CHAPTER ONE

Aria's POV

"She's not answering." I held up my phone like evidence, habang ang atmosphere sa paligid ay sobrang tense—parang lahat kami walang karapatang huminga.

"Her phone's been off. Three hours na," sabi ni Mama, hawak-hawak ang pearl necklace niya habang pilit pinapakalma ang sarili. Pero halata sa mata niya—she was spiraling.

Father’s jaw tightened. His face thick and unnatural, it’s the most worried I’d ever seen to him.

What do we do now? I thought, biting my fingernails. Nakabibinging katahimikan ang naghari, like we all seemed lost in the moment.

Lucian was pacing near the grand staircase, his tux slightly wrinkled, tie loose around his throat. He had his phone pressed to his ear, calling again. 

 

"Come on, Sienna...pick up. Please." Yung desperation sa boses niya—kitang-kita sa kaniyang mga mata. Pero voicemail na naman ang bumungad. He didn't even have to say it. "Still off," he muttered.

My mother constantly tapping her nails against the mahogany table. It was driving me insane. Tumalikod ako sa kaniya, turned to my father shaking his legs uncontrollably. Hindi pa rin siya nagsasalita simula kaninang nalaman namin.

"She wouldn't do this," bulong ni Lucian, sobrang hina na parang siya na lang ang gustong maniwala. "Not like this. Not today." At this point he was covered in sweat.

"She did," I said, flatly. "She's gone."

Silence. The truth no one wanted to hear, let alone believe. The room stilled, no one breath.

The wedding gown still hung like a ghost on the back of the dressing room door—ivory satin, hand-sewn lace, untouched.

Her veil was neatly folded beside it. Diamond-studded heels, maayos ang pagkaka-line up, waiting. Pero si Sienna? Wala. She had vanished. No note. No goodbye. Walang paliwanag.

“I couldn’t believe how Sienna did this to us,” Lucian sank onto the bottom step like realization knocked him out of gravity.

Si Daddy, nakatayo sa may bintana, hands clasped behind his back. Pinagmamasdan ang mga luxury cars na nagsisidatingan—executives, diplomats, mga powerful guests that were waiting.

Still he didn’t say a word, he didn’t move.

Hanggang biglang nagsalita siya—his voice like a blade slicing through the room:

"Get the guests out."

"What?" Lucian looked up instantly.

"Sabihin mong she’s unwell, na nahimatay siya that’s why the ceremony postponed. Anything—basta walang lalabas sa press," he said. His tone non-negotiable.

"She ran, Dad," sabi ko, stepping forward. "She didn't trip on her way down the aisle. She left. On purpose."

He face us. Yung mata niya—galit. The Lancaster fire that always frightened me. "You think I don't know that?" bulyaw niya, and I trembled but I still replied.

"Then stop acting like this is manageable."

His silence was bitter. Parang gusto niyang sumigaw pero alam niyang wala rin namang magagawa. Tumayo si Mama, weak, devastated, para bang wala nang lakas lumaban.

"She wouldn't ruin us," she whispered. "Anak natin siya..."

"Exactly," Lucian chimed in. "She's a Lancaster. She knows what this marriage means."

"She knows," I cut in, mas matalim ang tono ko. "And she didn't care."A little hesitant.

I sighed and dropped the bombshell. "She was seeing someone," I said. Silence.

"What?" Si Mama halos masabit ang hikaw sa buhok sa bilis ng paglingon.

"Yeah. Some unknown guy that made her happy. Happier than this would’ve.”

"You knew?" Lucian's voice cracked.

"And you didn't say anything?"

Guilt ate at me. Masakit marinig pero totoo.

"Would you have, Kuya?" tanong ko sa kaniya pabalik. Tumingin ako sa kanya pero umiwas siya.

Exactly.

Tahimik ang lahat.

None of us really said it out loud, pero lahat kami alam ang totoo: Marrying Damian Valtor wasn't love. It was strategy. Power meets power. Money doubles. Families merge. A contract disguised as marriage.

And Sienna? She never wanted to be queen. She wanted to be free.

"She was supposed to be in makeup an hour ago," Mama murmured, lost in disbelief.

"She promised she wouldn't embarrass us," she added, halos maiyak na.

"She didn't promise," I said. "She endured. For the family."

"Damian will not forgive this," Daddy muttered, jaw clenched.

"No," si Lucian na nababalisa.

"He won't," I echoed. And for once, the four of us agreed on something.

Damian Valtor wasn't just powerful. Damian Valtor was not acquainted with failure or humiliation but this? This was a blow served to him in public, in front of every deal he'd ever made.

"We can salvage this," Daddy said. Nakatingin siya sa kawalan, parang may nilalarong invisible chessboard. "A small ceremony next week. Press release—illness, exhaustion—something clean.” He said with certainty.

My brows furrowed. "She's gone, Dad," I snapped. "She made her choice."

"Anong sasabihin natin sa Valtors?" Mom intervened, her voice panic. "They'll want answers."

"They'll want blood," Lucian corrected. And we all knew, he wasn't exaggerating.

Damian had always watched Sienna like she was his not his bride-to-be, not his fiancée, but his property and losing her like this, he'd make all of us pay.

Umupo si Mama, dahan-dahan, parang reyna na natalo sa digmaan. Her hands trembled against her silk dress.

"She destroyed us," she whispered broken.

I wanted to go to her, to assure her or something but there was no word, we were all caught up in this mess. Sienna had detonated the bomb and vanished before the smoke settled and we were the ones choking on it.

"What now?" tanong ni Mama, her eyes wielded in tears.

Si Lucian, tahimik. Nakayuko.

Father moved toward the door, muttering instructions to one of the security.

"Clean it up. Shut it down," ang narinig ko. Pero alam naming lahat—damage was done.

We could silence the guests, pay off the tabloids but this scandal would spread like wildfire.

This wedding wasn't no ordinary one, it was supposed to seal the most powerful merger in the city. It was supposed to crown us kings again but instead, it turned us into fools.

"We are ruined," Mama whispered, and then, bigla siyang bumagsak. Tuluyan nang nalugmok.

"Mother!" sigaw ko. Napatingin si Daddy. Si Lucian, agad tumayo, takot ang expression.

Nahulog ang phone ni Mama sa mesa. Sunod-sunod ang tawag.

"We are doomed.”