Chapter 10 At The Funeral
Chapter Ten
Kurt Eugene stood stiffly inside the Vaughn family’s funeral hall.
From time to time, people came into the funeral hall and burned incense in front of the pictures, and paid their respects.
They sighed, shook their heads and touched their eyes and nostrils with their black handkerchief in grief before moving out.
Everyone always stopped before Kurt before they walked out of the room, shaking his hands and patting his shoulders sympathetically.
Kurt was dressed in a sharp black suit, and had his hands clasped before him.
A badge wrapped around his arm identified him as chief mourner. His face was drawn and haggard and his eyes were sunken and dark circles hung under them.
His face was so pale that it was easy to know he had not been eating or sleeping well.
He was the perfect picture of a man who had lost everything.
Everyone felt sorry for him, and Kurt stood rigid with his back stiff, and his hands clasped in front of him as though he would burst into tears at any moment.
“You have to be strong, okay?” The mourners told him, patting his back , “Do it for Elara. She would not want to see you go down so easily.”
Kurt nodded, and as he did so a single tear slid down his face pitifully. The reporters outside, amped up the pictures as cameras flashed wildly.
“Yes,” he croaked in response, the tears flowing more freely, “There’s nothing more I want to do with my life than that.”
The crowd of people who had come to pay their respects, sighed wistfully and women wiped tears from their eyes.
Kurt’s handsome face was stricken with tears now and it seemed like their heart was going to break alongside his.
“Who would have done this to the poor Vaughn Family?”
“It’s such a shame that they all died off. Who would carry on their family name?”
“Kurt Eugene and Elara Vaughn would have made a perfect couple if not for the tragedy.”
“Yes exactly. It’s a shame Elara died so young. And so brutally!”
“Don’t worry, Kurt Eugene would definitely not let her killers go Scot free.”
“Yes, don’t you know that he’d been heading the investigation team since their death and had not eaten or slept since then?”
“Ohh, he’s such a devoted soul. Elara was so lucky to have him!”
“Exactly! Imagine being loved to this extent even in death.”
“Kurt Eugene is not like any other man. He’s the perfect example of a loving fiancé.”
“Yes. Kurt Eugene and Elara Vaughn will remain the most perfect couple in our hearts.”
From where he stood, Kurt could hear everything that was said by the crowd. His heart was gladdened with what they were saying but of course, he showed no expression on his face, save the faraway look of a broken man barely holding on.
In the funeral hall, Vera Hale was also hard at work serving food to the mourners and the people who came to pay their respect.
She heaped trays with food, brought them over to the people, cleaned tables, escorted people to seats and worked tirelessly all day.
She was dress in a plain, flowing black gown. Her brown hair was pulled back into a straggly ponytail where a few strands were escaping, sticking to her forehead which glistened with sweat as she worked.
The people watched her as they also watched Kurt. They took note of her pale face, and her lips which were devoid of any color.
This was Elara Vaughn’s best friend.
Everyone knew she was just as stricken with grief as Kurt was, yet she was trying so hard not to break down.
The sight twisted their heart and made them look on her with pity.
“Ei, Vera! Are you okay?!”
Someone yelled in alarm as Vera, carrying a large tray laden with dishes, suddenly stumbled as her sight blurred from exhaustion.
People stood to help her, some trying to take the tray from her hands. But Vera held on stubbornly.
“No.” She uttered weakly, her eyes filling with tears, “I have to do this. This is the least thing I can do for Elara, so I must do it well.”
The people’s heart broke, as they watched her weave through the tables, working hard.
“She’s a sweet soul.”
“Yes, they both don’t deserve this tragedy.”
“Poor Vera. She was always seen with Elara, and she loved her like a sister.”
“They grew up together. It was said that Elara Vaughn would not do anything for Vera Hale. The Vaughn family practically raised Vera when she was brought in from the orphanage.”
“Yes, the Vaughn Family also practically raised Kurt Eugene. He was a Cinderella man, coming into good fortune when she fell in love with him.”
“Exactly. Kurt Eugene would not have his influence and power as he had now, if it weren’t for the Vaughn family.”
“They must be heartbroken to lose such a friend.”
The mourners kept discussing amongst themselves, casting sympathetic looks at Vera and Kurt at the same time.
The both of them still looked grief stricken, but there was black rage in their hearts at what they were hearing.
Vera’s eyes had turned icy cold as she wiped a table vigorously, while Kurt still stood with his head bowed but his hands were clenched so fiercely before him, that his knuckles turned white.
If there was anything the duo hated the most in their life, it was the tales of how Elara had saved them from their poverty stricken lives and made sure they were in comfort.
They hated that piece of truth the most.
He turned his head slightly to glare at the crowd. They quickly smiled at him sympathetically and he bowed stiffly at them.
“Stupid gossipers.” He muttered to himself, his jaw clenching.
Just then a group of people dressed in black suits, approached the funeral hall.
Kurt suddenly stood straight, his expression returning to its former grief stricken one, as the group of men walked past him.
They were the Vaughn Empire’s Board Of Directors.