Death Date – Part 5

"Mr. Allen Smith, please tell us! Did you kill your wife?", the reporters hurdled around Allen and his attorney as they secured a bail for Allen and were departing from the courtroom. He managed to avoid them all and got inside his car. "It is going to be a long process, Mr. Allen", his defense attorney commented, "and these reporters are going to chase us everywhere. Please be overly cautious". Allen agreed.

Alice was gone. A suicide note was planted in her suite on the yacht which accused Allen of all her traumas and misery. She had accused him of being a compulsive cheater, who was wasting all her finances on his extravagant lifestyle and women. She had mentioned that he was abusive and had hit her on multiple occasions before. She was done with this disgusting man whom she had absolutely loved once and wanted to rest in peace now. Her suicide note was a fake document containing her signature, which was planted by Michael in the suite.

Michael and Joanna had managed to make a narrow escape as the yacht docked upon having the information that the owner Mrs. Alice was missing and was nowhere to be found. An extensive search of the ocean was conducted for days and eventually, a bloated body of hers washed offshore.

Allen was happy for a while and immediately consulted his legal team to get the shares and assets transferred in his name, but the suicide note ruined it all. He was not really sure why a strong-headed, sharp, and somewhat wicked woman like Alice would jump into the ocean. But as the note was discovered, he was certain something was amiss. He began suspecting all her personal staff including 'M' but was not able to put the pieces together. Instead, as he faced charges for abusing and torturing his wife to the extent of her demise, he immediately knew this was the job of someone who hated him, and it was personal. He hired a team of private investigators to look into Alice's suicide and warned his defense team to get him a clean chit by hook or by crook.

Michael had been questioned multiple times by the police along with all the staff members of Alice. He was trying to remain calm and sound as honest as possible throughout, "Ma'am seemed terribly upset throughout the day. She had consumed a lot of alcohol and went to her suite alone. None of us were allowed to contact her after a point. We did not know this unfortunate thing was about to unfold", Michael testified with a heavy heart.

Joanna was relaxed now, but she somehow had an inkling that Allen would manage to get out of this tangled web of legality. After all, he had power and money. He was Alice's nominee for every single thing she possessed, and now she was gone.

Allen did a thorough evaluation of everything that had happened in the last year. The sudden closeness of Alice and 'M' was hammering through his brain. He put some people to investigate 'M' past and present life.

At the same time, Joanna took a step ahead in her life. For the first time in about a year, she contacted Becky. "Oh my God, Jo; you are alive!", Becky happily exclaimed. "Not just alive, I am healthy and happy. I have found true love and I also have my son with me; mine and Allen's. He is just five months old", Joanna replied.

Becky was incredibly happy to hear from Joanna after such a long time and invited her back to the apartment that the two girls once shared. Joanna promised to visit Becky with her son but made her swear she would not reveal Michael to anyone as of now. She suspected the police might be keeping a watch on him and wanted him to be safe.

It was the 14th of February when Michael finally proposed to Joanna in the simplest but sweetest way possible. She had expected this and simply nodded with tears in her eyes. The two hugged and kissed for the first time. Joanna's son, named Dan, was loved by both. The couple spent the evening talking about last year when Michael had met Joanna for the first time and decided to save her life instantly. He admitted that he had felt a strong connection with the beautiful stranger who lay before him on the ground beside a grave that night. The two were extremely happy to have each other and positive about their new life and future.

Just then, Joanna's phone rang. It was Becky.

"Jo, please come to my apartment soon. I think my life is in danger", Becky was panting and disconnected the phone.

Joanna asked Michael to stay back with Dan as she decided to rush to help Becky. "She is my friend; my Best Friend who always cared for me. I cannot put her life in danger at any cost. I will be back soon, Michael", saying so, Joanna rushed to catch a cab towards Becky's apartment.

Joanna slammed the door open and shouted out Becky's name loudly.

But she was greeted with an eerie silence and a familiar voice, "Welcome my ex-sweetheart! My Date from the last Valentine. How are you?", it was Allen. Joanna was scared as the door had been shut behind her now, yet she tried to compose herself and looked at Allen straight into his eyes, "Where is Becky? What did you do with her?", she screamed at the man she once loved; the one who betrayed her and left her to die. But Joanna's surprise for tonight was not over yet.

Becky appeared from the bedroom, unharmed, quiet, and smirking at Joanna. She came and sat right next to Allen on the couch as he put his arms around her. Joanna was stunned.

"Relax Jo! I am fine. Very much alive", Becky laughed and said, "Joanna, Baby! How many times did I warn you last year to stay away from Allen, but you just refused to listen to me! I tried to convince you on multiple occasions to abort his baby, yet to kept calling him and bothering him repeatedly about how much you loved him. You called for your death, Girl!". Becky was calm now, with neither pretense nor regret on her face.

Joanna had not yet recovered from the shock of what was unfolding in front of her eyes. Had she been in the right state of mind, she could have realized that Allen's henchmen had bolted the door shut and were right in the hallway. She needed to take quick steps to save herself. But maybe it was already too late.

"Becky, you betrayed me!", Joanna murmured.

"No, Jo! Do you remember the day we saw Allen for the first time in our department store? I had recognized him right there. He was my neighbor and friend from my teenage years, and he had come over to talk to me after so long. But you! You gold-digger! You were so smitten by his charm, his vivacious attitude, his flirtatious nature, his credit cards, and his C-Class parked outside that you barely noticed his interest in me. We have known each other for years and right under your gold-digging nose, we had been seeing each other. But I couldn't deter you from your desperation to pursue him and neither could I stop Allen from his silly pleasures on the side. So, I played along. I was so happy that you died. I never told the cops or your parents about Allen and just kept quiet. But suddenly you called me saying that you were rescued by his stupid henchman, and it ruined it all for us", Becky was raging and turning red as she lit a smoke for herself.

"Calm down, my Love! You should be thankful to Joanna for eliminating Alice from our lives. Now we can live peacefully together with all that I have inherited from Alice. To top it up, Michael will be admitting to killing Alice and I will be free soon", Allen smiled wickedly as the two walked towards Joanna.

"What did you do to Michael and my son? Please don't harm them", Joanna begged, but in vain. Allen and Becky grabbed her by her hair and violently knocked her unconscious. Allen's aides had stormed into Michael's house and snatched Dan from him. Michael was given a last chance to save Joanna and Dan's lives by admitting to killing Alice that night on the yacht. His confession was videotaped and sent away to the defense attorney immediately.

Poor Michael remained unknown of Joanna and Dan's fate in the upcoming months, as he was charged and taken into custody for the murder of Alice. He could not mention any accomplice as no one knew Joanna had sneaked into the yacht that night, also, as he wanted to keep his love, Joanna, safe from arrest, prosecution, and a tough life in prison.

Little did he know Joanna was shot dead the very same night in Becky's apartment. Allen decided to spare Dan as he was his biological son and Becky agreed to it as the five-month-old was too young to recall anything about his real mother and his parents' history.

14th February was indeed poor Joanna's Death Date.

After two months, the verdict in Alice's murder trial was made. Michael was given a sentence of 'Life imprisonment without the possibility of parole for the heinous pre-meditated act he committed against his helpless Mistress, taking advantage of her trust and betraying her' – as put forth in the words of the Judge. Allen Smith was cleared of all charges and walked free out of the court. His defense team will ensure Michael will never come out of prison. Allen acquired all the assets in Alice's name and married Becky in the next couple of months. Allen and Becky presented Dan as their own son to the world and lived happily with all their wealth and riches. Becky further had two daughters in the next few years.

A sweet, smiling, helpful, and caring Joanna's dreams could never come true. Her desire to have a husband, a wedding, a family, and children were all laid to rest in the swampy, dark woods outside the city.

Her missing person's file remains open still.