In an instant, all the color drained from his face, leaving him looking sickly and hollow. Victoria’s smile, however, only sharpened. She raised a hand, her diamonds catching the light. “Oh, Elise, darling. There you are!” she called out, her voice cutting through the chatter of the nearby guests.

She used that word—darling—the exact way other women use knives. It was sharp, meant to cut deep while looking completely innocent to onlookers. Daniel took a frantic step toward me, his hands twitching at his sides. “Elise, let me explain, please don’t—” I ignored him entirely.

I walked right past his outstretched arm, my heels clicking sharply against the polished marble floor, and stopped at the edge of the head table. I looked down at the place cards written in flawless gold calligraphy. VICTORIA HALE. ROBERT HALE. DANIEL HALE. ELISE HALE.

And right there, positioned directly beside my name, nestled into the inner circle of the family structure: CELESTE MARROW. Celeste slowly lifted her crystal champagne flute toward me, a tiny, smug smirk playing on her lips. “Hi, Elise,” she murmured, her voice dripping with artificial sweetness.

The trap was perfect. If I screamed, threw my drink, or made a scene, I would look like the unhinged, dramatic outsider Victoria always claimed I was. I would ruin my sister-in-law’s wedding, and the entire Hale family would have a legitimate reason to exile me.

Victoria wanted a reaction. She wanted me to break. But I didn’t cry. I didn’t confront a single person. I didn’t give Victoria the satisfaction of seeing a single tear. Instead, I gave them a calm, empty smile. I turned around, walked over to the beautifully styled gift table near the entrance, and picked up the heavy, elaborately wrapped box containing the $2,000 high-end espresso machine I had personally bought for the newlyweds.

I tucked it under my arm, turned on my heel, and walked straight out of the glass ballroom, leaving the heavy double doors swinging behind me. By the time I reached my car in the valet lot, my phone began to vibrate violently against the center console.

Daniel called me 11 times in a row. I didn’t answer. I sat in the dark, watching the notifications light up the dashboard, listening to the muffled bass of the wedding music fading into the background.