Betrayed

Fruitless

" Whatever! At least I have done what my boss asked me to do, " Charles said and sighed.

" But can he really sue the almighty Zane Gluten? " Charles asked himself.

" Of course not. He is just bluffing, " Charles answered his question after remembering how tough his boss was. He hurriedly flagged down a cab and left for the company.

At the church......,.

Murmurs filled the air as soon as Gwendolyn left the church. Some of the guests condemned what happened while others blamed Gwendolyn for being so foolish not to detect that her 'so-called fiance' was having an affair with another lady who turned out to be her stepsister.

" I sincerely pity Gwendolyn. How could her fiance and family do such a thing to her? " An elegant lady dressed in a blue ball gown said sadly.

" I don't pity her at all. If not foolishness, how could she be with a man for five years and not notice that he was cheating on her? " Another woman said angrily. From the look in her eyes, one could tell that she would have slapped sense into Gwendolyn if she had been close by.

" Don't blame her Ms. Robert. Love makes one blind to the shortcomings of his or her lover. I can bet that you have never been in love. If you have, you won't stand here judging someone else who was unfortunate to fall in love with a beast in human form, " another lady replied the previous lady.

" You are here talking about Gwendolyn. What about her family? I understand that she lost her mother at a young age which prompted her father to marry another wife. But what I don't understand is how a father will watch the fiance of his first daughter get married to his second daughter. Doesn't he love both daughters equally? " Yet another lady spoke with a frown.

The once quiet church gradually turned into a house of argument.

The words of the last lady pricked the hearts of Fiona and her husband; Zack Malcolm.

" Sweetheart, you need to do something. We can't allow the event of minutes ago to disrupt the wedding of our beloved daughter, " Fiona whispered to Zack.

Zack swallowed her and looked in the direction of Stephanie, who was on the verge of shedding tears. Though he felt bad for Gwendolyn, he maintained a straight face and made his way to the podium.

He cleared his throat to gain the attention of everyone as soon as he got to the podium.

" I'm sorry for what happened earlier. For those of you playing judge, you can leave if you are not comfortable with the wedding ceremony. I believe the invitation you received carried Stephanie's name, not Gwendolyn's. This is my family and how I choose to run it doesn't concern any of you. You can stay and celebrate with us or use the door, " Zack said angrily and briskly walked back to his seat. Fiona smiled in satisfaction as soon as the guests settled down.

" You did well, sweetheart, " Fiona whispered to Zack Malcolm as soon as he got to his seat. Zack only nodded and gave her a small smile.

' Thank God Dad was able to manage the situation. Damn you, Gwendolyn, for trying to disrupt my wedding!' Stephanie thought. She could not image herself not

getting married to Wilson. Wilson, on the other hand, was relieved to see that Zack Malcolm had put the situation under control.

The priest continued with the ceremony. The couple took their vows and exchanged their rings. Prayers were said for the latest couple after which the church was dismissed. The couple, their parents, and the guests immediately made their way to a hall downtown where the wedding reception would be taking place. The venue was the same venue Gwendolyn had wanted to use for her reception.

'No! I can't do this. I need to find Gwen and explain things to her,' Jennifer thought silently. She was on her way to the reception but she had only walked a few meters from the church when she halted. She slowly turned around and quickly took another direction with the aim of finding her friend.

Jennifer tiredly sat down under a tree after fruitlessly looking for Gwen.

" I'm so sorry Gwen. I didn't mean to betray you. Please come back so that I can explain everything to you. It is not what you think. I swear I wanted to tell you but I was compelled to keep my mouth shut, " Jennifer said tearfully as her mind wandered to the event of a few months ago.

Two months ago......

Jennifer rushed to Gwendolyn's house without giving her a call. The reason was that she wanted both of them to go to the cinema to cool off since it was Saturday and it was a work-free day. She knew that Gwendolyn wouldn't agree to go to the cinema with her. So she came unannounced to cunningly drag her to the cinema.

With a smile on her face, Jennifer rang the doorbell. The door was opened almost immediately by Kate, the house help. Since Jennifer was a known guest, she was allowed in.

" Please Gwendolyn is not in at the moment. She went to an emergency business meeting thirty minutes ago. Would you like to wait for her? " Kate said as soon as she entered the house.

" Of course, I will wait for her," Jennifer replied with a smile. She had come to the house for a mission and she won't leave until she accomplish it.

" Please make yourself comfortable. Don't hesitate to call me if you need anything, " Kate said with a smile as she led her to the sitting room. She excused herself after that.

Jennifer smiled at the thought of giving Gwendolyn's boring life a little spike. However, her smile dropped as soon as she saw the people in the sitting room.

" What in God's name is going on here? " Jennifer asked bewildered. She could not believe her eyes when she saw Wilson, Gwendolyn's fiance, in a compromising position with Stephanie, looking at what looked like a wedding invitation card.

" What does it look like? " Fiona asked coldly making Jennifer turn in her direction. Jennifer only noticed her presence when she spoke. Her attention had been on Wilson and Stephanie and she didn't know that other people were also in the room. Aside from Fiona, Wilson, and Stephanie, she could also see two unfamiliar faces.

Jennifer opened her mouth to say something but Fiona beat her to it.

" Since you are curious to know what is going on, I will oblige you. I believe you know Wilson, " Fiona said with a wide smile.

" Yes, he is Gwendolyn's fiance. But I don't understand why he is cuddling Stephanie like they are lovers, " Jennifer replied immediately. Seeing the smile on Fiona's face, she could tell she was up to no good.

' I hope it is not what I'm thinking, ' Jennifer thought silently while glaring hard at Fiona. If looks could kill, Fiona would be long dead.

" Well, Wilson will be getting married to Stephanie my daughter, " Fiona said with a smile.

" Wait a minute! You are joking, right? " Jennifer asked in disbelief. No! Fiona must be joking. She told herself repeatedly. But the look on Fiona's face told her otherwise.

" Of course, not. My Stephanie is truly getting married to Wilson, " Fiona said with a smile. Her smile kept growing wider.

"Gwen must hear this, " Jennifer said angrily and took out her phone to call Gwendolyn.

" Don't you dare try that if you want to leave here alive! " Fiona yelled making Jennifer halt.

Jennifer gasped when she saw Fiona pointing a gun at her. She looked at Wilson, her eyes hoping he would say something in her favour.