Kavita smiled wisely. “Why don’t we hear what Yura has to say first?”
Suddenly, everyone turned their attention to Yura, who was sitting upright in a chair.
“Uh, why ... why me?” She stammered.
“You’re Deryl’s wife too,” Kavita commented casually. “So you have to be involved every time there’s a problem like this, right?”
Yura remained silent, Kavita enjoying the expression of being in the middle of a troubled family like Deryl’s.
“I believe that Deryl can solve every household problem,” Yura said later. “Right, Deryl?”
Deryl gasped. “Ah, yes! Of course, but ....”
“I agree, Deryl can always solve every problem.” Kavita said. “You really can’t go wrong with a husband.”
Yura smiled wryly. “I didn’t choose him, but Deryl chose me.”
Kavita glanced at Deryl, who responded by avoiding her gaze for a moment.
“Then I’ll leave the expenses to you two, including Karin’s tuition.”
Deryl’s face suddenly pales.
“But, Kavita ... That’s ....”
“Why?”
“The amount, you know, right?”
“What’s the amount?”
“It’s not a small amount, Kavita!” moaned Deryl in frustration.
“I know it’s a lot,” Kavita commented calmly. “If there’s no money now, what can we do?”
“Ask your boss to transfer the money now!” urged Deryl angrily. “Tell him that you have an urgent need to pay!”
Kavita drank her tea, then stood up and left the kitchen.
“See what your wife is like?” grumbled Yura, who was becoming less and less reluctant to show her dislike for Kavita. “Stop begging like that. You pay for everything yourself, and let Kavita work outside. If necessary, don’t come home anymore. ....”
“You’d better shut up if you don’t know anything,” said Karin, venting her disappointment at failing to get school fees for the umpteenth time. “KaVita is the one who has been ....”
“Karin, you should shut up too.” Deryl warned.
“What’s going to happen to my school fees?” whined Karin as she stomped her feet. “Mum, I’m ashamed of being behind on my tuition fees ...!”
Deryl’s mum seemed equally confused by the situation. Ever since Kavita had returned and met Yura, things had not been the same at her son’s house.
“What about this, Deryl?”
“I’m thinking, Mum.”
Yura folded her arms across her chest, she was getting suspicious because Deryl seemed very dependent on Kavita.
I’m also his wife, Yura fumed.
“My dear Kavita!” called Deryl as he chased his first wife to the door. “All our installments are due, Karin’s school fees too!”
Kavita turns around with her bag in her hand. “What can I do?”
“You can do anything, right? Come on, don’t be like this with me ....”
“I can do anything, you say? You think I’m an angel?” Kavita smiled briefly. “I have to go back to my boss’s house.”
“Good, go back as soon as you get the money!” Deryl nods as he holds both of Kavita’s shoulders. “You need to take all of your boss’s money, honey!”
Kavita frowned, to Deryl she was just a money-making machine.
Yura, who had been following Deryl from behind, was amazed when a shiny black car pulled up in front of the house and Kavita got into it.
“That ... Kavita has a car? How come you don’t?”
“Nonsense, it’s her boss’s car.” Deryl told her. “You clean up the shop, Yura.”
“What? Me?”
“Yes, you! You can manage the profits, the shop can be a big asset if you’re good at managing it, like Kavita said earlier.”
“So why don’t you manage it, Deryl?”
Suddenly, Deryl was at fault again. He’d been handing over the backbone of the family to Kavita’s shoulders since his depression, and he’d unconsciously grown comfortable with the situation.
It was his wife who was out there doing the hard work of providing for the family.
“The benefits can be all for me?” Yura asked for confirmation.
“It depends on whether you’re good at managing it or not.” Deryl blinked his eyes. “Having your own business is like being the boss, right?”
Yura was silent. True enough, taking control of just one of the assets was a good start.
Kavita deliberately didn’t go home and left Deryl waiting for her with empty expectations because she didn’t want to be physically and mentally abused anymore.
“Did you say goodbye to your husband that you’re not coming home?” asks Ezra in surprise when Kavita is still at his house as evening approaches.
“No, Sir. He was just waiting for my money to arrive.”
Ezra frowns as Kavita holds out a set of sleeping pajamas to him.
“You gave to them?”
“No, Sir. Let him think of a way out,” Kavita shakes her head without looking at Ezra directly. “Anything else you need, Sir?”
Ezra shakes his head. “You may leave.”
Kavita nodded politely and quickly left Ezra’s room.
“My phone must be full of notifications,” Kavita muttered as she entered the room she had been staying in. “I can only imagine what our home situation is like right now.”
Sure enough, Kavita’s mobile phone screen was full of dozens of motives from various parties who had been trying to contact her.
However, she doesn’t bother to think about it.
No matter how loudly her phone rang, as long as it was from Deryl and Karin, Kavita wouldn’t pay it any mind. Only occasionally does she text them to leave her alone while she waits for the termination letter to come through.
But that’s not what Kavita is waiting for.
Ezra had been so busy all day, that Kavita didn’t dare discuss extending their marriage contract. Just asking for an extension was enough to send Kavita’s self-esteem plummeting to the bottom, let alone if she urged Ezra to quickly agree to an extension of their marriage contract.
Kavita still had a bit of shame left in her.
“Mr Danadyaksa, please extend our contract ...” Kavita muttered as she was about to go to bed for the night, not knowing who to turn to if Ezra didn’t agree to extend their marriage contract.
Exactly one day before the end of the contract, Ezra asked Kavita to come to his office.
“Excuse me, Sir?”
“Come in,” Ezra ordered when Kavita had only been knocking on his office door for a few moments.
Kavita stepped inside and faced Ezra.
“Sit down, read this carefully.”
“What is it Sir, sorry?”
“New contract letter, I approve the extension of our marriage contract ....”
“Thank you, Sir!” said Kavita with relief, even before Ezra finished speaking. “I really need this contract ....”
“... but I’ve also included some additional points, so please read them carefully first.”
Kavita nervously opened the new contract letter Ezra had given her.
“Excuse me, Sir ... Just to be clear, do you remember which points you’ve added?”
“Just read each sheet one by one, no problem.” Ezra replied flatly.
“Then can I study this outside? I don’t want to disturb your working hours.”
“As you wish.”
Kavita took Ezra’s answer to mean that she could, so she got up from her seat and went into the next room to study the contract carefully.
It wasn’t the first time Kavita had sat down to read through the contract, but having never had a problem with Ezra’s marriage contract before, Kavita decided without hesitation to just sign the renewal.
“Mr Danadyaksa!” Kavita hurriedly entered the office again. “Here’s the contract letter—I’ve read it, I’ve signed it too.”
Ezra frowned as Kavita held out the contract letter.
“Did you sign it?”
“Yes, Sir. What is it?”
“Did you read all the articles of agreement in the contract?”
Kavita smiles ruefully. “I skimmed it, but I trust that you won’t disadvantage me by adding more clauses to the new contract.”
Ezra was silent for a few moments.
“Don’t tell me that you haven’t read the agreement points that I added earlier?”
“Ah, that ... Like I said, I trust that you won’t add points that harm me.”
Ezra remained silent.
“All that’s left is for you to sign, and the contract is official, right?” Kavita asked for confirmation.
“Yes, just like that.”
“Well, if you’ll excuse me, Sir.”
Ezra glances at Kavita’s back as she moves away from him.
No wonder your husband is using you, Ezra says to himself.
To Be Continued—