Chapter 6 - THE AISLE
The morning of the wedding, the sky over the Hudson Valley was a brilliant, unblemished blue. The venue was a sprawling botanical garden, practically overflowing with white orchids, string quartets, and the scent of expensive perfume.
I wasn't in my black catering uniform anymore.
I sat in the back of Alexander’s Maybach, staring at my reflection in the tinted window. I was wearing a breathtaking, floor-length emerald green gown. It had belonged to my mother, Clara. Alexander had kept it in a cedar chest for almost three decades. It fit me perfectly, as if it had been waiting for me all these years.
“Are you ready?” Alexander asked. He was sitting beside me, looking immaculate in a charcoal suit.
I looked down at the velvet pouch in my lap. Inside were copies of the birth certificate, the blackmail receipt, and photographs of the files Renata had pulled from Richard’s computer.
“I’m terrified,” I admitted honestly.
“Good,” Alexander said, offering a small, reassuring smile. “Fear means you understand the stakes. But you don’t have to carry this alone anymore, Mariana. You are a Vance. We fight back.”
At precisely 2:00 PM, the string quartet began playing the wedding march.
Through the tinted windows, I saw the five hundred guests rise to their feet. At the altar, standing beneath an arch of white roses, were Richard, Beatrice, and Sebastian. Sebastian looked slightly pale, a faint bruise visible near his hairline where Renata had struck him the night before. But he stood tall, faking the perfect groom.
They thought they had won. They thought I had run away, too cowardly to face them, and that Renata was still playing the dutiful, clueless bride.
Alexander nodded to his driver.
The car doors opened.
Instead of the bride, I stepped out onto the crushed gravel path. Alexander stepped out beside me and offered me his arm.
I took it.
As we walked into the sunlight, a murmur rippled through the back rows. People pointed. Whispered. I kept my chin high, my emerald gown sweeping across the grass.
When Beatrice saw me, her face drained of all color. Her knees literally buckled, and she had to grab Richard’s arm to stay upright. Richard’s eyes bulged, his jaw clenching so hard I could see a muscle jumping in his cheek.
Sebastian stepped forward, abandoning his post at the altar.
“What is the meaning of this?” the wedding officiant asked into the microphone, his voice echoing across the quiet gardens.
“There’s been a slight change of plans,” Alexander’s voice boomed. He didn't use a microphone, but his authoritative tone carried across the lawn effortlessly. “My daughter will not be marrying into the Sterling family today. Or ever.”
Gasps erupted from the crowd. Cameras flashed as reporters in the back row recognized the scandal of the decade unfolding before them.
“Security!” Richard bellowed, his composure completely shattering. “Remove them! They are trespassing!”
Three large security guards in suits stepped forward, but before they could reach us, Renata stepped out from the side of the altar. She wasn't wearing a wedding dress. She was wearing a sharp, tailored black suit, holding a manila folder.
“Stay exactly where you are,” Renata commanded the guards. She turned to the crowd, her voice crystal clear. “My name is Renata Vance. And I am here to report a murder.”
Pandemonium broke out.
Sebastian lunged toward Renata. “Shut your mouth, you crazy—”
But before he could reach her, two uniformed police officers stepped out from the hedgerow behind the altar, blocking his path.
I let go of Alexander’s arm and walked straight down the aisle toward the people who had stolen my life.
“Mariana,” Beatrice whimpered, her voice trembling. “Please. We gave you a home.”
I reached into the velvet pouch. I pulled out the tarnished silver locket and held it up in the sunlight.
May you like
“You gave me a cage,” I said, my voice steady and loud enough for the front rows to hear. “And you bought it with blood money.”
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