บททั้งหมดของ Wedding Turned into Mourning: บทที่ 1 - บทที่ 10

Herbert pressed on, his tone calm but firm. "Let's move past this. Don't ruin our wedding day over it."I grabbed his tie in exasperation, my scream tearing through the room. "Move past this? Then bring Gail back! You saw the security footage. Chloe dragged her away, and Lori forced that spiked drink down her throat. When your friends pinned her down, she fought until they snapped her bones. Are you blind to that?"Lori shoved between us, her sneer cutting like a knife. "That villa's cameras were hacked, and those clips are fake. Herbert had them scrubbed. Didn't he tell you?"His blatant protection of her hit like a sledgehammer. I staggered, ripping the diamond ring off my finger and hurling it at his chest. "This wedding is over! Nobody is stopping me from calling the police!"I bolted for the villa's grand doors, but Herbert's grip clamped onto my arm, yanking me back. My hip slammed into a table, pain lancing through me.His eyes icy, he ordered the estate sealed and allowed

Herbert stormed over, his face carved from granite, and slapped me across the face.Behind him, Chloe clung to a disheveled Lori, glaring at me. "If the housekeeper hadn't tipped us off, we'd never have known you were sneaking out. Herbert, make her pay for hurting Lori!"Herbert's fingers clamped around my throat, squeezing until black spots danced in my vision. "All this over some stupid wedding prank? You tried to frame Lori for an assault in the theater? Gail chased money and got burned. How is it Lori's fault? If I hadn't been there, she'd be ruined, and I'd despise you forever."I forced a mocking laugh. "What, she's playing the victim now? Didn't she say assault is no big deal? Gail's life meant nothing, but Lori's got you all torn up?"His grip tightened, and my face contorted in agony. "Gail wasn't even your real sister. Without her weighing you down, you're free. Marry me, and you'll have the life you always wanted."My eyes blazed with tears, stunning him.I shoved him

"The Woodard empire? Nonsense! Mona is a broke nobody. How is she an heiress?" Chloe screeched, shrinking under a bodyguard's glare.John snorted, his eyes cold as steel. When I stepped out, dressed and composed, his expression softened. "Mona, where is Gail?"My phone had died before I could explain fully. He thought Gail was just hurt.I pointed to her urn, crying, "Grandpa, Lori murdered her!"Ignoring Herbert's warning glare, I poured out the whole story. John's hand trembled on the urn, his veins bulging, his eyes slicing toward Lori like a blade.She stumbled back in fear, but Herbert stepped in front of her. "Shut your mouth! Gail killed herself. It has nothing to do with Lori."He squared up to John. "Lori crossed a line, but it's not all her fault. Gail was your adopted granddaughter, sure, but she threw herself at men for money. She's not worth this. Mona is your real kin. I'll treat her right, but she can't touch my people."John roared, "Shut up! Gail was my blood, m

"Don't believe her lies," Herbert pleaded. "I only love you. I'd never touch her."I'd always known about Herbert's notorious best friend. Lori had a reputation for ruining any woman who got close to him.I thought I was the exception because he'd stood up for me once, telling her to back off. But that wasn't love; it was a leash, not a shield.He shared drinks with her, crashed in the same bed, and even swapped clothes. Lori played the tomboy, but he knew she was a woman. Their years of flirty games weren't accidents. They were choices.As the city's golden boy, he thrived on being adored, like all rich kids.I pried his fingers off and spoke deliberately. "Get ready for your downfall!"In the car, John's rigid posture finally slumped. He clutched Gail's urn, tears carving tracks down his weathered face. His voice was hoarse with regret. "If I'd been firmer and dragged her home, she wouldn't have died."I'd grown up an orphan, raising Gail like a sister, making sure she never w

Lori's eyes burned with hatred, as if she'd leap up and strangle me.I clapped, and bodyguards dumped her at Herbert's feet. "The casino made her pay her debts with her body, then sent her to us. But everyone knows you're her ride-or-die. We don't want her. She is all yours. I'll see you both in court."Herbert's voice shook. "You're suing me?""Not just you," I said, grinning at Chloe's pale face. "Everyone who touched Gail gets what's coming. No one slips through."Chloe refused to take Lori, but the bodyguards' glares forced her hand. Herbert hoisted Lori up and trudged out. He glanced back with every step, praying I'd call him back.I didn't. Instead, I told a guard, "From now on, no Bradys or stray dogs at this grave."After the funeral, John handed me the reins of the family power. He built a small villa by his children's graves, wanting to spend his remaining days near them.I took the family crest, my eyes stinging, swearing to honor his trust. Under his iron-fisted ment