The Untouchable Bride

Episode 4: The Confrontations

"And how is Ella my mother when she did not give birth to me?" Stephen said angrily to his father, who had stood up, looking at him furiously. "If one becomes a parent only by birth, then I guess I am not your father," Ronald retorted in anger. "What does that even mean?" Stephen probed, calming himself. "Nothing," Ronald answered while also taking his seat, signalling his secretary, Eric, to leave the office, which he did. "To what do I owe this visit? I doubt you came all the way to congratulate me, right?" Ronald said to Stephen while taking a document from the pile to glance through.

"Why did you do such an immoral act, Dad? That was the last thing I expected from you," Stephen said, looking at Ronald angrily. "Really?" Ronald raised his head to look into his son's face. "I remember asking you to come clean with Ella and break it off with her, but what did you do instead? You went as far as leaving her at the altar. I trained you to be better."

Ronald had caught his son kissing Rebecca, Ella's cousin, during one of their visits under the hibiscus plant in the house. He confronted his son, who remorsefully agreed to end it with Ella. That was two years ago. "Yet you went ahead and married that woman, Ella," Stephen said while standing up from his chair, hitting his father's desk and scattering some papers. "Language, son! I would not have you insult her." "I am your son, Dad, not her!!."

"And she is my wife! Life partner. I hope you know the difference." Ronald said to Stephen, then went down to pick up the documents that had fallen at his feet. "I don't know why I thought I could talk to you." Stephen sat, then continued, "When are you getting divorced?" Flustered, he looked at his confused son, then asked, "Who mentioned anything about a divorce? I intend to keep her as my wife." Stephen fumed. "And why would you even do that? Wasn't the marriage supposed to save my face?"

"Did you delude yourself into thinking that after all that media publicity and your attitude? Come on, I thought you knew me better than that, son. I honour every promise I make, and this included." Ronald said calmly, looking over some documents. "What!" Stephen shouted. "She is to be my immediate family? Ella? My ex-fiancée?" "Yes, and now if you have nothing else to say, can you go back to work? Your leave of absence has been cancelled and your pay docked for lack of targets reached." Stephen was in charge of the marketing subsidiary of the company. He studied marketing and advertising in school. He stood up in anger and stormed out. Getting closer to the door, he turned to his dad. "You know I tried to work it out with her." Ronald responded, "And I will continue to cherish my wife, so you do not have to worry about her." He banged the door in anger and left the office for the house.

Ella, on the other hand, arrived at her old house. She had mentioned the address to the driver, absentmindedly thinking of what to do next after her encounter with the people at the market. To her, the most surprising thing was the attitude she received from Aunt Ursula's supermarket. She used to stop there first and make a lot of purchases before entering the main market. Today she was stopped from buying water. Common water. She sighed, thanked the driver, and packed her items from the car. Walking to the main gate of her uncle's house, she was met with the smiling face of the security guard, John, who opened the gate for her. Smiling half-heartedly, she entered the house. She then walked to the main door, where she was met with the scornful faces of the maids, who ignored her request to meet her aunt and uncle. Directing herself to the living room, she stopped, stunned, and turned to the kitchen where she overheard an ongoing conversation between her uncle and her cousin, Rebecca.

"We need to get our hands on that inheritance, and you know Ella would have transferred it to us in a heartbeat if I asked, yet you went about having intimate relationships with Stephen," her uncle said while sipping the grape juice from the glass he held in his hand.

"Is that why you agreed to her marriage? DAD!! You destroyed my plans. Do you know how hard I worked to get Stephen to dislike her and choose me? Now how do I get to Ronald? That man is something else. He always expressed his dislike towards me anytime we met." Rebecca lamented while Ella stood shocked at what she had just heard. "Dad, you are too soft and fearful. I could have done this right if only you had left it to me, yet you went and messed it all up. How do I get rid of Ella now? Mum had always preferred her to me, and you always favoured her." Rebecca argued with her dad.

It had been their plan to get the inheritance that was to come out after Ella married. "You know it's because we needed that inheritance from her. I have been good to her because of that. How many times do I have to explain to you?" Dropping his glass on the dining table, he went closer to hug Rebecca while comforting her. Rebecca, who was shedding crocodile tears, spotted Ella, then smirked. She then asked, looking straight into Ella's eyes, which she had spotted at the entrance of the kitchen.

"So who do you love more? Ella or me?" "Who loves a stranger more than his daughter? Of course, you are the one I love. I was just using that girl to get what I wanted, which you knew about." Unable to take it all in, Ella ran out, then picked up her stuff and rushed to leave. She made noise with her movements but, luckily, went unnoticed by her uncle. Upon arriving at the gate, the security guard again assisted her by ordering an Uber with his phone and packing her items into the car when the Uber driver arrived.

Immediately she sat down, she placed her head on her lap, sobbing uncontrollably. Where had everything gone wrong? She was always a happy child, yet in the last two days, she had cried more than she would have in years. Her world was crumbling. Her uncle's concerns were never genuine. Her cousin, she knew, hated her but couldn't fathom the extent until now. She had taken her as the sister she never had, yet she was always against her. Then there was Stephen, who professed his love, sent a proposal of marriage two years ago, planned their marriage yet left her at the altar. Her lamentation was interrupted when her phone rang. "Hello," she picked up. "Are you crying again?" Ronald, who had called, asked when he realized the change in her voice. "No. I'm not. What's up?" "I called to inform you I will be late due to a project I am working on so don't wait up for me." "Sure," Ella replied bluntly, then hung up the call. Arriving home, she met Stephen, who was standing right in front of the house. He had been waiting for quite some time as the password to enter had been changed.

"The madam finally decided to appear," he said when he saw her step out of the Uber. Ignoring him, she entered the password and then entered the house. Entering the kitchen, Stephen followed her every move, blocking her path. "What do you want?" Ella shouted. Forcefully holding her two hands together, he shouted back. "You finally showed your true colours, you..." Ella released herself from him and then slapped him hard. "How dare you," he said, trying to get closer, but Ella was fast enough to grab the kitchen knife.