Flash Marriage: Shrewd Wife, Devious Husband
Chapter 43: Instigating Trouble

Chapter 43: Instigating Trouble

Dressed in mourning black, Marcella fixed the black birdcage veil fascinator on her neatly made hair. She hated dressing for a funeral but she’s been doing that a lot lately.

Her lips trembled and she sucked in a deep breath to avoid crying. She had a long day ahead. She should keep herself together.

But she couldn’t. Bowing her head, she cried. She didn’t want to be the one who buries her sister. But she was grateful to Uncle Carl for making sure she attends the funeral. Uncle Carl told her that the Romano couple tried to keep her from the funeral but he made it clear that she will attend the funeral as per her sister’s wish.

Mellissa knew what her in-laws would do and she thought of it while writing her will.

She wiped the corners of her eyes as she saw Tony enter the room. Patting her face dry with a paper towel, she turned.

"I got the pearls," he gave her the box.

"Thank you. You didn’t have to get it for me," she said getting the box.

Inside the box was a beautiful three stranded pearl necklace. She had it in a safe in her apartment. When she got reminded of the necklace, Tony offered to get her the necklace. He didn’t take no for an answer.

A drop of her tear fell on the necklace. This necklace used to belong to her mother. She gave it to her on one of the occasions they met secretly.

’I want you to be happy, sweetie. Know that dad and I love you.’

Her mother told her that day. Now she was left all alone in this scary world. What can she do?

"It’ll be fine, Marcella," Tony held her hand.

He didn’t know what else he could do. His fingers grazed on her hand earlier and she was as cold as a corpse. She cannot continue like this. She didn’t sleep well last night as the baby was crying so often. She was refusing help and he had a bad feeling about this.

She will wear her out.

He felt guilty knowing he had a part in making her desolate. If only he could stand by her side proudly and console her... But he lost his chance.

Marcella nodded. "Do you think the killer would attend the funeral?" she asked and turned to face the mirror.

She cannot waste her day crying and mourning. She had a task at hand. The ones who are responsible for her sister’s death should be exterminated for the safety of little Joey.

"I would guess so. He would be there to see for himself what others are saying about the murders..." Tony said.

"Hmm," Marcella hummed. She couldn’t feel her fingertips as they were numb. She couldn’t properly feel the clasp much less hook the necklace.

"Can I?" Tony stepped forward.

It hurt him to see her struggle. As always, she was not asking for help. She had this terrible habit of trying to suffer alone.

As always, he stepped forward.

"Please," Marcella accepted his help. She didn’t want to struggle with the necklace anymore.

Holding the necklace, she looked in the mirror. Tony was bowing and his eyes were squinted as he concentrated. The clasp looked tiny when held between his fingers.

His knuckles grazed on the soft skin of her neck as he finished. She felt a bolt of electricity flowing through her head to toe and jolted.

"Are you okay?" Tony asked.

"Yeah, I’m fine. I’ll check Joey’s bag once more. I feel like I forgot something," Marcella rushed out of the room.

Tony stared at his hand. His hand began to shake.

Is she that disgusted by my touch?

-----

Marcella stood by the caskets. She didn’t care that Paul Romano was glaring at her. She didn’t want to give up her place.

Back when she attended her mother’s funeral, she stood in a corner. She wanted to be there, but she didn’t want others to know she was there. She just had surgery and she couldn’t stay long either. When her father died, her sister was overpowered by her in-laws and they were the ones acting like the immediate family and she was pushed to the corner. Her sister chided her for that.

She didn’t want to give up her place this time. Her sister will never forgive her for that. She wanted to send off her sister the way she wanted to.

Many of her father’s associates attended the funeral. They all placed flowers on the caskets and most of them stopped by her side to say their condolences. Uncle Carl had introduced her as Don DeAngelo’s younger daughter and that caused a little stir among the attendees. But they didn’t ignore her.

She looked for Tony. She couldn’t find him. Most of the men who attended the funeral were men of power. While some were close associates of the Romano family, some of them were her father’s close associates. She thought now would be the perfect time for Tony to get acquainted with them.

He married her for the connection. She didn’t know why he chose not to be by her side at this crucial time.

Henry and Randy attended the funeral with their families and Marcella left Joey in the care of Henry’s wife. She could relax with him safely standing behind her.

Mrs. Murphy tried to get close to baby Joey. Marcella sensed an odd feeling about the way she approached the baby. There were a lot of people in there and she didn’t have a good feeling about it. What if Mrs. Murphy kidnaps the baby?

Marcella tried to block Mrs. Murphy but an elderly old man wearing a suit held her hand. She recognized him. Mr. Noah Fletcher is the owner of the building she works in. He’s a wealthy man who owns a lot of commercial buildings in the city. She didn’t know that he knew her father. She couldn’t move as it would be rude. But she worried for the baby.

Out of nowhere, Tony appeared and she sighed in relief. Tony blocked Mrs. Murphy and sent her away. She didn’t know what Tony said to her that made her bounce away.

Mr. Fletcher patted her back. He sounded so distraught as he said his condolences. His eyes were filled with tears. He walked to the baby. Without second thoughts, he removed the long gold chain he was wearing and gave it to the baby. He then blessed the baby.

At that time, Marcella noticed that there were photographers in the hall. She didn’t know who brought photographers to the funeral. She could see that some guests were uncomfortable with the photographers there. Most wouldn’t want to show their association with her because of who her father was.

She would have ignored it if the photographers were nuanced and avoided those who were uncomfortable. But it appeared that one of those photographers was intentionally provocative.

The last thing she needed was trouble in a funeral.