Chapter 36
CAESAR
I’m overseeing the final flower arrangements in the hall when I feel a presence behind me. I turn around to find just standing there.
She’s decked almost from head–to–toe in expensive pearls. Even her dress seems to be made of pearls.
I do not bother with a fake smile. I just nod;
“Mother, glad you could make it.”
She sniffs. “There’s no way in hell that I’d miss my son’s wedding even if he treats me like I’m insignificant.”
I inhale deeply and turn back to the flower arrangements;
“Okay, then. There’s no need to curse.”
my mother
I expect her to walk away and leave me alone like she always did in the past. However, two minutes later, I can still smell her scent and feel her presence behind me.
“You’re still standing there, mother. Is there a problem?”
“Well, you can definitely call it a problem. Your wedding is set to start in less than an hour’s time, no?”
Her patronizing tone has my suspicious nerves tweaking. I turn to her, my suspicion heightening when I see a tiny smirk on her lips. “If you have something to say, I’d suggest you go straight to the point, mother.”
She folds her arms; “are you certain that your bride wants to get married to you today?”
I frown. Amaya had not backed out of the agreement.
“Go straight to the point, mother, please.” I say irritably.
“You know I’m never one to talk too much. Go to her dressing room and see what I’m talking about. I’m sure she did it on purpose to stop the wedding from happening.”
Okay, something’s wrong. I can feel it.
Without saying another word to my mother, I turn around and hurriedly make my way towards Amaya’s dressing room. I made sure the room was close to the hall where the wedding would take place for easy access, so thankfully, it takes me less than five minutes to get there.
Although the heavy wooden doors are closed, as I get closer, a strong, metallic odor assails my sensitive nestrils and pante burns like acid in the pit of my stomach.
The only thought I can muster is that Amaya is inside that dressing room, and whatever this is, it doesn’t smell good.
I hurry to the door and pull the knob, fully expecting it to be locked. To my surprise, however, the knob turns willingly and the door swings open. I stand there for a moment, trying to get grasp of what I’m looking at.
The room is filled with a blue, smoky substance. It resembles dust particles, and it’s currently settling on every single surfice of the room.. including my suit.
My eyes adjust through the chaos and 1 finally get a glimpse of what mother was really talking about
Amaya stands in the middle of the room in her wedding dress and the white material is completely stained with blue
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Chapter 36
powder.
The panic in my stomach gradually turns to anger; “what in the bloody hell is going on here?!”
***
AMAYA
I’m panicking. The last time I felt this panicked
as two
days ago when I was informed that my son was ill.
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“What’s going on, Jayla?” I ask in a half–screech. “What was in this thing?!”
It’s only fifty minutes to the wedding and my entire dress, hair and makeup are all ruined.
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“I have no idea!” Jayla replies, her voice already hoarse from coughing. The blue dust starts to clear and I see her walking towards me;
“Come on. I need to get you out of here.”
She’s just grabbed my are and started leading looking Caesar.
me in the direction of the door when it slams open, revealing a very upset-
“What in the bloody hell is going on here?” He growls, waving a hand over his face to keep the dust away. “What happened?!”
Most of the dust has settled and I
can see clearly now. While Jayla tries to the mirror to have a look at the extent of the damage.
to
explain the situation to Caesar, I numbly walk back
I pause before the
huge mirror, take
one
look
at
myself and a gasp of horror slips past my lips.
I look like a Smurf, all covered in blue. The dust particles landed in my hair. My entire skin and clothes are coated in blue as well. I try to shake it off but it’s not coming off. It’s like a permanent, inky stain.
Oh, bloody hell. What will we do?
“I have no idea how this happened.” Jayla explains, sounding like she’s on the verge of tears. “We just wanted to blast a confetti cannon to celebrate the wedding. We didn’t know there was blue powder inside it.”
“And where did you get these cannons?” Caesar’s voice drips with anger.
“I found them outside my door this morning. I’d gone around asking members of the staff for it last night so I’m guessing
of them must’ve dropped it off.”
one
While they’re talking, I walk over to the moveable rack to inspect the dresses hanging there, but all of them are covered in blue dust. None of it is salvageable.
I turn to Jayla, just as Caesar retrieves his phone from his pocket
“What are we gonna do now, Jayla? All the wedding dresses are red. I can’t walk down the aisle looking like this.”
Before Jayla can get the chance to respond, an older woman walks into the room and stops just inside the door, taking in the entire scenario with a single sweep of her gaze.
Why does she lank so achingly familiar?
She purses her lips in absolute disgust and it suddenly dawns on me. She’s Caesar’s mother. Mrs. Manchester The packs
sorceress:
“Why does it look and smell like a jar of blue fart exploded in here
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Chapter 36
Caesar turns to her;
“Mother, it’s better if you stay out of this. I’m handling…”
She folds her arms stubbornly.
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“No, Caesar. I’m not staying out of anything. Don’t you think it’s a bit too suspicious that a confetti cannon would emit blue dust on your wedding day of all days? There’s definitely more to this.”
I pause, a frown marring my features. “Wait, are you saying we did this on purpose?”
She looks me straight in the eyes; “how would I know? I never accused you. I just said the situation is suspicious.”
Jayla and I exchange glances. Yes, she’s definitely accusing us.
“Hello, am I speaking to a representative from Susana Beauty?” Caesar suddenly says, capturing my full attention.
“Okay, good. My name is Caesar Manchester. I need you to send a team of your best fashion designers and stylists with already made wedding dresses to the Marabella estate immediately. I don’t care about the cost. Will that be possible?” Ten seconds pass where I’m reeling with total shock;
“Good. Once you arrive at the gate, ask the security officials to give me a call. My secretary will send you details on sizes. Thank you.”
When Caesar finishes with the call, Jayla and I exchange confused glances once again. What is he doing?
I’ve heard of Susana Beauty. They took the fashion industry by storm last year and have remained at the top ever since. But how come Caesar was able to book them on such short notice?
Without paying us any attention, his fingers fly across the screen once again and before long, he’s making another call;
“Hello, Henry? Send a cleaning crew to Amaya’s dressing suite immediately. Also, ask every member of staff on the grounds to assemble in the hallway. I’d like to address them.”
Caesar barely ends the call when his mother pounces on him;
“What are you doing, Caesar? How can you just decide to make such expenses without consulting me? Why did you hire a new designer for this woman? You don’t even know if she’s responsible for what happened. How can you trust her?”
He heaves a sigh.
“My wedding is in forty minutes, mother. Let’s have this argument when the wedding is over.”
Just then, Henry appears at the door;
“Sir, the cleaning crew is here. The staff are also waiting in the hallway just like you asked.”
Caesar nods and turns to Jayla.
“Help Amaya out of that ruined dress. The team from Susana Beauty will be here soon. I’ll see you both in the hallway.”
Then he walks out of the room without sparing his mother a glance.
Three seconds after he’s gone, I’m still a confused, disoriented, blue mess. Caesar didn’t shout at me. He didn’t even raise his voice, and I expected him to raise hell when he saw the cannon disaster
What the hell is going on with him?
While Jayla helps me take off the numerous buttons on my dress Mrs. Manchester’s cold eyes are firmly fixed on me. “I
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have no idea what you’ve done to my son, you gold digging witch. I don’t know if you’ve bewitched him into taking care c you and your children, but I’ll be watching you. You won’t get away with any of your evil plans.”
Before I can respond, she turns around, walks out of the room and slams the door.
I have no idea what to say or how to feel, so I just quietly turn to Jayla.
“I’m so sorry, Amaya. This is all my fault. If I hadn’t insisted that we blast those stupid confetti cannons…”
I press a finger against her lips and shake my head.
“None of this is your fault, Jay. Eveything will be fine.”
I wish I believed that.
By the time Jayla and I make it to the hallway, Caesar is already questioning the staff.
“Are you saying that none of you left the confetti cannons at Miss Jayla’s door? No one wants to confess?”
The atmosphere is tense. Too tense.
www
The staff remain quiet with their heads lowered. No one dares to say a peep. Caesar looks cool, calm and collected, but his shoulders are stiff and his eyes blaze with black fire.
“Fine then, all the CCTV footage of this building have been submitted for investigation. If it’s discovered that any of you here are actually responsible for today’s accident, you might as well kiss your entire life and your jobs goodbye.”
***
Like I said, Susana Beauty is one of the top bridal fashion brands in New York. I’m stunned when their CEO, Susana Montez arrives with 1 members of her team to dress me up herself.
“Mr. Caesar is one of my highest paying clients.” She explains when I express my surprise at seeing her in person. “I designed Miss Elle’s wedding dress and I’m very happy to design yours today.“.
I went very quiet after that.
Caesar hired the same company that designed his ex–wife’s dress? I know I’m not supposed to care, but why does the thought of it alone leave a bitter taste in my mouth?
“All done!” She squeals, clapping her hands together twenty minutes later. It was that quick because Caesar also hired separate professionals to touch up my hair and makeup and get all the blue dust off so I didn’t have to redo anything.
It must be nice to be filthy rich, to have people at your beck and call.
Suddenly, the door bursts open, revealing Jayla in her beautiful, pink wedding dress.
“Amaya, Amaya, the wedding song is already being played. The ceremony has started!”
“…here comes the bride, here comes the bride…”
That song filled me with happiness when I first got married to Allistair Blackwell. But now, standing at the entrance of the opulently decorated hall, I’m shivering with nerves and my heart is heavy.
Tears currently burn in my eyes but thankfully, the lace material of my veil shields my face from the hundreds of guests.
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As I take my first step down the aisle, the sounds of clicking and flashing cameras fill the room. Jayla opted to walk me down the aisle since both my parents are dead and Grandma Gina is currently watching over the babies at the hospital.
“Just place one foot in front of the other, sweetheart.” She whispers. “You’ll be fine.”
“Yes. Thank you.” I mutter shakily.
We’ve already covered half of the long aisle when I feel a strange, bristly sensation at the back of my neck.
I look up sharply and lo and behold, Alistair and Zara are seated right up ahead.
Alistair’s eyes are firmly and intensely fixed on my face, almost like he can see me through the veil. He’s the only guest who doesn’t have a smile on his face. His frown is harsh and heavy.
Oh, well. In your face, sucker.
We finally arrive at the makeshift altar, where Caesar and the goddess’s priestess are already waiting.
Jayla hands me over to Caesar and the moment his skin comes in contact with mine, a fiery spurt of electricity crawls up my arm. I barely stop myself from gasping.
“Alright, ladies and gentlemen, let the ceremony begi
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