home for you, but I was not your equal.

“The way you dismissed my opinions when I tried to engage in conversation with you and your friends or colleagues was humiliating. And the way you would answer me when I asked you when you would be returning from a business trip was hurtful. ‘I’ll get back when I get back’ you used to say.”

He slipped his hands into his pockets and leaned up against the dresser. He did not like where this was headed. But he’d asked her to explain why she had aborted his son, so he had no choice but to listen to her side of things, no matter how ugly it made him look or feel.

“You had all the power,” she continued. “Then I panicked when I heard about Joan and Kevin. You and Kevin were close back then. He used his law degree to exert power and control over Joan. Like me, she had no college education to fall back on, or anything. He convinced a judge to cut child support in half and refused to pay alimony for no other reason than to spite Joan. She had three little kids to take care of. His children. He didn’t care, though.”

She started weeping again. Guilt and remorse were etched all over her face. She shifted about in the rocking chair