3.
Her cousin George Sears handed her an axe.
Paddy grabbed my arm, worry all over his face.
Anita let out a cold laugh, her eyes fixed straight on me.
"Get out of the car nice and quiet, and I'll still leave you a little dignity."
"Let me tell you, running out on this wedding isn't happening. If you won't give me face, I'll make today hell for you."
Her father stood beside her, gesturing wildly.
"Don't waste words on him. A man who won't obey needs to be taught a lesson."
"Just break the window. When those two get out, strip them naked and make them kneel and kowtow to Roy."
More and more villagers crowded in to watch.
They caught the words and jeered along.
"That's right, that's right, a man marrying into her family, what's he acting so high and mighty for?"
"Yeah, he's just some city guy, isn't he? What's he so cocky about?"
Pushed into it, Anita gave the glass a whack.
She hit the wrong spot, and only a spiderweb of cracks appeared.
"Felix James! Are you getting out or not?"
I stared her down and said coldly.
"You want to smash it? Go ahead, smash it."
Then Anita suddenly remembered this luxury car was a rental.
I'd thought a regular Mercedes would do just fine, but she'd insisted on renting a luxury car.
I was in love with her, so I did what she wanted and rented it.
And the car had a dashcam. The moment she smashed it, every bit of the damage would be on her.
Any single part on a car like this cost at least a few thousand to repair.
Her sense came flooding back, and she stopped her hand.
"Knew she wouldn't dare smash it. Can't afford it," Paddy muttered.
Calmly, I said to her.
"This marriage isn't happening today. Let me leave and we can part on decent terms. But if you insist on grinding down me and my buddy, then this isn't over between us."
"This is a society with laws. I don't believe your people making trouble here can get away once the police show up."
Anita threw down the axe and glared at me, her eyes gone red.
"Call the police? Didn't you already know we're deep in the mountains when you came out here? By the time the police get here, I'm afraid you'll already be good and disgraced."
Anita burst out laughing.
"How did I never notice how naive you are? You can't even lower your head for me one single time?"
Hearing that, I finally grasped how far out we were.
The mountain road wound back and forth over one ridge after another. By the time the police could get here, it would probably be the next day.
Anita saw the look on my face darken.
Suddenly her voice turned gentle.
"Felix, it's not like there's nothing between us. So what if you lower your head for me, if you kneel to my little brother Roy?"
"It's not like I'm asking you to worship Roy. Just kneel this once at the door today, and after that everything goes on the same. You're still the man holding up our family."
The coaxing tone, the softness in her eyes, sent a chill through me and made me sick at the same time.
My stomach turned over. I actually felt like throwing up.
Anita saw the disgust on my face and got a little angry.
"Felix, can you quit putting on airs? What exactly do you want?"
She steeled herself, thinking she'd smash the window to pieces.
"You're really going to force me to smash this window before you'll bow to me?"
My face was wooden.
"This isn't about bowing or not bowing. This is about you not treating me like a person, not respecting me, not treating me like your husband," I said.
Anita laughed in fury. "I don't respect you, don't treat you like a husband? Then why would I marry you?"
Paddy cut in with disgust. "Because you took Felix for a sucker and only ever wanted to squeeze him for what you could get."
Anita screamed. "You shut up. If it weren't for you, his so-called good buddy, would he and I have ever come to this?"
With that, Anita threw all caution aside and smashed the window with the axe.
