Chapter 5: What Happened?
SMACK! Carla slapped Vivienne with a heavy breath, "How dare you accuse me of murder?!"
The slap caused Vivienne to tilt her head, disheveling her hair and she turned to face Carla once again as she tossed back her hair, anger curling at her lips.
And then with a force that echoed in the large living room, she slapped Carla right back with a skin on skin induced with an explosion of anger. The burning force of the slap caused Carla to stagger back, her mother Annie coming to her rescue with a piercing look at Vivienne, "How dare you, hit your sister?"
"Don't ever put your hands on me little girl, I'm not one of those cheap girls you think you can control to fulfill your lapdog missions. DON'T EVER!" Vivienne said aggressively.
"And you, stepmother," said Vivienne pointing at her with a face dissolved in anger, she wasn't showing any mercy this time, "You think I don't know what both of you did? Framing my father and putting him in Jail for a false crime he didn't commit, I'm coming for you, you might have won with that little stunt you pulled but I'll make sure, you pay for this."
Then Vivienne left them there as she headed to her room.
After that whole incident, Carla started overreacting and screaming like someone who was utterly defeated at that point, she couldn't stand Vivienne and her antics, to her she wished Vivienne could go die in a ditch for all she cared. She always thought Vivienne was one person who always got everything she wanted without having to work for it, when she did everything and still, couldn't be the star in the room for whatever reason.
"Stop it, Carla!" her mother demanded. "You're only showing her how weak you are," said Annie as Carla started slowly calming down. They both watched Vivienne leave with an angry desperate look, they were tired of her and they were certain if Vivienne was planning to stop their plans, she was going to be more of a hindrance than a solution.
--
When Vivienne reached her room, she locked her door and quickly went to her king-sized bed. Before she knew it, she was breaking down, tears rolling down on her face, you could see that she had gone through a lot of pain that night than many. She felt so burdened, how could have everything that night turned out so bad?
Not only did she learn, the people who had been living with her were gold-diggers but they also tried to murder her during a moment that she was supposed to celebrate her engagement with her fiancé who also betrayed her. The pain was too much to ignore, she squirmed as she cried and even though no one outside could hear her, one person in the room did.
1 HOUR EARLIER: The Moment Vivienne Dodged a Bullet.
"Oh my God, he has fallen," said one person from the chaotic crowd of guests that now stood to witness the moment Damian fell off the podium. "Is he alright? Jeez," said another person. "Did he break his leg?" and another. The questions were endless, yet no one could provide an answer.
Michael Whitmore and his family friends were fighting their way through the crowd of guests that had surrounded themselves, near Damian, he was worried as his heart beat heavily with a concerned look.
When he finally managed to reach Damian, he knelt down as he tried to examine Damian, "Damian!" he called out. "Are you okay?" he asked.
Damian's eyes were open but he was paralyzed, more in shock than physically. He couldn't believe what just happened, he didn't even care at all about the crowd that blocked him, his eyes were staring at the luxurious hall lights beyond the heads of the guests that stared at him. 'This is it,' he thought. The moment the world would look at him differently.
"Damian, talk to me, are you okay?! his father asked once again with an additional tone of anger mixed with worry.
At that moment, Vivienne wanted to run down and check up on Damian but she was hesitant and before she could think further, Adrian disrupted her thoughts, "come with me."
They both disappeared from the podium without a trace and Mathew, Adrian's brother asked their father, "Where did Adrian and Vivienne go?" he asked as his eyes searched the crowd but his father seemed to have a knowing look and he was calm as ever, "Running off with his bride, I presume."
"You can afford to joke after all that happened?" said Mathew as he shook his head.
"The Whitmore's are surely going to win an ward for this one," said Liam Nobel as he chuckled.
"Award? What award dad?" asked Lydia.
"For the most Ghetto engagement party ever," he concluded as he laughed. His wife Genevieve slightly hit his arm to make him stop, she was worried someone might take pictures of their reaction, "Liam? What if someone sees you? You do not want attach yourself to this scandal," she warned.
Liam wasn't taking seriously any word of the harmless warnings coming out of his wife's mouth, "If anything Genevieve, this is about the most fun I've heard tonight," and he proceeded to laugh wickedly more than he did before.
"We should leave actually, we don't have anything anymore to do here," suggested Leonard and they all seemed to agree. The Nobel's were the first to leave the event as it didn't quite have much of an importance to them.
Liam Nobel was friend's with Vivienne's father, Walter Lancaster, who was now locked up in prison, despite his ambiguous connections and power in their country. He didn't like Michael Whitmore because of his shady deals that he suspiciously knew over the years and also after what happened to Walter. He was currently the only person working on ways to prove the innocence of Walter so that he could be released. Because in their world, they had a lot of enemies, and Liam Nobel was about the only person who has ever remained truly loyal to Walter.
Walter thought Michael Whitmore would be the one to help him since their children had formed quite the astonishing romantic partnership but he was wrong, Michael proved to be a snake in the camp after Walter requested for his help and he rejected him, even Vivienne couldn't do anything about this but now that Vivienne also had a newfound ally, Adrian Blackwood who's family was previously enemies with theirs, she might just have the advantage this time.
--
Adrian and Vivienne walked into the hall after 30 minutes of disappearing from the scandalous event, almost everyone had already left including Damian and his family, except a few people, that Annie and Carla ushering out, apologizing for the shameful things that happened and Adrian's brother Mathew and their father were waiting for him too, so that they could leave together.
Carla was the first to spot them and she moved to where her mother was and she asked in a prying tone, "So where do you think they disappeared to, they just vanished after Damian's incident?"
"I don't know, Carla, but I have a bad feeling about this. We'll have to squeeze it out of her, once we're home." Annie looked at Vivienne and Adrian with a malicious look.
"I don't think she'll make it home, mom, what we need to be worried about, is the price of coffin that's going to be deducted in our account."
"Carla, what are you planning to do?" her mother asked with a suspicious look.
"Nothing mom, you will just have to wait and see." Added Carla with a dark smile.
--
"They're back Dad," Mathew gestured to his father.
"I'll be going now Ms. Lancaster. We shall discuss the remaining details of this marriage tomorrow." Adrian looked at Vivienne intensely with a smirk that attempted to strike on his face but it didn't. "Hope he won't make a scene... that would be unfortunate," said Adrian referring to Damian.
"You don't have to worry about him, he doesn't matter," replied Vivienne breaking eye contact with Adrian. "I'll be going too actually, there's nothing left for me to do here anyway." she said.
They walked together to his brother and father. Adrian introduced her to them and they seemed welcoming to Vivienne nonetheless, but there was just something about Adrian's father that didn't quite seem right.
When they were living the venue, the atmosphere outside was cold and restless, a little bit windy but nothing much to worry about, everyone seemed to be getting their car back from the valet attendants with the help of their drivers and Vivienne was first in line, followed by the Blackwood's., then Annie and Carla.
The buildings that neighbored the venue were tall and beautiful, some of apartments and some of offices, mostly were lit but there was one in particular that barely had any light and from above the roof top, someone clothed in black overalls crouched a little bit as if to get the right position on the rifle he was holding, the rifle was targeted at Vivienne and in that moment when Vivienne's car was just about to pull in for her to get in, the mysterious sniper got a steady shot at Vivienne.
Then he suddenly pulled the trigger.
"END OF FLASHBACK"