The Wedding

WHERE IT ALL BEGAN!

As the sky darkened and the busy streets of Hillwood gradually emptied, Evelyn Noosa stood in front of the glass plane that demarcates her office on the 23rd floor of Noosa Inc. from the outside world. Her lips were set in an annoying scowl as she stared at the numerous tiny headlights of the cars on the major road.

She turned the glass of champagne in her hand unconsciously as she allowed herself to recall the humiliation she had faced that afternoon and carefully thought of the best revenge for her enemy.

She heard a slight knock on the door but ignored it as she took another sip of the wine in her hand. The door to her office opened and a tall man dressed in a black suit walked in, he shut the door behind him  and soundlessly approached her only stopping a few feet behind her.

"Miss." he said respectfully.

Evelyn turned around and looked at him. He was Ramon, leader of her goons.

Contrary to her father's thoughts that she had stopped getting into trouble because she was now busy with the company, Evelyn Noosa had only upgraded her act of bullying by employing goons and criminals who carried out all of her dirty works for her secretly, this way she has been covering her tracks whenever she caused trouble.

The appearance of Ramon in her office was nothing short of an indication that she was planning something again and the recipient of her attack wouldn't be able to go unpunished.

"There is something I want you to do." she said as she walked past him to place her wine glass on the expensive ebony black office table, then picked up a picture of Richmond, Nancy Bloom's soon-to-be husband, and handed it over to Ramon. Ramon collected the photograph and  gave it a quick glance before looking up at her waiting for her orders.

"That man, Richmond," she said as she pointed to the photograph, "is getting married to the daughter of Allman Bloom in three weeks, he is also the vice president of the Bloom's group of companies. I want you to find out everything dirty and implicating about him within the next two weeks and bring it to me with evidence incriminating enough to stop a wedding. Do you understand?"

"Yes, miss. I'll get the boys to get right to it." Ramon said quickly.

"Good. I'll send whatever amount of money you need to your account." Evelyn said as she waved her hand to him before she went to sit behind her table, a smile on her face.

Since Nicole dares to flaunt that pauper in her face, she was going to dig up all the demons that were hidden in his past and ruin him so much that even Nancy would be too ashamed to continue the wedding.

Just as she sat on the chair with satisfaction, the door to her office busts open and an elderly woman with dark brown hair mixed with a few strands of white walks in without knocking. Her model-like shape which came from years of carefully watching weight swayed gracefully as she walked into the office in her knee-length black gown.

Evelyn who was ready to shout at the person who dared to barge into her office without a knock relaxed when she saw it was her mother, Sharon Noosa. She turned to Ramon, nodded and he immediately left, passing by Sharon who peeped at the photograph in his hands before he hurriedly tucked it into the jacket of his suit.

Sharon smiled faintly at him before going to her daughter, while Ramon shut the door behind him.

"Hi, mom." Evelyn said without interest.

"Hello, darling," Sharon replied as she placed her purse on the table and sat in front of her daughter. "How has your day been?"

"The usual." Evelyn faked a smile, "Why are you here mom?"

Sharon frowns, "Can't I come to say hello to my daughter?"

"It's late mom, this isn't visiting hours and I would be on my way home soon," Evelyn said as she glances at the wall clock on the far end of the room which read past seven.

"Yet here you are." Sharon said eyeing her daughter. "Anyway, I am worried about your father."

Evelyn rolled her eyes, "When have you never been worried about dad?"

"This is different, your dad came home this afternoon and told me he canceled his meeting to have lunch with me. He also wanted us to have dinner together... tonight... as a family."

Evelyn frowned, "What are you talking about mom, dad isn't even in the country."

"I'm telling you he arrived this afternoon! We are supposed to have a family dinner tonight." Sharon tried to explain with frustration.

"But you are here." Evelyn said not believing a word of what her mother was saying.

"I'm here because I am worried and scared. Your father is acting really weird, I think he's been diagnosed with cancer." Sharon said with a face full of fear.

"What!" Evelyn said seating up.

"Yes! I mean why would he come home this afternoon with flowers, my favorite, and apologize for how he has treated me all these years, he was being very honest Evelyn. He was so honest I began to cry." Sharon explained to her, while Evelyn listened to her with rapt attention. "Your father is a proud man, he would never do these things if he's not at the point of death."

"So did you ask him?"

"Are you crazy what kind of woman asks her husband that kind of thing and by the way," She said as she looked away with guilt, "He was so sweet and I was so happy... I didn't want to ruin the moment."

"Mom! If dad is coming back to you now because he would be dying soon don't you think that is being unfair to you?" Evelyn exploded, "How can you even say you didn't want to ruin the moment? He's being selfish as he has always been! Caring about nobody but himself! Now that he's about to die he wants to have his family around him. You can't do this mom, you have to make him know that this isn't going to work. You can't take care of his frail body now when he gave his best years to this stupid company. You have to divorce him!" Evelyn stated angrily with a finality shocking her mother who was surprised but kept on listening silently.

Evelyn was right, Sharon knew. Steve hadn't been the best husband, no. he hasn't even been a husband at all. He basically abandoned his family and was married to his work and his stupid desire to outshine the Blooms.

Even though she had spent many years hating and loathing him, she refused to divorce him because she still loved him and because she knew divorcing him wouldn't change anything for him. She would be the one who lost in the end, so she decided to stay but if Steve decided to change now that he has a terminal disease, wasn't it unfair for him to come back to her now? Could he be any more selfish?

Evelyn was so right but divorce.... she wasn't sure if she could let Steve go.

"That's why you have to be at this dinner tonight, you are the bold one, you should talk to your Father." Sharon said after a while and Evelyn sighed,

"I'll pack up." She said as she stood up and began to put the files on the table into her bag while Sharon nodded and rested in the chair as she waited.

Sharon's eyes drifted to the photograph on the table and she picked it up.

"Isn't this the fiancé of the Bloom's girl?" Sharon asked with a raised brow as she looked at her daughter, remembering she had seen the exact same picture with the guy she met there. Evelyn glanced at it, then snatched it from her mother and tucks it into her bag.

"What are you doing with his photograph Evelyn?" Sharon asked.

"Nothing much, just running a background check on him." Evelyn said as she looked around her table to ensure she left nothing behind.

"Since when does Noosa Inc. run background checks on Nancy Bloom's future husband?" Sharon asked again even though she had begun to suspect what her daughter was planning.

"He's the vice president of the Blooms group of company mom, he's worth doing a background check on. Let's go." Evelyn said as she walked towards the door with her bag.

Sharon stood up immediately and followed her daughter without saying another word.

What was there to say, she knew her daughter very well. She was just like her father stubborn and ruthless.