The Groom’s Perfect Lie
Chapter 02 - The Groom’s Perfect Lie
The recording ended, leaving only the soft hiss of candles and the distant whispers of guests beyond the doors.
Daniel recovered first. He stepped closer to Claire and used the calm voice that had always made her question her instincts.
“The message is edited,” he said. “Logan made this because he wants you back.”
Logan raised the phone. “The original file is time-stamped. A copy is already with Claire’s attorney.”
The warmth disappeared from Daniel’s eyes.
Claire unfolded the clinic receipt again. On the back, Mia had written a room number at the Lakeside Motor Inn. Beneath it were four words: He watches my accounts.
“Where is my sister?” Claire asked.
“Probably hiding because she knows what she did,” Daniel replied.
That answer hurt more than a confession. He did not ask whether Mia was safe. He blamed her.
The minister entered with Claire’s aunt and two bridesmaids. Daniel immediately turned toward them. “Claire is overwhelmed. We need five minutes.”
“No,” Claire said, interrupting him in front of everyone for the first time. “The wedding is canceled.”
A stunned murmur spread through the chapel. Daniel’s father rose from the front pew, demanding an explanation. Claire knew the story would soon escape the building and become gossip.
Daniel leaned close. “You walk out now, and you lose everything we built.”
Claire thought of the house in both their names, the charity account Daniel managed, and the company shares she had agreed to place in a marital trust after the ceremony. The papers were waiting in his briefcase.
Suddenly his insistence on a rushed wedding and immediate signatures no longer looked romantic. It looked planned.
When Daniel reached for her arm, Logan stepped between them. The minister asked Daniel to leave, but Daniel accused Logan of blackmail.
Then Claire’s phone rang.
It was Mia.
Claire answered. No one spoke. She heard breathing, a muffled sob, and a man in the background saying, “You should have stayed quiet.”
The call ended.
Claire looked at Logan. “We have to find her.”
They ran from the chapel before anyone could stop them. Daniel did not follow.
Instead, he opened his briefcase and removed the unsigned marital trust. He stared at the empty signature line as if it were the only betrayal that mattered.
May you like
Outside, Claire climbed into Logan’s car and looked back at the chapel doors. Only an hour earlier, she had believed she was about to begin her life.
Now she understood that someone had been trying to sign it away.
