Chapter 8

Gabriel shot up from his seat after Christian’s words, startling both his friends. “Whoa!” Lloyd exclaimed, nearly spilling his drink on his dress. “I’m leaving.” Gabriel announced and without another word, walked out of the club room. He made his way towards his car, entered and began driving towards his and Leonica’s shared Villa. Throughout the drive there, Gabriel’s mind wandered, pondering the many possibilities of what would happen if Leonica was indeed pregnant. That would mean he was about to become a father. The passing thought caused a fluttering feeling to erupt in his chest. However, he discarded the feeling as quick as it had came, his fingers tightening around the steering wheel. Before assuming things, he needed to speak with Leonica and have her confirm it herself. After an hours drive, Gabriel finally pulled up in the driveway of their shared Villa and stepped into the house. “Leonica,” He called out, his voice echoing off the huge living room that barely housed furniture. “Leonica, where are you?” He called out once more, this time around, finally taking not of how empty the house felt. Usually, each time he arrived home, Leonica was always waiting at the door with a smile, warmly welcoming him, despite whatever fight or argument they may have had. However, this time was different. Leonica had not come to welcome him, it felt strangely out of place to Gabriel. Rushing up the stairs, still in search of the missing female, Gabriel flung the doors to the bedroom open, expecting to at least see her asleep, much to his dismay, the subtle scent of her roses cologne lingered in the air, yet she was nowhere to be seen. From the corner of his eyes, he caught the door of the walk in closet hanging open and several of her belongings were…gone! It was then realization began to sink in. Leonica had left. Gabriel felt a tingle in his chest and against his will, his lips turned downwards. Leave? How could she just up and leave when she might be carrying his child! His heir! Gabriel refused to accept that. Exiting the room, he rushed down the stairs, intending to head for his car and drive to the one place he knew she would be, her parents Villa, when a shiny object on the center table caught his attention. He walked over and picked it up, a bitter taste suddenly flooding his mouth as soon as he recognized the object. It was the wedding ring grandmother had made him pick out for Leonica three years ago. And beneath it was the black card he had given her to cover all her expenditures. She had left them both behind and also signed the divorce documents quietly, it was clear to Gabriel what this message meant. She has accepted their fate of becoming strangers. Exactly what he had been pushing for the past few days…however, after learning that she might be pregnant… Gabriel sighed out loud and undid his tie with one hand while the other gripped firmly on the wedding ring and black card. He didn’t like the way things were quickly spiraling out of his control and needed to fix it this instance! Dipping his hand into his pocket, Gabriel fished out his phone and in less than a minute, he had scrolled through his contact list and dialed Cassandra’s number. He waited for what seemed like an eternity, before the line was finally answered. “Gabriel, what a pleasant surprise.” Cassandra’s voice dripped with sarcasms and he could almost image the elderly woman scowling. “Why are you calling?” she asked. “I-“ Gabriel began. “Surely not to apologize for the atrocious gimmicks you committed.” Cassandra cut him off. Gabriel gritted his teeth. “I need to speak with Leonica. I know she’s there, so put her on.” He demanded. A loud scoff resounded from the other end of the phone, Cassandra finding the male’s words baffling. “You want to speak to my daughter? After what you did? The nerves you have!” She reprimanded. Gabriel could feel his temper rising, but kept calm. He wasn’t here to engage in a battle with an elder. All he wanted was to speak with Leonica like a reasonable adult and have her confirm if she was carrying his child or not. However, the next thing Cassandra said, suddenly made his temper skyrocket. "I suggest you keep your distance from my daughter from now on." She said, her voice holding a warning. Gabriel didn't know what got to him but, his fingers tightened around the phone, causing it to crack under the pressure. "I don't think you heard me correctly, Mrs. Romero. I need to speak to Leonica and I'm not taking no for an answer." He snapped. "Do you take me for a fool?!" Cassandra's voice rang, clearly not happy at being talked back to. "I told you to stay away from her, now, listen and listen well. You've both signed the divorce documents and it has been approved by the court, in two weeks you'll be nothing but strangers. So, why not do us all a favor and start practicing. Stay away from my daughter, Gabriel." Cassandra sneered and without giving Gabriel a chance to speak, she hung up. "Hello? Hello?" Gabriel tried to call the woman again, but his efforts were in vain. "Fuck." He cursed through gritted teeth, running his palm down his face and trying to think of a next plan of action. His action came to an abrupt stop when his nostrils caught whiff of something and a subtle, yet strong scent of burning fumes invaded his nose. Taking a whiff of the air, Gabriel began to follow the scent to where it was strongest, his eyes widening somewhat in surprise when he got to the back lawn. It was a sight that he did not expect. In the center of the lawn was a pile of what looked to be all his belongings, specifically the ones that Leonica had gotten him, and dwindling flames engulfing it. It was obvious someone had used an accelerant to ignite the fire and Gabriel already had an idea who the culprit was. As if on cue, his eyes landed on burnt out picture frame containing his and Leonica's wedding picture. Without thinking twice, Gabriel rushed towards the small fire, taking his suit off in the process and trying to smack out the small flames. However, his attempts proved futile as the small flame seemed to be unaffected by his efforts and only spread further. Gabriel's eyes widened as the flames grew larger, his body moving on instinct and taking a step back to avoid any encounter with the flames. A heavy feeling began to settle in Gabriel's chest as he watched the flames grow, burning off the corner of their wedding photo that held Leonica's smiling figure. At that moment, it felt like he had lost his grip on reality, the only thing he could focus on was the fire burning his things, frustration beginning to settle in at the result of the events that had spiraled out of his entire control. He clenched his fists tightly and closed his eyes, breathing in and out as he tried to calm himself down, though his mind was clouded with anger, confusion and a lot of other emotions. The sound of his phone ringing from the inside the house brought Gabriel back to reality and he walked back into the house to retrieve it. He glanced at the caller ID, feeling somewhat disappointed when it showed Christian's name. Who else had he been expecting to get a call from? Leonica? Gabriel swallowed, ignoring his straying thoughts and picking the phone up. "What is it, Christian?" he questioned. "I just got back to the hospital and checked the records from the day Leonica visited." Christian said and Gabriel perked up, a sense of urgency washing over him. "Did you find anything?" "Yes," Christian paused, giving Gabriel a moment to brace himself. The said male clenched his fist, indeed bracing himself for whatever his doctor friend was about to say. "Gabriel, she's pregnant.. with your child."