Revenge of the illegitimate Daughter - Love in Deceit

"No way, dad, that's not happening. I'm not agreeing to this," Vespera argued with my dad in the dining room. "I don't need your permission, Vespera. Your sister is marrying Max Castillo and you will not interfere. Do you understand?" my dad warned, giving her a stern look. "No, I am your legitimate child. Penelope is just a bastard, the Castillo family will see it as an insult. You can't do this," she insisted, trying to stare me down. "Your words don't matter. Penelope is my firstborn, you are second. I can't let you get married before her. Enough of this," my dad snapped. I was the illegitimate child of the Turner family, and my father had just arranged a marriage contract between me and Max Castillo, the second son of the influential Castillo family. Led by Silvio Castillo, the Castillos were a powerful family known worldwide. The mere mention of Silvio Castillo sent chills down my spine. He was like the devil incarnate, a cold and ruthless man in his early thirties. I had never seen him, but his name alone held enough power to bring anyone to their knees. My mother was my father’s mistress, which was the reason Vivian Tuner, my Dad’s wife, despised us. My father believed it was only right for his first child, me, to be married before my stepsister, and that's why he offered me a bribe to Max Castillo. I didn’t object, as he had been my crush for years and now my dream was finally coming true. “She is overweight and unattractive, who would want her as a wife? Please reconsider this, you know I have always made you proud, don’t do this to me,” she pleaded, disregarding my father’s warning to drop the subject. Her mother sat next to my father at the head of the table, while my mother sat opposite her next to my father. I sat next to my mother, facing Vespera, her words stung but I remained silent. I glanced down at my body as I held back my words. I was a plus-size girl, and Vespera had always made it a point to highlight that, making me feel insecure. At times, I envied her - she was an actress known for her beauty, while I was her opposite. “I want you girls to look your best, this meeting is crucial, and Penelope,” he addressed me, and I met his gaze. "Yes, father?" I replied. "Do not display your insecurities, and strive to make a good impression," my father advised. "Understood, father," I responded, and I could see Vespera bursting out laughing. "That's so amusing, father. What does she have to impress him with? Her features are not even average, she is unattractive, and she has no accomplishments that I know of," Vespera blurted out, and my father slammed his hand on the table. "That's enough. I will not tolerate you speaking ill of your sister," my father snapped at her, but she stood up and glared at him. "I am the one who should be marrying him, father, not her. I am your legitimate daughter, and you cannot simply ignore me because of this pig, reconsider this ," Vespera snapped, and I noticed her mother, Vivian, smirking at me. I felt so ashamed. I knew she was right. I was not deserving of this. I did not understand why my father had chosen me for this arranged marriage. I was not as beautiful as Vespera, nor had I achieved as much as her. My mother was a cook, and that was all I was. I felt tears welling up in my eyes. Just as I was about to speak, a maid entered the room. "I apologize for the interruption, sir, but Max Castillo is here," the maid said as Vespera sat down and began adjusting her dress. I rolled my eyes at her as I wiped away any signs of tears from my eyes. A moment later, a tall man entered the room. He was covered in tattoos and could be described as attractive. I recognized him immediately as my future husband, and my heart skipped a beat as he surveyed the room. "Welcome to my home, Mr. Castillo," my dad greeted, standing up and extending his hand. "I'm glad to be here. I apologize for being late, I had something important to take care of," he murmured, smirking. "No problem, we haven't started dinner yet. Please come in and meet my family," my dad said, and we all stood up. I noticed Vespera grinning and trying to appear seductive. "We're happy to have you in our home, Mr. Castillo," Vivan greeted with a smile. "Likewise," Max replied, and everyone sat down. Max Castillo took a seat next to Vespera. "I was expecting you to come with Mr. Silvio," my dad asked, and just the mention of that name made me hold my breath. I could see everyone in the room tense up as well. "He couldn't make it, but he'll be around for the wedding," Max responded as the meal was brought in. "And you must be Penelope. It's a pleasure to meet you. You've exceeded my expectations," Max said, staring at Vespera, who immediately smirked at the comment. "Oh no, you've got that wrong. My eldest daughter is Penelope, and she's the one sitting across from you," my dad clarified, pointing to me. As soon as Max's eyes fell on me, he froze. I could feel the tension in the room as everyone remained silent. I felt so much shame as he looked at me with disdain. "It's a pleasure to meet you, sir," I mumbled shyly, avoiding his gaze. I knew he was disappointed, and I could hear Vespera trying to hold back her laughter. I felt humiliated in that moment, waiting for him to say something while holding back tears. "Oh, okay," he grumbled, looking away and focusing on his food. "The wedding is scheduled for next week, and then we'll proceed with our agreement,” my father said. I could feel the awkwardness in the room, I felt so stupid all of a sudden. He sat there looking like a Greek GoD, he was my crush for many years and I was just there. My father was the CEO of Titan arms. One of the top weapons companies in the world. And for some reason he saw it as a good business proposal to marry one of his daughters to the Castillo family. Dinner was over, and no one said a word, I haven’t been able to eat all through the dinner as I played with my food. Meanwhile Vespera flirted directly with Max Castillo, Max left soon after in a hurry with an excuse that he had something to attend to and I went home with my mum. A week passed and it was the night before my wedding, I didn’t have any friends so my mum and I sat at home, as we watched movies. Out of nowhere, a loud knock echoed through the door, catching us off guard. Without hesitation, my mom volunteered to answer it. "Hey, come here b***h ," a harsh voice barked, as my mom was forcefully pulled into the living room by her hair. Before I could even think of grabbing my phone, I found myself being yanked by my hair and punched in the stomach, causing me to collapse onto the ground. "Please, just take whatever you want, we have some money," I begged, my voice trembling with fear. This was my first encounter with robbers , and I was absolutely terrified. Their faces were clearly visible, and they seemed unfazed by the fact that I could potentially identify them, indicating that they were not mere thieves but something far more sinister. My heart raced with fear as I observed them, silently praying that they would just take the money and leave me in peace. “The b***h says she has some money to give us,” one of the men mocked my words, which was followed by raucous laughter as they turned their gaze towards me. I caught a glimpse of my mother, lying injured on the floor. “What is it that you want?” I pleaded, my hand pressed against my aching side, knowing that the impact had likely fractured a rib. “Oh it’s not us, it’s her '' one of the men said as I heard footsteps, and Vespera came into the room. A chill ran up my spine as I looked at her,, she had a smirk on her face as she looked at me. “Vespera,”I whispered in shock as she sat on the couch like she owned the place crossing her legs. My mother and I lived far away from my father’s mansion in a little apartment that we had taken time to make homely. “And you call these a home,” she said in disgust as she looked around the home, if not for my current conditions I would have given her a piece of my mind, her mother had restricted my father to give my mother any funds and we had to work hard for the little we had. “What do you want?”I asked her camly and she smiled at me. “Look at you right where you belong, on your knees before me,” she strilled In a high pitch voice, that sent a shiver down my spine. “Are you so dumb, not to know why I am here,” she snapped at me and my eyes widened in fear. I know why she was here, I knew it was because of my marriage to Max, something told me that was it. “We will leave, tonight, I will leave, with my mum and you will never see us again,” I begged as I looked at her, i knew clearly that she wasn't here to leave me alive. “No dearest sister, did you ready think you could overtake me, look at you with your hideous face,” she snapped at me as she looked at me in disgust. “Father was the one who organized this marriage, I have nothing to do with it,” I begged as she walked up to me and slapped me, I groaned in pain. “How dare you, a bastard child from nowhere come to take me over, I will marry Max Castillo, I will be part of the Castillo family not you,” she snapped at me, as I cried out. “Even if you kill me, what makes you so sure that max will marry you,” I snapped at her, it was stupid to say, I knew max would. I could see the way he looked at her all Through dinner. “Oh poor sister, you don’t know, do you”she said as she brought out her phone from her pocket, and showed me a photo that shocked me. It was her, there in the photo with Max, kissing as he held onto her, it was a s*x video of two of them, my heart fell at the sight of the video “I will be replacing you tomorrow, my dress is ready,” she said as she smirked at me. “Take the wedding if you want, let us go” my mother snapped at her as she turned to look at my mother. “Oh I kind of forgot you were here,” Vespera smiled as she brought out a gun. “Ma’am the clean up team is here,” one of the men said and my eyes widened. “No, please no,”I begged her. “My mother sent her a greeting,”Vespera said as she fired the gun at my mother who dropped dead. I let out a scream as the men rushed and held me. “Now to teach you a lesson, I have prepared a surprise for you,” she said In a reading voice as I wept, struggling to reach my mother, who was probably dead right in front of me. Vespera, put on a mask and glove as she held a bottle in her hands. “Must you do this, I mean she is going to die either way,” one of the men said as Vespers glared at him, shutting him up. “Hold her tight,” she said as she poured the liquid on my face, i let out a scream as the liquid touched my skin “Dear sister, i just showed you your true face, the acid wouldn't kill you but will show you your true self, i enjoy seeing you like this,” she giggled as i cried out in pain, the smell of burning flesh filled the room. “Now for the final part,” she said as she pulled out a gun and fired on my chest, the last thing I heard was her laughter as I lost consciousness.