Chapter 40 Disappointment, Betrayal and Regrets

JANICE had a jump when someone knocked on the door. Her father sounded angry.

"Open this door, now!" Alfonso ordered his daughter when she did not respond to his knock.

"Dad, can you leave me alone for a while?" Janice requested her father and she was afraid of the questions he might ask.

"Honey, don't add to your daughter's resentment. Let her take a rest." Margaret pleaded and she was also nervous with the anger on her husband's face.

"Don't intrude, go back into our room!" Alfonso's voice was high as he pointed to the other room.

It was the first time that Margaret saw that kind of anger on her husband's face and she could not do anything but obey him. She did not want to taste the scourge of his wrath.

Even though she was scared, Janice could only open the door. She immediately stepped backward after she opened the door and saw her father's angry face.

"How can you do this to your sister?" His voice was weak, but the way he said it was full of anger.

"Da-Dad, I don't know what happened, but believe me..." she stuttered as she explained, but it was cut off when her father shouted.

"Are you going to act like the victim again and say that Nica just planned those to ruin you?!"

Janice bowed and bit her lower lip.

"In what was I not enough, Janice?!" His voice was hard and he was clenching his fist.

Janice stepped backward to stay away from her father because of fear. "I..I'm so sorry, Dad!" were the only words that came out of her mouth. She could not think of a better escape.

"Since when are you and your mother fooling me?" his tone of voice was low again, but his eyes remained full of anger.

"Dad, I'm very sorry!" Janice cried because of guilt and fear of her father.

"I gave everything to you, including love, but what did your sister do for you to be like that?" his voice growled with mixed emotions. He pities Nica and he is angry at himself, he had been negligent.

"I… I also don't like what I was doing then—" her sentence was not finished again and she quickly bowed her head as her father exhaled violently. She also could not meet his intent stares.

"Answer me, have you treat Nica as your sister even just once?" Alfonso asked sadly. When he did not get an answer from Janice, he tightly shut his eyes to stop the tears from forming.

"Mom didn't want to..."

"Enough!" Alfonso did not want to hear what else his daughter wanted to say. "From today onward, you can't set your foot in the company! I'm so disappointed in you. I thought you were a wise, kind sister and daughter!"

Janice stood still for a long time, she felt as if she was slapped on both cheeks because of what she heard from her father. She burst into tears and sat weakly on the floor. Her father slammed the door of her room and she could see the great disappointment on his face as if he regretted that she was his daughter.

When Alfonso came out of his daughter's room, he could not move his feet further and he held his chest. He felt something heavy was inside and he had difficulty breathing. He closed his eyes tightly and calmed himself. He let out a series of puffs of air to ease his breathing.

He leaned against the wall for a few minutes until he felt better. He went to his younger daughter's room in a slow pace. They are not there yet, but he was able to enter. The tears he had been suppressing streamed down when he saw how the decoration of Nica's room. It has not changed a bit. It was still the way he had it decorated, even the color painting of the walls when she was little was the same until now. As if his heart was stabbed when he realized how big of a failure he is to Nica. In many years, only now had he thought of visiting her room again. Now he realized how he did not give even a small value to her presence.

"I'm sorry, Dalia!" Alfonso mentioned the name of his deceased ex-wife. "I'm sorry if I didn't give enough attention even to our daughter!" he talked to his ex-wife in his mind.

With heavy steps, he entered Nica's room. He looked around and as if he was seeing how happy Dalia's face always was. She was delightful because he, himself organized their daughter's room. Their relationship was not good, but he loves his daughter with her. Even though he did not show it, particularly in front of her because he had grudges against her.

Alfonso's eyes stopped at where an antique chest was. He smiled and went near it. It was where the fairy-tale books Nica liked reading, was placed. He was extremely delighted because his daughter treasured those he gave to her. Even if he regrets everything, it is too late, thus he promised himself that he will make up for those times he neglected her.

Alfonso carried the box and sat down on the sofa. The smile on his lips faded when he saw what was there. His forehead furrowed as he took a picture. He wondered why the photo she took with Philip was kept there. He was about to put it back when he noticed the next photo.

He clenched his jaw and made a fist when he saw it clearly. He immediately looked at the other photos and he knows it was not edited. He read the letter attached to the envelope where the photos were placed. It was for his son-in-law and he knows the person who sent it. He is a well-known detective and he figured he probably requested an investigation because of the photo involving his daughter a few days ago.

Nica felt nervous when he saw that her room was open. She went ahead first and her husband was parking the car properly. She ran into her room to find out who dared to come in.

"Dad?" She said in surprise when she saw her father sitting on the sofa. She was about to ask him when she saw the anger in his eyes and he obviously came from crying.

"Since when do you know this?" Alfonso asked.

Nica looked at her box, she did not want her father to see it because she did not want him to be hurt. But it looks like the chance does not agree with her because he saw it even though she already hid it.

"It isn't my intention to break you and your wife apart." She quickly explained, she thinks he was thinking that she is just making up a story to ruin them.

"I'm sorry, daughter!"

Nica was stunned by what she heard from her father. That was not what she was expecting to hear from him. She did not notice that her tears fall too when she saw her father's tears. For the first time, he called her ‘daughter’ and he cried in front of her.

"I'm sorry!" He said again and hugged Nica tightly.

Chris saw the two who were both quietly crying as they hug each other. He blinked to stop the tears from forming in his eyes. He was happy for his wife. He turned to give them time to talk. He went down and spent his time in the garden, he was calm as he looked at the sky full of stars. He made unspoken gratefulness for his wife. He believes one of those stars was his wife's mother.

"I'm sorry, Dad, I ruined the event earlier," Nica said when her father became quiet.

"What you did was just right!" anger came back in Alfonso's eyes. "I was extremely foolish to believe those stories that are discrediting you."

"Dad.." she hugged her father back tightly as she cried. She missed his hug so much.

"I was a worthless father, I'm sorry, daughter!"

"Dad, stop that!" She sobbed, she felt bad because of the miserable look on her father's face.

After a few minutes, Alfonso stood up and distanced himself from Nica.

"Where are you going, Dad?" She asked worriedly and followed him.

"Stay here and I'll get back to those who have to pay to you. I was the one who brought them here that abused your kindness, so it's just right for me to put an end to their wickedness!"

Nica's heartbeat quickened because of nervousness. She did not know what to do when his father angrily opened the door and the same when he shut it.

Chris hurried upstairs when he heard the commotion on the second floor. "Babe, what happened?" He hugged her when he saw the fear in her eyes.

Nica told her husband everything and they both wait outside her father's door. She was anxious because she could feel that her father was suffocating because of anger.

"I can't believe she can do that thing," Chris said in disappointment and he suddenly loses respect for Janice's mother. He felt angry because she was also planning to ruin his relationship with Nica.

"I can't forgive her for cheating on my father. She's despicable, my mom's life became miserable because of her, but she still managed to have an affair!" Nica gritted her teeth when she remembered her mother whom her father was not able to love.

"I'll make sure that bastard Philip will rot in jail!" Chris promised his wife. It was good that the person he paid to investigate the photo was quick in his work. He also hacked Philip's computer files where his picture with Margaret was saved.