Chapter 3

Chapter 3: Money Obsession

“Liam, where are you?” I spoke through the phone.

“Madame. I’m on standby downstairs with the car. I figured...that you’ll be going somewhere...” Liam said politely but I could hear the remorse in his voice.

I hired Liam as my private driver not long after I married my husband. At first, I hesitated because I liked driving myself around and enjoying my privacy in the car. However, George had insisted that it would reflect poorly on us if I didn’t have a driver to escort me to places, especially if I was heading to a public event with the press around. Liam’s absolute sense of responsibility made him one of the best decisions that I have ever made in my marriage with George where everything else sort of went wrong.

“Thank you, Liam...I don’t know how to thank you enough,” I said as I felt tears creeping into my eyes.

I’m about to start crying again. Honestly, I hated crying in front of strangers, but I couldn’t hold it in in front of the policemen earlier either. George’s sudden departure was too much of a shock and sadness for me to bear. I took the private elevator down to the lobby where I knew that Liam would be waiting for me in the car.

I felt slightly better when I entered the car. Liam didn’t say anything to me, and I preferred it that way. Thankfully, the ride to my parent’s house passed by in peaceful silence after I had told him where I wanted to go. Liam was being extra considerate to me. I wondered how he felt about what happened to George. Actually, I wasn’t sure if Liam knew the whole story yet, but he was kind enough no to ask.

“Thank you, Liam. You can go back now. I’ll call you tomorrow if I need you to be here,” I said before smiling sadly at him.

.....

“I’ll be on standby, Madame. Please don’t hesitate to call me whenever you need me,” Liam replied before he nodded at me.

I watched as he drove off before I turned to face the door of my parent’s house. With a large sigh, I lifted my hand up and rang the doorbell. It was funny how I’m ringing the bell to a place that used to be my own house. Well, it was just a house...it was never a home...

...

One of the maids was the one who answered the door. She greeted me politely before leading me into the living room where my parents were waiting. From the concerned and slightly panicked look on their faces, I surmised that they must have heard something about George already. That wasn’t surprising, considering the number of reporters that were there at the building.

“Elena, you have to tell us what happened,” my mother demanded to know the moment that I sat down on the sofa opposite from them.

“Is it true that George passed away?” my father asked.

“Yes, it’s true...” I replied matter-of-factly.

They were bound to find out about it sooner or later but for now, I had decided that I didn’t want to tell them that it was suicide. The police said that they would investigate further as well. However, the main reason that I didn’t want to tell them was...

“I know you’re still sad about what just happened but...any ideas how much you’ll get?” my mother asked without mincing her words.

“...What?” I said, stunned at ridiculous question.

“You know...how much will you inherit from him? You’re his wife so after he passes away, you’ll be the one who gets it all...” my mother said dreamily as her eyes opened wide.

“No worries about that, dearest. I’m sure his lawyer will get it all sorted and tallied up soon. He’ll let Elena here know soon, I bet,” my father said before laughing softly.

I looked at the two despicable people sitting opposite me on the sofa as they smiled and laughed at the news that my husband and their son-in-law had just passed away. All they were concerned about was how much money I would get out of it because that would mean that they would have a share in it. The scene of them laughing gleefully that I saw through my tears truly angered me.

For the life of me, I don’t remember the last time that I was this angry. This made the anger that I felt last night disappear completely from my mind. Unfortunately, this man and this woman are my adoptive parents, and they are the most money-obsessed people that I know. It wasn’t like they weren’t well off to start with and that just made their money obsession a bigger mystery for me.

...

*** 15 Years Ago***

Burnt rubbles were the only thing left to act as a reminder of the small two-story building that used to house orphans. The fire that consumed the entire building around a week ago completely damaged the old building. What was left of the small and old orphanage was a very small building that happened to survive the fire because it was set to the side and a distance away from the other building. The worn-out sign with faded color read ‘Lucky Clover Home for Children’.

“I’m very sorry about the mess here and there. As you know, there was a fire here recently and the entire main building burnt down. We’ve moved all the children to the smaller building on the side for now so it’s a little cramped in there. Sorry for the inconvenience,” the head of the orphanage said humbly.

Miss Gwen was approaching sixty and it showed in her appearance from her silver-grey hair to the lines on her face. She had been with the orphanage since she was in her twenties and have moved up the uncomplicated ranks from being a caretaker to the head of the small establishment. Just like the other orphanages around the area, the one that she managed was in constant financial crisis. The support from the government had been decreasing over the years and donations were rare to come by.

–To be continued...