Chapter 5
Chapter 5: The Digital Truth
The officiant took a slow step backward, his hands raised uncertainly, completely out of his depth. The groomsmen shifted aggressively on their feet, their eyes darting to James, waiting for the groom to give the subtle nod to intervene and drag the intruder out by his collar.
But James remained perfectly, terrifyingly still. The stranger's words had struck a deep, resonant chord within his logical mind. If this man was simply a deranged stalker, Eleanor’s reaction would be standard fear. But she wasn't just afraid. She was panicking.
James frowned, his brow furrowing deeply. He didn't turn around to look at his bride. He kept his piercing gaze locked squarely on the stranger.
"What truth?" James asked, his voice dropping to a dangerously quiet volume that demanded absolute obedience.
The young man slowly, deliberately reached into the inside breast pocket of his dark jacket. He withdrew a sleek, black smartphone. The screen was already unlocked, glowing brightly in the dim lighting of the hall.
"Please," the stranger said, holding the phone out toward James, offering it like a piece of damning evidence in a trial. "Watch this before you make a decision that you cannot undo. Watch it for your own sake."
"No!" Eleanor screamed.
It was a guttural, terrifying, animalistic sound. She stepped out from the safety behind James, lunging forward with a desperate, frantic energy. She swung her arm wildly, attempting to swat the phone out of the stranger's hand and send it crashing to the marble floor.
But James possessed reflexes forged by years of discipline. He shot his hand out and caught Eleanor’s wrist mid-air.
His grip was firm, halting her momentum instantly without hurting her. He slowly turned his head to look at his bride. The panic swimming in her wide, tear-filled eyes was not the fear of a crazy man; it was the visceral, terrifying panic of a liar whose entire universe was collapsing.
"Why don't you want me to see it, Eleanor?" James asked, his voice dropping to a terrifying, hollow whisper. "If it's a lie, let me see it."
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Eleanor couldn't speak. Her lower lip trembled uncontrollably, and she squeezed her eyes shut.
Without breaking eye contact with her, James slowly released her wrist, reached out, and took the glowing phone from the stranger's hand.
