"You're not supposed to be here Melvin." Leonard whispered to himself, but it was loud enough for his bride to hear.
"What do you mean by that?" She questioned him, but he pretended that he didn't hear her.
"Leonard!!" Melvin screamed louder and finally, he made his way to the front, he was disorganised, wounded and part of his clothes were torn, "don't do it. I beg you, stay away from her!" He pointed an accusing finger at her, "She's not who you think she is."
"What is happening here?" The people were beginning to murmur while Melvin did his best to catch his breath. Leonard dropped down from the altar and began approaching him.
"You're not meant to be here! It's dangerous!" He was furious with his ex-manager for disobeying his orders, no one should be able to reach him or see him, it was too risky.
"It's a plan, your wife is—"
A gunshot ripped through the air and everyone screamed In horror, a terrifying noise not everyone was prepared to handle. A terrifying sight not everyone could handle.
Leonard had tears in his eyes as Melvin slowly fell to the ground, his being silenced by a bullet to the head, his heart ached as memories of he and Melvin flashed through his eyes, he considered Melvin as a brother, now he was no more.
"Someone call the police!!"
"We need to leave here!"
The sudden death had caused everyone to scatter while Leonard stood still, rooted to the spot, staring at the lifeless body of someone he cared about. The guests pushed and shoved, while Skye grabbed her husband by the hand.
"We need to leave! It is not safe here!" She pulled him through the madness, but he was not present. Even as they made it out of the venue, he still looked back at his friend's corpse.
That was the last time he saw Melvin.
It was all captured on camera, and it was broadcasted in every news channel, how Leonard concluded his wedding. He never expected to record a loss so soon, and not on that very day.
"May his soul rest in peace." The priest said the last prayers, and he jolted back to his reality, he looked around him and noticed he was at a funeral. The atmosphere was gloomy and there was a bit of drizzle from the sky. It was raining.
Leonard turned to his side and he met eyes with Vanya, she looked just as sad as he did. His eyes moved back to the casket as they lowered it into the ground. Sharp pain stung his eyes and it felt like he would cry any moment. He closed his eyes for a brief moment and when he opened them, he was in his living room.
It was like a trance, he was alive but not present. Now he was finally present.
"Here, your food. You haven't eaten for days Leonard, you will get sick." A sweet melody rang in his ears and his eyes shifted to the source, it was his new wife. His eyes lingered for a little while before turning to the food, and then he remembered what Melvin said.
"Don't do it. I beg you, stay away from her!"
His attention shifted to her once again, his eyes were a shade of pink, and they glossed for days. Could it be that Skye was the cause of his friend's death? He wanted to find out more about her.
He looked down at the food in front of him and picked the spoon, sliding a portion into his mouth. His mind was occupied with thoughts of how to expose his dear wife.
The next few days were a blur, Leonard had stayed away from the office to heal from the event, he had not spoken to Skye for days, and he preferred it that way. She didn't seem to be bothered about his decision, but she made sure to bring him food regularly.
"May I come in?"
His attention was stolen when a new voice and presence introduced itself into his mansion. The figure that came into view made him jump up in excitement.
"Mr Milan! Please do! Have a seat!" He ushered quickly and clapped multiple times, his servants rolled in to serve the man with wine, juice, tea and snacks, "what brings you here?" He surely wasn't expecting the visitation.
Mr Milan was an elderly man but still one of the best business moguls in the game, his business was worth billions of dollars and Leonard has viewed him as a god ever since he started his tech company. He had also eyed his company and devised ways to steal it from him.
"To congratulate you on the new achievement." He picked the tray with tea and snacks, his smile was warm and showcased his wrinkles, "and also invite you to the club. Will you be free tomorrow evening for a discussion at my place?" He sipped the tea, never breaking eye contact with him.
"I am always available for a talk with you Mr Milan." Leonard happily agreed, his plan was falling into place.
"And your wife?" Milan asked him about her, and it dawned on him, he was now married. Leonard shifted a bit in his chair, he knew Milan valued family more than anything so he had to at least pretend like he cared.
"She doesn't mind me going out for business, very understanding lady if you ask me." His nose twitched, and both men shared a small laugh.
"I will be expecting you."
This was his one chance to become the most powerful businessman in the city, he was not going to miss out on it.
Leonard as usual went out that evening and didn't talk to her about it. She watched him leave from the staircase and the moment it was confirmed that she was alone in the house, she began to search everywhere for clues.
Her breathing was frantic as she started with their room, she opened every space there was, but it was only filled with clothes. She hissed and left the bedroom, moving frantically to check each room of the house but with each door she opened, she found nothing.
Until she came across a door, she tried turning the handle, but it only clicked and didn't open.
"Locked. There has to be something in it." She analysed the door for a split second and then the lock, her fingers ran into her hair and she pulled out a large hair clip and bent it in a grotesque shape, inserted it and moved it around, "come on, open." She huffed until she heard another click and the door was unlocked.
She bent the handle and it opened.
A warm light greeted her vision and a vast amount of books welcomed her. There was a table at the centre and the room was relatively large. It looked like a study room.
She approached the table and found a small picture of Leonard and an African woman standing side by side, and they seemed happy.
Skye was tempted to pick it up until she shook her head away from the distraction. She opened every drawer, it was nothing but books until she pulled one, and it refused to budge.
"This must be it." She whispered to herself but unlike the others, this one had a passcode, "damn it!" There was no way she could guess it, but she tried anyway, pressing numbers, his date of birth, anything related to Leonard. And she was getting tired, her frustration was quickly turned to horror, her eyes widening in fear.
"What are you doing here?" She was busted.