The widow

Stranger

The rain poured down more heavily at night mirroring her emotions Evangel was unconsciously nipping at her late night dinner,she was accustomed to eating even when not hungry,he forced her to eat just so "the pastor's wife doesn't look hungry nobody knew because he hid his sins so well

She was in her trance of pain again and didn't hear the person at the door knocking furiously, accompanied with the heavy down pour it was impossible to hear anything

Ace was beyond furious now,that wench would pay for this,this godforsaken journey was seeming stupid at every turn,first it was his car that broke down....then the rain,now he was to sleep outside,he decided to point his flashlight towards every window of the house to see if it might gain the attention of anyone inside

Evangel was caught off guard when she saw the flashlight,"had he come back from the death to finish her off

It was the faint voice that followed it that made her realize there's someone at the door,she grabbed the lamp and rushed to the door,the person at the door wore a black hooded shirt which was drenched,he shook his flashlight furiously trying to get water out

She was alarmed at first about the stranger but she quickly noticed it was to be him"Ace, nobody in their town had this kind of build or sense of fashion

He cursed in colorful words when he noticed his flashlight might be damaged for good,the woman at the door seemed awed by him and might not move to let him in anytime soon"can you quit staring at me and let me in for god sake woman

Evangel was brought back to reality by his deep baritone laced with malice,she moved away from the door letting him in,she went into her room to get him a towel to dry off,she began to believe all Peter said about him when she came back to find him stripped down to his pants

What was his problem

She handed him the towel and went back to her dinner, giving him privacy he didn't seem to want

"You were fairly loud when I first met you Eva,what's with this cold welcome he asked coming to join her now fully clothed again

"Am sorry,it's just the weather and everything,how was your journey she asked with a small smile on her face

he could see her clearly now under the light,she looked more beautiful,way fairer than the girl who has haunted him for years,she was a woman now...

"It was horrible

She barely looked at him but she noticed he looked rough even,scary
with dark eyes
he was big,she wouldn't even get up to his shoulders...the town people would surely have something to talk about now, probably call him a criminal because he screamed danger with those drawings on his body,Peter said it was the mark of the beast and it meant ownership by the devil...he wore earrings like a woman, he was somewhat beautiful and scary

None would know he was Peter's brother

Ace,saw the way she scrunched her nose and could barely look at him,he didn't care about her also...he knew underneath this beauty was a deceitful woman,who would do anything for her own interest,,she deceived him

He didn't care about the town's people and their religion

"Are you hungry... Evangel decided to ask him after the prolonged silence,she wanted to go to bed,his presence was unnerving coupled with everything that happened today

"Who wouldn't be after such a journey,,,he answered angrily,she couldn't tell what she did to him on his arrival to make him act hostile towards her but she knew one thing,she wouldn't ever let herself be trampled upon again by anybody

"Do you have a problem with me Mr Steve..her voice didn't have the tone she wished,she sounded weak

Instead of a response all she got was a dark laughter laced with malice

"You sure do know how to act clueless,Eva and don't call me that again..my name is Ace,if you wish to be formal Mr Armani

"Then I'll request same,my name is Evangel she said standing her ground

"I'll call you whatever I choose Eva.. or you prefer Mrs Steve

She hated that title and was happy no one ever used it, this man wanted trouble which she was avoiding and would do well to avoid him until their business is done

"I'll have to retire to bed now,do help yourself to anything you want, your old room have been made ready for you... Goodnight she bade him before making her way to her bedroom

"Not so fast I'll like to know what happened to Peter,,he requested stopping her

Evangel had told this story countless times today and one more would drive her crazy,she went into her room without any response

Ace knew she was mourning but he was in a rush to conclude his assignment here and go back to his business,it was his mother's plea that brought him here he Wondered how she could still have a heart for them after everything,being rude to Eva wasn't his plan on arrival but seeing her again did things to him

Her indifference to him fueled his years of bottled up anger,he knew he wasn't her perfect husband,he could still hear what Peter said to him that morning that changed everything,she played his emotions and he wouldn't be fooled again by her or anybody in this hell hole

The house looked old now with everything in it except her,this place haunted him and his mother

he'll burn it all down if he had the chance, selling it and splitting the money with her seemed better now,Peter and his father would turn in their graves knowing the plans he had for their most treasured house

Sitting in silence now,he felt a little pang of pain,,no matter how he tried to see it the normal way he couldn't look past all peter and their father was

At first he thought Peter was being cajoled by their father into his extreme religious ways but with time he came to understand they were carved from the same stone

The long nights he heard his mother scream,the way he talked down on her or was it her bruised face that was always trying to keep a smile on her face at breakfast?....he could never forget,how Peter looked at their mother like a plague the day they left

Peter refused to go with them,he agreed to testify against their mother in court if she took the case to the local court,now he understood all her long silence after they moved to Mexico

Having your own child turn against you could break anyone,Ace came back again after their fathers death to try make amends with Peter

He met a stronger version of their father, heading the church
he unapologetically called their mother a whore and him a lost soul,their fathers punishment was a way to save her soul from destruction

He believed in the supreme God but not in the way his father and brother did,he wondered how Eva could love him,he saw the way she could barely look at him

They are the same after all,she was married to him for 4 years,he learnt of their engagement the night after he took her virginity at this very same house...he only knew her for a week and wanted something more with her,a girls first time was supposed to mean something to them right?.....till today he never understood what she wanted with him when she was to marry his elder brother

The look on Peter's face that morning when he told him of Eva the girl he was falling for was pure hatred,he accused him of soiling his fiance and being demonic"she can never be with a man such as you,you deceived her with your worldly lies, Evangel is perfect and deserves such...I shall marry her immediately to save her name..he said

Ace was confused,guilty and angry,he packed his bags in rage and left
This little town indeed was never a place for him,it was full of vile, deceitful people