She Is Not My Daughter

The double doors opened.

Angel looked at her Uncle Paul in confusion. Didn't he say he would take her away? Why was he leading her inside the banquet hall?

"Uncle, where are we going? Aren't you taking me away?" Angel asked helplessly, her feet seemingly glued to the floor.

Paul Dallen looked at her coldly.

"I am afraid I cannot help you, Angel. You see, Leoric is my nephew. The man that your father murdered was my brother. Dallen was my mother's last name." Suddenly, the voice that used to be kind and gentle sounded harsh and vengeful.

Angel felt as if she was doused with a bucket of ice. Her entire body felt cold and numb. Her mind seemed blank as she struggled to comprehend what the man beside her said. He was his father's most trusted subordinate. 

Angel looked around. There were a few of her father's subordinates, and they were high-ranking officials in the company. Were they the 'devil's' accomplices? Her vision turned blurry, and her face turned pallid. Her knees buckled, but before she could slump on the floor, the middle-aged man beside her held her by the elbow and propped her up.

"Don't think about fainting. If you faint, your father will get a beating." He said sternly. He led Angel as they walked on the red carpet to the altar at the front of the hall. His fingers were like a vice grip clamping on the flesh of her arm, hurting her.

"Mr. Dallen, I should be the one holding unto you." Angel could not bear the pain anymore.

The middle-aged man noticed the change of address, but he just glanced at her before letting go of her arm and letting her hold onto him.

There was only a short distance from the door to the makeshift altar in front of the hall, but Angel felt that she had walked for a long time. Her legs grew heavier as she approached the man in a black tuxedo waiting for her midway.

A quartet played a lively wedding march that sounded like a dirge to Angel. It was a lament expressing her grief for what she had lost and was about to lose. She kept her eyes lowered as she slowly walked. She did not want to see the mockery in the eyes of the man who soon would become her husband. She did not want to look at the men and women who used to fawn over her to gain her father's favor. 

When they finally reached the spot where the man was waiting for her, she felt a terrifying aura engulf her being.

"Leoric, you did well. The day has finally come." Paul said loudly but in a gentle voice, like a father. "You 'take care' of this woman, as she belongs to you from now on."

Angel trembled. She wanted to turn around and run away. 'Dylan, Madeline, please save me!' She uttered silently in her heart. She stood there for a full minute without moving, her gaze fixed on the floor.

"Don't worry, Uncle. I will 'take good care' of her." He then reached out to get her hand, which seemed stuck on Paul's arm.

"Darling, you seemed to be spellbound. You still cannot believe that you married a man like me?" He whispered sinisterly into her ear.

He walked forward and pulled her along. No matter how heavy her legs felt, she started walking when his piercing black orbs focused on her.

Angel hadn't heard a single word that the priest said. When it was time for the groom to slip the ring onto her finger, she felt the cold metal sear the flesh of her finger. She felt that it was a cuff that bound her to an iron cage, and she couldn't escape.

When it was her turn to slip the ring into his finger, her hand refused to move. She would not do it no matter how much pressure she felt from him. In the end, Leoric took her hand and guided her to put the ring on his finger.

"You are now man and wife! You can kiss the bride." The priest smiled teasingly.

Angel took a step back but Leoric's hand stopped her. He moved closer to her and his lips brushed her cheek lightly before it moved to her ear.

"Welcome to hell, Angel Hart!"

...

Steve Hart was sitting rigidly on the small wooden bed facing a small table where a tablet was propped up. The wedding was finished an hour ago, but he still sat there, staring and watching as the video played in a loop. He felt a surge of anger as he discovered the traitors who betrayed him.

He aged more than ten years, and his face was covered in bruises. His suit was torn and dirty. Nobody would believe he was once a respectable tycoon in the South Pacific.

The iron door of his prison cell opened. He looked up to meet a pair of dark orbs that glinted with triumph and gloating.

"Who would have thought that the high and mighty Steve Hart would one day fall from his pedestal and become such a pathetic mess." the man in a black tuxedo said sarcastically.

Steve Hart remained silent. His gaze was calm.

"How does it feel to lose everything that you care about? All that you have toiled for is now in my hands." Leoric tried to provoke him.

Silence...

Leoric grabbed the man and pulled him out of the bed before throwing a punch.

The old man staggered and fell on the bed with his butt.

"Let us see if you can remain as calm as you are when you see our honeymoon video later. I will let you watch how your precious daughter would lose her innocence to half a dozen men."

Steve finally reacted. To Leoric's surprise, he laughed. At first, it was a chuckle, and then his laughter became mocking. He laughed as if he had heard the greatest joke of his life.

"I admired your courage and intelligence, Leoric Graystone. But I pity you. You are naive. You are consumed by hatred and driven by your desire for revenge. But do you know why I killed your father?"

Leoric narrowed his eyes.

"Your egotistic father cannot accept the truth that the woman he loved chose someone else. He went crazy with jealousy and destroyed her by his own hands. He deserved his death! Your father was a coward. He should have come to me, but he was a coward. He killed the woman he loves the most just because she married me and became pregnant with my son and daughter!" Steve lost control and shouted.

Leoric was taken aback.

"You think that you can hurt me? Angel is a very nice girl, but my heart died on the day that your cowardly father murdered my wife and my unborn twins. I have no more capacity to love especially that Angel is not my daughter because your father made sure that I could never have any descendant."

"You are lying!" 

Steve laughed again.

"You are no different from your father, Leoric Graystone. You are both pathetic and a coward. You target the weak and innocent. I never regretted killing your father. If given a second chance, I will do it again!" Steve Hart's calm demeanor was gone. He was like a volcano that erupted, spewing lava from inside him.

"Nothing you do could hurt me because my heart is dead! Now get out! You disgust me just like your father!" Steve shoved Leoric toward the door. 

Leoric was so shocked that he obediently followed and exited the prison. He left hurriedly like he was escaping something frightening.

'Is it true? No, it couldn't be. He is just bluffing to save his daughter.' Leoric calmed down and started to walking leisurely.

He dialed a number.

"Do me a paternity test...."