Vengeance On The Heartless Billionaire

Catherine Wells covered her sister Carina Wells with the bed covers. She was trying not to show how desperate she was becoming and how scared too. She had to be strong for her sister, Carrie was now a ghost of her former self, Cathy thought as tears stung her eyes. She could not let Carrie see her tears. She quickly wiped the tears before turning to look at her sister.

'I want to get some drugs that will make you well soon', she said smiling determinedly. 'You will be up on your feetin no time, troubling me the way you usually do'.

Carrie moved her cheek in a shadow of a smile, and nodded. 'Were you crying just now?' she asked.

'Crying', Cathy feighed shock. 'Why would I do that?'

'There really is no need to cry, Cathy', she said. 'I am a big girl and I know that you will take this sickness away', she paused to gain a little strength.

The struggle to speak was visible and it tore at Cathy's heart and caused an unreasonable fear to envelop her. Carrie was going to survive this! she thought fiercely.

'Do not stress yourself talking, sweetheart. Let me go get the drugs and then we can stay together, Okay?'

Again Carrie nodded and beckoned on her big sister. Cathy drew closer to her.

'You're the best, sister. Thank you for taking such good care of me'.

The tears ce then, rolling down her cheek and she brushed them off fiercely. I want to do more for you, plum, she thought, but my hands are tied but I shall definitely make sure I live up to your love and confidence in me.

She hated to leave her like that but she had to act on the idea nagging at her. It was for Carrie's own good afterall.

With one last look, she walked purposefully out the door. On second thoughts though, she went briskly into the flat of her closest neighbour, a young female student called Ema to ask her help with her sister.

'I am sorry to disturb you this way, Ema', she said but please look in on my sister from time to time. I want to go down the street to get something for her and I am afraid she might need something while I am gone'.

'I have a class this afternoon, hope you will not be gone for long?' Ema asked.

'Of course not', she said looking incredulous. 'I will be back before you know it, just as soon as I get what I am going for'.

'It's all right then. I shall stay with her while you are gone but please be back soon'.

Cathy thanked her for being so considerate and hurried away. She hadn't wanted to tell her that she was not going down the street but to visit someone.

Cathy had recalled her father advising them to go to his friend Jake Hunt if they should be in need of assistant. Since she had exausted all her options, she decided to go to the man, praying that the man would be as her father had believed him to be and that he would help. His help, she hoped would go a long way to helping Carrie recover from the strange ailment ravaging her body and killing her slowly.

She looked once more at the address she had got from the directory to ensure she was at the right place and having confirmed that she was, she walked determinedly towards the gate of the hunts and the name 'The Hunts' Mansion', boldly written there like an epitaph.

'Yes, may I help you?' asked the guard at the gate.

'Yes, please', she said politely. 'l would like to see Mr. Hunt'.

'You wish to see Mr. Hunt? Do you have an appointment?' the guard asked.

'No, I don't', Cathy said 'But I have to see him'.

'Is he expecting you?'

'No, but it is quite urgent'.

'Ma'am you can't see him. He isn't even around', the guard said, frowning.

'Please, it is pertinent that I see him', she said desperate now and determined not to leave without seeing Jake Hunt, even if it meant running into the house without the guards allowing.'It is a matter of life and death'.

The guard looked at her sympathetically. He would have really liked to help but the girl seemed not to be listening.

'I really would love to help you, lady but I can't because Mr. Jake Hunt isn't here', the guard said. 'But his....'

'Sanctus!' a man called from inside the building.

'What is the commotion down there all about?' he asked haughtily.

'Excuse me sir, this girl said she needs to see Mr. Jake Hunt and I tried to tell her that she...'

'Let her in immediately', he ordered in a thunderous voice.

Catherine was very happy at being let in. She hurried into the main building, following the directions the guard had giving her. She soon found herself face to face with the man who had come to her rescue by asking her to be allowed in.

'Yes, young lady', he said.' Sounded like you needed to see me. How may I help you?'

'Are you Mr. Jake Hunt?'

'The one and only', he smiled wickedly, raising an eye brow.

' A good day to you, Mr. Hunt', she said glad that she had been able to see and speak to him. 'My father told me I could come to you. I need your help urgently'.

'Wait a minute. Who is your father and what help are requesting?' he asked quietly, eyeing her up and down in a sensual manner.

'Mr. Wells, he was a friend of your. At least that's what she told us before his death. I am here because my sister is critically ill and I need financial help from you, kind sir'.

'How much do you need?' he asked.

Catherine told him, hope visible in her eyes.

'And what makes you think that I have such an amount?' he asked.

Catherine was lost for words. She had been so sure that he was going to have the money to give her and willing to do that as well. She looked at the mansion and could not believe that such a man would not have the money to give her.

'I know because you are about the richest man around. I shall pay back the money, I promise. Just please give it to me, so that my sister can get the treatment she deserves and have a chance to live a healthy life'.

'What makes you think I am willing to give you the money? And how can you pay me back if you cannot even raise it to begin with?' he asked and Cathy coloured. 'Please leave this instant because I could not give my money to such as you. I work for my money and cannot throw it away by giving it to you!'

'Please sir, I will do anything ', she pleaded desperately.

'That's more like it', he leered. 'Are you serious about doing anything?'

'Yes, I could clear the whole garden, sweep the whole expanse of land, anything'.

He started laughing and looking at her lecherously as he said, 'You do not have to do all that. A girl who looks like you do only has to do one thing and that is to follow me upstairs and I shall tell you what I'd like you to do for me....'

Catherine Wells found that she was hyperventilating.Her heart was pounding in her chest as adrenaline pumped into her. Her hands and indeed her whole body was trembling but the fact was that she was not trembling from fear, she was not afraid. That had been in the past. She was trembling from suppressed anger and bitterness and now that these feelings were going to be let out, she could not wait to get it over with. She was going to give it all that she had. She must teach him not to mess with her and indeed any person again as long as he lived.

She had been waiting for five whole years to exact her revenge on the man and today, she was not going to allow anything stop her.

She had plotted and planned how she was going to make him pay for what he had done to her but had not really thought of this means. It was by sheer luck that she had got the news that Jake Hunt was wedding today.

At the news, five years of frustrated and suppressed anger had come bubbling out.

He had destroyed her life and was going to get married and continue enjoying his own life? No way. That which is good for the geese is also good for the gander.

She got herself ready. It was time to take an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. She owed this to herself and her little sister.

The memory brought her close to tears and she swallowed the lump that had formed in her throat. No man could do what he had done to her and her loved ones and get away with it.

She arrived the venue of the wedding and her mind flooded with memories. She hold back the memories because it was fitting that she remembered why she was here.

It had happened five years ago. She had been twenty and her sister had been thirteen. They had had just each other since their parents had died in a ghastly motor accident.

Things had not been very easy. But they had managed. She had worked as a teacher and her salary was not much and hence they had no money left for luxury after paying for the necessary things they needed. They were content in the little flat her salary could afford because they had each other.

Things had gone on this way and they were happy until Carrie fell I'll. One day, she had been the happiest and healthiest teenager around and the next, he was fading before her very eyes.

They visited almost all the hospitals on the country and consulted almost all the specialist until the strange illness was diagnosed. Though a little disease, a treatment had been found for it and there was a great chance of recovery. The hitch was that Carrie would have to undergo a surgery and would have to be flown out of the country for it. The cost was staggering.

'But it is too expensive', she wailed, wondering where she was going to get such an amount from. 'Couldn't you do something about the cost, doctor?'

'That is just an estimate, it might be more than that after all is said and done', the doctor said. 'But if you get the amount I just mentioned, then your sister will be as good as cured'.

She had of course tried to raise the money but she had nothing to sell and no collateral for the size of the loan she needed.

As her options ran out, so her sister's deterioration seemed to increase its pace.

She had tried to put up a brave front especially in the face of her determined cheerfulness, she had been frantic with worry when she recalled Jake Hunt.

She felt that it was the answer to her prayers and wondered why she had not recalled him before then

Her father had once told her as though he knew that he might not stay with them for much longer that should anything happen to him and their mother, she was to go to this Jake Hunt for help. He had been so confident that he would not turn them away. They had been friends for many years and still corresponded.

'He will surely help if you need it. So do not hesitate to go to him', her father had assured her.

With renewed hope, she had found an addressing the phone directory and had gone to see him for help.

Looking into the church hall, as she came back to the present, Catherine saw that the bride had arrived and the procession was about to commerce.

Soon, she thought, she would have her revenge for that night, five years ago, when her world had been ripped apart.

Carrie had been so sick that she had hated to leave him alone but there had been no time to waste, so she had braved it out, left her sister and home to Jake Hunt. While she was there pleading her cause, her sister had been rushed into hospital. Still there might have been time, if the money had come to save her but Jake Hunt had refused.

She had gone home in agony, her desperation overtaking her only to discover what had happened to Carrie but before she could leave for the hospital, she had received a telephone call telling her that her sister had gone into a coma. She died on the early hours of the next day.

The blow was too much for her. She had gone into shock, recalling very little of that night beyond the fact that Jake had refused to give her the money and which she knew had sealed the fate if her sister and she vowed that one day, he would pay for the pain he had caused her.

She had remained in shock for days and the little funeral held for her sister did not penetrate the ice that had settled inside her.

Something vital within her had died. She hadn't been able to feel anything anymore and she hadn't wanted to.

Back in the echoing emptiness of her flat, she had known only one thing, that lack of money had given the man the power of life and death over her sister. Wealth could have kept Carrie alive and wealth meant power.

She had then become determined to make it in life. She bowed that someday, somehow, that wealth and power would be hers.

A week or so later, she ran into a friend - as n old friend Allys Colt. They had gone for coffee and rekindled their friendship. Catherine discovered that Allys was a taken scout for a modelling agency. She could not stop praising Cathy's looks. Anxiety and loss of appetite had worn her always slim and leggy figure into perfect model lines. Grief had fined her face, showing up the good bones and the haughty remoteness of her eyes.

When Allys had suggested that the agency would not be able to resist employing her and that she would make a fortune, Cathy had not been so sure but Allys had been so right.

She had gone with the idea because it was better and more energy saving than arguing. And overnight, it would seem, she had found herself, the new sensation. Both the agency and advertisers loved her and soon she was commanding the kind of money that made the head spin.

The goal she had set for herself to accomplish came within her grasp and she had reached for it with an energy of one possessed.

She had worked every available hour of the day, giving all that she was asked, making herself indispensable, knowing that a job successfully completed meant more money in the bank.

Even when she became financially secure, she hadn't stopped

Work filled her life. Men were always in the periphery where she kept them and never came close. She worked with them, dined and dated them, but never did they break into her 'real' life.

Besides, she felt nothing. Their kisses and caresses left her cold and unresponsive.

Her aloofness, rather than putting the men off, made them want her the more and would cluster around her like bees in a hive, each wanting to outdo the other in a bid to win her love. But their efforts never paid off because she remain cold and remote. Someone coined the name 'Ice queen', and it stuck, but she didn't care. Nothing was allowed to interfer with her goal. If a man became too possessive or too intrusive, she dropped him and that was the end of it.

It made her enemies. She didn't care about that either. Men had no place in her scheme of things. She was aware that each wanted to be the one to 'thaw' her but only she knew that it was absolutely impossible. So she watched their antics from her lofty position and was not amused but was very indifferent.

Another glance through the tinted rear window, the church yard was now empty and the bride and her family had gone inside and the event had started.

It was time to go. She automatically checked her appearance in the mirror and saw that her beautiful face deserved the name she was called 'Ice Queen' which was bestowed on her and she was happy about it because that was exactly the way she felt. Hers was a cool and haughty beauty that stated clearly 'Look but do not touch'.

She felt in control of the situation and this gave her a great deal of satisfaction.

As she got out of the car, she pressed the intercom. On the other side of the partition, a uniformed driver raised his head.

'Turn the car, Lynn,and wait for me here. I shall not be long', she declared in her cool, slightly husky voice and climbed out.

She was glad that all eyes were on the minister and the wedding couple and not in her. She herself looked at the couple, the groom in particular but scarcely appreciated how the suit sat on his shoulders and slim hips.

Her nerves jolted at the sight of him for an instant and in another instant, she was as cool as a cucumber, opening the hymn book as she slipped into a pew.

When she had made her plans, she had been sure that she would do as she had planned. She had no doubts now. Though the flames that fanned her hatred burned inside her, she could not let it overwhelm her.

It had been a long wait but it was almost over.

'If anyone knows why the couple should not be joined in holy matrimony, let them speak or forever hold their peace', the minister said and the familiar tension hung in the air.

The seconds ticked by. The silence lengthened. Relief replaced the tension and it was at that precise moment that Cathy's voice rang out. 'I do'.

There was a moment when the silence deepened with shock and everyone turned toward the rear of the church building where Cathy was standing. She almost laughed at the varying degrees of stunned stupefaction the faces revealed. Then her gaze fixed on one man.

'He can't marry her. He already had a wife - me', she declared and all hell broke loose.

There were people everywhere. Everyone speaking at the same time. Jake Hunt's face was contorted with fury. Cathy walked away in the diversion. She turned back and met those grey eyes that bore into her. A shiver of pure, unadulterated fear ran down her spine. She stiffened, glad that he could not see who she was because of the veil she wore covering her face, because she knew she had just made herself a very bad enemy.

It took a surprising amount of effort to turn back from those mesmerizing eyes but she did and walked away in legs that felt strangely weak. Nobody attempted to stop her and and she walked quickly back to her car and climbed in. She felt hounded but told herself that it was ridiculous to feel that way after only one look.

'You can take me home now, Lynn', she ordered, glad that her voice at least sounded calm and sank against the seat as the car moved smoothly forward.

Closing her eyes, Cathy heaved a deep sign. Finally, it was over. She had fulfilled the promise she had made to herself. She had ruined Jake's life as he had once destroyed hers. Not as devastatingly perhaps but it was enough that he had been given a taste of his own medicine. 'Two can play the game', she smiled to herself.

She wished him joy of what was left. Let the desolation that had once been hers, be his portion now.

Deftly, Cathy rolled the veil from her face. Removed it totally and threw it on the seat beside her. It had served its purpose. She was well known in some circles but she doubted that anyone in the congregation had recognised her - especially him.

She didn't want him to know. She wanted him to wonder and hate her like she had hated him. Nothing less would do. 'You're the best', she recalled her sister telling her. And the silent vow she had taken to do all she could to help Carrie regain her health but she had failed because of one heartless billionaire.

She saw his eye again in her mind, those cold grey promising retribution but she knew he was helpless. She was satisfied with the outcome of her venture. Revenge, she found out had a sweet taste afterall.

Reaching forward, Cathy opened the little bar set in her car and poured herself a small measure of brandy.

To you, Jake Hunt ', She raised her glass in salute. 'May you continue to burn in hell!' She cursed him and with a laugh, swallowed the contents of the glass at a go.

She had known that she was going to succeed in her venture and now that the deed was done, the more reason to celebrate. She was going to be celebrating her Victory, her triumph. And why not do it with a party? she thought. She started mentally arranging for the impromptu party. It was not supposed to be easy but her joy at her success made it worth it all.

'Carrie', she said to herself, 'I have avenged your death and all the injustice we were made to suffer by that son of a gun'.

The car drove into her drive way and she climbed out. Determined to look her best at the party later that evening. Her friend and partner Allys would be helping her out as well as her housekeeper, Linda.

She was going to ensure that the affair was a lavish one. Everyone we ho attended would have more than enough to eat and drink. Money was not an issue. Gone were the days when money had embarrassed and indeed humiliated her, turned her into a beggar but not now. The story has changed and the table turned in her favour.

The party promised to be an unforgetable one, she thought and smiled. Little did she know how true that thought of hers was going to turn out to be.