I pretended the acci:dent had broken my bones, so I sat silently in my wheelchair and watched my fiancée laugh mockingly in front of everyone. “Look at you,” she sneered, leaning closer. “Now you’re nothing—just a useless cripple.” No one defended me. Only the maid knelt beside me,

false devotion. Daniel lingered near the board members. Pierce wiped sweat from his upper lip.

I raised a glass of water. “Thank you for coming.”

Vanessa squeezed my shoulder too hard. “Adrian has an important announcement.”

“Yes,” I said. “I do.”

The lights dimmed.

The first recording played through the speakers.

Vanessa’s voice filled the room: “Once I continue reading …