PART 26
Callum stepped away from Fiona.
“Fiona.”
She looked at him.
“What?”
“Did you do something?”
“No.”
“Then let him answer.”
Her face twisted.
“This is ridiculous.”
I said nothing.
Eli finally whispered,
“She paid me.”
The room erupted.
Fiona screamed.
“You liar!”
Eli flinched.
Then pulled his phone from his pocket.
“She gave me five hundred dollars.”
“Two fifty before.”
“Two fifty after.”
Callum stared at Fiona.
PART 27
Eli opened a message thread.
Gabriel took the phone.
Then handed it to Damian.
I watched my husband read.
His expression did not change.
He passed it to me.
The messages were from a number saved as F.
Make sure it’s red.
Hit her before dinner.
Don’t ruin anyone else’s clothes.
Make it look accidental.
Then one final message.
Dad will handle the rest.
I looked up.
My father went white.
PART 28
Mom sat down.
Tiffany stopped smiling.
Fiona looked at Dad.
Dad looked at Fiona.
Neither needed to speak.
Callum took the phone.
He read the messages.
Then looked at his new wife.
“Dad will handle the rest?”
Fiona whispered,
“Callum.”
“What does that mean?”
“It was a joke.”
He stared at her.
“You paid someone to throw wine on your sister.”
“She was going to ruin everything.”
I blinked.
“How?”
Fiona pointed at me.
“By showing up like that.”
PART 29
I looked down at my stained gown.
“Like what?”
“Acting better than everyone.”
“I walked into a room.”
“You always do that.”
“Do what?”
“Make everyone uncomfortable.”
I almost laughed.
“By existing?”
Fiona’s eyes filled with tears.
“You think because you don’t need anyone, you’re superior.”
There it was.
The family story.
Again.
My independence had always been treated like arrogance.
PART 30
Damian looked at Callum.
“You may want to hear the rest before deciding what kind of marriage you entered.”
Fiona spun toward him.
“What does that mean?”
Damian said nothing.
Instead, he looked at me.
I knew what he was asking.
Permission.
I nodded.
PART 31
Gabriel handed me another phone.
A secure folder was already open.
My parents thought the worst revelation was my marriage.
It was not.
For eight months, I had been reviewing something connected to Fiona’s wedding.
Not her relationship.
The money.
Because three months earlier, my aunt Eleanor called me.
She sounded worried.
“Your father borrowed from me.”
That was not unusual.
What was unusual was the amount.
One hundred twenty thousand dollars.
For a wedding.
PART 32
Dad told everyone the wedding was paid for.
It was not.
He had borrowed against his business.
Against the house.
From Aunt Eleanor.
From a longtime friend.
And from a private lender.
That still would have been his problem.
Except my mother had also approached a family trust.
A trust created by my grandfather.
I was one of the trustees.
Mom apparently forgot that.
PART 33
She submitted a request for two hundred thousand dollars.
The stated reason was emergency medical support.
For Dad.
I stared at the paperwork for hours.
There was no medical emergency.
The money had been routed through a temporary account.
Then used for vendor deposits.
Venue.
Flowers.
Catering.
Jewelry.
Fiona’s honeymoon suite.
My mother had forged documentation.
