THE DON'S BRIDE

“Mom, you look so beautiful.”

My mother smiled. “You look beautiful in your new dress too. I wish I could see you in dresses more often, instead of jeans and a plaid shirt or a hoodie.”

“Mom. You promised not to comment on my style anymore,” I snorted.

My mother laughed, and the makeup artist almost smeared lipstick on her cheek because she moved around.

“Sorry. But seriously, you look so beautiful in that white satin dress.”

“Thanks, mom. I feel like a princess today.”

I stared at my mother’s reflection in the mirror. She looked so happy in her white wedding dress with a train that hung very long on the floor. My mother wore a diamond tiara on her head. A makeup artist was applying nude lipstick to her full, exotic lips. This was the first time I had seen my mother this happy since my father died ten years ago. I almost thought my mother would never be happy again after my father died, but I was wrong. After ten years of draining emotions and tears, my mother finally got her happiness back.

“Fiona, you go to church first. Joshua’s driver will pick me up and take me to church.”

“Aren’t we going to church together?”

“Seriously, there’s no way I’m going to church in your beat-up Ford.”

“Yeah, even though it’s beat-up, it’s been with me for three years. And so far, I’m fine with it,” I snorted.

My mother always scoffed at my car, but she couldn’t even afford to buy me a new one. I bought the car with my own money, the money I earned from working part-time for three full years. My mother had been working as a barmaid since my father died. Her salary wasn’t much and was only enough to meet our daily needs.

But ever since my mother started dating Joshua Craig, her life started to change. I often saw my mother coming home with lots of paper bags from famous boutiques. Sometimes, my mother would come home with a lot of food, which I am sure she would not be able to afford with her salary. The food came from a five-star restaurant, which could cost more than three months salary.

Last week my mother also showed me a diamond necklace and a ring. My mother was very happy to have a rich boyfriend. I had never met her boyfriend, because he never got out of the car every time he took my mother home. But I was sure he was very rich because he always came in a luxury car. No wonder my mother made fun of my old car.

“Fiona, why are you daydreaming there? Go to church.”

I blinked twice. My mother looked at me in annoyance. The woman who did my mother’s makeup had already left the room. She was very quiet. She didn’t say a word while doing my mother’s makeup.

“Okay, I’ll go to church now.”

I walked over to my mother and hugged her. Tears welled up in my eyes as I hugged her tightly.

“I’m happy for you, Mom.”

“Thank you. I hope you’ll stay with me after I marry Joshua.”

“No, I’m fine staying here. This is Dad’s house full of memories.”

My tears dripped down my cheeks. This felt like my last hug with my mother, even though we would still see each other after she married her lover. My mother said she would see me often. However, I was a bit unsure about that. If her husband was that rich, Mom would definitely have a lot of new activities after marrying him.

“Let me know if you change your mind. Joshua doesn’t mind you staying with us.”

I released my hug and smiled softly at her.

“I want to be an independent woman. After I graduate from law school, I will apply for a job at a law firm and become a lawyer like I have always dreamed of. I might move out of town. Maybe LA, New York, I don’t know.”

“I am proud of you, honey. I am lucky to have you. If your Daddy were with us, he would say the same thing. You are the light of his life.”

God

Her words were like onions, making my tears well up in my eyes. My tears flowed even faster down my cheeks. And I didn't want my mother to get married today. I wanted to take back my words last week when my mom told me that Joshua proposed to her and that he wanted to marry her as soon as possible.

“Don’t cry. Go to church now. Joshua’s driver will be here any minute.”

I wiped my tears with a tissue and nodded. I waved at my mom at the door, then walked straight to my car parked in our yard.

There it was, my beat-up car. The red 2008 Ford Edge that I loved so much. This car had taken me to many places and witnessed countless naughties. I was once ticketed by the police for driving over the speed limit.

“Hey buddy, even though Mom called you a beat-up car, you’re still the best. Let’s go.”

I climbed into the car and started the engine. Before leaving, I looked at my house and sighed softly. The house would be so quiet without my mother's voice.

-00-

My car entered the yard of the largest church in Miami. This church was built with white marble and looked very striking among the luxurious hotels that stood on the beach. According to rumors, only certain people could get married in this church. And it seemed that my mother's future husband was one of them.

Two burly men dressed in black from head to toe stopped my car in front of the church gate. Each of them carried a long-barreled gun. And I just realized that all the men standing in the yard of this church were carrying guns in their hands. They were all wearing the same clothes. All black. Their faces were cold and stiff.

"Open the window."

I lowered my window and looked at the burly man with a frown.

"I'm Fiona Osborn. I'm going to attend the wedding of Katherine Osborn and Joshua Craig."

"She's her daughter," another man spoke to the man who knocked on my car window.

“She’s on the guest list. The boss told you to take her straight into the church.”

“Okay.”

I snorted at how rude they were. They talked about me as if I wasn’t there.

“Hey, can I park my car and go inside the church?” I asked in exasperation.

“Leave your car here. I’ll take you inside the church.”

“Why can’t I park my own car?”

“Please just do as I say. Get out of your car now.”

I huffed and grabbed my white purse from the passenger seat. These people were weird. I’d never been to a wedding with such strict rules. What kind of man was my mom going to marry? I probably made the right decision to stay at Dad’s house after she married Joshua Craig because my future stepfather was a weirdo.

“Stretch out your arms.”

“What?”

Before I could process what the man was saying, someone suddenly stretched out my arms from behind. I let out a startled yelp and turned around. Another man in a suit came over and started scanning my entire body with a red laser wand.

“What the hell?”

“This is standard procedure.”

“Get your hands off my body. You’re stealing the opportunity to grope me, huh?”

The man said nothing. His expression remained cold as he groped my hips, even my buttocks. I felt like I was being violated.

“I’ll report you to the police for this rudeness.”

“She’s clear. Bring her in.”

“Do you think I’m carrying a weapon, huh?”

The man who had knocked on my car window earlier grabbed my elbow and half dragged me towards the main door of the church. The men who had checked me had already dispersed. They returned to their respective places and stood stiffly like statues.

“I don’t understand, why did you have to do all that?”

“You’ll understand later.”

The man released his grip on my elbow once we were standing right in front of the church door. He spoke through the walkie-talkie, and soon the giant door swung open.

I was stunned to see the magnificent interior of the church. The interior was a combination of white marble and gold plating. The ceiling of the church was decorated with paintings with a giant dome made of pure gold. Yeah, I’m sure it was pure gold. It was so dazzling to my eyes from where I was standing now. A long red carpet stretched all the way to the altar. A giant crucifix became the background of the priest’s pulpit with various intricate carvings decorating every wall. I thought the carvings were the entire story of Jesus's life before he was crucified by his traitorous followers.

“Your seat is on the second pew on the right.”

“Excuse me?”

“Go to your seat and don’t make any noise.”

I thought the man would escort me to my seat, but he just left after saying a series of words thick with a commanding tone.

He was so annoying.

This marriage sucks.

Mom never told me that her wedding would be this strange. Yeah, mom also never told me in detail about her future husband. All mom showed me so far were expensive gifts from him and all the luxuries that man had.

I walked to my seat awkwardly. The armed men standing in every corner of the church stared at me as if I was the most dangerous prisoner in the world.

“Are you Fiona? Katherine’s daughter?”

A pair of the shiniest black shoes I had ever seen stopped in front of me. I looked up and found a man in a tuxedo staring at me intently. His eyes were deep blue, like the ocean at night. My gazes shifted to the left, to the small flower pinned to his jacket pocket. My breath hitched as I realized who the man I was talking to was. He was my future stepfather! He was Joshua Craig.