Chapter 3

"How's Ava?" Jim asked the doctor immediately as he came out of the wardroom.

"She's fine. We were able to save the child." The doctor replied and went on his way. Jim hurried to the room and checked on his sister.

"I am glad you are fine," he asked.

"I am pregnant?" Ava asked in surprise. The news was a great shock to her.

"Yes, Sister. You are pregnant, after a whole five years." Jim replied.

Ava stared vaguely into the air, her eyes rolled sideways as a multitude of thoughts flowed across her mind.

"Only if he was patient enough, but now he fucked everything up, and I am going to let him pay for all he did to me." She muttered weakly with the little strength in her.

"Tell the doctor I want to be discharged, I will be flying out of the country today, I need to pursue my dream career as a lawyer, and also, I can make Lincoln pay for what he made me pass through." She said, her eyes fully bulged and her mind determined.

"But…"

"There's no but, do as I say." She replied immediately, cutting Jim short of his words.

"All right. I will head over to your house and fetch your belongings." Jim offered, stood up, and made for the door.

"I do not want anything from that house, just get me my documents only, and my mother's only relic." She said, even though a part of her longed to enter into that same house again.

"All right." He replied and went off.

She sat back on her bed and thought about her life. She had lost her mother right from childhood, and she grew up in the cruel hands of her evil stepmother, Lilian, Jim's biological mother. Lilian instigated her marriage with Lincoln, which had led her to her current predicament.

"I am back, sister," Jim said, jolting Ava away from her thoughts.

"That was fast. Hope you remembered my mother's stuff." She asked.

"Yes, I took it along," Jim replied.

"Let's go then," Ava said. She managed to stand up from the bed, even though she felt a sharp pain in her head. The pain was nothing compared to her heartache.

"So where are you heading to?" Jim asked.

"Germany! To get my masters." She replied.

They walked out of the hospital and boarded a cab to the airport. Her heart skipped a beat as the car passed the front of the house she used to live in as the matron and legal wife, where she was now a total stranger. She hurriedly shoved the memories away and focused on the future.

"We shall meet again!" She said silently and sighed.

They got to the airport not quite long after. She went through the verification and was soon ready.

"I will miss you," Jim said as he grabbed Ava's hand, his pinky finger interlocking with hers.

"I will miss you more," Ava replied and smiled. Even though they were step-siblings, Jim was the only one who truly cared for her back in her father's house. He even went against his mother's orders countless times for her sake.

"Ensure you call me once you get there and also be sure to come back very soon," Jim said emotionally. It wasn't easy for the two siblings to part ways.

"Of course I will. I still have a score to settle with Lincoln, so I will be back," she replied. The plane was ready and about to take off. Ava waved at Jim as the plane took off into the air, leaving behind her pain and sorrows back in the country, tears welling up in her eyes, her heart ached at the thought of leaving her old life behind, all she valued and cherished, especially Lincoln, were now going to be her past. She had loved him all the years and all she got was just a broken head. 

"It's good to stay away from an unappreciative man, at least, he can now stay with the love of his life, his childhood sweetheart." 

"But I will make him pay for it." She retorted and focused her mind on the future, hoping for the best, even though a part of her still held on to the feelings she had for him over the years.

Days rolled into weeks, weeks into months, nine months passed and Ava went into labor. She had a complicated and painful delivery. Doctors rushed and panicked as the delivery proved difficult.

She screamed in agony as she suffered from excruciating pain.

"Her blood pressure is high, she might have suffered some traumas in the past that led to her high blood pressure. We will have to perform surgery on her, or we might lose her." The doctor said to Ava's friend, Chloe, who had come with her.

"All right, please do it," Chloe begged.

"No problem. Meet with the administrative officer and sign the necessary documents." The doctor said and went back inside.

The surgery proceeded with immediate effect, and Ava, through pains, gave birth to a set of twins, a bouncing baby boy, and a beautiful girl.

"Congratulations, she has delivered." The doctor said to Chloe, who ran inside almost immediately to check on her dear friend.

"I am glad you made it. I was worried sick," Chloe said as she hugged Ava.

"Sorry for making you worried, thanks for standing by my side," Ava replied, while Chloe simply waved off her compliment.

"Who else will, if I don't?" She replied and moved to the babies.

"They are cute." She commented.

Ava was still weak, she hadn't taken a proper look at her children. She stood up from the bed and was shocked as she threw a first glance at her son. He looked exactly like his father. His pair of eyes, his pointed nose, as well as his ears, were all perfectly identical to those of Lincoln. The girl looked almost like her, even though she also shared some qualities with her father.

"What do you plan on naming them?" Chloe asked.

Ava thought for a while before replying,

"Avery and Athena, meaning wisdom." She replied thoughtfully.

"Nice name," Chloe replied.

Ava nodded and stared lovingly at her babies. She begged the doctor who came to her that she should be discharged as she had an upcoming exam the following week and needed to study.

The doctor agreed and was divorced the following day.

She went back home full of energy, beaming with smiles as she carried her babies in her hands, her only reason for living on, and yes, her revenge against Lincoln.

She focused her mind on the exam and studied hard for it. The exam day came, and she wrote it diligently. She excelled far above her peers, which caused some jealousy and hatred, which she didn't care about after all.

"I so much envy you, how could you cope with two children?" Chloe asked her, during lunch in a restaurant.

"Oh! I just simply put in extra effort, that's all," Chloe said.

"Our master's program lasts for a year, and we are almost done with it. We will have our final exams soon. What are your plans? Are you going back to your country?" Chloe asked.

"Of course I am, there's no way I am not going back. Especially as I am this successful," Ava bragged. She had recently signed a contract with a prestigious law firm back in her country, where she would be the defending lawyer for a client.

"As soon as I am done with the exams, I will be flying back." She continued.

"I will miss you so much, and the babies," Chloe said, and Ava laughed.

The baby's growth was rapid, they grew more beautiful and handsome as the days passed by.

The final exams reached and, as usual, Ava prepared for it. She had her exams and answered all the questions with no effort.

"We are finally registered lawyers," Chloe screamed happily, while Ava sighed. It's time to go back to her country, where painful memories of her were buried.

"When are you going back?" Chloe asked.

"First thing tomorrow morning," Ava replied while Chloe hugged her.

"Don't worry, you are always welcome to visit me, and I will also come here occasionally," Ava said, sensing Chloe's emotional state.

"All right, cheers to a bright future," Chloe said and they both hugged each other again.

Ava went back to her house, picked up her babies from the nanny, and started packing her belongings. It was time to go back and take her revenge against those who had wronged her, even though her heart still ached for the man who had stolen her heart, yet treated her badly instead.

"There's no going back, for the sake of my children, revenge must go on." She muttered and zipped up her bag.