wave of relief washed over me.
But then the door opened, and Isabella stepped out, and the relief was instantly replaced by a sharp, twisting pain in my gut.
She was the most beautiful I had ever seen her.
Her white wedding gown flowed around her like a dream. Her makeup was flawless, accentuating her already stunning features into something truly divine. She radiated an aura of power and grace that captivated every eye.
I could actually hear Lary gulp beside me.
“Is that… is that Ms. Isabella from Apex Holdings?”
“It has to be! Look at this entrance, this whole setup… Damn!”
“Holy crap, she brings a hundred bodyguards to her own wedding. That’s next level!”
“Forget the money, look at her! She’s like an angel. No wonder that loser Thomas was so obsessed he was willing to be her kept
man!”
“I’m so damn jealous of Lary. Marrying a woman with that kind of money and looks…”
The old classmates surrounding Lary couldn’t stop gushing, praising the “perfect couple.”
And there I was, a broken mess on the pavement, completely hidden from view by the crowd.
Lary, clearly reveling in their praise, puffed out his chest and strode towards Isabella.
“Bella, you look breathtaking. Marrying you… I must be the luckiest man alive.”
Through a gap in the crowd, I saw him take her hand.
And Isabella… she didn’t show a hint of displeasure. She just smiled, a look of pure, unadulterated happiness on her face. A smile a
million times brighter than any she had ever given me.
“Being with you is a blessing I must have earned in a past life,” Isabella said, her voice honey–sweet, her eyes sparkling. Every word
was a dagger in my heart.
We had been together for a year, engaged for a month, and she had never once said she loved me. The engagement itself had
been my idea.
And now, this grand spectacle, this power and prestige she wielded–it was all built on my foundation. And she was laying it all at
Lary’s feet.
Any lingering hope I had for her died in that moment.
“Ms. Isabella! A pleasure! My renovation company is just down the street from Apex Tower. If you ever need any work done, you
know who to call!”
“Ms. Isabella, I was Lary’s college roommate, we were best buds! I was wondering if you had any open positions at your company… anything at all?”
2014
Chapter 2
2014 L
“Ms. Isabella, my card. I own a restaurant downtown. Perhaps Apex would consider contracting us for your corporate catering?”
The moment Isabella arrived, the same people who had just beaten me senseless swarmed around her like flies, their faces mas-
ks of desperate greed. Lary, basking in her reflected glory, grinned so hard I thought his face would crack.
Isabella just offered polite, dismissive smiles–the same practiced, artificial smile she used to give when she was working for me.
“Isabella, sweetie! We’ve been waiting for you! We were getting so worried!” Lary’s mother shoved past my body on the ground, her
face stretched in a wide, eager smile as she grabbed Isabella’s hand. “The ceremony is about to start! Let’s get inside, I can’t wait
to have that first toast!”
The crowd echoed her, cheering as they began to usher the “happy couple” towards the hotel entrance.
Suddenly, the piercing wail of a siren cut through the air. A police car, weaving through the fleet of luxury vehicles, screeched to a
halt.
“Everybody freeze!”
“We received a report of a group assault at this location!”
5
I saw my driver get out of the squad car.
He hadn’t escaped the beating either. His right cheek was swollen to the size of a grapefruit, his face almost unrecognizable.
Now, here he was, the key witness, with the police in tow. The boisterous wedding celebration was doused in ice water. A sudden,
tense silence fell over the scene.
And everyone who had laid a hand on me instinctively glanced back towards the ground where I lay.
Their faces were a gallery of guilt.
