An hour later, Alec was forced awake with water being splashed over him by Ricky.
"What the hell Ricky" he fumed and pushed his hand away.
"What's wrong with you?" He asked as he rubbed his drenched hair.
"What's wrong with YOU? You had the whole fucking night to reconcile with your wife and yet you failed at it." Ricky exclaimed in disappointment.
"Where is she?" Alec's voice was low unlike Ricky's.
"She left." Ricky said with a rueful smile.
"Did you really not ask her to come back to you?"
"I need to work my way through it." Alec replied.
"Do it before it's too late."
"What do you mean?" Alec was perplexed.
Ricky inhaled a huge breath before he replied, "She has decided to join the Shadows." Alec's eyes popped out when he heard it.
"Shadows??.. No.. that can't be true. How can she join Shadows?"
Alec still saw her as his gentle and fragile wife so much so that he couldn't bring himself to believe what Ricky said.
"Did you not see her, punching and kicking the hell out of those men, nonchalantly nonetheless."
Alec remembered the wreckage he had seen that day. Four men were already lying half dead on the floor, while Michelle and Mark fought the rest two.
"It was six against two, yet Michelle and Mark made them eat dirt. Mark is already a shadow member, and he is training another one under him."
"What?"
Ricky had thrown yet another shocking revelation towards Alec.
He held his head with both his hands feeling utterly flustered. His hungover state wasn't helping him either.
"There is no time for this." Ricky remained unmoved by his state which wasn't Ricky's usual nature.
"I need not inform you that, if she joins Shadows, she'll be out of everyone's reach."
"Are you sure?" Alec asked, still unable to wrap his mind around it.
Softening his voice Ricky continued, "She told me she plans to join Shadows and leave South-Hills. If she intends to stay hidden, then nobody, trust me NOBODY would be able to find her. Not me, or you, or Dwane or even Daniel Ford."
"Get her back before she disappears again."
"Why are you so keen on making her stay back?" Alec asked with his usual jealous tone.
"I really don't want Michelle to leave, also I've my own other vested interest." Ricky replied with a crooked smile thinking about Isobelle.
Ignoring his words, Alec stepped out of the room and made up his mind to bring Michelle back to Alwils Villa.
Few hours later, Alec visited Ford's Villa.
Even though he had been there several times, the current ambience of the villa felt different and unwelcoming.
Or maybe it was his guilt making him have such feelings.
"You took a long time to come around."
He heard a faintly familiar feminine voice from behind.
Turning around he saw Isobelle, her eyes were shooting daggers at him.
"Well, Hello there, Izzy." Alec retorted, deliberately calling her Izzy.
She had asked Michelle to address her as Izzy whenever anyone was around. Alec addressing her with that name brought back the memories of her, including her lies when interacting with him as El's friend Izzy.
This made her smile sheepishly as she felt guilty for lying to Alec.
"Where is Michelle?
"Why do you ask?" Isobelle said growing apprehensive of him.
"She is upstairs in her room." Lyla stepped in and replied with a smile.
"Mom.." Isobelle felt vexed.
"They are husband and wife, it's better that they sought out their differences by themselves. I hope that's why you are here." She looked at Alec.
"Yes." Alec firmly replied.
"You can go to her." Lyla said, Alec nodded and rushed upstairs.
He straightened his clothes, he had also tidied himself for Michelle's sake before driving to Ford's villa.
Standing in front of the door, he knocked on it.
"Come in."
To his surprise he heard a male voice from inside.
Nonetheless, he turned the doorknob and opened the door.
He saw Michelle seated near the table, facing her back to him as she read her book.
Daniel was sitting on the other corner of the table. The scene looked as if a father was helping his little daughter study.
Daniel's face turned bitter when he looked at Alec standing near the door.
"What are you doing here?" He gritted through his teeth.
His words made Michelle turn around and look at Alec. She blinked several times and continued staring at him.
"Did you sign the divorce papers?" Daniel asked.
"What??" Michelle scrunched her face as she looked at both of them with utter shock.
"Can I please speak to my wife alone?" Alec humbly asked.
"No." Daniel replied on her behalf.
Michelle continued to blankly stare at him, he stared back in a requesting way.
"Please." He humbled himself again.
"You are not worthy of calling my daughter your wife. Leave right now or.."
Michelle turned to Daniel stopping him,
"Dad"
she said in a pleading way asking him to let Alec speak to her.
"Fine." He said unwillingly and stepped out of her room.
Alec tried hard to ignore that Daniel called him an unworthy husband but he couldn't.
"Please"
Michelle said as she gestured to him to have a seat. He could sense her being distant.
Alec had made himself completely vulnerable to come see her, whereas Michelle had her guards up.