True intentions

"What do you mean by Damien Jaeger deceived me into signing a contract?" I pulled Ella's hand to stop her from walking away. I had finally mustered up the courage to confront Damien Jaeger after deciding that I had been left in the dark for too long. As usual, Damien was nowhere to be found in the mansion, but I found the one who had confided the half truth to me.

"Tell me!" I snapped at her when I saw that she wasn't ready to talk.

"Why don't you go and ask Damien yourself?" She yelled back, yanking her hand free from my grip, "And stop bothering me, would you?!"

"Did you have any idea where Damien Jaeger went?" I asked when my eyes landed on the driver who had just walked into the mansion. He didn't need to answer my question as the person I was looking for revealed himself behind him.

"We need to talk!" I said. He was busy on his phone and he continued pressing his phone as if he had not heard me. My blood boiled in anger. I stroded towards him and yanked the phone from his hand, "Just who do you think you are, Damien Jaeger?!"

He stared at me in surprise. Then he quickly regained composure, "Give me back my phone, Mélie." He demanded in his usual tone of authority. Not today Damien.

"I want us to talk!" "And you are not getting your phone back until we do."

"Give me back my phone, Mélie." He repeated, sounding firmer than the last time. Oh, I couldn't care less anymore.

"Why? Why are you doing this? Why am I here? Why did we get married if you already had another woman with a 6 year old daughter?!" I was yelling at the top of my voice, "Tell me, Damien. Why are you doing this?!"

He didn't say anything. He was mute.

In spite of myself, I felt myself on the verge of breaking down but I tried to hold back the tears, "I didn't ask for any of this. You wanted to be close to your daughter, but you can't even be a good father to her."

My words must have hit as a pained look flashed on his face. One that disappeared as soon as it appeared. But still, he remained quiet.

"Talk to me, Damien, TALK TO ME!!" I yelled again, "And Ella said something about a contract."

He stared sharply at me, "What did Ella say?"

A dry laugh escaped my lips, "So you've found your tongue now, huh?" "What did she mean by you tricked me into signing a contract, Damien?"

He went quiet again. I waited for him to say something- anything at all. But he didn't, "You've taken this too far, Damien. I'm a person you know! With feelings."

Still, he remained indifferent. I ran out of the house, finally allowing the tears I had been fighting to rush down my eyes. Through blurry eyes, I sighted a woman standing near the door. I couldn't care about her. I ran to my car and removed the key from my pocket. I needed to get out of this house. I ignited my engine and attempted to make a reverse but stopped when I remembered that Darcy was still in the mansion. I killed the engine and got out to go bring my daughter. There was another surprise waiting for me inside the mansion.

My eyes were much clearer now. It was the woman I had seen earlier. She had black hair which was packed into a ponytail, making her head look a little too short for her long face which wore no make-up. Her eyes were dark brown in colour and melancholy. But they looked very tender and pretty. Her dress was a bright yellow, floral dress which she had topped off with a button up cardigan. There was a little girl beside her.

'Not another woman!' The voice in my head screamed, "Who are you?" I asked with a broken voice but she seemed too afraid to answer. She wasn't afraid. She was concerned.

Ella walked into the living room and sighted the woman with her child, "Well, well, well. Would you look at that. Another woman with another daughter." She remarked, "You women are really shameless, you know!"

The brightly coloured woman looked confused for a minute. She opened her mouth to speak but stopped when Damien Jaeger walked in and I stared at him in a state of helplessness. My eyes asked, 'another one?'

"Watch your mouth, Ella or I throw you out of my house." He said and Ella threw her head away with an attitude, "Natalie, you can make yourself comfortable, along with Kiki."

The woman he addressed as Natalie nodded her head without saying a word and walked past me and Ella who gave her deadly glares.

"Mélie, come with me."

"Why?"

"We need to talk." He gave a blank reply. Of course we needed to talk. I had told him so at the dinner table. I had also told him so a few minutes ago. But now, I didn't want to talk to him anymore. Instead, I wanted to get as far away from him as possible.

"No." I replied. He looked confused. I went on, "I'm not talking to you anymore. I don't want to hear anything you have to say because you are a liar and a deceiver!"

He rubbed his templates like I was a little girl who had refused to listen to her father. Without saying anything else, he dragged me by the hand, up the stairs to his room and I yelled and tried in vain, to free my wrist from his grip. Once in his room and with the door locked behind him, he realised the grip from my hand.

"What did you make me sign, Damien Jaeger?"

"A contract. A marriage agreement." He said.

"What was the agreement?"

"To be my wife." He said and waited patiently for my next question.

"Why?" I asked, fearing this final answer that was coming.

"To give me an heir."

My heart shattered into a billion pieces as he said those words.

"I'm sorry Mélie." He said. He had removed a file from the drawer and handed it to me. I slipped through the pages with shaky hands. It was all so clear; The marriage contract was for a period of 10 years which would only come to an end before the given time if I, Party A, gave him an heir. Before then, party A is to remain faithfully married to him and perform the role of a wife while he, Party B, would be obligated to the other mothers of his children who, Party B, can choose to produce his heir should party A refuse consent, in which case Party A would still remain married to him for the duration of 10 years.

Fresh tears poured from my eyes as I finished reading the contract. I didn't say anything else. I had gotten my answer and I was now ready to leave. He opened the door for me without me asking and I walked out of his room.

"Stacy. She will be here tomorrow." He said and closed the door. So there was another woman aside from these two. My entire being was shattered. I felt trapped. I felt helpless. I felt used. I dragged myself through the hall and flung open a random room. I needed a good place to cry.