3: 3

3

That last call got cut off by Keith before I could give the address.

This time there was no problem.

Tabitha jabbed her finger at me, so furious her hand shook.

"You—you—you! You just can't stand to see me happy! You're dead set on ruining my wedding!"

"They say it's the quiet dog that bites. Doreen, you're really something else!"

I glanced at her, at all that rage.

"Someone here does want to ruin this wedding. It just isn't me."

The moment the words left my mouth, my eyes went straight to Keith.

He already had a guilty conscience.

One pointed line from me, one cold look, and he was up on his toes with panic.

"Doreen, what's that supposed to mean? I've let things slide again and again because you're Tabitha's cousin, and now you're pushing your luck?"

"Everyone here knows exactly what I brought to this marriage. Don't stand there stirring up trouble."

Seeing her precious son-in-law upset, Aunt Ava rushed over to back him up.

"Doreen, you think everyone in this family is stupid? We all know you're just jealous of Tabitha. Who's going to believe a word you say?"

"Everyone here today is somebody who matters. The only two broke nobodies in this room are you and your mother!"

"I'm telling you, if you don't hand that stuff over today, I'll make sure you and your mother never walk out of this hall!"

The relatives had wanted to get in Keith's good graces from the start.

Now that they saw him worked up, they wanted their own moment in the spotlight.

"Keith, don't you worry. We all saw the hardware set you gave Tabitha just now. Of course we believe you."

"That Doreen's been creepy since she was a kid. One look and you can tell she's no good. People like that are just plain rotten. Stealing's bad enough, but she wants to wreck her own cousin's wedding too."

"Her mother's the same, isn't she? Widowed so young, killed her own man off. Who knows how she raised Doreen?"

"Exactly. Says she never remarried, but who knows what filthy business she got up to behind everyone's back."

The more they fawned over Keith, the uglier their words got.

I couldn't stand to hear another word of it, and my voice came out hard.

"Every single one of you who just spread lies about my mother, wait for your court summons."

The relatives froze for a beat, then broke into loud laughter.

"Hahaha, did you hear what she just said? She actually said she's going to sue us?"

"She's so broke she stole in front of a whole crowd, and now she can afford a lawyer? That's the funniest thing I've heard all day."

"A few years working in Seaford City and she didn't pick up anything except how to talk big and put on airs. That's the fine daughter her mother raised."

Aunt Ava didn't want to waste any more time. She stepped right up.

"Doreen, the wedding's about to start. Hand it over, now."

"Otherwise, I'm warning you, forget Keith's family. My family isn't one to cross either. I'll make sure you pay for this."

Watching it all about to spin out of control, my mother, who had held it in this whole time, finally broke.

"Ava, don't back the girl into a corner. I'll pay for it."

"I'll go withdraw the money right now, I'll get it and pay your family back, she's young, don't make things hard for her."

She was already moving toward the door as she spoke.

But the way she moved made them think she was trying to run, and they crowded in to block her path.

"Trying to run, are you? Not a chance!"

4: 4

4

"And who are you supposed to be? You could put up three hundred grand? We'd have to be out of our minds to believe you!"

"Somebody grab her, quick, don't let her run!"

Hands shot out on all sides, clawing at my mother's arms and her clothes.

In the crush, someone shoved her. I never saw who. She went straight into the display stand along the side of the banquet hall.

A porcelain vase came down hard off the top of it, straight onto her head.

Blood poured out at once.

The crowd froze where they stood, stunned by it, no one daring to move.

My eyes felt like they would split. I threw myself at her.

Tabitha, though, acted like she couldn't see my mother bleeding at all.

Still in her white gown, she stood there and broke down sobbing.

"Ruined, it's all ruined, everything's ruined!"

"Doreen, you and your mother ruined my wedding! You two bitches!"

Ava's husband, who hadn't said a word this whole time, couldn't hold it in either.

He strode over, seized me by the hair and slammed me to the floor, then rained slaps across my face, one after another.

He hit me and roared at Ava the whole time.

"Look what you've done. You know what today is, and you still dared to invite these two shameless things?"

"The wedding's ruined now, happy? Don't ever bring your side of the family in front of me again, or I'll divorce you!"

"If the in-laws get angry and drop Tabitha, let's see what you do then!"

The blows left my head ringing.

The sheer difference in size between a man and a woman, plus how fast he'd come at me, left me no chance to fight back at all.

Ava looked all high and mighty, but she didn't dare cross her husband an inch.

She acted like she couldn't see me being beaten, waving her hands in a panic, trying to explain.

"I only wanted her here for free labor, that's all. It's been that way for years."

"I never thought there'd be this big a mess today."

"Don't be angry, I'll handle it, I promise. I'll explain everything to the in-laws, don't you worry."

My cheeks burned, so swollen I couldn't even open my mouth.

But listening to them talk, all I felt was how absurd it was.

Strip it all away and what was it but the fear that their rich catch would slip off?

Seeing me beaten, my mother, with that gash torn open in her head, forgot her own wound and crawled to me on her hands and knees, trying to shield me.

"Her uncle, her uncle, stop, please stop."

"She's still just a child, you can't—"

Before she could finish, Ava's quick hand had grabbed her by the hair and dragged her aside.

"It's all you, you jinx! Look at what the two of you have done today!"

"And you still dare to shield her? A sticky-fingered thing like that, back in the day beating her to death would've been getting off light!"

"Not to mention she ruined my daughter's wedding. You're a woman too, don't you know how much today means to Tabitha? Your family's got a cruel heart!"

My mother's breath had gone thin as thread, not an ounce of strength left to resist.

I fought to get up, but pinned under Ava's husband I couldn't budge.

In the middle of the chaos, at the edge of my vision, I caught sight of Keith and his family.

Remembering, maybe, that I'd already called the police, the three of them looked plenty guilty.

After a glance between them, Keith's father walked up to Ava's husband.

"I say we just call today off. If you can't even sort out your own family's affairs, then a daughter like this, we Butlers wouldn't dare take her."

"Since that's how it is, we'll be going now."

Ava's husband scrambled to his feet to keep them there.

"In-law, listen to yourself, what kind of talk is that, we're all family here."

"Today really was our family's fault. Don't worry, we'll make it right by Keith, I give you my word."

"Tabitha and Keith truly care for each other. We can't let a moment's anger wreck the children's big day."

Tabitha stepped forward then, too, tears in her eyes.

"Keith, what are you saying? You'd break off our engagement just because of my cousin?"

"She's out to make my life miserable on purpose. If you really leave, doesn't that just hand her exactly what she wanted?"

I had no patience left for their filth. All I wanted was to get my mother, already unconscious, to a hospital.

Right then, several officers in uniform came pouring in through the doors of the banquet hall.

"Who called the police!"

5: 5

5

At the sound of that voice, I finally couldn't hold on any longer. My vision went black and I passed out.

When I came to, I was in a hospital.

I turned my head and saw that my mother was already awake.

Her eyes brimmed with tears, and there was gauze wrapped around her head. The moment she saw me stir, the relief on her face was plain.

The nurse noticed both of us moving too.

"Miss Summers, don't worry. Your mother has a mild concussion. With enough rest, there shouldn't be any serious problem."

"You, on the other hand, have a fair number of soft-tissue bruises on your face and body, and a perforated left eardrum. Your condition is a bit worse than hers."

Hearing the nurse, I let out a long breath.

As long as my mother was all right, that was enough.

The nurse finished changing the medication and left the room.

A moment later, two police officers came in.

They sat down beside my bed and opened the report in their hands.

"Miss Summers, are you able to answer some questions?"

I nodded to show that I could.

The officer didn't waste words and got straight to the point.

"There were plenty of guests at the wedding, so we already have a picture of what happened, and we've pulled the security footage from the venue."

"The footage shows that the groom's mother was the one who quietly took the hardware set, and we found it in her bag. But the pieces weren't gold at all. Just a fake set worth no more than a hundred dollars."

"This whole thing was staged by the groom's family from start to finish. They never bought any hardware, and they were afraid giving fakes would expose them, so they put on this whole act."

I already knew everything the officer was telling me.

Hearing it laid out again now, I wasn't the least bit surprised.

The officer closed the report.

"Aside from the theft, there's the matter of the injuries to you and your mother. But given that you're all family, we came in to ask what you'd like to do."

"Tabitha Fox's family is right outside. They want to settle."

The officer had barely finished speaking when my aunt and her husband barged in with Tabitha in tow.

The moment she was through the door, Ava wore that same haughty look.

"All right, I know now that you didn't steal anything. It was all a misunderstanding. We only got physical because we didn't know the truth."

"We're all family. No need to drag this out and make it ugly over something so small. Besides, you and your mother are fine now."

"I'll give you a thousand dollars, and we'll call it even."

Before I could answer, she was talking again.

"Look at you. If you didn't steal it, you should've just said so, instead of blowing this up into such a scene."

"If my rich son-in-law slips away, I'm holding you responsible!"

Her words were so absurd they almost made me laugh.

"Go ask Tabitha yourself. Did I not warn her before the wedding?"

"And you. I would have loved to explain, but did you give me the chance? You slapped me first without asking a single question. You'd already decided I was guilty. Would you even have listened to my explanation?"

"Instead of thanking me for helping you see what a con man he is, you're blaming me for scaring off your rich son-in-law?"

"With brains like yours, no wonder you got fooled."

Ava froze for a second, but she pressed on stubbornly.

"Fooled how? You think I don't know what my son-in-law does for a living? What would a little girl like you know?"

"Don't stand there slandering people! Even if you didn't steal anything, the fact is you ruined Tabitha's wedding!"

"We won't hold you accountable. I'll give you a thousand dollars, and you drop the charges and settle. That's no problem, right?"

Ava had barely finished when Keith Butler and his family came charging in from outside the room too.

"What's that supposed to mean? Who are you calling a con man?"

"Do you even know the truth?"