The thick skin of betrayal

"Ma'am, please wait! You cannot enter," the maid attempted to obstruct Natasha from entering the house, but her determination prevailed.

"Out of my way, now! Move!" Natasha bellowed with fury.

"Mr. Mervick is not present, ma'am. He has not yet returned from his trip. Please, listen to me," the maid cried out, her voice trembling and betraying that she was withholding information and Natasha was determined to uncover the truth.

For days, her fiancé Mervick had been ignoring her calls. He had not informed her of his return from his trip but she was certain that he was the one she saw at the mall earlier today, but she could not reach him as she lost sight of him.

She decided to come to his house to dispel her doubts, but the maid's anxious reaction only confirmed her suspicions that he was indeed back from his trip.

"Step aside! If he is not here, I will wait for him. I am his fiancée after all, so there should be no issue," Natasha insisted, forcing her way through the door and taking a seat in the opulent living room.

She was not going to let it go. She knew something was amiss, considering the maid's nervousness. It was not as if the maid did not recognize her so why was she preventing her from entering his house?

Natasha was determined to uncover what she was concealing. Once she gets a gut feeling, she is compelled to see it through to the end, and, she feels right in her gut that Mervick is up to something.

She glanced behind her at the stairs leading to Mervick's room, then back at the maid, who was still standing in front of her.

"He is still not back from his trip, ma'am," the maid persisted.

"Bring me a glass of red wine," Natasha commanded.

She needed the maid to leave so she could go upstairs without interference. Once the maid left to fetch the wine, Natasha quietly crept up the stairs and made her way to Mervick's room.

As she approached the door, she heard muffled laughter coming from inside, and her hand froze on the doorknob as it grabbed her attention.

It was not the voice of her fiancé, Mervick, but rather that of a woman.

"Is he with another woman? Is he cheating on me? How could he commit such a heinous act when we are about to get married?" These thoughts swirled in her mind as she pressed her ear against the door, eavesdropping on their conversation.

"Babe, I don't understand why you still want to marry her. She's nothing but a lowlife," the feminine voice sneered from behind the closed door.

Natasha's heart sank and anxiety slowly seeped into her veins as she struggled to make sense of what she had just heard.

"What?! Babe? Me, a lowlife?"

"I am not marrying her because I love her. I just feel sorry for her, that's all," Mervick's voice resounded from the room.

A maelstrom of emotions raged within Natasha's body, causing her breathing to become labored and her heart to thump violently. In a fit of rage, she flung the door open.

As the door swung open, an unspoken tension descended upon the room. Before she laid her fiancé, Mervick, tangled in the sheets, with her best friend Ophillia by his side – a sight she never imagined and certainly did not expect to see in her fiancé's bedroom.

Her heart shattered as the scene before her dealt a devastating blow to her soul. Disbelief coursed through her body, making it nearly impossible to catch her breath. She clutched at her chest in pain as the stench of their betrayal hung heavy in the air.

She could not make sense of the reality unfolding before her very eyes. Her eyes widened in shock as she took in every minute detail in the room – the rumpled sheets, and the discarded clothing lying on the floor, including a bra and thong.

Trembling, she took a step back, her feet unable to carry the weight of her body any longer.

"Natasha!" Mervick cried out in shock, struggling to cover himself, while Ophelia hid her face behind him in shame.

The housemaid abruptly bolted upstairs to the door, gripped by fear as she realized Natasha may have caught her boss in a compromising position.

"Sir, please forgive me, Miss Natasha pushed her way through, I'm so sorry," the maid pleaded, but her cries faded into the distance as Natasha clenched her fists in rage, storming out of the house, she couldn't bear to spend another minute in that shameful scene.

Seeking solace, she headed to a bar, yearning for the numbing embrace of strong liquor. Perched near the counter, she had already downed two glasses of whiskey and was starting to feel tipsy.

Lost in her thoughts, she couldn't help but reflect on what she had witnessed and overheard.

The signs that she had missed haunted her, causing her to beat herself up for not recognizing the truth. She vividly remembered how Ophillia had convinced her to reject Mervick's proposal, claiming he was a cheat. She had thought Ophillia had her best interests at heart, little did she know that her true intention was to have Mervick for herself.

Natasha's heart raced as she thought about all she had lost in their relationship. She had given everything to Mervick, only to end up with nothing. The realization that she may never be able to marry another man crushed her.

After multiple abortions at Mervick's request, she was left with a damaged womb, making her unable to bear children. Who in their right mind would want to marry a barren woman?

Tears streamed down her cheeks as she was tormented by the sudden turn her life had taken. She felt like it was all over for her. Her phone kept ringing incessantly, but she couldn't bring herself to answer. It was Mervick, but what could he possibly want to say? Guilt had never been his strong suit.

Frustrated, she downed her drink in one go and demanded more from the bartender, refusing to give in to exhaustion.

"Don't serve the lady any more drinks," a voice interrupted from behind.