Love Doth Conquer All

Chapter 2

Raphael got up to check how much time he had left before he would start wrapping up before leaving work for the day. It was already Friday. He did not live very far from his restaurant, so after he closed every day, he could afford to spend some more time before finally leaving to go home. He checked his wrist watch and the time was 5:28 p.m. Fine, each day at work brought different sets of customers and complaints he had to deal with. Dealing with customers was always very exhausting. Sometimes he wondered if kids wore adult costumes and pretended to be grown-ups. He walked into the kitchen. The chef was busy in the kitchen, putting together an order for a customer. "Could you help me just grab the cherry on the shelf?" the chef asked Raphael as he walked in. "Yes, here it is", Rafael said as he handed him the cherry. "Ring Ring". His phone rang out accompanied by low vibration. Rafael picked up his phone and checked to see who was calling. It was his mother. He quickly swiped up to answer the phone. "Hi Mum, how are you doing? You Okay?", she didn't reply. "What's wrong?", he asked, surprised that his mother would call him and not say anything. Now his day had just gone from annoying to horrifying. This can't be good. "Come home", she said, "what's wrong mum?" he asked with a puzzled look on his face, wondering what was going on. His heart was racing. What if his mother was in danger? A million thoughts crossed his mind as he tried to work out a possible reason for the strange call. Something was definitely up and it left a bad feeling in his stomach.

Raphael drove as fast as he could. His mother's house was just about 15 miles away and he had to get there as soon as possible. The road was very busy as people were just returning from work at this time and the road was congested. Raphael finally got to the street that led to his mother's apartment and turned into the street. He slowed down and drove more steadily now as he tried to relax his mind. He had still not gotten over the feeling he got after the call. Raphael pulled into the driveway of his mother's compound and parked his car. He quickly jumped out of the car and headed for the front door to his mother's house. "Mum!", he called out loudly as he tried to open the door. It was locked. A few moments later, the door opened slightly and there she was in front of him. His mother, a woman with a small stature. She was about 5'5, and she had long black hair. She always had a big smile on her face and was always there to encourage him. Now standing there, she looked like she had been crying all day, "Mum", Raphael said as he went in to hug her, concern written all over his face. She hugged him back tightly. When she finally let go, she walked to the couch and sat down staring blankly into the wall opposite her. "A detective came from the police department today", she said. "They just got a new lead on the murder of your father. Two suspects have been arrested and they're being questioned." She said as Tears filled her eyes, "Have you gone to the police station?", Raphael asked, "No", his mother replied."Mum are you ok?", he asked again. "I am, Raf, you are here and you're fine, I just wanted to see you" his mother replied. "I miss him everyday." She said. "I miss him too",Raphael replied. "You know I used to ask myself why he of all people was violently murdered like that, he was a good man he didn't deserve that" she said. "I'll speak to the police will make sure all the perpetrators are brought to justice, I promise", Rafael said. "Yes, Raf, but more than that, what I need is to know that you are okay Rafael, you are the very best of you father and I, and that's why I can still go on today. I just want to make sure you don't forget that. And you know, I'm so lucky to have you as my son." she said as a small smile crossed her face. "I love you mum," Raphael said. He leaned down and hugged her.. The following day, he was going to go to the police station to have a word with the police department to find out how far they had gotten with the investigation. His mother had refused to go, she said she didn't want to dwell on the past. She said she was going to let the police do their job.

*The following day*

Raphael stayed with his mother till noon before he left to go to the police station. He had not been able to sleep the previous night after hearing the news. It was painful revisiting memories of his father's death and now the pain slowly transformed into rage. He was going to make sure the perpetrators did not get away with it, they had to pay. He drove slowly, doing his best to get a hold of all the emotions that were now overwhelming him. He got to the police station after a short time. He got out of his car and walked into the entrance of the police station. He then approached a policeman in uniform. "Good afternoon, my name is Rafael Montero, I'm looking for detective Cavanaugh", Raphael said to the policeman. "Do you have an appointment with him?". The officer asked " Yes I do". Raphael replied ," He is working on my father's murder investigation". Right then, the officer's face became a little sober. "You are a Raphael Montero, right", he asked. "I am", Raphael replied. The officer led him to a small office. He then opened the door, "Hi someone is here to see you", he said to detective Cavanaugh as he signaled to Raphael to come in. "Hi, good afternoon, I am Rafael Montero", Rafael said the policeman then left the office. "Hi, have a seat Mr Raphael, I spoke to Mrs Montero, your mother yesterday, how is she?", detective Cavanaugh asked. "She's ok" Raphael replied "I'm here to find out how far you've gone with the investigation", Rafael said. "Well, we currently have two of the people linked to the incident in custody...". Detective Cavanaugh was still briefing him on the investigation when something caught his eye. There on the wall was the picture of someone he never expected to see pinned on a board in a detective's office. Emily, his fiance. He was confused why her picture would be in a detective's office like she was under the microscope for something. "Why is the picture in your office?", he said, pointing to Emily's picture that was pinned to the white board. "She is one of the two people who brought him in connection to your father's murder", detective Cavanaugh said. "Is this a joke?", Raphael said, totally surprised, "Emily is my fiance she would never do something like that", Raphael said, his as he tried to keep himself under control. "What makes you so sure?", detective Cavanaugh asked. "Because I know her she's a good person", Raphael said. Detective Cavanaugh smiled, "Well tell that to DNA evidence and CCTV. She didn't murder your father but she aided the people who did, which is why she's being detained and investigated".

Raphael felt his heart being shattered into a million pieces. The pain of this revelation was stinging even deeper than anything he had ever felt. How could this be possible? She was a kind and hard-working woman. How could she then be involved in the death of his father? "I want to see her, Raphael", said to detective Cavanaugh.

Rafael followed detective Cavanaugh as they made their way to the visiting section. He needed to hear from her what this was. That this was a mistake. Detective Kavanagh made the arrangements for the meeting between Rafael and Emily to take place. "Sit here, she will be brought to you in a moment.". Raphael sat on the chair waiting with anticipation. Nothing made sense anymore. How could Emily even be in police custody? A moment later, the door opened and she was out, escorted by police officers. They brought her in. She was dressed in an orange-colored jumpsuit. He looked at her, at that moment, their eyes locked. She looked a little surprised to see him. Raphael wanted to get up and scream at the officers for treating her like that. He wondered what she must have gone through after being detained. She sat down on the chair opposite him, "Are you okay?" Raphael asked, "I don't know", she replied. "What are you doing here?". She asked. Now he would need to confront her with the truth. "I'm here to check up on the ongoing investigation of my father's murder. Francis Montero, I was informed that they got some new leads. He mentioned that you were involved with it. Of course, I know it was a mistake. There's been a misunderstanding, right?". He said. On hearing this, Emily's face changed to one of fear and remorse. She didn't reply. She just stayed silent. "I'll get in touch with my lawyer and make some arrangements. I'll get all this sorted". Raphael said that he looked at her with concern. He could not imagine how things had just been spiralling from learning of the progress of his father's murder investigation and then his fiance was arrested for the same reason. But despite everything, he knew one thing for sure; he was not going to lose her. He reached out to hold her hands and just as he was about to hold her, she pulled back, with her head bent down a little, not looking at his face. Small tears rolled down her eyes. "Hey, I'm here, I'll figure it out, we'll figure it out", Rafael said, trying to comfort her. " It's true", Emily said. Raphael was confused, it's true. What is true? Oh God please don't let this be what I'm thinking it is. He prayed silently. His heart pounded so hard he could swear he was almost going to have a heart attack. "What the detective told you is true.". At that moment, he felt like a dagger had been plunged into his heart. He tried to understand what he had just heard. "I refuse to believe this. Is someone threatening you?". Rapheal asked, his voice getting louder. "I need to know what is going on? Explain, what is all this? Because none of this adds up. What is going on?" Raphael asked. He never felt more helpless and afraid. His life was about to come crashing around him. "There are some things you don't know about me, my past, what I have done. Every good thing you saw me do was my own way of trying to make up for all the guilt I feel about my past. I'm so sorry I've done terrible things. I will do anything to go back to the past and fix all my mistakes. I'm so ashamed of myself and...", "Stop talking", Raphael said as he cut her shut before she could even finish what she was saying. He could not believe what he had just heard. Emily had just admitted to being a part of his father's violent murder. Who was she? Tears started to form in his eyes as the realisation of the situation began to sink in. He stood up and began walking to the exit. Just as he was about to walk out of the door, he turned to take a final look at Emily. Disbelief was still written all over his face. Surely he still did not want to believe it, but as they say, 'you cannot unhear what has been said'. Raphael turned away and started walking out of the police station. He just wanted to be gone. "Mr Rafael!", detective Cavanaugh called out, but he ignored him and hurriedly made his way out of the police station.