Chorale had just arrived in Mexico after almost fourteen hours of being in the plane. She had missed her first flight but it wasn’t hard to get another one.
Here she was, about to start a new life, away from the love of her life. Her new house, new car and job were waiting for her and she had to embrace it. It was time for a new start, a fresh start.
She dialed the number of her friend who had helped her all through, from three months ago till now. He was in the military in Mexico and he had helped her get the apartment and the car. He had also used his links to get her a job in the military hospital where she would be working as a neurosurgeon. He answered on the first ring.
“Hey, foreigner” he greeted, happily
“Hello Alvin. I’m at the airport now.”
“Okay, I’ll meet you in ten. Just wait for me”
She heard some movement in the background and the sound of keys jiggling. “Oh no, don’t bother at all. I just called to let you know I have arrived and also to ask you to send me the address of the house again and I’ll be just fine. We could meet up after you’ve closed from work.”
“Okay. That too sounds fine. I’ll send you the address right away. Bye”
“Bye.”
She hailed a cab and showed the address to the driver. He looked at her from head to toe and nodded his head. She did not fail to notice that, and also how overly-nicely he talked to her. It felt quite weird. Her mom had always teased her about how she was too security-concious. She reached into her bag to check if her pepper spray was in it. It was. Now she felt at ease. He asked too many questions. And that fact that she didn’t have a Spanish accent made him more curious. She answered all his questions but did so smartly, careful to not give out too much information. Alvin had warned her about natives who seemed too nice.
Once they reached the destination, the cab driver stopped and she got down. She paid him in the few dollars she had got the chance to change at the airport. She probably paid him more than the actual fare, because he thanked her so much. She had to beg him to leave.
Taking a deep breath, she walked towards the ground floor of the huge penthouse where a security guard opened the glass doors for her. She smiled politely and mouthed a ‘thank you’. The receptionist stood up and walked towards her. She introduced herself to the lady, who Alvin had told her was called Margarita.
Margarita looked like she was in her early forties. She wore a red sheath dress that sat at her knee and matched it with black pointed toe heels. She flashed Chorale a beautiful smile and hugged her.
“You’re welcome ma’am,” she greeted with a thick Spanish accent.
“Thank you, Margarita. And please, call me Chorale,” she answered with a smile too.
“Sure. Chorale” She smiled once again. “So how was your flight and how do you find Mexico already?”
“It was tiring but smooth, thanks to God and oh, I think Mexico is beautiful” she answered, leaving out her weird encounter with the cab driver.
“Great! Would you like to see your car first or do I show you to your room?” she asked
“Erhmm…..okay. Let’s see the car first”
Margarita motioned for her to follow her. They walked into the garage which was also on the same floor as the receptionist’s space. Kay had always tried to teach her about cars and their various models but she wouldn’t learn. He gave up along the way. To her, all that mattered was if the car was black and if it was shiny. She really had a thing for black cars. And this shiny black one in front of her had to be the best she had seen! She gasped in awe. Margarita noticed it and giggled.
“It is beautiful. It is the latest version of the Benz Maybach” Margarita informed. Now she was ashamed that she hadn’t taken Kay’s teachings seriously. And it was too late too. She quickly pushed the thought aside and focused on the present moment.
“Wow. I love it” she admitted, going round the car and gawking at it.
“I’m glad you do, Chorale,”
After admiring the car for a while, Chorale followed Margarita to the main apartment which was on the floor above the ground floor. Margarita took the keys from her and opened the door. Chorale smiled in satisfaction at what she saw. It was just like she wanted. The glass walls she asked for- just that here, only one wall was entirely glass. The rest were block walls. The city view was impressive. At first, she didn’t understand Kay’s obsession with glass walls but now, she did. Sometimes, just looking out of the window, looking at people go about their businesses, calmed her down. When she wanted to read too, she’d sprawl on one of the chaise lounges and read till she got tired and mostly dose off. Kay always had to carry her upstairs to their room.
Margarita’s voice broke her out of her train of thoughts. She was telling her what kind of wood the floor was made of. She didn’t quite get it but she said it was beautiful. And it really was. The walls were painted white and the chairs were different beautiful shades of blue. There was an aquamarine chaise lounge chair that faced the glass wall and she smiled in satisfaction. Margarita then motioned for her to follow her to the bedrooms which were likewise breathtaking. There were two bedrooms, both on either side of the hall. There was a sizeable kitchen and dining room and a gym too.
“Do you want to see the pool?” Margarita asked.
“There’s a pool?” Chorale asked, eyes popping out.
Margarita laughed, “Yeah. Come, I’ll show you”
So Chorale followed her out of the room. She hadn’t seen any pool downstairs so she was wondering where the pool could be located. They took some flight of stairs that led upstairs and went to the floor on top of her room, the topmost floor.
“Here it is,” Margarita said with a smile when they got there. The pool was huge and on the other side of it was a summer hut with fancy-looking seats and tables.
“Wow….this is beautiful. I love it” Chorale said
“I’m glad you love it. The security here is managed by the best security agency in Mexico so you pretty much have nothing to worry about in terms of security. If you need anything too, you can call me and I’ll be glad to help.” She checked her watch, “It’s almost 6:00 p.m. and I have to go home now. But I’ll see you tomorrow. Have a goodnight, Chorale.”
“Thank you Margarita and do have a goodnight yourself.”
They went down the stairs and Margarita waved her goodbye and left. She entered the room and locked the door behind her. It had been a long day and she was so worn out. She really hated to travel long distance. It made her knees and neck hurt. On top that too, she was really sweaty. She had to take a shower.
“Kay, can you please come and open my zipper for me? I need to change out of this dress” she shouted and waited for an answer. It was when she didn’t get any response after calling out his name twice, that the realization hit her.
She had actually left her Kay.
She started to cry.
What had she done?
YOU ARE READING
CHORALE SANDERS
Romance"I cannot tell you anything right now, but promise me, Mama Rica. Promise me you'll take care of him for me, now that I won't be here to." She took the older lady's face in her hands, looking at her with very teary eyes. "Don't leave him like I am...
