INDEBTED To A Tyrant King

Mrs Gabriel Wolfe

Summer

I was standing in front of the mirror, looking at my reflection and for the love of God I couldn't comprehend how the hell I ended up here, in this condition. Or, in this dress.

The beautiful off white georgette dress with the layers of embroidered net, would've been my last choice, except for the hint of purple thread woven through that had me sighing at its beauty and elegance. It was almost a wedding dress with its princess cut neckline, showing the top of my breasts and the empire waist cinched tight showing off my slim waist. And I knew why it was laid out for me to wear. I was to be shown off as Gabriel Wolfe’s wife. Like he said, Lily was there for everything, even before I asked any questions she was ready with answers.

May be, it had something do with her age. She was about in her early fifties and had an air of motherliness around her. Many times, she had patted my head when I had grumbled about being trapped here like I was some five years old complaining about her homework. I had tried to tell her that it was all wrong, that I was here against my wishes, but she'd just given me a look and said, “Everything happens for the best, you'll see.”

And other times, it was just all the answers I wanted to know but didn't ask, which she gave by herself. "I don't think you'd want to go out just now, so I told them to bring your lunch up here."

"No. You are not allowed to go out of the house."

"Sorry, I can't tell you that."

"Probably, Mr Wolfe has your phone."

And so it went.

As the evening and the time for the party approached, Lily brought two more women with her. They didn't speak much but they were good at what they did. My makeup, hair and nails.

Now looking at my reflection, I myself couldn't find the trace of someone who had just been in a car accident, or more like a wreck. And that was another question in my mind. Who did that? It wasn't rocket science to guess that someone intentionally did it. What I was confused about, if it was for me or for Gabriel. I was in his car after all.

“You look very pretty, my sweet.” Lily said from my side, her words a little rough, for a moment I feared she was going to cry. “He’ll be very happy.” Then she turned around to address the girls. “Okay, girls, let's go.” Lily ushered the girls out of the room I was prisoned in. She had told me that it was temporary, that from tonight I was to sleep with Mr Wolfe in the master bedroom. One particular comment of hers had caught me off guard, her desire to see children playing in this big but empty house. She had given me a meaningful look and equal amount of deep seated longing and apprehension had filled me at the prospect of having kids with Gabriel.

Suffice it to say, I wasn't too much excited about that. I was still looking for a way to get out of here, I won't do something as drastic as getting pregnant with his baby and not have any chance of ever getting my freedom. Till now I hadn't done anything because I knew I wouldn’t even get as far as the main doors, but it didn't mean I won't try. He was probably waiting for me to make that mistake and then he'd silently laugh at me, looking down at me with those blue eyes.

I sucked in a breath as I looked at that beautiful face and those blue eyes now, staring back at me in the mirror. He was in all black and appeared silently like a shadow emerging from nowhere. Even the shirt he wore underneath his million dollars suit was black. As black as his soul, I’d guess.

But those eyes, they were bright, glowing almost with an ethereal kind of beauty. I barely noticed the girls and Lily leaving me alone with him as he came closer to me. I wanted to call them back, ask them to not leave me alone with this big bad wolf. His warning from the morning still echoed in my brain. Behave like a brat and I’ll treat you like one. He had said that in not so many words that if I didn't behave and fall in step with whatever he wanted from me, if I didn't submit to him then he'd make me pay. The question was how.

Now as he stood just behind me, we both looked at each other in the mirror, his face didn't give away anything of his thoughts. Just like always he was emotionless, his face a cool mask. But his next words sent shivers down my body, tightening the muscles in my stomach. “You look beautiful. Exquisite.”

My hair were styled in a messy up-do with tendrils escaping and fluttering about my shoulders, and him speaking this close had my bare flesh responding to his nearness and his breath as it feathered across my neck. Without breaking the eye contact, he pulled out something from his pocket and then held it in front of me. “A present, my Little Red.”

A smallest of smile touched his lips. His other hand came around and my eyes went to what he was holding. A necklace. No, not a necklace. It was a simple silver chain with a ring dangling in the middle. My eyes automatically went to his hand, but he was wearing his wolf ring which meant… “This is for you, my Little Red.” He placed the delicate chain around my throat, the cold metal quickly warmed by my body heat and the ring came to rest just above the valley between my breasts, making it impossible for anyone to miss it with the lack of jewellery otherwise on my person. It was beautiful. But there was no doubt why he was making me wear this.

“One look at you, and people will know you belong to me. That you are mine.” He clasped the chain securely and then kissed my bare shoulder. His lips warm on my suddenly chilled skin. Turning me around, he took my hand in his and placed it on the crook of his arm. “Ready?”

“I am being forced, what do you think?” I asked.

He stilled, his blue eyes roamed over my face. “Don’t make this hard on yourself, Summer. As fast as you’ll accept it, it will be good for you.”

I scoffed. “I’d never accept it. You are forcing me to play your wife, and I don't do well in such situations.” I let loose a smile, letting him know he's going to regret it. “Now, shall we?”

Gabriel didn't say anything as we left the house and neither did I, even though I wanted to ask about our destination. We sat in a black Jaguar. It wasn't the first time I was sitting in this car, but it was the first time I was sitting in the backseat with him. Soon, the car came to a slow stop and I recognised the old church at the end of French Quarter. It was no longer used for worshipping, like every other thing in the New Orleans, now it belonged to Gabriel Wolfe. And he used this place as he saw fit. Whatever the occasion, this old church was where you'd find him most of the time.

The driver opened the car door and Gabriel stepped out, turning to me he held out his hand for me which I accepted, for the time being. As I stood beside him outside the church, I noticed the line of luxurious cars covering half of the street. It looked like the whole city had decided to come tonight, or it was just that their tyrant king had ordered them to herd here so he could dictate them some more. His hold tightened perceptibly on my arm and when I looked up I found him already looking at me, but I couldn’t decipher what he was thinking. “Behave. And smile.”

Automatically, my lips stretched in a smile and we started walking. On the threshold of a church, I said, “Be careful, Gabriel, I’ve heard lightening strikes the devil when walking into god's domain.”

If I thought it'd make him angry, I was wrong. It didn't. He laughed. And momentarily, I was caught in the deep masculine sound that came out of his throat. It sounded like he hadn't laughed in ages and for a moment I wondered how he'd sound and look like when he'd truly let loose. “This fire, Little Red. I can't wait to burn in it.” I frowned at him, trying to understand the meaning of his words, but he was already walking.

When we stepped inside, a hush fell on the crowd present and I realised that even though the outside of the church was as old as the centuries, the inside was remodelled and from where I was standing it looked like a ball room from the Victorian era. Black marble floors with a design in the middle stretched out as far as I could see. As we got closer I realised what the design was. A huge red W in a circle. Chandeliers with candles twinkled above me. A band played soft music, while the crowd looked up at us with expectation as if a butler would come and announce our names.

But there was no announcement by the butler. Gabriel stopped on the landing in the middle of the wide staircase that were sprawling down to the floor of the ballroom. At least six steps were remaining and he addressed the crowd from there, looking down at their upturned, eager faces. “Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for joining us on such a short notice. I won’t take much of your time…” He took my hand in his and for a moment it looked like we were the only two people in this big ballroom as his blue eyes met mine. Warm and possessive, but soon his gaze was cool and calculative as if I had imagined the warmth. His next words sent a queazy feeling through me, I didn't know if I liked it or hated it on principle. “Meet my wife, Mrs Gabriel Wolfe.”

Even though he had spoken in soft tones, it felt like he had shouted the words from the top of the hill. And instantly every person in the crowd let out a collective gasps and then started clapping with soft murmurs.

And so the evening began.

Congratulations were said, greetings were exchanged. Women came up to me to admire my dress and my new husband. Husband. Now there was a word that I had only dreamed about in the same sentence as Gabriel when I had believed in fairy tales. Most of those women weren’t discreet, and were unable to hide their envy that I got the tyrant king for myself. Some even threw petty remarks about my less curvaceous figure and red hair and odd looking eyes. I ignored them all and sipped my fourth or may be it was fifth glass of champagne. And then there were men, all in thousands dollars worth of suits, high profile businessmen, politicians, actors, and even cops, and whatnot. The only similarity I could detect was that everyone of them oozed money and power, and a shadow of evil in them.

“There you are, my dear!” I was standing between a pair of women who were talking about their latest Gucci bags, all had already forgotten me, when I heard her and then a moment later inhaled her soft spring flower fragrance.

Looking up for the first time tonight, my lips formed a genuine smile. “Mrs. Morelli, Oh my god….” I whispered, tears stinging the back of my eyes as my best friend’s mother and our old neighbor engulfed me in a warm hug.

“Oh, dear… I missed you so much and Kat too.” At her words my eyes instantly searched the crowd for my best friend. “She is not here, dear. She went out of town last week with her father but she’ll be here soon and I’m sure she’ll be so happy to know that you are back.”

“I missed you too, and her…” I whispered. “And, I am sorry I didn’t call.”

“Oh no, don’t be sorry. Everything’s going to be good now that you are here and may be he won’t be as much of a tyrant as he had been in the last few years.” She said with a conspiratorial smile.

And my eyes looked up and without searching for him I found him. It seemed he looked at me at the same time, as our gazes clashed. Even though the place was packed with all the important men, he stood out like a leader of the pack. Just one glance from him and everyone would get in line. My eyes skirted to the woman that was standing beside him, almost leaning all over him, her boobs pressed into his arm as she said something in his ear and his lips tipped up in a smirk as if they both just shared a private joke. I recognised her from the commercials, she was one of the new faces in the industry. All soft beauty and curves for days. And I hated her. I wondered if I can get away with a murder, being his wife.

To Be Continued....

Is Summer going to do something!?