Chapter 7! Events of the past!

"I had a good friend in college who was very smart and I always believed that she had what it takes to be the best lawyer our country has ever produced. Even internationally, she could find her standing when she graduates from College. Law Firms were fighting for her to join them even before she got to her final year and the Law School also proposed for her to stay on and lecture after graduation," With visible pride on her face, Trudy said "she was that smart. We were both very happy that she got all those opportunities when she was still just a student, but reality hit me right in the face when she had to drop out of school. Hmm!"

Trudy took in a deep breath and one could see her shoulders tremble due to suppressed sobs. Both father and daughter allowed her to vent her emotions without saying a word. The two only patted her back and her hand respectively. After settling her raging heart, Trudy continued "she had to marry an only child of an affluent business family to help her family tide through a huge financial crisis caused by a set-up. The parents loved her dearly, but being out of options, they accepted the offer from a family friend to marry her into the Gaya family." Rafaela became a shadow of her former cheerful and carefree self but braced herself for what was to come."

Turning to her daughter, Trudy returned the latter's pat with a firm squeeze, saying "one may think a young, beautiful and intelligent woman like Rafaela will have a happy marriage but the reality became a cruel one. Her husband had a fiancee he had to let go to marry her. The love for the fiancee turned to hatred for Rafaela who never had a moment of joy in her home."

"Intending to continue her education after delivering her first child, Rafaela was again hit with another blow when the child turned out to be a girl and the husband wouldn't even look at them because he needed an heir and not an heiress." At this point, Trudy could not control her emotions and broke down.

Jonathan hugged his wife tightly as Kimberley left to get a glass of warm water for her parents.

Returning with the tray in hand, Kimberley saw her exhausted mother resting her head on her father's shoulder. Handing a glass of water to each of them, she sat down with a glass for herself also. Bringing the glass to her lips, Jonathan helped Trudy drink from her cup while drinking what was left from the cup and placed it back on the tray.

Looking at their exchange, Kimberley felt warm and bitter at the same time. She was happy about her parents' love for each other, at the same time uncertain about her own future but her smile never left her face even though her heart was in turmoil.

Jonathan continued the story " the child turned out to be a girl who got despised by her father from birth. Rafaela then put it upon herself to have a male child for her husband at all costs. So a year later, she had another child and thankfully it happened to be a boy. Thinking her problems would be over, the child was diagnosed with autism at sixteen months which made Rafaela go into a sudden depression. "

Trudy added weakly "Rafaela never told me a thing about all her challenges in the Gaya family. Even her parents and in-laws were not privy to the treatment metered out to her by Esteban Gaya. The poor soul was still thinking about the peace the two families were enjoying."

Kimberley couldn't tell why she felt excited all of a sudden even though the story wasn't anything close to a happy one. She could only ask the mother about where the family was at the moment.

Trudy smiled sadly at Kimberley's question while responding "as we speak, the family but Rafaela are in Sacramento, California."

Realising she just asked a sensitive question, Kimberley was about comforting her mom when Trudy said coldly "Raffe could never take her own life. But she was murdered and made to look like a crazy housewife who took her own life out of frustration"

It was now clear to Kimberley why her mother was terribly against her marriage with Jeremy Pope. She could only resolve in her heart to have a good talk with Jeremy and if possible, a prenuptial agreement before moving further with her plans. The difference here is that Jeremy is the one with the proposition and no one is forcing him into it.

As the family of three fell into silence, each with their thoughts, Kimberley had a strange and daring thought in mind at the moment "curing autism" Jonathan heard her mumbling something and only thought she was affected by the tragic story but she suddenly asked no one in particular "is there a way to get in touch with the Gaya family?"

...

Somewhere in Sacramento, California, Esteban sat at the foot of Filipe's bed while stroking his head as he lay sleeping on his laps. He was in deep thought as he remembered the doctor's diagnosis and the cause of Filipe's autism.

Just like yesterday, he could still hear the doctor's clear voice as he said "due to the two pregnancies being less than a year apart, your wife developed certain complications that led to the child being preterm. All the above reasons caused the baby to develop Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). We also noticed that your wife's mental state was not stable. Mr Gaya, could you tell me if your family is going through anything peculiar at the moment?"

He remembers vividly how he was nearly involved in a fatal accident after walking out the doors of the hospital where he drove around aimlessly, ridden with self-guilt and indignation. From then on, Esteban even avoided Rafaela and their children more than before.

He thought that the family will be happier and more cheerful with him out of the way, never being aware of the huge gap his absence created. He thought Rafaela could also recover without his presence since the doctor prompted him to make Rafaela stay out of contact with anything causing her pain"

Looking at his sleeping son, Esteban could not help the tears falling down his cheeks. He is reminded daily of what a jerk he had been for causing a cheerful woman to drown in depression and rendering his son sick without giving him the normal childhood every other child deserves.

More Chapters Ahead...