Just as the tension in the hall reached a boiling point, Nancy and Daniel stepped forward, moving deliberately to the front of the audience. A few feet away, the red-haired woman who had earlier accused Alex mirrored their movements, her fiery gown and cascading locks drawing every eye in the room.The red-haired woman, her voice sharp and unwavering, shouted again, her words slicing through the murmurs like a blade.“I have no motive to falsely accuse this man. But his cold indifference toward the child growing inside me has forced my hand! He’s a hypocrite! You, Anastasia—or whatever your name is—don’t marry him. He’ll get you pregnant and abandon you, just like he’s done to me!”Gasps rippled through the crowd, the shock reverberating like waves crashing against a rocky shore. Murmurs grew louder, the disbelief palpable. No one had seen this coming.Seizing the moment, Daniel’s voice rang out, adding fuel to the fire.“Anastasia, my cousin, is no saint either! They’re two birds of

Outside the wedding venue, chaos erupted as Nancy and Daniel were shoved into a police van. The crowd watched in stunned silence, murmurs of disbelief spreading among the guests. Nancy, ever defiant, struggled against the officers.“Unhand me! Do you know who I am?” she barked, her voice shrill.“Save it for the court,” the officer replied coldly, slamming the van door shut.In another van, the redhead sat quietly, her eyes darting to the officers outside as they secured the convoy. She glanced at her trembling hands, guilt and fear clashing within her. The years she had spent evading consequences now seemed to crash down on her all at once.As the police vehicles roared to life, Anastasia stood at the wedding hall’s entrance, watching them leave. Alex gently placed a hand on her shoulder.“They’re gone,” he said softly, his voice steady.Anastasia nodded but didn’t speak. Her emotions churned—a mix of relief, anger, and disbelief at how close she had come to losing everything on h

The urgency in the redhead’s voice stopped Alex in his tracks. Behind him, Anastasia, Johnson, and Juliet halted as well, exchanging cautious glances but staying silent.“Do you promise to get me out of the country?” the redhead pressed, her voice trembling. “Do you promise to keep me alive?”Alex turned slowly, his expression unreadable. Instead of answering, he approached her cell with deliberate steps, the faint echo of his shoes against the cement filling the tense silence. The cold, dimly lit corridor smelled of damp stone and metal, oppressive in its weight.He knelt before the iron bars, gripping one tightly. His knuckles whitened, but his voice was calm. “I’m Alexander Sebastian, president of the Sebastian Southlake Corporation. I have money, influence, and power that extend far beyond this country. If you cooperate and tell me what I need to know, I can ensure your safety.”The redhead hesitated. Her fingers hovered over the bars, then curled around them as if seeking stabilit

The first light of morning came like an unwelcome friend. Daniel had not slept throughout the night. He sat in his home bar, thinking about what to say to Antony to convince him to return to Anastasia’s life.He knew that, back in the day, Anastasia was the first to like Antony. Antony, on the other hand, genuinely loved Anastasia. But due to reasons far beyond their control, they could not have a relationship. So convincing him to do something ill-minded against Anastasia might be hard.“What if I told him Anastasia confessed to me again? Though she is married, she wanted out of her marriage?” he thought to himself, then shook his head.“That won’t work!” he muttered, knowing full well that Antony, though unmarried, respected the sanctity of marriage and wouldn’t want to be the devil that destroyed one.Daniel gulped down his glass of wine suddenly. He slowly paced to the glassy wall and stared at the view of the city.“This is harder than I thought,” he said to himself.Suddenly, hi

Daniel cleared his throat, the weight of his words pressing down on him. “I have a confession.” His face shifted into a sombre expression, the gravity of what he was about to say consuming him. He wanted them to believe him, to take him seriously.“Now that our family has united once more,” he continued, pausing for a brief moment as he scanned the faces in the room, “I believe it’s time I come clean to us all.”He bowed slightly, as though remorse for a long-hidden truth overwhelmed him. A silence filled the room. No one spoke. The family members exchanged confused, questioning looks, and for a long beat, no one moved.Then, finally, Daniel spoke again, his voice filled with finality. “I am married.” The words hung in the air like a bomb, detonating a sharp, collective gasp that reverberated throughout the room.“What?” Everyone exclaimed at once, their voices full of disbelief.Daniel was old enough to be married, but everyone knew him as the man who never took relationships serious