My Dream Marriage

Edward is fast asleep when I go to bed. I have just sent the email to Samara and now I just have to wait for her response to come in tomorrow. This came as a shock to me too. I really wanted this job but what to do, I can’t defy my husband’s request. This is my home, I am the wife to the youngest master of this house and he is sleeping right next to me. I have to see how this goes, all in all I hope it is for the better.

As long as my parents are well taken care of, I have no reason to complain. So far, they have treated me well. I will have to do my part as the daughter-in-law of this house and not give anyone a reason to complain either.

*****

My father’s hospital bill has been taken care of. I came here not so long ago and we are seated with my mom next to dad’s bed. He is still in coma.

“Mom, you need to try and eat something, do you think dad is happy that you are starving yourself? Maybe he is pissed that you aren’t eating and that’s why he isn’t waking up,” I say and she hits my head.

“Stop it. This isn’t funny Neera. It is fine, I will eat,” she says and I clap my hands. “That is good then, let’s go,” I help her stand up take the food that I prepared for her before I came here and we leave the ICU to the hospital garden. My mom needs some fresh air too. I hand her the packed lunch and look at her as she devours it. We are the only people here, I think it is because it’s a weekday and the visiting hours are not yet.

“Neera, did Edward pressure you to resign? I know you loved your job and I know you still want to go back. Don’t lie to me,” she says. “Not really. He gave me a deal so I was okay with it.” “Which is?” “He promised to take responsibility for you so that is fine with me as long as you are okay,” I say.

“You know that this is not about us, it’s about you. In the first place I never wanted to be a burden to you. You are our only daughter and we never wanted to pressure you into anything. So Neera tell me the truth,” she says. “Mom, you’ll never be a burden to me. You have done your part as my parents and now it’s my turn to take care of you. I mean you can’t go to work given that dad depends on you. You can’t leave him here unattended to even if doctors are here, you also have a part to play. For me, I will do anything as long as it makes you comfortable, you are one of my top priorities.”

“Join me,” she says referring to the food. I have prepared her favorite pasta and I know she is going to like it.

*****

“I will be leaving mom,” I say. I have stayed here almost the whole day. I have called the driver, Piper’s driver. Marcus is Eric’s driver and given that this is a weekday he can’t be available for me.

“Take care Neera,” she says hugging me. “I will be back tomorrow, see you dad,” I say and walk out of the ward. He was transferred to the ward although he is still in coma.

Twenty minutes later, I am back home. I find Piper seated in the leaving room.

“You are back,” she says.

“Yes, how has your day been?”

“Good. How is your father now?”

“Still in coma.”

“Sorry about that. Neera, why did you have to stay there the whole day anyway? Didn’t I tell you that you have to be responsible for this house?”

“I just felt like if I did he would at least feel my presence and wake up.”

“Don’t be dellusional. If he gets better, he will wake up with or without your presence. Now today was the last day of the servants. Starting tomorrow you will have to stay here. No more going out. If you need to know your father’s progress, you can call your mother and know it from her. That is to make you focus and do your work work well.”

“Does Edward know about this?” I ask.This content © Nôv/elDr(a)m/a.Org.

“Yes he does.”

“Alright, I will have to go freshen up first then come back.”

“Did you talk to your boss?” She asks. “I did send her my resignation yesterday evening. I haven’t got a response from her yet,” or rather I haven’t checked my phone if there is any.

“That shouldn’t be a bother to you. If she gives you a hard time,” my phone takes this time to ring before she can finish. “It’s my boss,” I say. “Go on,” she says.

This is past working hours but, ok. I pick up as I climb the stairs. “Hello, hi Samara. How are you?” “I am doing well Neera. I got your resignation earlier today and it’s fine, I talked to my boss and he approved it. This month you didn’t report to work. You already know what happens when someone resigns. I will send to your account the necessary. You were a disciplined employee and I understand your stand right now so I am going to make this easier for you,” she says.

“Thank you Samara, I appreciate it.” I say and she hungs up, straight to the point. This has now been sorted out. I have to rest assured that everything is gonna be alright.

****

Aniston.

I am sitting quietly in my home office.

I have been working on this project day and night for months. The buildings are up and functioning, the materials are here and now the remaining part is the workers to start making our solar project come true.

I am waiting for Michael to come back with my report on the case I assigned him. I hope he comes with good news. I have to make sure that whoever took the life of my parents pay for it no matter what. I can’t wait for them to be put behind bars.

Someone knocks on my door. “Come in,” I say and Michael comes in. “Sir.”

“Hi Michael, I hope you have good news for me,” I say and he nods.

“Sir, I recently found out that the driver who was driving the trailer that collided with your parents’ is still alive,” he says. “How? We were told that he died on the spot.” I am shocked by this revelation. “The shocking part is that he isn’t a driver and never was. He used to work for Edward’s grandfather when he was still alive. He still lives in Marina with his family,” he pauses.

“Go on.”

“Here are the original autopsy reports I got from the government physician, who is Maish’s brother,” he says handing me the file from his briefcase. I peruse through it and all the suspicions I have been having comes true.

“The report here says that they had died from gunshots in the head and chest. That means they were shot dead and not a car accident as we were made to believe,” I conclude.

“Yes sir, they were already dead even before the time of the accident. So it’s like they were killed somewhere else then after that they were brought at the scene of the accident.”

“Did they get to keep the bullets by any chance?”

“Yes. He has to get them from the government laboratories. He even told me that the bullets were designed for a particular gun. It means this was not just an ordinary person, he also had the resources to have a gun designed just for himself.”

“Thank you Michael, I hope to get more from you soon. I have to know who particularly had this gun designed and test the DNA on the bullets. I have to gather enough evidence before I make my move,” I say.

“He is already in the process of obtaining the bullets.”

“Why wouldn’t they produce this earlier?” I ask.

“He told me that the criminal was protected by a notorious politician of that time. Anything that went on concerning your parents death was closely inspected by him behind the scenes. Fortunately, Maish’s brother was one of the physicians who had been appointed to overlook the autopsy and he was well informed about it so he decided to hide them with the help of a close physician friend who worked at the government laboratory.”

“I thought they could have discovered that the bullets went missing.”

“No, the physician were told to dispose them off. Good thing was that they didn’t know that the bullets were one of a kind so Maish played his cards well by giving out to his brother fake ones so that they could dispose them,” he says.

“No wonder Maish has been on my side ever since, even when the directors threatened to sell of the company and overthrow me. They thought that I wasn’t capable.”

“Sir, I know that you are more than capable.”

“Alright then Michael, you can leave now, go and take a rest then you can continue tomorrow from where you stopped. Be careful, I don’t want anyone sniffing on my business at this crucial time.”

“Thank you sir, I think the autopsy should be in your hands now,” he says leaving and I nod.

All this while I have been thinking that my parents died of a car accident, when in the real sense is that they were killed by the gun. The accident was so well planned that no one could discover the loopholes and the darkness surrounding my parents’ death. Although I always knew that their accident was not natural, I never knew they there was more than what meets the eye.

Who was this politician? What was it that made them plan this cruel end to my parents? Did they even think about the young teenagers that they could have been left behind? Sara was only a teen then, and until now she doesn’t have a clue on what transpired regarding my parents death. I have no plans on telling her anything until I have gathered enough evidence. I don’t want to bother her right now.

I sit silently, going through the file again when Sara abruptly comes in.

“Sara, don’t you know how to knock?” I ask. “Oh sorry, should I go back?” She asks. “I think you should.”

“I will but before that, what are you looking at with such a face? Let me take a look,” she says snatching the file from my hands before I can keep it away. I stand just in time to snatch it back from her.

“Autopsy? Are you a forensic doctor nowadays and I don’t know about it?” Oh she didn’t get the names, thank goodness.

“Not at all, Michael gave me this when he came here, of one of our employees,” I say and she narrows her eyes at me.

“Did you kill someone, brother?”

“Do I look like a killer to you? Or don’t you believe your brother anymore? Don’t worry, if I become one, I will let you be my right hand guy, happy now?” I ask. “No thank you.”

“Anyway, I came here to tell you that dinner is ready,” she says. “What’s for dinner?” I ask. “You’ll find out about it when you come to the dining table, it’s one of your favourites.”

“Alright, I will join you soon. Let me wrap up here first,” I say.

“Fine then, I’ll be waiting for you at the table,” she says leaving the room.

I open my secret drawers and keep the file in and close it, where no one will ever find it except me. This is the first evidence and the beginning of a race that I know I will emerge as the winner eventually.