8%
Early in the morning, I checked my phone. No message. No notification. No certificate.
Leander had lied to me.
I was just about to call him when Diane barged into my room and snatched the phone from my hand. This time, she didn’t bother pretending. With a triumphant smirk, she tore off her gauze bandage, revealing her eyes–clear, sharp, and full of malice.
“Look forward to today’s wedding, Geneva,” she said, stepping closer. “I’ve prepared a surprise for you–something a hundred times more humiliating than that dinner five years ago.”}
She leaned in, her voice dripping with venom. “You never gave up on the position of Mrs. Weber. That’s fine. I’ll make sure you live like a beast for the rest of your life.“}
She clapped her hands. Servants filed into the room and began dressing me for the ceremony. I didn’t resist.”
But the moment I slipped into the wedding dress, I sensed something was off. The maids avoided my eyes, but the glint of schadenfreude in their gazes was impossible to miss.
I ran my fingers along the lining of the dress. Nothing obvious. Yet an ominous weight settled in my chest. Knowing a trap was set–but not knowing what it was–that was the worst kind of torture.
I stayed on high alert during the car ride to the banquet hall. Memories clawed their way back–this was the same place where I had once endured public humiliation and abuse.
Outside the hotel, a sea of guests had gathered. Inside, the banquet hall glittered with the presence of Chicago’s elite. In their eyes, this was just another lavish Weber Family event. They didn’t care who the bride was. Few probably realized that the fallen Geneva had returned from the shadows.
In the waiting room, a growing unease gnawed at me. I excused myself to the restroom. As I stepped into the corridor, a man in a black suit brushed past me, bumping my shoulder.}
I ignored him and started walking faster–until a low, familiar voice stopped me cold.
“That smell–formazan acid. You’ve got strong acid powder on you. Under heat, it’ll corrode your skin.“}
1 froze.
Dr. White?
I spun around, stunned to see him standing there. What was he doing here?}
Before I could speak, Andrew approached, frowning. “What are you doing here? The ceremony’s about to start. Have you forgotten all your manners?”
When I turned back, Dr. White was already gone.
I rushed to the bathroom, heart pounding. Throwing open the stall door, I ripped the dress open at the seams–and there it was. A dusting of fine white powder embedded in the lining. Invisible to the eye, but lethal to the skin when activated.
So this was her plan.”
Diane intended for the powder to burn me alive in front of the cameras. I would scream, tear my clothes off in agony, and collapse in front of a room full of guests and live–streaming media. It would be the perfect spectacle.}
If Dr. White hadn’t warned me…}
I steadied my breath. At the restroom window, two bodyguards stood outside. No exit there. Instead, I slipped through the window, crawled along the narrow ledge, and sneaked into the back kitchen.
There, I found a plastic heat–insulated undersuit. It was tight, but my years of malnutrition had left me slender. Once I put the dress back on, no one could tell the difference.
The wedding began.
I walked through the hall’s grand double doors, steps calm and steady. A hush fell over the crowd.
“Is that… Geneva?“}
“I thought she was locked in a mental institution.”}
“Look at Miss Knight’s face. She looks furious. I heard she tried to kill the bride.“}
As I made my way toward the stage, Andrew’s eyes met mine. For a fleeting second, I saw something unreadable–guilt, affection, confusion.
He parted his lips. “Geneva, actually-“}
“Andrew,” Diane cut him off sharply.
She stood beside him, dressed in a gown nearly identical to mine–only more elaborate, more ostentatious. With a cane in one hand, she moved to his side as if she were the true bride.}
“Geneva,” she said sweetly, “I wish you happiness.“}
She handed me a glass of champagne, then stumbled–intentionally–and spilled the entire contents onto my dress.”
I felt the scalding heat immediately. Boiling water.
But nothing happened.
I calmly patted myself down, my expression unchanging. Her face faltered. Around us, whispers grew louder. “Was that boiling water?“>
“She can’t even hold a alass–how vulgar.“@
12:17 PM
I calmly patted myself down, my expression unchanging. Her face faltered. Around us, whispers grew louder.
“Was that boiling water?“”
“She can’t even hold a glass–how vulgar.”>
“Isn’t she supposed to be from a martial arts family? No manners at all.“>
Diane turned pale. Her lips trembled.}
I smiled and tilted my head. “Thank you, Miss Knight. Allow me to return the gesture.“}
I picked up her glass from the table–still steaming. With one hand, I slipped a bit of the powder I had scraped from my own dress earlier
onto the hem of her skirt. Then, using the contact between our hands, I rubbed the same powder into her palm.
She didn’t notice. Her gauze eye mask dulled her vision, and her pride blinded her to caution.}
I raised my glass. “Miss Knight, please.“}
She accepted it with a smug smile.
A second later, the heat reached her skin–and she screamed.}
