His Tempting Widow

Chapter 6: Watching Her

“I’m sorry, Mrs. Adanza. We can’t release the money that’s supposedly due to you as your husband’s beneficiary. You see, there was alcohol in his blood, and he caused that horrible accident because he was drunk,” the life insurance employee told Shaina.

Shaina’s jaw dropped.

“What in hell’s bells? I wasn’t drunk, you… you greedy bastards!” Wallace shouted, slamming his hands on the desk of the woman that Shaina was talking with. He was enraged by this.

“Y-you mean… me and my children, we can’t get a cent from you?” Shaina felt so lost and defeated at the moment that her heart sank to her toes. Over a million pesos turned into air, just like that.

The agent shook her head, looking unsympathetically at Shaina. “It’s company policy, Mrs. Adanza, and it’s also in the papers if you read and understood the clause.”

Shaina scoffed in disbelief, eyes fluttering. But there was no way she would cry in front of this cold b*tch that stared back right at her.

“Look, Mrs. Adanza. We already looked into your husband’s case. He clearly caused that accident. A CEO is in coma until now, someone got paralyzed and there was one other death among the victims. The police have ruled out that it was indeed your husband’s fault. If he wasn’t drunk, there would have been a possibility that we would give you the money.”

“No! It was not my fault. It was the truck driver’s!” Wallace yelled at the woman’s face.

Shaina swallowed. “There must be a mistake. I don’t think it was my husband’s fault,” she insisteed, breathing unevenly. She knew Wallace would not drive if he was really drunk.

“I’m sorry, Mrs. Adanza. There’s nothing more you or I can do,” the woman in her late thirties said with a stoic face, however.

Shaina swallowed hard, blinking fast to keep the tears at bay.

“Hon, this can be disputed. You can go to a lawyer and ask for an advice, and then, he can represent you,” Wallace told his widow as she slowly got up from the chair. But she could not hear him. “You can request my case to be reinvestigated. I’m sure my alcohol level was not that much. I wasn’t drunk, I swear! I really think it was the truck driver’s fault. He could have avoided me if he slowed down. I think that bastard just went on speeding like that as if he was in a race track!” he ran on, as his wife walked out of the office of the insurance company, passing by some tables and cubicles. There were a few upset clients talking loudly with the agents.

When Shaina was outside the building, she crossed the street. She walked to the boulevard, sat heavily on a concrete bench and cried. She covered her mouth as she looked at the calm and glistening seawater with unseeing eyes. It was a sunny day, but she felt the opposite at the moment.

Wallace stared helplessly at his pitiful widow. He knew that the insurance money could have helped her and their children go through life easier even without him. But now, it was blown away by the wind.

His hands balled at his sides. He sat next to his beautiful widow, caressing her face with his loving gaze.

“I’m so sorry, hon. I made your life like this. I’m so sorry!” he uttered dejectedly.

***

“What? Those a-holes! They just don’t want to release the money! They would just find little excuses so they can keep it!” Paola ranted when she heard about the life insurance money that Wallace’s family would not be able to get. “I hope their homes will go into flames!” she cursed.

Shaina, Paola and Hilda were at the table, while the children watched TV at the small living room. The dinner table was just a few meters away from where the sofa was.

Hilda patted Paola’s hand. “Hey, don’t say that. It’s not good to wish something bad to other people.”

Paola just exhaled, still furious.

Meanwhile, Wallace sighed as she listened and watched the women. He was leaning against the wall with his arms crossed. Oddly, he did not get through the wall, unless he would walk right through it.

His mother turned to Shaina. “I still have little savings, so we can get by for the time being,” she said.

Wallace knew it was the little monthly money his mom received from the social security after his father died. Four thousand pesos was not enough for all of them, with growing children. They had needs, especially at school, not to mention the monthly bills like electricity and water plus gas and groceries.

“But I need to find a job at this rate, Ma. We’re lucky Ace had a funeral insurance, so we did not pay anything, but just for the grave diggers to dig and for the gravestone. The bereavement money that Ace’s company gave us, as well as the condolence money from his colleagues, our friends and neighbors, they won’t really last long. Maybe it can hold us up for five more months, until December, if I budget it wisely. Plus, cross stitching is not enough. I don’t have many customers.”

“Oh, speaking of which, I can recommend you to my employer. You can come with me, Shai,” Paola told her.

“You mean at the laundromat where you’re working at?” Shaina’s eyes shone with hope.

Wallace stared at Paola. If he was alive, he would not want his wife to sort, wash and iron other people’s clothes and sheets. But then again, he was already dead. He was, in fact, a ghost who was hanging around his widow. He was not sure for how long. Because as far as he was concerned, he had not met other ghosts so far.

Or maybe only that one at the cemetery, he thought, remembering that weird person with a man bun that stared at his wife. He was sure of it before that man turned around and dropped to his knees. What was his problem if he was a ghost like me? But… was he? Why didn’t he have white clothes like me?

“Well, yes. Would you like to try it?” Paola shrugged.

Shaina smiled at her friend. “Of course! Thank you, Pao! I won’t mind working with you. It’d be great!”

“Of course! I’ll take care of you, Shai.” Paola winked at her.

“Don’t tell me you’re a homo, Paola,” Wallace murmured, leaning closely at his widow’s friend, who was still single.

Paola began to shiver. “Why is it suddenly cold? Did you feel that?”

Shaina’s brows met. “No. It’s hot in here, in fact. The fan isn’t on, Pao,” she replied, glancing at the stand fan near the TV.

“I swear, it’s like there’s a cold thing that touched my face and arms.

Wallace let out an imaginary breath and stepped back. He kissed his widow’s crown and went over to sit next to his daughter. Her eyes were fixed on the TV, just like her brother.

“I miss playing with you both, kiddos,” he murmured.

“So, you’re coming with me, alright?” Paola wanted to confirm.

Wallace looked over his shoulder to glance at his wife.

“What time are we going?” Shaina inquired.

“Before eight in the morning. Bring along your resume.”

Shaina made a face. “I should’ve finished college. I would’ve been at least a secretary or an office clerk by now,” she uttered.

Wallace rubbed his face. If only he let her study when she wanted to, his wife would not have been like this.

Helpless. Inexperienced.

It’s my fault, he blamed himself.

He knew that Shaina did not only cry for him at nights while she hugged their children in bed. It was because she did not know how to raise their child all alone, with only her mother-in-law by her side. She had no family but only them. Nonetheless, Wallace was grateful for his supportive mother. Hilda was not like other mothers-in-law who hated their daughters-in-law and find fault in them.

I shouldn’t have been so selfish. I shouldn’t have caged you, hon.