Chapter 49

Author's POV

Nelly clenched her hand into a fist as she watched Max pull Priscilla into his arms. He had given her everything in their marriage, but he was never there for her. Max was always at the office, and even when he came home tired, he would go straight to bed without a word to her. He never seemed to know whether she was happy or sad. Yet, here he was, pleading with a street kid not to be sad because she was pregnant. Why didn't he care about her too? Maybe if he had loved her enough, she would have been faithful. But now, everything is ruined. Tears streamed down her face. She had lost it all.

Feeling the pain of her injuries, she left the garden and headed back to the garage where she had already washed four cars, with five more to go. Despite her exhaustion, hunger, and drowsiness, she was determined to complete the task. Max's earlier outburst at the office had humiliated her in front of her colleagues, and she didn't want to give him any more reason to yell at her. She regretted being late in the first place.

In an instant, her life took a drastic turn for the worse. She found herself without parents, as her mother was the mistress of a wealthy man who passed away shortly after giving birth to her. Her father, unwilling to acknowledge her as his own due to her illegitimate status, left her to grow up in an orphanage. However, she persevered and eventually achieved success as a model. Unfortunately, her foolishness led her to quit her job upon marrying a wealthy man. Now, she faced a dire situation with nowhere to turn, no employment, and no financial resources. Regrettably, she had no choice but to endure her circumstances.

Nelly's phone rang from her pocket, snapping her out of her daze. She wiped her tears before taking out her phone. A bitter smile spread across her lips when she saw who the caller ID was. Dave, of all people, was calling her. She didn't want to answer at first but decided to hear what he had to say. Nelly pressed the green button on her phone before pressing it against her ear.

"Hi Nelly, how are you?" Dave asked. His tone was unreadable, different from before. Nelly swallowed hard, her stomach tightening.

"I'm glad that I'm still alive," Nelly mumbled, trying to control her cracking voice.

"Nelly, I need you to help me with something. I promise you, once my plan works out, we will be together with everything we need," Dave said. More tears welled up in Nelly's eyes. He didn't care about her at all.

"What do you want?" Nelly asked, trying hard to control her emotions.

"Max had a soft spot for that little girlfriend of his. I want you to help me kidnap her on the day of the board meeting. I want to make sure that Max won't be appointed as a new chairman," Dave said.

Nelly opened her mouth to say something, but no words came out. The memories of Priscilla helping her the other day flashed in her mind. Yes, she hated her. But that girl had saved her life. She defended her in front of Max. How could she help Dave? What if he wanted to do something bad with her? She wouldn't be able to live knowing that she was the reason for whatever might happen to her after she had saved her life.

"Nelly, are you still there?" Dave asked, snapping Nelly out of her thoughts. Dave didn't care about her, so why should she bother to help him?

"I can't. Don't ever call me again," Nelly said and hung up the phone. She rested her head against the walls of the garage, tears streaming from her eyes.

"Hi," Nelly was startled and jumped in fear.

"Relax, it's me," Priscilla said with a small smile.

"What do you want?" Nelly asked, wiping her tears with her hand.

"I'm here to help you," Priscilla said. She walked to one of the cars and sat on the boot. "Nelly, I know that you are older than me, but there's something I want to tell you. Firstly, don't let anyone else become the source of your happiness. Know how to make yourself happy without anyone in your life because if you depend on someone to make you happy, one day they will leave, and you will be left alone crying. Secondly, don't ever depend on someone else's money. Work hard, make your own money, and let a rich man become a bonus in your life. I've never been in a relationship. I don't know how you are feeling right now, but there's one thing I know: the person you are crying for right now is not worth it," Priscilla said calmly. After Max had gone to sleep, she sneaked out of that room. She had seen Nelly looking at them earlier, so she decided to talk to her.

Nelly wiped her tears and asked Priscilla, "You want to rub salt in my wounded heart, don't you?"

Priscilla replied, "Not at all. I have a strange way of showing my love to people. If you haven't received an insult, a punch on the face, or a twist of the hand from me, then just know I don't care about you. But if you receive one of those, just know that I care about you. I honestly liked you from the first day I saw you, but I hid it behind my rude behavior. I'm here to help you escape from here."

Nelly's eyes widened in shock. She couldn't believe her ears.

" This is the money I won from the work competition and my two months' salary totaled about R10,000. Please find a place to stay where Max won't be able to locate you. I know you are educated, so please wipe your tears, put on your makeup, and start looking for a job. Begin your life anew with your baby. Remember, you don't need a man to be happy. Just focus on making yourself happy.

I understand that you may think I'm helping you just so I can have your babies to myself, but that's not the case. I simply cannot stand to see anyone be abused or bullied, which is why I want to help you. You deserve to be happy, too. "

Priscilla handed over an envelope from her pocket, and Nelly took it, her hands shaking. Priscilla was the last person she expected to help her, and she felt guilty for ever thinking poorly of her. She realized that Priscilla was genuine and truly wanted to help her. Priscilla was indeed a good person.

"Thank you so much. I don't even know how to repay this!" Nelly said between her sobs. She didn't expect this at all. She thought that everything was over and she was going to suffer for the rest of her life.

"Stop thanking me now. You should go while everyone is still sleeping," joked Priscilla.

"But how am I going to leave?" asked Nelly. All the guards were wide awake at this time.

"You will have to jump off the walls. I will help you," replied Priscilla. Nelly's stomach churned. She had never jumped from such a great height before. Priscilla sensed her uneasiness.

"Don't worry. I will help you. Come on, let's go," Priscilla said as she started making her way out, with Nelly following her.

After making sure no one was watching, Priscilla helped Nelly climb over the walls until she reached the top.

"May God bless you, Priscilla. You've done a great favor today, and I can't even repay you. Thank you," Nelly said. Priscilla smiled at her.

"Take care of yourself," Priscilla said. Nelly, startled, jumped to the other side of the wall. She thought she was going to fall, but unexpectedly, her feet touched the ground. Priscilla was her angel sent from heaven. Nelly didn't know how to repay her for what she had done for her. Without looking back, Nelly started running away from Manh Villa. God had given her a second chance to start her life afresh.