His Perfect Wife Strikes Back

17 My Father

There was a pungent smell of disinfectant in the ward, and the bed was surrounded by a white curtain. Out of the corner of my eye, a small white dot appeared. I guess the nurse put a piece of medical gauze on the end of my eye. At least my body doesn't feel any obvious pain. I guess I just scratched myself on the glass, and that hurt was nothing to me.

"Are you going to kill the apple?" My voice was dry and hoarse as I spoke.

Frade was sitting in a chair by the bed. He stared down at the red apple in his hand, as if he were dissecting a corpse. The peel of the apple is covered with white flesh. I guess he's not very good at peeling.

I was surprised that he dared to appear in the hospital. Isn't he worried about my husband seeing us together? Although it is probable that my husband will not come to see me. How did he know I was in the hospital so quickly?

I don't have a cell phone, and I can't see the exact time, but I'm sure I won't be in the hospital for more than half a day. At least I can see the sun through the white plastic curtain.

"I should have added a clause to our agreement that you can't hurt your body without my permission!" Frade said, cutting the apple into small pieces and sticking them to the tip of the knife. There was a look in his eyes that I couldn't read, a look of reproach and pity, a look of deep, hidden complexity.

I shook my head. "I want some water!"

Frade handed me a glass of water, and I took a sip with a straw in my mouth. I feel much better when the liquid is flowing from my mouth to my throat.

"You shouldn't be here!" I reminded him, "Because my husband will be back any minute!"

"And you shouldn't have hurt your body behind my back!" Whispered Frade, "As for your husband, I believe that he will not appear at this moment. As far as I know, he is in another hospital with another woman! Since he did not come to visit you yesterday, I don't think he will be here today either!"

"What?" I wondered. Had I slept all day?

"Do you wish to see your husband instead of me?" Frade seemed jealous. He pressed his knife to my neck and warned me, "I have one more request. When you are in front of me, you are not allowed to think about other men! Do you understand?"

What makes he think I miss Ron? But I was in no hurry to explain it to him, because I found it funny that he was angry. But when I think of the last time I spoke to him, there was a woman's moan on the phone, and my heart, which had been racing, immediately calmed down.

"How did you know I was in the hospital?" I wondered. He seemed to know everything about my movements. Did he put a camera on me?

"I know everything I want to know!" Frade stared at me with those emerald eyes, "I looked at your hospital report and it said you had multiple cuts, but it didn't say why. This is the nearest hospital to your company. All I have to do is pick up a random guy outside your husband's company and find out what's going on!"

"You have eyes in my husband's company, don't you?" I told his lie straight away, "Did you put a tracker on my car too? I remember that you had someone drive my car away that night. You definitely had enough time and motivation! Frade, I don't like being watched!"

"I don't like being teased either!" Frade lowered his voice, "Listen, I've settled the bar fight with your husband as you requested. I have the right to make my claim. You have to keep your body intact, at least for the duration of our cooperation. I don't want to end up with a corpse!"

The corpse, he said the corpse. My heart gave a sudden jolt. I remembered that I was once a corpse. Maybe he's right. I shouldn't have put my body at risk, and if I'm a corpse before my revenge is complete, what's the point of my rebirth? I admit that I was too impulsive this time.

The smell of disinfectant in the ward grew stronger and stronger, and the sound of the monitors disturbed me. I hate to stay in bed.

"Frade, I want to get out of here!" I said as I sat up straight.

"What are you doing?" Frade frowned as he watched me open the covers.

"I don't want to lie here and pretend to be sick!" I said to him. "You have to get me out of here before the doctor realizes I'm gone!"

"Where are you going?" He asked.

"Anywhere! I need some air!" I pulled the needle out of my arm. By the time the needle was pulled out, I had some blood on my arm.

"You're such a pain in the ass," Frade said, ripping open the curtain on my bed. He took off his coat and draped it over me. Then he took my hand and walked out of the room.

There was a faint smell of tobacco in his coat, and he held my hand warmly. He led me down the hospital corridor and headed to the elevator to the underground garage. He held my hand all the way. It seems that as soon as I let go, he will lose me.

Am I hallucinating?

He reminds me of Oscar, my first love in college, when we were walking hand in hand on the school playground. He drove me home after the midnight movie. We used to walk hand in hand down a moonlit path until I saw my father's face on the doorstep.

I never saw Oscar again after that day, and our relationship ended with my father's cold eyes.

Frade opened the door for me and I sat in the back seat. As the car started, I saw a black Maybach Exelero drive up next to me. It was parked next to Frade's spot.

I looked through the window and saw a familiar face stepping out of the car. It was my father. He got out of the car with my stepmother. They were going in the direction of the elevator. But my father turned his head, and just as he was about to see me, I quickly looked down.

"Frade, Drive!" I urged. "Hurry!"

The car started, and within a second Frade had pulled into the underground garage exit. I didn't dare raise my head until the car was far away from the hospital.

"Who was that?" Frade stared at me in the rearview mirror.

I took a deep breath and leaned my head against the window. The car was running smoothly and Frade was waiting for my answer.

"He's my father!" I found my voice trembling.