Meanwhile, Alexander had just finished greeting yet another wave of guests. He paused, glancing toward the bridal suite.

"I wonder how my sister and Celeste are getting along. They haven't met before."

His friend Ryan walked over.

"Relax. Your sister's a people person — everyone says so. And Celeste is gracious and well-mannered. For all we know, they're already thick as thieves."

Alexander still couldn't shake his unease. Seeing this, Ryan called over another groomsman to cover and went to check himself.

A moment later, Ryan returned. Alexander asked immediately.

"How's it going?"

Ryan shook his head, looking puzzled.

"No idea where they went. The room was empty, but there were smashed fruit platters all over the floor."

Alexander frowned, anxiety rising, and turned to go find them himself.

But Celeste’s father Gerald appeared with a guest in tow.

"Mr. Whitfield, this is my son-in-law, Alexander Sterling."

Alexander had no choice but to stay and exchange pleasantries. He shot Ryan a look.

At the swimming pool.

By now, Celeste was consumed with fury.

She had me bound and shoved my head into the pool over and over again.

The suffocating rush of water combined with the throbbing pain in my skull made the world spin. I was on the verge of blacking out.

Celeste stood over me, her foot pressing down, looking at me with supreme contempt.

"Didn't you say you were my husband's sister?"

"He just sent someone to check the bridal suite."

I lifted my head, a flicker of hope in my eyes.

But Celeste saw it, ground her foot down harder, and hissed through clenched teeth.

"He saw the blood and didn't come. He doesn't give a shit about you."

She threw her head back and laughed, then kicked me into the pool. With my hands and feet tied, all I could do was thrash as I sank.

Margaret, ever the showwoman, lowered the camera into the water so the livestream wouldn't miss a single moment of agony on my face.

I tried to scream for help, but the instant I opened my mouth, water surged into my lungs.

Just when I thought I was going to drown, Celeste hauled me out.

Her hand struck my face over and over, slap after vicious slap, her mouth never stopping its torrent of abuse.

"You slut, didn't you want to hit me? Go on, fight back! Hit me!"

"Had enough already? You wanted attention? I'll give you attention."

*Go bride! If she chose to be a homewrecker, she deserves what she gets!*

*Agreed — let every guest see her face!*

*A woman like that should be stripped naked and paraded through the streets!*

By now my mind was slipping in and out of focus. All I could do was murmur weakly.

"Don't... don't... I'm Alexander's sister."

Celeste sneered, seized a fistful of my hair, and dragged me across the ground. The rough surface shredded the skin on my back until it was raw and bloody.

Margaret kept the camera shoved in my face. I tried to cover my exposed chest, but with my hands and feet bound, no amount of struggling made a difference.

It only made Margaret laugh harder.

"Celeste, you have no idea what the viewers are saying about this little tramp."

"The comments are blowing up — they want to see more!"

Celeste stopped in her tracks and turned to look at me with mocking amusement.

"Well, since they're so eager, let's show them just how shameless she really is!"

She spun around and tore my gown up to the thigh. The sudden rush of cold air ripped a scream from my throat.

The surrounding guests crowded in, pointing and whispering.

Celeste instantly switched to a pitiful act, eyes brimming with tears.

"Thank you all for coming to my wedding today. This woman showed up uninvited to seduce my husband on our wedding day."

I raised my head furiously and screamed.

"You're lying! I'm Alexander Sterling's sister!"

Celeste's expression twisted with fury, her body swaying as if she might collapse.

"You're the liar! My sister-in-law has showered me with gifts — houses, cars, you name it. Someone like you doesn't deserve to call yourself my sister-in-law!"

"Alexander told me himself — his sister had a deal to close on the day of the wedding and wouldn't be able to make it!"

I stopped wasting my breath arguing with Celeste and turned my head toward the crowd, shouting with everything I had left.

"I really am Alexander Sterling's sister! You can call him right now and he'll confirm it!"

The guests looked around at each other, but with Celeste standing right there, none of them dared make the call.

I gritted my teeth and sweetened the deal.

"Call Alexander. He'll confirm who I am — and I'll make it worth your while!"

The crowd buzzed with temptation. But one look at Celeste's icy glare and contemptuous scoff, and no one moved a muscle.

Just when I thought no one would help me, a young woman stepped forward and dialed Alexander's number.

The moment the call connected, she put it on speaker.

"Mr. Sterling, I'm at your wedding. There's a woman here claiming to be your sister."

"No—"

A single syllable was all he got out before the line went dead.

Every last trace of doubt that Celeste had been suppressing vanished.

"You all saw that! This woman is lying! She's not my husband's sister!"

She had the recording from her phone projected onto the big screen.

The guests watched me and Alexander embracing, and the way they looked at me shifted to pure revulsion.

"Wow, and this is supposed to be the Sterling family."

"She could've had her own man, but no — had to go after someone else's. Disgusting."

Right on cue, Celeste dabbed at her tears, the picture of wronged innocence.

Suddenly, someone hurled something at me, shouting.

"Homewreckers deserve to die!"

Then more objects came flying — one after another, pelting me from every direction. Nothing I said made a difference. No proof I offered mattered.

Celeste surveyed my battered, humiliated state, and a satisfied smile finally spread across her face.

She leaned down and whispered in my ear.

"You little whore — that homeless psycho I lined up for you? He's already here."

My eyes flew wide with terror, and I shook my head frantically.

"Celeste, if you go through with this, I'll make sure Alexander divorces you!"

Celeste's expression went rigid, her teeth clenched in fury.

"Oh, so I've been going too easy on you? And you still have the nerve to threaten me?"

"Alexander recently got a dog — a big, aggressive one. And wouldn't you know it — it hasn't been fixed."

I stared at her in disbelief, my voice trembling.

"You... you're insane! You're out of your mind!"

"If you do this, I swear I'll destroy you!"

"You'll never be a Sterling!"

Celeste laughed bitterly, utterly unfazed.

"Yeah? Let's see if you still feel that way after."

I thrashed and fought, screaming, begging.

But the louder I pleaded, the wider Celeste smiled.

They dragged me away. Her merciless laughter was seared into my brain.

I was thrown into the dog pen. The animal was enormous — nearly half my height.

Perhaps taking pity on me, the person who'd dragged me in untied the ropes around my wrists.

The dog came lumbering toward me, drool hanging from its jaws, visibly aroused.

I scrambled backward in terror, my hands groping desperately along the ground until my fingers closed around a long stick.

The dog saw the weapon, bared its teeth, and lunged.

My heart lurched. My legs were shaking, but I gritted my teeth and swung the stick in my hand as hard as I could.

The dog eyed the stick warily and kept its distance, watching me like a predator waiting for the right moment.

I stared right back at it, but my peripheral vision was fixed on the exit. Inch by inch, I edged my way toward the door.

I was almost there when the dog let out a sudden bark. I flinched so hard that my legs gave out and I slipped to the ground.

The dog pounced on me instantly. Its foul, reeking drool dripped all over my face.

Meanwhile, Alexander had finished greeting the guests and went looking for Celeste, carrying the wedding gift I'd prepared for her.

He was all smiles, attentive as always, reaching over to fix a loose pin in Celeste's hair.

But Celeste wouldn't give him the time of day. She turned her head away with a cold huff.

Margaret was no better, her tone dripping with passive aggression.

"Even on your wedding day, you've got women throwing themselves at you. Impressive, Mr. Sterling."

Alexander had no idea what she was talking about, but he kept his composure and patiently pulled out the wedding gift I'd given him for her.

"This is from my sister. A wedding present. Take a look."

When Celeste saw the size of the box, she figured it had to be something impressive. Her expression softened slightly — but the moment she took it from his hands, her face fell.

"What the hell is this? It's our wedding day and she sends us an empty box?"

Alexander blinked. He hadn't opened it himself, but knowing what his sister was worth, there was no way it could actually be empty.

"Why don't you open it first? If you don't like it, we can talk."

Celeste scoffed and flipped the box open, only to find a few sheets of paper inside. She was so furious she tossed them straight onto the floor.

"Alexander, does your family think I'm not good enough? Humiliating me on my own wedding day!"

She was about to say more, but Margaret grabbed her arm and she bit her tongue.

It was Gerald who bent down and picked up the papers. His hands were trembling with excitement as he read them.

"The Sterlings gave us a billion-dollar contract!"

Celeste snatched the papers from him in shock. She counted the figures over and over, and only after confirming the number did a thin smile creep across her face.

"Hmph. At least someone in your family has some class."

Every guest in the room was singing Celeste's praises — how lucky she was, how generous and caring I must be.

Alexander nodded with a smile, then asked, "Where's my sister? I don't see her anywhere."

The smile vanished from Celeste's face instantly. Her voice went cold.

"Isn't your sister overseas closing a deal? How would I know?"

Alexander's eyes dropped to the necklace around her neck, and his expression hardened.

"I asked my sister to deliver that necklace to you personally. You're wearing it right now, so don't tell me you haven't seen her."

That set Celeste off. She slapped Alexander across the face.

"Liar!"

Just then, one of the guests stepped forward.

"Mr. Sterling, that woman who said she's your sister — the bride's people beat her up pretty bad and dragged her off somewhere."

Alexander's face was livid with fury. He seized Celeste by the throat and roared.

"Where is my sister!"

Celeste was gasping for air, but she still refused to back down.

"She was obviously your mistress! I saw you two holding each other!"

Alexander was breathing hard, barely containing his rage.

"I'll ask you one more time. Where is my sister!"

Celeste's eyes were rolling back in her head before Margaret finally blurted out where I'd been taken.

The moment Alexander released her, Celeste collapsed to the floor, choking and coughing — but still cursing under her breath.

Alexander fixed her with a frigid stare and said nothing. Before leaving with his men, he ordered security to surround the room. Nobody was allowed to leave.

"If my sister has been hurt in any way, your entire family is finished!"