The party continued, but Alrik led Eliza away from the rest of them. He didn't want her to keep being ridiculed, and he needed to get her clean. Her uniform smelled badly, but he held her close regardless. He would never be repulsed by her after she took care of him all this time. If it weren't for her, he wouldn't be alive at the moment.
"Alrik. What happened? How are you okay? The doctors said you would never recover." Eliza asked as soon as they returned to their room.
He smiled and kissed her forehead. "Your love and care brought me back. That is the only explanation."
"But what happened? Why did you leave me after our wedding? I tried searching for you, but it was like you vanished. You left me all alone for so long." Tears welled in her eyes, and his heart ached.
He didn't know if he should tell her the truth about the situation with his treacherous family. She didn't even know his secret identity, and even when they dated, he had given her a false surname. She thought he was Alrik Gren. Just a low class factory worker. He contemplated if he should tell her the truth. Ultimately, he decided it wasn't the right time. If only he hadn't been taken on his wedding night before he could tell her the truth, he wouldn't have this problem now.
"It's complicated, my love. I was taken against my will, and then I had to stay away to protect you from harm." He finally replied to her.
"That explanation isn't good enough, Alrik." She moved away from his arms. "I thought you were dead, before I found you in the streets one day and brought you back. But I couldn't demand an answer from you back then, because your cognitive abilities were gone. But now I can ask. Don't I deserve to know?"
"You deserve the truth, and more, my love. And I promise I will give it to you. But for now, I just need you to trust me. Can you do that? I need to get some things in order that have been off track since I've been sick. Then I will not need to tell you anything, I will show you my truth. I promise." He said with a pleading tone, and as she turned to face him, her gaze softened.
"How can I trust your promise now?"
"If you don't want to trust my promise, then trust my love. Believe in my love for you, Eliza. You've suffered so much for loving me, and now that I am back, I will make sure you never suffer again. I will give you the world if you wish, because you deserve it and more." He said and kissed her.
"Okay. I will wait a little longer for the answers I need. But only because we have a more pressing issue at hand." She replied and he smirked, thinking she wanted to drag him to their bed.
But his smirk faltered as he saw her serious expression.
"Why did you get my grandfather to include me in his little bet? You know I can't win. I have no money since I was cut off from the family. I work multiple jobs, but what I make is barely enough to feed us both. I never found a better paying job because my family had me blacklisted from multiple firms despite my degree in business administration. I also have no connections that could help me win. Everyone I used to know has deserted me. I'm a pariah in high society now." She said sadly, and he held her hand.
"You may not trust me fully now, but you soon learn that I am a man of my word. I will help you win against everyone else in your family and then they'll have no choice but to respect you. Especially with the surprise I have planned for you, and for them."
He was smiling, but she looked skeptical.
"You have nothing to lose if you do this, so just go with the flow."
"Okay, Alrik." She agreed with a sigh, but with the look on her face, he realised it was only because she was too tired to argue.
They must have kept her busy all day, working hard like a slave. That thought clouded his mind with anger. He felt like returning to the party to destroy their decorations, and ruin the party. But he knew that would only make them claim he was crazy, and try to lock him up. He could be patient despite his anger. The end would definitely be worth it. For now, Eliza was his priority.
She squealed as he lifted her off the ground, and carried her to their tiny bathroom.
"Alrik, no. You've been sick for some time now. You need time for your body to physically recover, just as your mind has healed." She said with concern, and he smiled.
"Nonsense. No matter how weak I am, I will always be strong enough to carry my own wife."
The place didn't even have a tub for him to run a warm bath for crying out loud. How could they treat her this way? The least they could do was let her keep living in the main house instead of in the staff quarters. Even the staff deserved better accommodation.
He took off her smelly clothes and joined her in the shower to clean her thoroughly. She began to sob. It had been so long since anyone bothered to take care of her. And she was also glad that Alrik was back to his normal self. But hearing her cry, Alrik thought she was sad.
"Don't cry, my love. My heart aches every time you do that."
"I'm just happy you're back now, and I won't be alone anymore. It's so tiring to carry the burden of everything by myself."
"Never again. I swear it. You will never be alone again." His gaze was fierce as he promised her this.
And he intended to keep his promise. He refused to be caught off guard anymore. They would stay here for now, while he made arrangements to move her to a more secure location. Only then would he reveal his real identity as High General Zerdon, and CEO of Crestview group. His family and hers would definitely try to retaliate, but it wouldn't matter as long as they had adequate protection.
After getting her cleaned, he dried her hair and braided it. Then checked their small kitchen to see what food items she had stocked. Then he made her a small meal for her. Soon after eating, he held her in bed, and stroked her hair until she fell asleep. Then he got up to work. First, he called Gaya.
"Sir, we received a long list of companies willing to make the move of Crestview's headquarters go smoothly. Just as you predicted. But we need your opinion on which would be the best choice."
"None." He said calmly, and he could feel her surprise, even through the phone.
"None? But this was your idea. Moving the headquarters, and also getting offers from other companies to make it happen faster." She said incredulously.
"I know. And I haven't changed my mind about using a new city for the company's headquarters. I just changed my mind on how to do it. I will personally send you a proposal for a partnership with specific terms that I want included. Draft a contract with those terms, and a specific benefactor, and then I will let you know what company to send it to." He said.
"As you wish, General."