4. Wedding Incident

Less than two months after Gerald took Virginia to live with him, an elegant intimate wedding was held in the mansion’s backyard. The mansion servants were busy arranging flower decorations, seating, and tables to serve the food. The mafia boss appointed Harold to ensure the preparation was complete and didn’t miss anything.

“Where’s the wedding cake?” asked Harold to one of the servants.

“It’s still in the kitchen. We need 10 more minutes to complete the decoration,” responded the young servant boy.

Harold nodded. “Do it quick, we only have 30 minutes left before the event starts. Oh, and make sure the amount of food is enough for all guests”

The servant nodded and went back to the kitchen to prepare the remaining food. While Harold checked the outside, Virginia looked out from her room’s window. She nervously squeezed her sweating hands as she went back and forth. Susan who noticed this quickly came to her and told, “Please stay seated, Virginia. You will sweat a lot and ruin the makeup.”

The bride caught her short breath and sipped a glass of water to relax her nerves. She then asked, “I’m unable to rest, Susan. This is a big day, what if I ruined it?”

“Oh, I doubted it,” Susan cheered her up and patted her arms. “You know, soon you’ll enjoy a life you’ve always dreamed of.”

Virginia sighed and leaned backward. She enjoyed her life in this mansion, however, with some exceptions. The majority of Gerald’s family members still disapprove of his decision in taking her as his wife, especially Lusiana and Michelle. Besides the mafia boss, only his trusty bodyguard Harold and Susan the maid that cared for her. Her mind wandered for quite some time until the other servants came into the room.

“Miss Virginia,” they said while holding a white gown and some accessories, “let us help to put on your wedding dress.”

Virginia nodded then stood up. As Susan and the other female servants put the wedding dress on, the woman admired the overall look of the dress. It was a white empire dress with an off-shoulder neckline that complements her beautiful long neck. Virginia barely recognized herself in the mirror with the dress, veil, and elegant hairdo. One servant handed her an all-white flower bouquet that matched perfectly with her entire outfit.

Her lipsticked lips turned into a smile as she turned around and said, “Thank you, everyone. This is great.”

Soon after that, Susan accompanied her to go downstairs. At the back patio, Virginia stood in awe seeing the dim-light decor that created a romantic ambiance combined with the evening sky. She was ready to walk down the aisle. The path was covered in red roses petals and led the bride to a wedding arch ornate with flowers. She flustered seeing Gerald at the end of the aisle, along with a pastor. The mafia boss wore a dark grey suit with a white flower Boutonnières similar to what was on her bouquet.

Harold bowed down as Virginia arrived and offered his hand. “Miss Virginia, let me walk you down the aisle.”

“Thank you, Harold.”

The bride greeted the bodyguard’s hand that led her along the petal-covered path. The pianist played romantic yet solemn music to accompany the course of events. She smiled lightly to ease her nervousness and tried to ignore fierce gazes from Gerald’s family members. She finally arrived just before the arch.

After thanking Harold, Gerald he smiled upon knowing that his bride was there and whispered, “You look beautiful today.”

The woman’s blushing cheeks became more noticeable He then grabbed Virginia’s delicate hand and got ready for the big ceremony. Both of them were excited as they read their wedding vows, followed by a declaration of intent.

The pastor is a man in his 50 with grayish hair. He then looked at Gerald and asked, “Do you, Gerald, take this woman to be your wedded wife?”

With no hesitation, the mafia boss nodded and responded, “Yes, I do.”

He then turned to Virginia and asked the same, “Do you, Virginia, take this man to be your wedded husband?”

“I do”

Even though the wedding celebration only invited the main family and mansion servants, the event still took place with great fanfare. Shortly after Virginia and Gerald said their wedding vows and exchanged rings, they kissed. Happiness and moved feelings filled the bride’s heart who was still in disbelief that she could get married at such a young age, even to a man she didn’t fully have feelings for.

The groom handed Virginia a handkerchief and whispered softly, “Why are you crying, my wife?”

“I’m just touched by all of these, Gerald,” replied Virginia as she tapped the tears on her cheek. “Thank you for making me your wife.”

“I love you, Virginia.”

The two kissed again, much to the family members’ loathe. Lusiana silently complained as she scoffed, “Well, what a happy ending. She’s now my sister-in-law. Great.”

Miller chuckled as he patted his wife’s shoulder. “You should be happy for them, Honey.”

Michelle rolled her eyes in disgust, “I swear to God I’ll never call that ugly hag, Mom.”

“Well, you can do that, but Dad will scold you for being disrespectful towards her,” Cedric teased.

The celebration still continued in the backyard with a formal dinner. Strings of light rayed on the table full of delicacies, from turkeys to apple pies. Champagne was poured and the wedding cake was cut, allowing the happy couple to have a taste of their sweet celebration. Gerald was so nonchalantly happy that night, ignoring the fact that his children and siblings weren’t on the same page.

As everyone gathered around the dining table to savor the scrumptious meals served, suddenly Gerald didn’t feel too well. He began cold sweating and was unable to breathe properly. His right palm reached and clutched to the left side of the chest, where the pain was centered. He groaned lightly and dropped the cutlery to the floor. His vision became blurry as Gerald felt his head become lighter.

“Gerald, are you okay?” asked Virginia upon noticing her husband’s unusual look.

“Are you dumb and blind? Of course, he’s not!” replied Lusiana with a raised tone of voice.

Harold who noticed this hurriedly came to the table and carried Gerald’s body into the mansion. As he rushed his boss into the hallway, the bodyguard called the servants who were oblivious to what just happened, “Open the boss’ room, quick!”

The bodyguard put Gerald’s writhing body in his bed as he dialed the number he had been familiar with.

“Hello, Doctor? Can you come to Sir Gerald’s residence now? I think he got a heart attack.”

After some time, Harold told him, “Hang on, Sir. The doctor is on his way.”

“Gerald? What happened?” Virginia went panicked upon seeing her husband’s pale and pained face. She followed behind Harold, ignoring her wedding dress which was a mess now. The woman didn’t even care that one of her heels fell somewhere while she hasted to her husband’s room.

“Virginia … “ her husband called her name with a weak and shaky voice, “Argh, fuck, my chest … ”

Virginia immediately kneeled beside the bed and held Gerald’s cold yet sweaty hands. She caressed his hair lightly. “Be still, Gerald. I’m here. Harold has called the doctor, and he will treat you soon.”

“Yeah … it hurts a lot,” Gerald kept writhing in pain and gasping for air, but Virginia calmed him down.

A feeling of dismay soon enveloped everyone in the mansion, Virginia in particular. Tonight was supposed to be the joyful celebration of her union with Gerald, but a sudden event came out of the blue and made everyone distraught. The children, Cedric and Michelle hurriedly went in and stood before the door.

“Harold, have you called the doctor?” asked Michelle with great worry.

The bodyguard nodded as he put the cell phone back into his pocket. “Yes, he’ll arrive in five minutes.”

“How is Dad now?” Cedric chimed in.

Harold went silent for a while before shaking his head in doubt. He couldn’t answer that simple question. All that the bodyguard could say was, “Let’s just hope he’s all right and past this critical condition.”

“That’s not the answer I want,” the girl muttered. Michelle stormed into her father’s bedroom, followed by Cedric behind her. She was pissed off seeing Virginia holding his hand. The young girl couldn’t hold her jealousy back, so she went to push her aside.

“Ouch!” Virginia fell down to the floor as Michelle glared at her in rage. No words were spoken between the two, but the woman sensed the hatred that the teenage girl had for her. Virginia didn’t even dare to look her in the eyes and just let Michelle take her place.

“Dad!” Michelle exclaimed as she quickly grabbed Gerald’s hand.

“Michelle? Where’s … Virginia?” asked her father which only fueled her dislikeness.

“I’m here, Dad. We’ll get through this together, okay? You’re the strongest man I know, Dad.” babbled Michelle.

Gerald ignored what his daughter said because the pain was too strong to be ignored. It felt like hundreds of knives were stabbing his left chest and made him unable to relax. Cedric stood still and didn’t say a word before he walked toward Virginia.

The new stepmother was slightly afraid of him, she feared that the young man would show his despise toward her. To Virginia’s surprise, Cedric offered his hand and said, “Let’s get you out of here.”

Not having any choice, Virginia nodded and was helped to stand again. She walked with a slight limp because her leg was sprained from the fall. Soon after she was out of Gerald’s room, the remaining member of the family went in with a man dressed like a doctor. Virginia leaned her back against the hallway’s wall and contemplated in sadness. All she wanted was just to be close to Gerald in his critical time, but it seemed like nobody agreed with that idea. Minutes felt like hours spent alone as Virginia silently cried and prayed for her husband’s health and condition.

Meanwhile, the doctor went into Gerald’s room to see his condition. Everyone stood in agitation as the doctor checked his blood pressure, heart pulse, and body temperature. After some inspection, Gerald became more relaxed and calm. The pain in his chest slowly fades, but the remaining ache won’t just leave easily.

The doctor hung the stethoscope around his neck and turned around. Impatient Michelle quickly went to him and questioned, “Is my Dad all right, Doctor?”

”Thankfully, Sir Gerald has passed his critical time,” explained the doctor, “it’s something that commonly occurred given to his heart condition now, so you don’t have to worry.”

“Don’t worry you said? He scared the shit out of us with that sudden heart attack!” complained Lusiana.

“I know, Ma’am. What happened to Sir Gerald was a minor heart attack, which isn’t something that you need to worry about.” The doctor fixed his glasses before saying, “It’s best for Sir Gerald to rest well, avoid doing strenuous activities or engaging in stressful situations, and eat healthy foods.”

As the doctor packed his kits, he then told, “My best suggestion for Sir Gerald is to find a heart donor. His heart isn’t as healthy and in prime condition, and if it was left like that, he could very likely have another heart attack which could be more severe and life-threatening.”

“I’ve asked Harold to find me that, Doctor … ” replied Gerald weakly as he lay in bed.

“You should routinely take your medicine to ease the pain while waiting for a heart donor, Sir Gerald,” reminded the doctor. He then took his luggage and said, “That’s all I can do for now. I hope you recover well and find a heart replacement, Sir.”

“Thank you, Doctor,” said Harold as he escorted him out of the room.

All of the family members left Gerald to rest and chatted just outside his room regarding the family leader’s health. Virginia who saw these quickly stood up and ran toward the group of people. She hastily asked, “How was Gerald’s condition? Is he all right? What did the doctor say?”

Everyone went silent upon the sight and the question spewed by the unwanted addition to the family. Only cynical stares and scornful looks answered Virginia's worried questions. It was apparent that Gerald’s siblings and children blamed Virginia for his worsening health condition.

Harold who was pitying his boss’ new wife then cleared his throat and responded, “Sir Gerald is doing just fine, Miss Virginia. The doctor told him to rest.”

“Thank goodness,” sighed her in relief.

The relieved feeling she had didn’t last too long, because Virginia was still haunted by the thought of Gerald’s declining health. Not to mention what her fate would be among those family members who were in a constant state of displeased whenever she was around. Virginia only looked down, avoiding any eye contact with those people who thought it was her fault that Gerald was experiencing such excruciating pain.