Cathy woke up with a start. She checked the time displayed on her digital bedside clock. It was 4am. She sighed and quietly got out of bed and went to the bathroom. She had to take a quick shower because she was sweating profusely. She had just had a terrible dream in which Dale had come to the house threatening to kill her if she did not return to him. Zach her husband had then shot him dead and had pointed the gun at her. She was begging him when she suddenly woke up and realized it was a dream. Zach was still sleeping. She finished showering and returned to bed. After a while, she gave up on falling asleep. She got up and went to the kitchen, got a glass of milk and sat at the dining table to think while sipping. Where last had she put the wedding ring?
She spilled the milk and nearly broke the glass when she heard the deep male voice mention her name. It was Zach. He had also woken up when she did not return to bed immediately. Finding that Cathy was shaking, he got a napkin and wiped off the spilt milk. He then carried her into the living room and set her on his laps.
Cathy’s guilt weighed her heavily then: how could she have cheated on such a sweet man? Her tears flowed freely. Zach her husband consoled her gently until her stream became hiccups. He then asked her, “What is troubling you, love?”
Cathy looked into his face and fresh tears began to flow, and all Zach could make out was “Forgive me. I’m very sorry. Forgive me.” He was lost, but there was no pressing until she visibly calmed down. Being a patient man, he waited for her to speak. When she did, she asked the question he prayed she would not, “What happened all these months, Zach? I was told that you had died. I was not even allowed to say goodbye! And now here you are, alive!” she cried.
Zach sighed. It was time, he guessed. Besides, the earlier she knew, the better. “I was never dead, love. We had to make you believe I was dead and buried early for your own safety. If you had known it was a ploy, they would have come after you.”
“They? Who are ‘they’?”
“I was contacted by National Security to assist them to foil a dangerous plan of terrorist attack by …” he whispered the name into Cathy’s ears and Cathy’s eyes extended in wonder. “They had wind of my presence and were after me and my family.” He kissed her forehead. “I had to disappear suddenly to make them believe the threat had been eliminated as one of them had poisoned my necktie at the men’s club. They had to think I had died. And who else will make my death more believable than my beloved wife? I’m very sorry I left you in the dark but I always made sure you were safe. You were being watched constantly…”
Cathy’s hand flew to her mouth and her eyes opened wider. She was being watched? So he knew? She did not realize she had spoken loudly until Zach asked her, “Knew what?” She shook her head and asked him to continue.
“The operation was to last not more than six months but there were complications so we took longer, over a year. My team and I were able to round the members of the group and we handed them over to National Security. I had to spend two months undercover before I could come to you. Believe me, baby, I missed you very much… I always prayed you would be safe… oh my love, don’t cry. I understand.” He rocked her in his arms like a baby as her tears subsided. He hummed softly. Before long, Cathy had fallen asleep again. He gently carried her to their bedroom and laid her on the bed and covered her up. She had been through too much, he thought. Poor Cathy. He would have to find a way to make up for all the time they lost together.
He left her to sleep. He could not sleep anymore as the first rays of the sun had already touched earth. He therefore dressed up in his track suit and running shoes and went jogging. On his return an hour later, he saw a man with a box in arm heading towards his residence. Cautiously, he stopped a block away to watch what the man would do next. He saw that the man knocked three times before he took out a metallic object from his pocket and inserted it into the keyhole.
Zach was taken aback for a few seconds and then he sprang to action. He sprinted to his door which made the other man stop turning the key in the lock to look at the new arrival.
“Hi.” Zach said when he caught his breath.
“Hi”, the other man responded. “Do we know each other?”
“I am yet to find out. But how did you …?” Zach could not complete his statement as they both heard a gasp and a fall at the door. They looked at each other and Zach took lead in entering the room only to find Cathy on the floor.
