7
- THE DAVENPORT MANSION VILLA -
Workers are moving everywhere like they are preparing for something. The family doesn't know what is going on yet, only one person knows. That is the first and legitimate wife of Ferdinand Davenport, Alice Davenport. She is asking the workers to prepare the entire place as the wedding will be huge and guests will be coming to the mansion.
Her other rival, Debbie and her son Gregory watched as she controlled the workers. They could not help but wonder what is going on.
"What in the world does it take she is doing there some special occasion going on that we don't know about?" Gregory asked looking at his mother.
He is Aidan's younger brother but doesn't really like his brother. Yes, because by rights, Aidan gets to rule everything and Gregory always has to be behind his brother. Besides having a supportive mother like Debbie who wants her son to surpass everyone no matter what it takes is hard enough.
"There is no special occasion going on my dear son. It's just that if my hunch is right, then your brother is getting married and his mother is not telling us yet." Debbie replied her son.
"Getting married? I thought he said he won't get married and he doesn't have anyone, since his girlfriend left him? How he is getting married just like that? How is that possible? I think this is his scheme by his mother and him to get all the inheritance that dad wants to leave." Gregory stated.
Debbie nodded, "Alice thinks she can rip everyone off their rights just because she is a legitimate wife. I won't just sit by and watch that happen."
Debbie walked towards Alice with a straight face, and her son followed behind her, She stopped in front of Alice looking at her fiercely like she wants to rip out her eyes.
"By any way, do you need me to do anything for you?" Alice asked mockingly.
"I know what you are doing. At least and I am here to tell you that you are going to fail. I will prove you wrong. You and your son are not going to get everything that we all worked hard for. You think you can rip the others of their birthright?"
Alice could not help but laugh, since she feels like Debbie is being so funny.
"All that we worked hard for you said? If I remember correctly, my husband and I were already rich before you and your stupid friend made your way into our lives. You only came for the money, you would not come if my husband was poor. We already had everything before you came. Don't you dare lecture me about what you didn't work for you wench." Alice warned sternly.
"Stupid friends? Did you say stupid friend? Debbie and I are not friends anymore. I mean she betrayed me just so she could get married to my husband. That friendship ended a long time ago so please do not drag me into your mess." Shelley who was passing by cuts in.
"He was never yours alone to begin with Shelley. I did not beg him to be with me. He just decided to choose me because I was so beautiful. That's something you can't relate with." Debbie replied proudly.
Shelley laughed hysterically, "You were beautiful? You just blackmailed him with the shameful pregnancy you had then. That's why you probably gave birth to this shame of a child."
"It doesn't change the fact that you and I are both whores. We are both illegitimate wives and our children are illegitimate children. I was actually fighting for my rights and your rights, but you are so damn ungrateful. You can fight for yourself."
They continued to exchange words and insult each other while Alice just stood there looking at them with a smile on her face. The two of them used to be her workers. She only helped them when they said they were in need of a job. She gave them a job in her house and in return they seduced her husband. That was what they gave her for her kindness. The same story she tells everyone who asks her. The illegitimate wives are not that important in the society since everyone knows what they did to get where they are.
Alice is the one who receives special recognitions the most. It makes them angry and jealous because they still haven't gotten to where Alice is. Despite trying to take her place in the family. Shelley's kids, Emma and Andrew came to stop the fight. Emma and Gregory are a few months apart. Emma was conceived first and Andrew, five months later. That is the betrayal Shelley was talking about.
Gregory doesn't see Emma as much competition because she is female. He feels it would be easy to get rid of her without her dying. Andrew on the other hand is the last child of the family, Joanna is three years older than him and two years younger than Emma and Gregory. Aidan's younger sister Joanna is five years younger than her brother.
This makes Gregory and Emma twenty two, Joanna twenty and Andrew seventeen. Everyone else except Andrew and Gregory are in college. Gregory just finished his final year in business administration, while Emma is on a path to becoming a medical doctor. Joanna is studying engineering, Andrew is in his final years of high school.
They became a family years back and Alice had no choice than to accept them to save the face of the family. But it's never been easy, the other wives especially Debbie are trying to take her place while Alice would not give up and be disgraced by them. She feels kind enough to let them come into the family, after her husband cheated on her. But trying to take her place is totally out of the question.
"Mom, what is going on? We should stop them..." Joanna said terrified as the women are fighting despite their kids trying to separate them.
"Don't go there or I'll get mad at you." Alice warned her.
"But mom..."
"Let's go." Alice dragged her away. Joanna looked back at them worried about her little brother, Andrew. Unlike their mothers, she is extremely close with Andrew and Emma. She also interacts with Gregory well but it all changes when it comes to position in the family.
Everyone fights for it. Only Andrew and Emma don't have to do anything in all this. It's only going to be a chaotic mess, she always tells him. Alice dragged her daughter to her bedroom and locked the door.
"Mom! You shouldn't have walked away just like that!" Joanna whined.
"This is not the first time they are having a fight. Besides, they are not happy your brother's getting married. Look at them fight just because they think he's going to become the first place in everything." Alice replied.
"My brother's getting married?" Joanna asked in excitement, Alice nodded. "That's why everyone is preparing. I see now."
"We also have to prepare for your brother's wedding, we can't let them waste our time with their fights."
"But still..."
"I know what you want to say. Sometimes we got to be selfish if we want to help ourselves." Alice cuts her off.
"Is just that I think we are a family and we should be able to understand each other more than any other person. This kind of fights are not appropriate for us. It will not help our reputation in any way besides...."
"You are supposed to be asking about what you can do to help your brother, not thinking about how to help those who are against him. Now go help with the preparation. I also have things to do, we can't make mistakes. You have to do this well for your brother." Alice persuaded her.
"Yes mom! I can't believe my brother is getting married! I thought he would not get over his girlfriend. I guess I was wrong. I think this woman he is marrying is going to be very pretty, he has good eyes for very pretty women." Joanna smiled imagining it
She wonders who the lucky woman her brother is marrying is. She can't wait to see her brother's wife to be. She excitedly ran out of the room to help with the preparation. She almost bumped into her older sister Emma who was going to her room after successfully separating her mom and Debbie.
"I'm so sorry. Do you need me to..."
Emma waved her off, "Never mind. You didn't bother to separate my mom when she was fighting. I saw you leave with your mom. I guess in the end, family is not important after all."
"No you're getting this all wrong. I did not just leave her. I wanted to help but..."
"You don't have to explain. You don't owe me an explanation anyway. I'm just a bit stressed and disappointed, nothing more. I'll be leaving now, excuse me." Emma stopped her from explaining.
Joanna watched as Emma left, still in confusion. She doesn't understand why Emma is mad at her today, just because she did not separate the fight when she has been separating fights all along. But Emma is mad at her because she did not separate the fight just once?
On other days, she would be wallowing in guilt but now she has decided to not let that bother her. As she must help prepare for her brother's wedding which is very important.
*********
Back at her room, Debbie is fuming in anger. Gregory is trying to calm her down but she won't listen.
"You should come down mom, getting angry will not help you in any way. We should find a way to resolve this first before dealing with her later." He said.
Debbie frowned, "we have to get you to the top! That is the only way we can get respect from them and make them bow to us. But to do that we need to stop your brother in every way."
"What do you suggest we do mom? He is getting married and there's nothing we can do about it."
"That is exactly what we are supposed to do. We should stop that wedding so he will lose his rights as the first son of the family. And then we can start the rest from here."
Gregory laughed, "you said it so easily mom but it is not that easy to get rid of my brother. What we are supposed to do is to make the new wife uncomfortable that she will leave immediately. I don't think she'll be able to spend a month here, by the time we are done with her."
"Are you sure that will workm What if she's from a very prominent family and they attack us after she reports us to them?" Debbie asked.
"Mom, we are the most powerful family around here which means no family can stand face-to-face to us. There is none, therefore she will not be able to do anything. She is married into our family after all. If she asked for a divorce soon, dad will strip him of his birthright. At least he has to be married to have her than a year and I don't think she will last up to a year."
Debbie thought of this as a good idea. Making the new wife uncomfortable that she would have to leave. That's the only way to get to Aidan.
"I guess we have to pretend we are happy about the wedding, and go along with everything so no one suspects us as the ones who don't like the wife. We will let her enjoy her honeymoon. We will do well so she can feel really relaxed when we strike her." Debbie laughed evilly.
This is the chaotic life of the Davenport family which has once been recorded on TV. They could not go according to script and they fought, that's how everyone knows it's hard to be in their family. But no one dares to say it publicly.