Chapter 2

When Nancy woke up again, the sharp smell of disinfectant filled her nose. She tried to move, and pain shot through her entire body. She hissed, and her eyes met Amber's bloodshot gaze.

Amber exploded. "Edward, that bastard. This is the third fucking time!

"All those reporters were there and the cameras were rolling live, but he just abandoned you in front of everyone and let you—"

Her voice broke, and she couldn't finish. Blood and champagne still stained her dress. "Nancy, after everything he's done, you're still going to marry him?"

Nancy moved her fingers and looked down at herself. The elaborate wedding gown had been cut away, and glass cuts covered her body. The worst ones had been stitched up, and every movement sent burning pain through her.

"I'm still marrying him," Nancy said.

Her voice came out flat and cold, her eyes hollow and lifeless. "Our families arranged this marriage years ago. It's not my choice to make."

"But he treated you like this!" Amber's voice cracked.

"Amber." Nancy tried to comfort her and forced a smile onto her lips, but it looked worse than crying. "We grew up together. He doesn't love me, but—"

Even if they couldn't be a loving couple, mutual respect between their families would be enough.

Amber bit her lip and seemed to steel herself. "Nancy, I heard from Edward's friends that Lily's baby is Edward's."

Nancy froze.

Amber rushed on. "I don't know if the guy was drunk or what, but Lily's twenty years old, not some kid, and she's always all over Edward. Don't you think their whole situation is weird?

"She claims she doesn't even know who the father is. If it was really an accident, why didn't Edward make her get rid of it? Instead he protects her, insists she keep the baby, and he's ditched your wedding three times now because of her.

"Nancy, come on. A guy and a girl spending all that time alone together? Lily's feelings are obvious. You've never suspected anything between them?"

Nancy stayed silent.

Her mind drifted back to childhood memories that felt wrong to think about now. She'd been a late talker and had a severe stutter. Kids had mocked her and called her names.

Back then, Edward had always stepped in front of her and shaken his little fist at them. "Anyone who messes with her goes through me first!"

When Nancy was in elementary school, she barely spoke because of her stutter. Edward gave her a parrot and named it Sunny. He taught Sunny to talk over and over again just to make her smile.

Their classmates teased them and called them a married couple, but Edward didn't care. He said loudly, "So what? I have a wife and you don't."

Family marriages never cared about what individuals wanted. Still, Nancy truly believed they would have a happy ending like in novels.

Then Lily showed up.

Lily was a girl from the countryside whom Edward sponsored. During middle school, a fire destroyed her entire home, and Edward took her in. He told her to call him Uncle Edward.

From that day on, this girl became a wall between Nancy and Edward.

The person who defended her stutter when they were kids grew up to call her a dead stutterer in public.

Both families tried to control the damage, but the wedding video kept spreading online.

People shared it everywhere and left comments. Some said Edward went too far. He humiliated her in front of the entire city during the livestream, hit her, and shoved her to the ground.

Others said Edward had every right to panic when his niece got hurt, but the bride was petty and jealous of a little girl, so she deserved to be embarrassed.

Nancy scrolled through page after page, and her finger stopped on a photo of herself sprawled on the ground while Edward rushed past her.

His face looked panicked, and his eyes stayed locked ahead without hesitation.

The photo had her chest blurred out, but anyone could still see that her wedding dress was torn and her upper body was exposed.

No wonder Amber rushed over like that.

The comment section was full of people laughing and asking where they could find the uncensored version. The few comments defending her got buried under requests for the uncensored photos.

She couldn't breathe. She touched her face and felt tears streaming down, soaking a large patch of her pillow.

It was only a few tears, but they felt like they could drown her.