Chapter 12 Past Brought Into
Present
Rachael’s world tilted as she stared at Victor, memories flooding back with a vengeance, hitting her like a ray of light.
She could still remember that day–the sterile scent of the hospital room, the ache in her heart, and the cold, empty spot beside her where Victor was supposed to be.
He hadn’t even bothered to stay; he’d walked out as if she were nothing, as if their son meant nothing.
The pain of his betrayal was still fresh, festering like an open wound that had never quite healed.
Rachael’s mind spun back to that fateful day:
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the tears she had shed, begging him not to leave, the way he had brushed her off with a callous indifference that cut deeper than any physical wound.
And then the cruelest blow–the image of Victor tangled with Evelyn in their bed, her moans echoing like a cruel symphony of deceit.
She had watched, frozen and shattered, her heart splintering as she saw them together, the man she once loved choosing another woman over her and their unborn child.
Rachael’s vision blurred, not from tears but from the sheer intensity of the emotions clawing at her. Anger, sadness, humiliation -they all swirled together, a storm of bitterness that she’d buried deep inside but never fully let go.
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Victor had made his choice, leaving her to pick up the pieces of a life he had torn apart. And now, here he was, standing in front of her, as if he hadn’t ripped her world apart.
“Mummy,” Jamal’s small hand tapped her gently, pulling her back to the present. She blinked, the past receding but not disappearing.
Jamal’s innocent eyes searched her face, his voice soft and curious. “Why are you looking at this man like you’ve seen a ghost, Mummy?”
Rachael tore her gaze away from Victor, her chest tight, the weight of her son’s question pressing down on her.
She forced herself to smile, though it wavered, her emotions still raw and close to the surface. “It’s nothing, sweetheart,”
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she managed to say, her voice strained but gentle. “Just someone I… I used to know.”
“You used to know this man. Oh wow, Mummy. How?” Jamal’s innocent voice pierced the tense silence, his wide eyes bouncing between Rachael and Victor, filled with curiosity that only a child could muster. It was a simple question, but it carried the weight of a history too heavy for a boy his age to understand.
Rachael’s heart lurched at the sound of her son’s voice, a sharp pang that sent her spiraling back to memories she’d tried so hard to forget.
She swallowed the lump in her throat and forced a smile, though it wavered at the edges. “Jamal,” she said, her voice softer now, tinged with a mix of unease and maternal warmth, “why don’t you go sit over
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there with Daniel? Let me talk to this man for a moment, okay? It’s grown–up talk.”
Jamal’s brows furrowed in confusion. He looked at his mother with a mix of defiance and concern, sensing the tension that hung thick in the air, but he knew better than to push.
“Okay,” he said, reluctantly. He took Daniel’s hand, glancing back at Rachael as if seeking reassurance. “Come on, Daniel, let’s go sit and play.””
Rachael watched them walk away, her heart heavy. Her gaze flickered back to Victor, and every muscle in her body tightened as years of hurt and betrayal surfaced.
The kids had barely settled when Chloe stepped forward, her face twisted with years of suppressed anger. Before anyone could
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react, she swung her fist, landing a brutal punch squarely on Victor’s jaw.
The impact was loud, and almost dislocated his jaw. Victor stumbled back, his hand flying to his face, eyes wide in stunned disbelief. “What the hell, Chloe?” he shouted, his voice strangled between pain and outrage.
But Chloe was far from done. Her eyes blazed with fury as she advanced on him, her fists clenched at her sides, trembling with the anger of years.
“What the hell gives you the right to touch our kids?!” she screamed, her voice dripping with venom. “What, were you planning to kidnap them? Is that it? Playing the hero now, Victor? After everything you’ve done to Rachael? To Jamal?”
Victor blinked, disoriented, his usual
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swagger nowhere to be found.
He wiped a trickle of blood from his lip, trying to gather himself, but Chloe’s words hit him like a barrage of punches, each accusation cutting deeper than the last.
“I wasn’t… I wasn’t trying to kidnap them,” he stammered, his voice cracking under the weight of the truth. “I saw them wandering alone, and I just-”
“You just what?” Chloe spat, stepping closer, her voice rising with every word. “Thought you could swoop in and play daddy? You think you can just show up out of nowhere and pretend to care? After you left Rachael to pick up the pieces? After you abandoned your son?”
Victor’s face fell, his bravado crumbling as Chloe’s fury continued to rain down on him.
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He turned to Rachael, his eyes pleading, searching for a shred of forgiveness, but all he found was the cold, unflinching stare of a woman who had been through hell and back.
“Rachael, I swear, I wasn’t trying to cause trouble. I saw the boys, and I just wanted to make sure they were safe. That’s all.”
Rachael stood there, her breath hitching as the years of pain and resentment clawed their way to the surface.
The sight of Victor, the man who had once held her heart in his hands, now standing before her with that same desperate look–it was almost too much to bear.
But this time, she was no longer the young, naive girl who would crumble at his feet. She was stronger now, scarred but unbroken.
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“Safe?” she repeated, her voice trembling but defiant. “You don’t get to talk about safety, Victor.
Not when you’re the reason I had to learn how to keep Jamal safe all by myself. Not when you left us without so much as a goodbye. You don’t get to show up now and pretend to care.”
Victor’s eyes widened, and for a moment, it looked as if he might argue, but Rachael’s words silenced him.
She stepped forward, her gaze piercing through his being “You chose to walk away,” she continued, her voice gaining strength with every word.
“You chose Evelyn over me! Your own wife! Over us. You knew I was pregnant with your
olic
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child yet you did otherwise!. And I don’t need your help. Not then, not now. We’ve been just fine without you.”
Chloe, still seething, stepped protectively closer to Rachael, her stance firm and unyielding. “You don’t get to waltz back into our lives like nothing happened,” she snapped.
“You’re not the hero here, Victor. You’re just a coward who ran when things got tough. And trust me, no one’s missed you.”
Victor flinched, Chloe’s words landing with a brutal honesty he couldn’t escape. He looked at Rachael one last time, his eyes brimming with unsaid apologies, but Rachael didn’t
waver.
She met his gaze head–on, her expression a mix of defiance and unspoken pain.
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“Go, Victor,‘ Rachael said quietly, her voice barely more than a whisper but filled with finality. “We don’t need you. We never did.”
Victor’s eyes stayed fixed on Jamal, who
was happily playing with Daniel, his laughter ringing out in innocent bursts. It was like the world around them had faded, and all Victor could see was the boy he’d never had the chance to know.
There was a haunted look in his eyes, a mixture of regret and longing that seemed to choke him as he whispered, almost like he was speaking to himself. “Is that my son?” His voice was shaky, barely holding together as he pointed toward Jamal.
Rachael’s heart clenched at the words, fury bubbling up from the deepest parts of her. She stepped forward, her body tense and
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protective, her glare piercing right through Victor.
“Don’t you dare,” she hissed, her voice low and trembling with rage. “Don’t you dare open your filthy mouth and call him your
son!
“You lost that right the day you walked away. I was the one who held him when he cried, who stayed up when he was sick. He is mine.”
Victor recoiled as if her words had struck him physically, his face twisting with something that looked like shame. He opened his mouth, but no sound came out -what could he possibly say that would fix any of it?
Before he could gather himself, Rachael’s phone rang, cutting through the tension like
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a jarring alarm. Damian’s name flashed on the screen, and she quickly answered, her voice softening instantly.
“Hey babe, sorry I missed your calls. My phone was dead,” Damian’s voice came through, warm and full of concern. “How’s my little Superman? Is he okay?”
Rachael forced herself to steady her voice, pushing back the quiver threatening to break through. “Yeah, he’s fine,” she lied, her tone tight and strained. She didn’t have the heart to tell him what had really happened, not now. “He’s safe, Damian. Everything’s okay.”
There was a pause, then Damian’s sigh of relief filled the line. “Thank God. I’m on my way, Rachael. I’ll be there in five minutes.”
She nodded even though he couldn’t see her, her eyes flickering to Victor, who stood
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there like a ghost of a past she desperately wanted to bury. “Okay, we’ll see you soon.” She hung up.
Chloe, who had been watching the exchange with eyes that never left Victor, finally spoke, her tone dripping with disdain. “Was that Damian?”
Rachael nodded, her voice barely above a whisper as she forced the words out. “Yeah, he’s almost here.”
Chloe’s glare hardened, and she stepped up beside Rachael, her posture screaming defiance. “You need to leave, Victor. Now. This is your last chance to walk away with whatever dignity you think you have left.”
Rachael’s hand trembled as she pointed toward the exit, her voice cracking under the weight of years of anger and heartbreak.
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“Get out, Victor. You don’t belong here. Jamal doesn’t need you–he already has a father who loves him more than you ever could.”
Victor’s gaze flickered toward Jamal, who was still laughing, oblivious to the storm brewing just feet away. His expression softened, a bittersweet smile tugging at his lips. “Jamal… that’s a beautiful name.”
Rachael snapped, her voice coming out sharp and raw, like a wound being ripped open.
“Shut up! You don’t get to say his name like you know him. You don’t get to be proud of him. You don’t get to be anything to him. You’re just a stranger who walked away and never looked back.”
Damian arrived quicker than he expected, his heart pounding with a sense of urgency he
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couldn’t quite place.
From a distance, he spotted Racheal, her posture tense, eyes fixed on a man Damian didn’t recognize. The unease in her stance was unmistakable–something was wrong.
“What’s going on here, babe?” Damian’s voice cut through the tension as he slipped his arm possessively around her waist, pulling her close.
Racheal flinched at his touch, her breath hitching. “Oh, shit,” she muttered under her breath.
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