CHAPTER 2 - Are you an impostor?
1705 Words
There was a lot of grumbling and side-talking in the hall amidst the chaos that had been created. Some of the older guests even rushed to take cover because they feared that it could be an attack.
I also trembled and took cover in the arms of my fiance who seemed unshaken. I looked over to get a clearer look at the manly voice and I couldn't believe what I saw.
‘My foster father? What has brought him here after all these many years of abandoning me? Why does he want to ruin me now? Was leaving me and Sara with our harsh foster mother not enough cruelty?’ I questioned myself.
My foster father was Ilkay Malloway. He adopted me and my twin sister from the orphanage home when we were 7 years old but ran away from home 6 years later without telling us anything.
I remember how I and my little sister would ask our foster mother, Margaret, about where Ilkay went but she would only tell us that he went on a very long journey and he would be back knocking on the door one day.
Margaret was harsh toward us but I could tell that she was transferring the aggression of whatever must have happened to Ilkay since his absence. She was more mean towards my twin sister, Julia, though and I couldn't tell why.
“This marriage is not supposed to continue,” Ilkay shouted on top of his voice.
“It would be a mistake if you were to continue this”
“Sara, come over here,” he commanded, pointing his hands towards me.
“Who are you and why have you come here?” the priest asked, pointing the Bible toward him whilst making a sign of the cross.
“What the Lord has joined together, let no man put asunder”.
I looked over at my foster mother, Margaret, who was one of the guests at the wedding and her face was reddened with her jaws clenched in tension.
Ilkay soon pulled off a wooden item hanging from one of the old chairs at the back. He pointed the wood towards the priest while using his other hand to signal calm to the guests.
“Sara, is who I have come for”
“Let me have her and everyone can go in peace,” Ilkay demanded.
My fiance, Kurt, who seemed unshaken at first was now looking confused.
“Sara knows me”
“I am her foster father”
“I will just have a word with her privately, that’s all”
“But in the mean time, this marriage cannot be”
The priest came closer to me and whispered, “do you know this man?”
I nodded carefully and whispered, “he is my foster father”
“Alright, alright,” the priest told Ilkay, overcome with fear.
“We will let you have a word with her”
“But no harm must be done to her, understood?”
The priest then signalled to me that I can go with him. I walked slowly towards the man but before I could even move 3 feets, he launched towards me and dragged me away from the hall.
We soon got to a secluded place and before I could let out my annoyance, he pinned me to the wall and said, “who told you that you could just get married like that?”
“What do you mean?” I retorted angrily.
“You abandoned me and Julia for over ten years now only to come here and tell me that I can't marry the love of my life?”
Tears were already making its way down my cheek. I was wondering how unlucky I was to get my life ruined by one moment.
“Listen to me,” Ilkay said, lowering his gaze and trying to sound more calmly.
“You can't marry whoever that man is because there is an agreement to have you married to someone else”
“That was why I adopted you from the orphanage in the first place”
“It was on the condition that you would be married a billionaire’s son”
“At least you will be rich right?” Ilkay patted my cheeks gently.
“But, Dad, this is too much for me to deal with” I still called him my dad despite abandoning us because, to be honest, he was the only father figure I could think of.
My real father died when I was only 3 and the only thing I could pretty much remember was the flashlight that shone towards me when an oncoming vehicle hit us. That brief memory had me traumatized since then.
“Look, listen to me, many years ago, before your parent’s accident,” he paused for a moment to look around if anyone was watching.
“I got into trouble with a dangerous crime group, Ziyeng, through gambling”
“Unfortunately, I lost the bet and owed them huge sums of money. The money was so huge that I couldn't pay up even if I forfeited my earnings for the rest of my life”
“They crime group vowed to kill me if I didn't pay up,” Ilkay continued, sweating profusely as he kept checking over and around his shoulders.
“That still doesn't explain why you decided to ruin my day,” I said curiously, as one of my fixed eyelashes pulled off on its own. My makeup and wedding dress was already becoming a burden for me.
“My only hope was meeting a billionaire billionaire who I knew had a lot of connections. He offered to help me call off the crime group if I could go into the orphanage home and adopt the both of you. He instructed me to prepare one of you to become his son’s wife at the right time”
“He said that he couldn't do it himself to avoid public suspicions as a public figure”
“So, you chose me?” I asked with my eyes wide open. I finally knew why I was getting preferential treatment. ‘My parents were only preparing me to marry some rich a**hole,’ I thought.
“Yes! I still had to run away from home though because I couldn't rely solely on the billionaire’s protection. I told my wife, Margaret, and we agreed that it was best that I ran away”
Just as Ilkay was talking, Margaret walked in wearing a pitiful face. She knew that Ilkay had already told me everything.
“Mum?”
“Why didn't you tell me or my sister about all of this?” I asked.
“There was no way we could tell you. We didn't want you to live in fear especially when we seemed to have found a solution. You guys were also too young to handle such information,” Margaret responded.
“That was why it seemed like I disappeared. I am sorry to have abandoned you but I had no choice,” Ilkay continued.
I pushed for a bit to get some air. It was already one hell of a day for me. From conceiving Kurt’s baby yesterday to this mess. ‘Speaking of Kurt, where could he be?’ I wondered in my mind.
“Dad, listen, I am married to Kurt and I don't think I could leave him,” I said as Ilkay and Margeret put up sad faces. I tried to sound assertive but I had compassion on my foster parents. The only problem was that I couldn't ditch Kurt for anyone. Never!
“By the way, who is this billionaire’s son I am supposed to marry?” I asked curiously.
“Errrm!” my dad said, putting his hand on his tongue and looking at the sky as he tried to remember the name.
“I can't recall his name right now but the billionaire’s name is Richmond so we are talking about the only son of the Richmond family”
“Please you have to marry him. He has been keeping this crime group, Ziyeng, off our backs all these years and they would be back for our heads if he gives them the go ahead.
“My dear, you have to think about this carefully,” Margaret added.
“I don't care what happens, Kurt is my husband! It's done”
“You would have to find some other way,” I yelled, storming off their presence.
Kurt had already gotten into his black SUV. The wedding was brought to an abrupt end but I was able to meet up with him. Our driver drove us as we sat together at the back seat.
There was an awkward silence between us. I guess neither of us had fully processed what happened. I was wondering why he didn't ask where I went either. ‘How is he not even curious at the slightest,’ I thought. I was becoming very uncomfortable with the silence.
The chaos my foster father caused couldn't leave my mind. I kept thinking about all that he said. ‘Who is this Richmond that I am supposed to marry?’ ‘Why now when I am already married to Kurt?’
I brought out my iPad and started searching for any one with the name Raymond. I thought that if he was a billionaire, then he would probably be someone I could find easily on the internet.
I was already giving up on the search after almost 10 minutes when I saw a name pop up on my screen.
“Mr. Downey Richmond is the owner of Fidolo Enterprises amongst many other investments and multinational companies.”
I scrolled further and I saw;
“He is blessed with a son, Kurt Richmond who is also……”
“What!” I shouted, spilling my glass of wine as our driver looked behind startled.
“Are you Kurt Richmond?” I asked with my eyebrows raised and my voice was breaking.
“Who even are you? Are you an impostor?” I freaked out.
“Are you the one I am arranged to marry?”
- Writer
