Chapter 7 Bail Her

Hozier's POV

I am a fifty-four-year-old man, scarred by the claws of life as we knew it, widowed after ten years of marriage, depressed for as long as I knew it, but for the first time in a long time, I felt a spark deep within me; it was different, it was warm. In so many years, I had searched for Benita, my late wife, among all the ladies who had crossed my path. I had searched for similarities, but for the first time, I wasn't looking for anyone, and yet I saw something so unique.

I had seen many women in my time but Emily had a different touch to her. From the moment I saw her at the airport to the time I dropped her off, she left a mark on my heart and my soul. I wanted to see her again.

'Eleven years,' she said

If it took me eleven years to see her again, then it was a small price to pay for someone worthy of the wait, her presence was like a comet. I was certain I would never feel this way, and with that certainty, I was dedicated to making our next meetup work out.

I parked at the side of the road close to the airport, not knowing what else to do after leaving her. I was supposed to visit my house today, but I wasn't sure about it anymore. I was still smitten by the effect of a goddess.

I stared at myself through the rearview mirror, and a smirk appeared on my face. I imagined her kissing me there. And my brow crinkled; I should have asked her for her number. Something to reach out to her-what was I thinking of leaving her there? I could not leave anything to fate!

I had to take control.

Her flight leaves by 10, it was 9:00. I revved the engine of my car and I drove towards the airport, and that was when I spotted some police cars driving hurriedly towards the airport.

I had to check out for myself what was going on, so I tailed behind them and I parked just outside. The sudden convoy had caught the attention of everyone in the airport and as we all reached the scene of the crime, a familiar voice berated the air; it was Emily's .

'What happened to my babies!, dead! Who killed them?!' She screamed and fought as they tried to curtail her, confusion settled in my mind. I pushed aggressively through the crowd, but an officer held the curious crowd behind.

"That's Emily Musk!" someone said.

"What did she do?"

"Oh, this is juicy!!"

I staggered backwards at the mention of her full name, "Emily Musk." I whispered, a scene flashed in my mind,

*"We can't be together, I know, I know! I said this a thousand times, and I am saying it again, but a few hours from now, you will hate me."*

I never understood why she said that. I wanted her to express her reasons but my assumption was that she was skeptical about what we had at that moment but I was determined to prove her wrong while I could.

What if ? I thought of a family bearing the same name as I did, but in such a rush, my thoughts were channeled to one thing and one thing alone. We must be related and I dreaded the thought of it.

I exhaled in exhaustion , she had been placed in the car and I couldn't wait around. I entered my car and I drove alongside them till we got to the station. I parked outside and I watched them bring her out, her eyes were red and her clothes were ruffled. She was struggling all throughout.

"You killed my children, you fucking bastard!" She spat on him and kicked him.

I came out of my car and I closed it, my heart still bearing the weight of my confusion as I walked towards the station to make my inquiries when I heard someone call out to me from behind.

"Dad?"

It was Henry; I turned almost immediately just to see the likes of my son before. A slight smile had appeared on my face before reality took it away.

"What are you doing here?" I asked as I approached him. I pulled him in for a hug, slightly squeezing his shoulders. My boy had grown so much in eight years; his facial hair was as thick as mine now, and I could tell he modeled right after me, which made me ruffle his hair before pulling him in for a hug again.

"It's so nice seeing you again, dad. I am happy you came back alive.''

"Oh, death has to have more reasons to take me away, trust me." I pulled away, then stepped aside as someone else joined the queue. I noticed a young, slender lady walking towards him, she held him by the shoulders, and the ring on her finger told me all I should know.

"Hello daddy..." She purred as she leaned closer to me then kissed both sides of my cheeks. I knew coming back would reveal so much change in the family, and marriage for Henry wasn't one of them, but that was my boy. And I was proud of him but then a station wasn't a place for a family gathering.

"What are you doing here? I thought you would be back in the evening. I have the house renovated for your arrival." Henry said.

"Do you know a lady named Emily Musk? I saw her being dragged into the station."

His brow furrowed and his lady rolled her eyes, they obviously knew. "Her name is a jinx, daddy, that pig would do anything to get the attention of my man." His lady said again, only this time leaning closer to Henry and kissing him. Their hesitation to give me an answer made my blood boil.

"Hey, what's your name ?" I asked the lady, who was totally unaware of the state of emergency, she narrowed her eyes at me, then whispered to Henry, seven years of calmness training were being put into practice. I was in no place to judge the spouse of any of my sons, but my instinct gave off a sudden distaste.

I wouldn't entirely expect a smarter lady for Henry, knowing who he was, but a deep part of me wished he had changed his taste and his lifestyle, but from the view of it, he hadn't, but now was too early to be disappointed.

"Bella Porlock, soon to be Mrs. Musk!" She squirmed and jumped as she flung the ring before me. A low groan escaped my lips.

"Babe, stop, he doesn't like it." Henry pulled her hands down.

"I want to talk to my son, Bella. Leave us now." I commanded.

"But we are family. I will stay, he's my fiancé. I deserve to be here as much as he did." I stared at Henry, who I expected to put an end to the distraction

"Babe, please leave now, please... don't make a fuss out of it." The lady walked out on us, obviously annoyed by the way she glared back at me, then slammed the car door. I was already having a headache, and I hadn't fully gone back home, now I felt like running away again.

"Who is Emily Musk, Henry? I demand a straight answer; any hesitation would warrant a punishment we do not want, do we ?"

"No, sir. She is an ex-wife, recently divorced, who killed my kids, plotted a kidnapping, and requested ransom. I refused to give her, so she killed my kids," he said all at once, and if I must say, I felt double the weight in my heart as my eyes popped open.

The matter only became more complex as he said, "Ex?"

I have heard so much about Emily's ex-husband and I had held resentment for him but I never thought Henry... my son... could be the horrible person she spoke so bitterly about. I gulped a blob of saliva bubbling up and down my aching throat, it was getting more complex than it should.

"Uhm," he scratched the back of his head. "A lot happened while you were gone. I got married, and that lady is my ex-wife; our divorce was finalized yesterday."

I felt a hard pang in my chest and I staggered backwards, shocked and left in denial .

"Dad? Are you okay?" Henry walked up to me, attempting to hold me down, but I stopped him from coming any closer.

She kept on saying I was going to hate her, and I didn't know how. Was this what she meant?

"Dad, let's go home. Chris is waiting for you. I will tell you everything that happened while you rest. You must be jet-lagged. I am sorry this had to happen on the day of your return but she's just such a bitch!" He said.

"What evidence do you have against her?" I was still in denial, and my heart was pounding vigorously.

"She called me with an untraceable number yesterday requesting a ransom, and I told her to go fuck herself because I knew she was the one. The kids were taken from school with the family car, one of which I bought for her". He said

I was confused. Did she kill her kids? The lady I met yesterday was the sweetest soul to have walked the surface of the earth. Or maybe I was overemphasizing her sweetness and aura.

"What time?" I asked.

"She called around 2am early this morning." He said.

Around 2am we were in a bar, drinking. there was no way she made that call, and he said she called this morning. She was with me, I took her to the airport by myself.

"Free her, request bail. I want to talk to her," I said.

"Why!"

"Request her bail now!"