When Kees went home, Thelma and Luisa talked to each other, about seeking someone who will marry Luisa on papers only.
"Think about all men you met in the club, your customers!" Thelma said to Luisa.
"I don't know. We cannot ask any man if they're willing to be paid to marry me?" Luisa answered Thelma.
"What do you think of Karel?" Thelma asked Luisa. She meant the Dutchman that fetched them to work and bring them home after working everyday.
"Karel, the driver?" Luisa asked Thelma if indeed Thelma meant the driver.
"Yes, he told once that he is single!" Thelma answered Luisa.
"I don't know. He smokes marijuana. He could not be a good husband. "Luisa don't liked Karel.
"You are not looking for a husband, you are looking for a man to marry you by papers only. Someone you have to pay?" Thelma told Luisa that she was not looking for a husband but for someone who will be paid to marry her.
"I am not so sure about all of these, but I think I have no choice." after a while Luisa said. "Thelma, will you talk to Karel, asked him if he's willing to marry me by paper only and that of course he will be paid?"
From working, that early morning Karel brought them home to their apartment, they invited him to have an early breakfast with them, as they usually did when from work, they have their breakfast before they went to sleep and wake up between three and four o'clock in the afternoon. They ate their lunch and prepared themselves again to work.
Karel agreed as Thelma said they have a particularly important request that if him, Karel will accept, he can earn a big amount of money. For Karel, if someone talked about big money, he was interested. A man in his early thirties, Karel had no higher education and have many vices, drugs drank and gambling to name a few. If you offer a gambler a big amount of money, for sure it will not say no.
"Twenty thousand guilders? What I will I do to have it?" Karel directly answered Thelma, when Thelma said to him while they were eating their breakfast that he can earned such amount of money.
"Marry Luisa!" Thelma said it directly to Karel too.
"Marry Luisa?" Karel chuckled. "You are buying a husband?"
"Only on paper!" Luisa answered Karel when Karel asked her about buying a husband.
"You are a pretty girl. You can have a husband without buying one!" Karel looked at Luisa, a kind of a penetrating look.
"I don't need a husband! I only need someone to marry me, no attachment, only on paper!" Luisa answered Karel.
Karel did not answer. He kept eating his breakfast and finished it, then he pushed away from him his plate and spoke. "Okay, what is the deal?"
The Deal
Karel will marry Luisa. Luisa will pay Karel the amount of twenty thousand guilders. Five thousand less to what Kees expected. The marriage must stay seven years for only after seven years as required by the government that a foreign woman must stay with her husband before she can be naturalized as a Dutch citizen. When Luisa have already her citizenship, then Karel would be free. They can divorce and Luisa as already a Dutch citizen will have no more problem in staying in the Netherlands. She could then benefit all the privileges the Netherlands have to offer. They would live together in one house, no attachments, no responsibilities to each other. Everything would only be pure business.
Karel agreed.
When Karel went home after he agreed and Thelma told him that they must talked further with Kees who will finance everything, Thelma and Luisa slept together in one room and talked about the future and they decided that if everything will work, Luisa marrying Karel, they will have a double wedding, but of course everything at the disposal of Kees.
If there would be a double wedding, they liked it very much to invite Lorna and Carla. If Grace could come, it would be nice. Luz? They accepted it already, Luz was nowhere to be found, that Luz was missing!
When Kees knew that Karel agreed with the proposal of marrying Luisa on paper only, Kees worked the freeing of Thelma and Luisa from their commitment with the syndicate. Luisa and Thelma needed not to work anymore. Luisa used no girdle anymore to hide her pregnancy. Luisa prepared to transfer in Karel's apartment and so Thelma to live with Kees in his house as they waited for the wedding day to happened. Karel will receive his money after the wedding.
The appointment between Luisa and Karel was, that they will share expenses, the rent of the apartment, the gas and electricity and no bothering each other. Their appointment, they named or called it 'A gentlemen's agreement!'
Luisa and Thelma asked Kees if they could invite their friends on their double wedding day, Kees have no problem at all about it. Yes, they could invite anybody they wanted.
Thelma invited Luisa to the house of Kees which was her home for almost three weeks now. From there they will first call Carla to invite her and Wilhelm and then they will call Lorna after.
Carla upon hearing her friend on the other end of the line was glad.
"Thelma? I am happy to hear from you!"
"Me too, how are you? Everything okay?" Thelma asked.
"Yes, everything is alright. I have no complain about Wilhelm and his family. They were very good to me." Carla answered Thelma but there is something in Carla's voice that Thelma could not guessed.
"Are you sure you are okay?" Thelma asked again Carla if everything about her was okay.
"Really, I am okay. You know I tried to contact you and Luisa, but nobody answered the telephone in the apartment."
"We transferred already in Rotterdam. Luisa is here! You want to talk with her?"
"Give her the telephone, I also wanted to hear her voice."
"Hello, Carla!" Luisa greeted Carla after Thelma handed her the telephone.
"Hello, Luisa, how are you?"
"I am okay, you know I am getting married!" Luisa told Carla about her coming marriage.
"Really, so you and Herman at last are getting married!" Carla was excited upon hearing from Luisa that she was getting married.
"No, not with Herman. I will be marrying Karel!" Luisa's voice saddened upon hearing the name of Herman.
At the other end of the line, Carla was quiet. Luisa will be married not with Herman, but someone named Karel. She could not understand and just guessed by herself that things did not worked out with Luisa and Herman.
"Aw, okay, Karel would it be!"
"We are calling you, because Thelma and I liked it very much you attend our wedding." Luisa said.
"What do you mean?"
"Thelma is also getting married!" Luisa answered Carla.
"Really? I am surprised!" Carla could not believe to hear that Thelma was also getting married. "May I talk to Thelma again?"
Luisa handed the telephone back to Thelma.
"Hello again Carla, I don't have to tell you anymore. You know already from Luisa that I am getting married too." Thelma confirmed to Carla that she indeed was getting married too.
"I am surprised! I am glad to both of you. Wait, don't tell me that you will have a double wedding?" Carla was glad to hear that her friends were getting married.
"We indeed have a double wedding!" Thelma laughingly answered Carla.
"I will tell Wilhelm! For sure he would also like it to attend you and Luisa's wedding." Carla agreed to come to the wedding of Luisa and Thelma. "Only I think Wilhelm will be surprised to learn that Herman would not be the groom of Luisa, but I think he would not mind too, its Luisa's life. "
"Okay, we will send you our invitation card. After this call, we also will call Lorna. We will also invite her and Gunther on our double wedding." Thelma told Carla that they also will call Lorna in Switzerland to invite her and Gunther to their wedding.
At the other end of the line, Carla was silence.
"Carla, are you still there?" Thelma asked.
"Yes, I am still here. I think, you don't have to call Lorna in Switzerland." Carla replied with a sad voice.
"Not call Lorna? Why?" Thelma was puzzled to what Carla said. Not call Lorna, why? They also wanted that Lorna would attend the wedding. Thelma looked at Luisa who was also puzzled to what Carla said.
"I don't want to spoil your both wedding but because you are also planning to call to Switzerland, then I really must tell you both what happened there, what happened to Lorna and Gunther." Carla said.
"What happened to them?" Thelma was very eager to know what happened to Lorna and Gunther.
"Lorna was gone!"
"Gone where? They are separated? And Lorna was so happy about her pregnancy, her having a baby?"
"What I mean by gone is that Lorna died. She is dead!"
Lorna was dead. Thelma and Luisa could hardly believe it. What they heard from Carla could not be true. Lorna died, how? Why? ****to be continued****Remedios Dorio