BILLIONAIRE Ex-Wife
Billionaire Ex-Wife – Episode 14
[ Fatal Attraction…. ]
Tags; Marriage, Love, Billionaire, Hate, Suspension.
Theme; Billionaire Love
©Authoress Funmhi Library
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The bed was soft. Comfortable. The sheets were light and gentle against Katherine’s skin. She lay up waiting. Her family gathered around in the small room. This was it, and she knew it.
She looked at the faces of those who had stuck by her the last couple of months of her life. The people she tried to protect from the pain. But now they knew. Now they were feeling it, probably one hundred times stronger. She felt guilt rippling through her body, stinging her more than the cancer had.
She smiled at her mother. The woman who birthed her. The one who looked after Ella when she needed a break, or had to go to work, or had her secret appointments.
The woman who raised her single-handed.
“Mom, please look after my baby. Make sure her dad doesn’t forget to lift her from school. Make sure he gives her a balanced meal and no junk food. Make sure she knows I love her. And please make sure my husband doesn’t fall apart.”
She held her mother’s hand between hers. Her old, wrinkled skin felt rough against Katherine’s soft, moisturised hands. Her mother nodded. She couldn’t bring herself to say anything.
“I love you, Mom, and I loved Daddy too.”
Katherine looked over to her best friend, Lilly, and smiled at her. The pain in her eyes was evident, but she smiled through it like she had been doing the last few months of her life.
“Well, girly, this is it. Now you have to fight them men by yourself.”
She chuckled a little but frowned when she saw a tear slide down Lilly’s cheek. Her heart broke into a thousand little pieces as she saw her best friend in tears.
“Lilly, don’t cry. We are bitches for life and after. I love you. Make sure that my baby girl remembers me. I’ll always be with her and you.”
Lilly bent down, embracing Katherine’s frail body in her arms. She hated this. She knew this part would be the hardest. Goodbyes always were for her.
Katherine looked at both of the Saunders standing tall beside Lilly. She had grown so used to seeing their smiles every day. They took her as their own from the moment James introduced them to her, and for that she would be forever grateful.
“Sandra, Casper, I want to thank you for letting me be part of your family. I don’t have a big family, and you made me feel at home, enveloping me in love each and every day. I have learnt so much from being in your company and have grown to love you more each day that goes by. You gave me your handsome son, whom I fell in love with at first sight. You are such a strong couple with so much love to give, and I’m so glad to have been part of your lives. Look after your devilish son. Make sure that liquor cabinet is never used, and make sure that he does the washing up or gets a maid. Either one will work.”
They all chuckled lightly, remembering that one day James did the washing up for Katherine, and the result being a new washing machine and a flooded utility room.
Casper bent down and kissed her on the cheek, whispering in her ear.
“Thank you for all you have done for my son. We will forever be in debt to you. You made him smile again. You are, and always will be, my daughter.”
Katherine looked into the older man’s eyes and nodded with a smile on her face. James watched her face light up as she smiled. It always did. He watched as his mum wept for Katherine, laying on the bed in a hospital gown. He was still in shock. It was all too sudden, and the pain he felt spreading from his chest throughout his body, tensing his muscles and restricting his breathing, was deepening with every word his beautiful wife spoke.
Katherine turned to look at him. His chest tightened again as their eyes met. She reached out a frail arm, beckoning him over. He rose quickly and rushed to her side, sitting beside her on the bed. She rested a cold, cooling hand on his cheek, and he unconsciously nuzzled closer to it.
“I love you, James Saunders. I have from the moment I laid eyes on you walking into your office for work placement. You stood looking out your window, arms positioned behind your back. I loved you when Ella was born. You gave me a child I worried I would never have. I loved you when I saw you again after five years, standing in the meeting room of the law firm. I love every cell of you, every chromosome, and every hair on your body. You are my husband, and you treat me like a queen. Well, mostly.”
She hated this sappy stuff when she watched movies. But now she was saying it. It didn’t feel as cheesy. This was her accepting her fate, and she wanted—no, needed—him to accept it too.
He looked at her, his dark eyes tearing up. So were Katherine’s. They were both fighting the tears.
“Katherine, why not tell me sooner?” he asked. The thought of her keeping this from him for so long was tearing him apart.
“Because I love you. I didn’t want to stretch out your pain.”
Her answer was simple but spoke in volume.
Her gaze fell to the blonde bombshell nestled in her granny’s arms.
“Ella. Mommy loves you. She loves you so much. She doesn’t want to leave you, but she has to, okay? I want you to look after Auntie Lilly and Daddy and Granny. Be a good girl, and I promise you I will be with you every step you take. And someday Mommy will see you again. Hopefully it won’t be for years and years to come, but I’ll be counting the days.”
Ella looked at Katherine, her eyebrows furrowed. She understood what Katherine meant. The word death was too strong, too harsh, so she tried to skip around it.
Elena stood holding Ella’s hand and a tissue in the other. She wiped away her stray tears.
“Elena, you have been amazing to my family. Looked after my husband when I was gone for too long. You are the second mother to my baby girl. I will forever be in debt to you. Take care of yourself. I love you.”
Katherine’s heart had always grown when she thought of the kind-hearted woman who cared not for herself but for their family as a whole.
She had left the explanations they sought unspoken but hoped they could understand why she didn’t tell them sooner. Why would she want to hurt the people she cared about?
She took a deep breath and spoke to them all as a group.
“I love you all. Stay together as a family. Help each other, support each other, and know I will be with you all in everything you do, watching over you like your guardian angel. Take care of my baby. All of life is an act of letting go, but what hurts the most is not taking a moment to say goodbye. This is my goodbye to you. Until we meet again.”
With that, the room drew silent as they watched Katherine’s eyes flutter shut. James watched her hand, still resting on his cheek, fall to the bed. The machine monitoring her heart let out a low beep as his wife’s heart flatlined. He looked at Katherine, laying peacefully at rest. It was then the tears came. She was gone.
He felt his mother wrap her arms around him, but he sat on the bed staring at her lifeless features, wishing her eyes would open again. Wishing she would sit up in the bed and give him one last kiss. But she didn’t. She lay. Skin cold. Motionless. His world came crumbling around him. He broke.
His wife was gone.
The doctor came in with a sorrowful look on his face. He was speaking, but James wasn’t listening. Arrangements needed to be made. The doctor left after giving his condolences. The family huddled together in a group hug, all mourning their loss.
Ella looked around at her daddy and granny, at their sad faces. She looked at her sleeping mommy and spoke.
“It’s okay, Daddy. Mommy is our guardian angel now, and you have me.”.
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The clock in the hall chimed at 12 o’clock. The house was quiet, everything and everyone at a standstill. James gave them the day off, but of course the staff would attend the funeral. Elena refused to leave the house. Ella—she was devastated.
Katherine’s presence was an obvious absence and was taking its toll.
The hearse was to arrive five minutes ago, and James stood looking out the window, waiting impatiently. His eyes switching between his designer watch and the double-paned window. The seconds hand kept moving, and every minute that went by he became more on edge. Where was she?
Ella had asked the same question last night as James tucked her into bed.
“Where is Mum?”
She looked into his tired eyes and laid a hand on his cheek.
“Is she in heaven?” She looked so hopeful. Whatever answer she got, she would live with for the rest of her life.
“She is looking over you, Princess,” he found himself whispering.
Ella looked on her dresser at a picture of her and her mother laughing and playing on the swings at the park. Katherine’s mother had taken it before she had gotten sick. Before she lost weight and her skin had lost its colour, the glow of happiness she had about her gone.
This was the way James hoped that Ella remembered her mother, because that was Katherine’s true self. She always carried with her an air of peacefulness and joy.
The hearse pulled up the long drive, and the drivers got out to help lift Katherine from the back. James opened the door and allowed them in.
The men looked down as they entered as a mark of respect to the mourners and their home. James brought them to where Katherine’s body would be kept until the funeral in two days’ time.
He and Elena, alongside Katherine’s mother, had discussed it at length. A room Katherine loved more than anything in this house. The music room would be where she rested. James loved this room only when she was with him, the record player playing a slow melody, and Katherine twirling around the room carefree. All beautiful memories.
He had to write a eulogy for tomorrow. So had Elena. Katherine’s mother and the staff, along with members from the community, had requested to form a guard of honour for Katherine. James had felt deeply touched and agreed.
The men set Katherine down where requested and looked at James.
“Sir, we are sorry for your loss. Your wife was a well-known and good-hearted woman. She has helped each of us in our own personal battles. It is an honour to be part of her memorial,” the main driver spoke and shook James’s hand.
The love for Katherine in the community was touching and unreal, much deeper than James himself knew.
He walked the men out and returned to the music room. The casket was open, and he looked into his sleeping beauty. Unable to wake her with a true love’s kiss, he looked helpless and whispered a goodnight to her before heading to bed.
The wake was a haze for James and the members of staff. Funeral arrangements made, he was preparing himself for the day. Last night he wrote her eulogy sitting beside her. He was proud to call her his wife, and he was hoping he could do her proud.
He stood in his black Armani suit, Katherine’s favourite one, and adjusted his silk tie. Elena sat on the bed fixing Ella’s hair. James had found her that morning crying beside her mother. She ran to him, wrapping her arms around his neck, seeking comfort. They spent the rest of the morning talking, remembering Katherine. Now it was time to say goodbye.
The hearse came and lifted Katherine. The house was busy, callers offering condolences the past two days non-stop, and this morning people arrived for the short service inside the home. Now, as they walked the street behind the hearse, it sank in with them all—this was their final goodbye.
The streets were lined with people. Clients of James, Katherine’s staff, family friends, friends from all over, and everyone else who wanted to pay respect to her. The guard of honour was truly a beautiful sight and brought tears to his eyes.
Ella’s hand found his as they walked, and they squeezed hands, looking at each other, offering silent support.
The church was full, flowers decorating the aisles. She loved flowers. James sat in the front pew with Ella, Katherine’s mother, his parents, and Elena and Lilly, Katherine’s best friend.
The minister talked of the woman laying still in front of them. He talked of her aspirations, the things she was proud of, and her family. Then James was called up.
He had always been good at speeches, but he found himself feeling the need to loosen his tie and clear his throat.
He opened his mouth and began his personal farewell.
“Hello, everyone. I would like to start my eulogy by reciting a poem…
Stop all the clocks, cut off the telephone,
Prevent the dog from barking with the juicy bone. Silence the pianos and, with muffled drum,
Bring out the coffin. Let the mourners come.
Let aeroplanes circle moaning overhead,
Scribbling in the sky the message: ‘She is dead!’
Put crepe bows around the white necks of the public doves.
Let the traffic policemen wear black cotton gloves.
She was my north, my south, my east and west,
My working week and Sunday rest,
My noon, my midnight, my talk, my song.
I thought that love would last forever; I was wrong.
The stars are not wanted now; put out every one.
Pack up the moon and dismantle the sun.
Pour away the ocean and sweep up the wood,
For nothing now can come to any good.”
Katherine was my wife, a beautiful woman who saw good in every person. A woman who helped me find good in myself. I didn’t think one person could have such a big impact on the world. I often viewed one person as weak and helpless against the world, but she showed me how wrong I was. Katherine changed my life and every single person in here. She impacted so many people. Her daughter was raised single-handed by Katherine, and she has been moulded perfectly by a perfect woman.
I messed her around, threw her out of my house, but when I found out the truth she was willing to call a truce. She came back to me with open arms and helped mend my broken heart, for I missed out on the love we shared and helping her rear my lovely daughter.
When we were young and madly in love, out on a date laying on the hood of my car, we sat watching the stars. I remember her saying a few words…
She told me when she dies she wanted to be remembered as a good person, who was loved, who was cherished, and honourable.
Well, I can say proudly I have never met a better woman. A woman with more heart, faith, and love than Katherine Marie Saunders.”
There was a round of applause as James finished, and Elena got up to say her part…
….
She cleared her voice. She wasn’t good at speeches. She never had been and probably never would. But she had watched James stand in front of his employees and tell them that they would all receive a cut in salary. She had witnessed James speak to thousands through a television interview. He always spoke with passion.
And as Elena was sitting up last night trying to scribble a few notes for her speech on an index card, she hoped there was enough passion and love in her words.
She watched the pair fall in love and break apart. She was, and no doubt would always be, the silent witness when it came to the Saunders family.
“I’m not good at making speeches,” she began, her fingers playing with the folded corner of her first index card, folding it over and unfolding it.
“I never make them, but…” She looked at the casket in the middle of the church. “Today is under different circumstances.”
Why had she said she would do this? Her hands were sweating profusely. Her legs itched to run back to the pew she was in before she got up. But she swallowed the lump in her throat and continued.
“When I first started working for James, he was alone. Just fresh out of college and preparing himself to take over the family company. He was depressed, but what adult isn’t? One day he brought home a beautiful girl with smooth blonde hair and a bright smile. Her name was Katherine. I laughed as I watched him watch her, his eyes following her every movement. She was graceful and delicate in comparison to him. But they fit.
I watched him take her hand in marriage, and her smile helped lighten the darkness his depression had created.
I watched him lose her nearly seven years ago now. He became a broken man, and she became a single mother. When Katherine walked back into the house that day, it was like she had never left. The spark of life ignited in James’s eyes, and the love they shared was pulsing through the air.
Katherine told us she had cancer unwillingly. She told us she didn’t want to worry anyone. She wanted to go in peace. Well, that she did. Her death was as graceful and elegant as she was. Her daughter had an amazing role model and a family full of love and happiness. Ella might not have Katherine in the flesh, but she will always carry a little of her.
I have never met a woman with so much heart and soul, someone who felt everyone’s pain like she did. Katherine, it was an honour.”
Elena looked out at all the people filling the pews. People who barely knew Katherine, here to support James and Ella. They would be okay. They had to be.
The minister stood up and moved to the pulpit where he would speak. James sat with Ella on his knee and Katherine’s mother at his left, and Elena on his right.
“Throughout my career, I have carried out many farewells to loved ones, but Katherine’s has been so full of love. I don’t think I could say anymore because she has been honoured enough already. She lived a full life, full of love, friends, and family. She volunteered at a refuge centre last spring and worked as a lawyer in a large firm. She made a life for herself and her family.
Ella has been brought up by a strong woman and in an environment filled with love. I don’t think she could have had a better mother.”
The minister took everyone out to the graveyard where they laid Katherine to rest. The service was long, and afterwards the amount of people who approached James was overwhelming.
The drive home was quiet. Both James and Ella had tears in their eyes. Maybe that’s why…
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💓 **ELENA’S** 💓
The phone rang at half ten. I was just about to get into bed, but I answered.
It was the hospital. As I listened to the words on the other end of the phone, I felt my legs begin to give out underneath me. How could this be happening?
I raced up the stairs and threw on the first thing I could find. The outfit I had worn to the funeral.
And as I drove, my head was spinning. Thoughts of the funeral. A crash, the doctors had said. Critical condition, the doctor had said. “I’m so sorry,” the doctor had finished. There was a lorry and a crossroad junction. And a lot of blood.
No. This can’t be happening.
Arrived at the hospital, I pulled out my phone to make one last call.
“Hello, Marks and Sons Funeral Home,” the lady’s voice answered.
“Hi. I would like to arrange the funeral of an adult and a child. The bodies will need to be collected.”
**TBC…**
