Chapter 1 - The Stained Silk
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The double oak doors of the chapel swung open, unleashing a wave of soft pipe organ music into the warm summer air. Two hundred eyes shifted toward the back of the church, expecting to see a glowing, pristine bride floating down the aisle in lace and hand-sewn pearls.
Instead, the room collectively held its breath. A gasp rippled through the pews like a sudden winter draft.
I walked through the entryway, my chin lifted high, my hand resting steadily on my father’s arm. The front of my wedding dress was ruined. A jagged, hideous streak of black, foul-smelling garbage water had soaked through the heavy silk bodice, running from my neckline down to the floor-length hem. The stench of decay drifted ahead of us, cutting through the perfume of white roses and expensive candles.
Sitting in the front row, Eleanor Whitmore adjusted her double strand of pearls. For a fraction of a second, a smug, cruel smile twitched at the edge of her lips. She had expected me to crumble. She had expected a tearful cancellation, a frantic bride hiding in the dressing room while her son announced that the little charity case wasn't cut out for high society after all.
I locked eyes with her as I passed her pew. I didn't blink. The smile faded from her face, replaced by a flicker of uneasy confusion.
At the altar, Daniel stood frozen. His face was as pale as his pocket square. His jaw hung open as he stared at the dark, dripping ruin of my gown.
When my father placed my hand in Daniel’s, my fiancé’s fingers were trembling and cold. He looked at me with a mixture of horror and shame.
"Maya..." Daniel whispered, his voice cracking beneath the weight of two hundred staring eyes. "What happened to you? What is on your dress?"
May you like
I leaned in close, stepping right into his personal space until he could smell the rot his mother had poured over my chest. I offered him a calm, beautiful smile that didn't reach my eyes.
"Your mother forgot one thing," I whispered softly into his ear. "I know the secret that will destroy you both."
