Chapter 154
The drive to the Hayes‘ mansion felt like an eternity, my mind consumed by a whirlwind of anxious
thoughts. Scarlett’s urgent call had summoned me here, and the fear that had been growing within
me since ourst meeting had intensified. As I approached the grand estate, I couldn’t help but feel
like an outsider, a guest in a world of intrigue and deception.
My heart raced as I arrived and saw a group gathered outside, their faces etched with a mixture of
worry and tension. Timothy, Scarlett, Kamran, Andy, and Ste were all standing there huddled
together. The sight of them together sent a shiver down my spine, and I couldn’t help but wonder
what had transpired in my absence.
Kamran was the first to spot me, his face contorted with anger and usation. He rushed towards
me,
his steps purposeful and unforgiving. “You bitch!” he bellowed, his voice filled with righteous fury.
“How could do this?”
His words hit me like a punch to the gut, and I recoiled, my own anger rising in response. Excuse
me?” I started, my voice strained.
But Timothy rushed forward and stepped between us, his voice firm and unwavering. “Dad, back
away from her! She doesn’t even know what’s going on.” Kamran’s eyes shed with anger, his
gaze still fixed on me. “Like hell, she doesn’t!” Ste, who had been eerily silent until now, finally
spoke up. Her mascara smeared as she wiped her face. “She’s had it out for me since the
engagement!”
Scarlett watched the exchange with a worried expression, while Andy stood silently, his eyes
darting between the others. They seemed just as confused as I
was.
Timothy turned to face Ste, his expression troubled. “Ste, let’s not jump to conclusions. We
need to gather all the facts before we make any judgments.”
As the tension began to simmer, I couldn’t help but feel like an intruder in the midst of a family
crisis. I had so many questions, but no one seemed willing to provide answers.
“Okay, but what actually happened?” I asked Timothy as he seemed to be the only one willing to
answer me.
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Wordlessly, motioned for me to follow behind him as he led me inside the mansion with a tearful
Ste following behind us.
Timothy’s expression was a mixture of weariness and concern. “We found it like that this morning,”
he said.
He guided me to a separate room within the grand mansion, a space that felt like it had been
plucked from a different era, adorned with opulent furnishings and elegant decor. But it was what
lay before me that left me speechless.
Ste’s wedding dress, a magnificent creation that held almost a fairytale–like essence, nowy in
tatters. The ivory silk was shredded, the delicatece torn apart, and the once–flowing train was
nothing but a mangled mess.
I turned to Ste, my voiceced with shock and disbelief. “Who could’ve done this?”
Ste’s eyes, swollen from crying, bore into mine, and her usation was sharp. “Don’t y dumb,
Evie. You’re the one responsible for this.”
I recoiled at the usation, my heart pounding in my chest. “Ste, I had nothing to do with this,” I
protested.
Timothy stepped forward, his expression grave. “We don’t have any evidence that Evie was
involved.”
Scarlett, who had remained silent until now, interjected with a firm tone. “He’s right, Ste. You need
to calm down.”
Ste’s shoulders trembled as she wiped away her tears. “But this dress… it was my dream.”
I couldn’t help but feel a little contempt for her at that moment. Her dream wast merely for publicity,
something that would make her look like the mourous princess she always believed herself to
be. The truth was far from perfect, considering she was screwing her fiancé’s brother.
But as always, I’m the bad guy.
Suddenly, Ste fixed her using gaze back on me and pointed a finger in my
direction.
“Kamran,” Ste began, her voice trembling. “Evie is too dangerous to have around
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our family. We can’t trust her.”
Kamran, his eyes still filled with suspicion, nodded in agreement. “She’s right. You need to leave
right now.”
Frustration welled up within me,
and I couldn’t contain it any longer. “You think I wanted any of this? You think I enjoy being at the
center of this family’s stupid chaos? I’ve been trying to protect all of you from the truth, but it seems
like no one wants to hear it!”
“Truth?” Timothy furrowed his eyebrows and stared intently at me. “Evie, what do you mean by
that?”
I opened my mouth, ready to let it all slip out, but Kamran effectively shut me down with a quick,
“Get out now!”
Without hesitating, I turned on my heel and stormed out of the room. The grandeur of the Hayes‘
mansion had lost its luster, and it felt suffocating, like a gilded cage trapping meant to entrap
unsuspecting creatures.
As I reached the entrance of the mansion, Scarlett caught up with me. Her eyes held a mixture of
empathy and frustration, mirroring my own tumultuous
emotions.
“Evie, I believe you,” Scarlett said quietly, her voice filled with sincerity. “I know you didn’t do it.”
I whirled around to face her, my anger bubbling to the surface. “Then why did you even tell me to
come here? What did you expect to achieve?”
Scarlett’s gaze
remained steady, her resolve unwavering. “I wanted you to have a voice in this. They were making
all of these assumptions, and I’d hoped that maybe you could convince them…”
Before I could respond, Timothy rushed out of the mansion, his face etched with concern. “Evie, are
you alright?”
His words were like a cold shower, extinguishing the mes of anger that had consumed me. I
turned away from him, refusing to meet his gaze. “I have to go,” I replied curtly.
Timothy called after me, his voice filled with urgency. “Evie, please, let’s talk about
this.”
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I finally turned to him, my eyes zing with anger. “Talk? Talk about what, Timothy? About how
you’re marrying Ste while she’s…”
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I mped my mouth shut, forcing the words back down my throat before more damage could be
done. This only made Timothy more curious as he leaned toward me with an expecting expression.
“While she’s what?” he asked.
I shut my eyes, searching for the right words. Ultimately, they weren’t the most truthful. “While she’s
trapping you with a baby.”
Timothy ran a hand through his hair and sighed. “It’s moreplicated than that, Evie. I-”
I grunted. “Complicated? That’s the word you choose? You know that this is a situation that you
don’t want, yet you’re calling itplicated?”
Timothy’s eyes shed with frustration, and he rolled his eyes. “I have expectations. that I have to
meet, standards to uphold-”
“But what do you actually feel, Timothy?” I crossed my arms, my stance defiant. “Are you actually
happy?”
He hesitated, his gaze locked onto mine. “It’s not the most satisfying thing to do, but it’s the right
thing to do.”
My anger began to wane, reced by a deep sense of sadness. “Right?”
He reached out, his hand ghosting over my cheek before he corrected himself, retracting it quickly.
“Evie, I never wanted to hurt you. I thought I was doing what was best for everyone.”
I pulled away, my heart aching. “Well, you forgot someone.”
His expression grew tense, and he stepped closer. “Evie, please.”
I turned away from him, unable to bear the proximity of him any longer. “I have to: go,” I said, my
voice barely above a whisper.
As I walked away from him, I couldn’t help but wonder if this was thest time we would ever speak,
thest time we would ever share a moment together. The rift between us had grown too wide, and
the future seemed uncertain and fraught with
pain.
The cold wind brushed against my checks, chilling the tears as they streamed down my face. It was
always going to be Ste’s words against my own, regardless of what Timothy thought. I don’t know
who could’ve tarnished her dress, but I was certain that things could only go downhill from here.
I was going to have to be more diligent with this case.
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