A WEB OF DECEIT ✔️

chapter 30

Thelani

As I walked in, he moved toward me, his arms reaching out for a hug. My body tensed instinctively-I didn't want him near me. The resentment that had been simmering inside me for months churned even more intensely as I looked at him.

My feet were swollen from a day of pushing myself too hard, and all I wanted was to soak in a hot bath and disappear under the covers. The aches and pains had dulled over the past few days, but the heaviness in my heart hadn't eased at all.

I had endured so much in the last few months-too much, really. My classmates had started to whisper about me, not even bothering to keep their rumors private anymore. Some were bold enough to say things to my face, throwing their accusations about my pregnancy like knives they knew would wound me.

It was like I had become a cautionary tale-another statistic. I should've been crushed by it all, but the truth was, difficulty was no stranger to me. Ever since I was a child, my life had always been one long uphill battle. This was just another storm I had to weather.

"Baby, how are you?" Lucas's voice broke through my thoughts, too soft, too familiar.

I recoiled, his words laced with a false tenderness that only made me angrier. "Don't call me that," I spat out. "Why are you even here?"

He sighed, his expression shifting into something that looked like forced patience. "Don't be like that, Tee... I'm just here to check on you and my boy."

I laughed bitterly. His boy? As if he had some right to stake a claim after being gone for so long. "Your boy?" I echoed, my voice sharp.

"Yeah," he said, not even flinching at my tone. "I know you're carrying a baby boy."

I didn't ask how he knew that-I didn't want to know. Lucas always had his ways of knowing things I wished he didn't.

"So?" I responded

"Come sit down," he said, gesturing toward the couch. "You must be tired."

He wasn't wrong about that. I was exhausted, my body aching from carrying the weight of everything-not just the pregnancy, but the stress, the loneliness, the never-ending struggle to make it through each day.

He continued, his voice softening again as though trying to soften me into forgetting months of abandonment. "Listen, baby... I'm sorry. I know I should've been there with you through this. I know it hasn't been easy, but I had family issues to deal with. My wife... she started getting suspicious, so I had to lay low for a while."

"Lucas," I interrupted, unable to listen to his excuses for another second. "Why are you really here? I'm tired. I just want to sleep. If you'll excuse me..." I started to rise from the couch, ready to retreat to the bedroom where I could be alone with my thoughts and my pain.

But his voice stopped me. "Tee, wait. I want to marry you. I want to make sure you and our baby are safe... secure. I need you, baby. Please say yes."

I stared at him, incredulous. "Nonsense."

He had to be kidding. Five months. Five whole months of radio silence, and now he had the audacity to ask me to marry him as though that would fix everything?

"Do you really think you can just walk back in here after five months and say that?" My voice trembled with anger, disbelief coursing through my veins.

He met my gaze, his eyes hardening.he looked annoyed "Thelani, I'm not asking. It's either we get married, or I take my baby boy. My wife will raise him as her own."

I felt my chest tighten. The audacity of this man! I couldn't believe what I was hearing.

"What?" I whispered, my heart pounding in my ears. "You think you can take my baby from me?"

His voice turned cold. "What would stop me? If I want to, I can."

"Bastard!" I screamed, rage blinding me. "You can never-" My words cut off sharply as a searing pain tore through my stomach. My breath hitched as I doubled over, clutching my belly. A wetness trickled down my legs, and my heart sank in horror. My water had broken.

Both of us froze, staring at each other in shock. It was too soon-far too soon for this to be happening.

Fear rippled through me as the reality of the situation settled in. What was going to happen now?I was not ready

Lucas

---

We stood there, locked in each other's gaze, completely unsure of what to do. Time seemed to stretch painfully, the air thick with tension. I froze-this wasn't supposed to happen, not today, not like this.

Then, a piercing scream shattered the silence.

"Thelani!" I snapped back to reality, but she was already in full-blown panic. Her cries were sharp, filled with terror, and it shook me to the core. "Okay, calm down," I muttered, trying to keep my voice steady. "Come on, baby... let's go to the car."

I reached out to help her walk, but she yanked her hand away as if I'd burned her. She didn't want me to touch her, and this was not the time for one of her emotional outbursts. I clenched my jaw, fighting back the urge to snap at her. She needed help, not drama.

"Thelani, please..." I urged, my voice strained.

But she screamed even louder. The panic in her voice rose until it felt like the walls were closing in on us both. I was out of my depth. I hadn't expected things to spiral out of control like this. She was completely losing it, and I had no idea how to calm her down.

Panic started clawing at my chest. I couldn't let this escalate. I called for the guards outside, and they rushed in, lifting her into the car while she thrashed and wailed like someone was dying. Her screams echoed in my head even as we sped to the hospital. I clenched my fists, staring out the window, my mind racing.

But I knew-I couldn't be seen walking into that hospital with her. Not with the life I've built, not with eyes constantly watching. The guards would take her in. I'd stay behind, out of sight, but still in control. Always in control.

Hours passed. Two hours and nothing. I tried to keep busy, staring at my phone, waiting for updates that never came. My patience frayed at the edges, worry gnawing at my insides despite my best efforts to push it down.

Then, three hours in, the guard finally called. His voice was stiff as he relayed the news. "Sir, they're taking her in for an emergency C-section. There's been complications."

Complications? My heart raced. For the first time in a long while, fear surged through me, real fear. This wasn't part of the plan. It was never supposed to go this way. What if something happened to her? Or worse, to the baby?

No. I couldn't let myself spiral. Not now.

I ran a hand through my hair, trying to steady my thoughts. I needed to focus. The plan-right, the plan. Thelani would be fine, and once this was over, she would have to understand. We couldn't continue this foolish idea of marriage. That ship had sailed, and it was never a good idea anyway.

But the baby-the boy-he was mine. I'd take him and raise him. I had already made arrangements. Thelani would just have to take the offer I was preparing. Fifteen million rand-that would change her life. She couldn't possibly say no to that.

A part of me felt a cold detachment creeping in. It was business, after all. I loved her ,i loved her for giving me a son, an heir. And now I would make sure she was taken care of-more than taken care of.

I'd wait for the news. She'd be fine, and I would make sure she never had to worry about anything again-just as long as she accepted my offer and knew her place in the equation.