I shrugged off my coat and hung it on the rack. The air around me was tense but I ignored it, blowing into my palms for warmth. I could hear the familiar sounds of the kitchen which instantly lifted my mood. I was starving and the chef was certainly whipping up something delicious.
I stood beside my dad as he scrolled through The New York Times on his Tablet. I really have never understood the joy these adults get from reading the news. If anything, I would rather watch than read.
“Dad, I wanted to speak to you about our new clients from the Russian Fintech company, I was thinking perhaps I could-” I was cut off by the clipped tone of my stepmother before I could finish.
“Your father hasn't told you?” I and my dad turned our heads in attention to her. Glancing at him, he appeared as confused as I was.
“Told me what? I don't think he has mentioned anything about the Russians. Is there a problem, Dad?” I asked, turning my attention back to him.
He opened his mouth to say something but, she was quick to cut him off as well.
“Not at all my darling. It's just that your sister, Audrey would now be in charge of that project. You can go do whatever it is you usually do, she will handle it perfectly."
“Audrey? Audrey doesn't know shit about the company and she would only make us lose a whole lot of money."
Nope! I didn't say that out loud.
That was exactly what I was going to say but somehow, I never seemed to find the voice to say things like that in the presence of my stepmother.
My heart sank as her words registered themselves. I had worked so hard to finally earn my place in the family business, and now they were just taking this away from me?
"But... but why? I have been working so hard for the company. These are my clients...” I started, turning to my dad for support.
“How come? I was the one doing the follow-up on these clients from the onset so, it's my project. I have invested money into this.” I managed to force out, in between gulps.
“Money from the company, might I add,” Audrey chirped in, joining us in the sitting room unannounced.
“MY MONEY!!!” I corrected, starting to get slightly pissed off.
I had spent the last three months doing nothing but, studying the market and the build up that surrounds this company.
This was my gig! My client!! My investment!!!
I already had a one-on-one meeting with the CEO two months ago to finalize everything.
"What were they talking about?" I queried myself.
"Please, just tell me what I did wrong. I will do anything to fix it. I just want to make you happy and honestly, I am thinking of the growth of the company."
I caught Audrey staring at me with a blank expression on her face.
"Sophia, it's not about what you did wrong. It's just that….,” he sighed.
“I have spoken with the CEO of the company already, and I made him understand that he would be doing business with someone else. He seemed a bit reluctant at first, because he said he liked your business etiquette but I was able to convince him that the person taking over was basically the same person as you, given that she's your sister,” his gruff voice sounded although he barely raised his head from the screen of that tablet.
I couldn't help but chortle at what he just said. I and Audrey, basically the same person? I love my step-sister but we were nothing alike.
“Okay, Dad.” It was certainly not okay.
Audrey gave me a smile to which I returned with a half-hearted one of my own. My stepmother took a seat with Audrey right behind her, mimicking her actions.
I stared hard at them raising a brow in question. "Why were they seated like they were about to gang up on me?"
“Have you spoken to David today?” My dad spurted out, finally dropping his tablet and paying full attention to the rest of the world.
“Uhm….not really. Just some texts here and there.
Why do you ask?”
“Call him now! Call him and tell him that we are waiting for him.” My stepmother stated.
I looked at her with confusion clearly evident on my face but, still went ahead to dial David's number.
“Hey! Where are you?” I said immediately he picked up.
“Oh! Hey! Soph, how are you? I was going to call you later” He replied with what I thought was a forced chuckle.
“Well uh, I am at home now and my stepmother said to tell you that, they are waiting for you. But, hey babe, you didn't mention that you were meeting them.”
He was silent for some seconds before sighing softly. “I am sorry baby. I have been so busy these past few days and I must have forgotten to mention it to you. Let them know I am close though. I am driving now. Catch you later .” He said almost stuttering.
He did that mainly when he was lying.
Lying about what though? There's no big deal if he was not on the way yet. They can just talk whenever he comes by.
Shrugging my shoulders, I turned to relay his words to them before excusing myself to go upstairs and freshen up.
Entering into the small room that I have been using since I was 14, I locked the door behind me.
I walked to where my shoes were kept, crossed my legs on the floor and pulled out a dusty shoe box from the bottom. I opened it to pull out the one single thing I had left of my mother. It was an old photo that had faded out on the edges.
A beautiful woman was carrying a 5 year old me in her arms and we were both smiling widely at the camera when the shot was taken by my father.
I pushed the shoe box to the left side of my thighs and held the pictures in my hands.
Closing my eyes, I just sat there and imagined my mum and me as a beautiful duo dancing in a snow-filled room. But, my moment of fantasy was interrupted by the voices downstairs so, I stood up and took the stairs in twos almost tiptoeing.
“We cannot keep putting off on telling her the truth. Audrey and I have agreed to marry in a few weeks and I think Sophie needs to know and she needs to know now! I have to call off the wedding with her."
What was going on?
Audrey. Marry. Wedding. Was my sister getting married?
The words were not so clear since I was still on the staircase but I had heard enough to have me speed down the remaining flight of stairs.
I could hear my dad talking in a hushed tone when I got to the bottom of the stairs and he only did that when he had to say something he should not be found saying.
“What's happening to whose wedding?” I asked and immediately everyone's attention turned to me in no time. My dad looked pale with fear. I have never seen him look this way.
“Sophie, David's parents has instructed him to call off the wedding today. It's tradition for their first son to marry a first daughter and not the second one.” My step mother started condescendingly without giving a care in the world.
“Plus, you don't have a mother to even get you through the preparation process. David and I are getting married Sophie,” Audrey finished, crossing her leg on the chair.
My ears were ringing like a school bell.
Did she just say what I thought she said or am I hearing things?
“You must be mistaken, Audrey. We decided to put a hold on the wedding. It has nothing to do with his parents or my family, right David?” I asked with a small laughter.
“Don't be delusional, Sophie. You know that the first daughter was going to marry the only son of the Nelsons Family and I am the first daughter. I really honestly don't know why you bothered bringing yourself so low to try to change David's mind. Why try to seduce him into marrying you? He told me that you even tried getting pregnant just to trap him in the relationship. What a conniving bitch.” Audrey spat out disgustingly.
My head was spinning. What was she talking about?
I have been dating David for five years and we were engaged now and everybody knew that, and that included all the blogs that my stepmother paid to carry the news.
The headline flashed through my eyes:
"Daughter of the Woods to be married to the Nelsons’ heir."
And just like that, it clicked. There was no mention of my name, no pictures of us.
“You don't need a swarm of paparazzi everywhere you go now, do you darling?” My step mother had said when I asked her. I had wondered to what use it was since most people knew I and David were a couple, but I didn't question her. I just believed she only wanted what's best for me.
I spun my head to look at the man I had spent the last 5 years of my life loving, but he immediately dragged his eyes to the ground. Air left my lungs because obviously, he knew all this while.
When he made me have an abortion because his parents would not want pregnancy controversy surrounding their family name, he knew. When I almost lost my life on the island he took me to recover for over two weeks, he knew. When we talked about where we would spend our honeymoon, he knew.
David knew all about this when he watched me almost bleed out after that abortion.
My fiance knew this whole time that I wasn't the one he was getting married to. The first tear dropped from my eyes. My whole world was falling apart right in front of me.
My stepmother Elise smirked at me, she was not even attempting to hide her contempt.
I turned to my last hope. I tried pleading with him through my eyes. For a split second, I saw his resolve falter but one look from my stepmother had him looking away from me.
“It would be best for you to end the relationship here Sophia, although there's nothing quite left of it anymore. We wouldn't want anything messy getting out to the public. The Woods' reputation is not one to be toyed with.” My stepmother said, the visible puff of her chest had appeared whenever she spoke of the family's reputation quickly appeared.
“Mother, please, I am sure I and David would sit to talk an-” She cut me off by holding a hand up.
“David?” She called his attention, causing him to perk up.
“I am calling off the engagement, Soph.” I winced at the nickname he frequently called me. It sounded like poison to my ears now.
“I am getting married to Audrey.”