Chapter 6 - The Last Warning
On the evening before the wedding, the Ward estate filled with flowers, caterers, stylists, and security staff.
Thomas moved through the house greeting relatives and pretending everything was perfect.
Elena watched him from the staircase.
She still loved her father.
That was the tragedy of it.
He had failed her not because he wanted her to suffer, but because he had chosen fear over trust. He had allowed Nolan’s confidence to become more believable than his own daughter’s voice.
Maya offered Elena one final chance to leave.
“The investigators have enough,” she said. “You do not have to walk into that ballroom.”
“Yes, I do.”
“Elena, this is no longer about evidence.”
“It is about my father.”
“You cannot force him to understand.”
“I know. But I need him to see the truth without Nolan explaining it first.”
Maya studied her face.
“What happens if Nolan realizes what you have done before the ceremony?”
Elena looked at the white gown hanging beside the window.
“Then we make sure I am not alone.”
The hotel’s head of security, Isaac Bennett, had been informed that Elena might be in danger. Two officers would remain close to the bridal suite, while investigators waited in an adjoining conference room.
The evidence presentation was scheduled to begin when Elena pressed a hidden button inside her bouquet.
Everything had been planned carefully.
But the following morning, Nolan changed the security arrangements.
He claimed the visible officers would make guests uncomfortable and ordered them moved to the ground floor. Because Vale Capital was paying for much of the event, the hotel manager accepted his request without consulting Elena.
By the time Isaac discovered the change, Nolan had already entered the bridal suite.
Elena was standing before the mirror while a stylist adjusted her veil.
Nolan dismissed the stylist.
“We need a moment.”
As soon as the door closed, he placed the consolidation agreement on the table.
“Sign it.”
Elena looked at him through the mirror.
“I will sign after the ceremony.”
“No.”
“You said the wedding would protect the company. We are getting married in less than an hour.”
“The agreement must be completed first.”
Elena turned.
“Why are you afraid to wait?”
Nolan’s expression changed.
The pleasant mask he wore in public disappeared.
“Because I know you have been meeting Maya Chen.”
Elena’s pulse quickened.
Nolan removed her phone from the dressing table and held it up.
“You thought deleting messages would hide them?”
“You searched my phone?”
“I protect what belongs to me.”
“I do not belong to you.”
“You will after today.”
Elena moved toward the door.
Nolan blocked her path.
“Sign the agreement.”
“No.”
His hand closed around her arm.
Elena pulled away.
The argument lasted only seconds, but it ended with Elena falling against the edge of the dressing table. A mirror cracked behind her. Pain spread across her face, and she tasted blood on her lip.
Nolan looked down at her.
There was no regret in his eyes.
Only irritation.
“You always make everything more difficult than necessary.”
A knock sounded at the door.
“Elena?” Rosa called from the hallway.
Nolan adjusted his jacket.
“You will tell them you slipped.”
Elena rose slowly.
She looked at her reflection in the broken mirror.
For months, she had been waiting for the perfect moment to reveal the truth.
May you like
Now the truth was written across her face.
She opened the door.
