On My Wedding Day, I Flew to Pellmere

The moment I tapped confirm, the email approving my overseas transfer arrived in my inbox. It clearly stated that I had to report to the headquarters in Feronia, Pellmere, within three days.Three days from now was also the day Ethan Lawson and I were supposed to get married.I deleted the acceptance email, then cleared the call to the police from my phone history. Ethan stepped forward with a guilty expression and wrapped his arms around me."I'm glad you're okay. I promise I won't let you get hurt again."His embrace was warm, but it only reminded me of all the empty promises he'd made over the years. He had promised me the same thing many times before, yet whenever something happened again, he always found another excuse to leave me behind.I had just started to speak. "Last night..."The special ringtone Ethan had set for Rachel Lane suddenly went off.He immediately released me and gestured for me to stay quiet before answering the call. "Rachel, what's wrong?"Rachel's tearful

Ethan saw how pale I was and pulled me into his arms. "You haven't even recovered yet. Why would you check yourself out of the hospital?"I caught the scent of Rachel's perfume on him and gently pushed him away. "The wedding's coming up. I just wanted to get my work wrapped up early, so I checked myself out."Ethan looked a little uncomfortable. "I know I haven't been there for you much these past few days. Once the wedding's over, we'll go somewhere by the ocean for our honeymoon. I'll make it up to you then."I smiled but said nothing.Taking my silence as an opening, Ethan continued, "You saw how bad Rachel's stomach problems were today. I'm thinking of having her move in here for a while. That room gets plenty of sun, so it'd be good for her while she recovers. Can she stay there for now?"This time, I didn't answer. I simply stood there and looked around the home we'd put so much care into.From the refrigerator and sofa to the artwork and decorations, we'd chosen everything toget

Thirteen hours later, my flight landed at Pellmere Airport.Near the arrivals exit, a young woman in a suit was holding a sign with my name written in English and Feronian."Ms. Chandler? Hi, I'm Linda Mercer."I soon learned that headquarters had assigned her as my personal assistant. She took my suitcase and said, "They asked me to get you settled into your apartment first. I'll take you to the office tomorrow.""Thank you."Linda drove me to the apartment building and pulled up outside. "We're here."After seeing her off, I noticed several messages from Ethan, all sent from an unfamiliar number.[Mia, why did you cancel the wedding without talking to me first?][Are you mad because I've been paying too much attention to Rachel? How can you be this petty?]I stared at the screen without feeling a thing.When Ethan and I had first gotten together, he remembered that I didn't eat seafood. Before my period, he would have hot water ready for me. He used to tell me that every little thin

Several photos accompanied the post: childhood pictures of Rachel and Ethan, photos celebrating when they were accepted to the colleges they'd wanted, and intimate shots of the two of them at their college graduation party. Every one of them was a piece of their shared past.I opened the long post.Rachel claimed that she and Ethan had grown up together and dated in high school, making each other their first loves. According to her, my appearance had caused a misunderstanding between them, and she'd been forced to marry someone else, spending the entire marriage unhappy.Only after her divorce, she wrote, had Ethan finally realized who he truly loved. He didn't want to spend the rest of his life with someone he didn't love, so he'd decided to call off our engagement. I was supposedly the one who couldn't accept it and had arranged for someone to film those videos in an attempt to ruin them.She ended the post by lecturing me.[Mia Chandler, real love can't be destroyed by a few words

Ethan awkwardly pulled his hand back."I... I just...""You want me to delete the recordings, don't you?"He stood there in silence. I pulled my suitcase past him, but he stepped in front of me again, his expression conflicted."I didn't want to come here and ask you to go easy on her, but she's been diagnosed with moderate depression because of all everything that's happened. "If you agree to delete the recordings, Rachel's family will meet any conditions you have."I looked at him quietly, more certain than ever that leaving him had been the right choice."Depression doesn't excuse what she did to me. She lied about me and sent people after me online. She chose to fake an illness, play the victim, and paint me as the other woman. No one forced her to do any of that."Ethan frowned, a pleading note creeping into his voice. "She's already paid for what she did. Mia, please—"I cut him off."She got what she deserved. Those recordings are the only evidence I have to clear my name. I'm