CHAPTER 3: KARMA WEARS A WHITE DRESS
CHAPTER 3: KARMA WEARS A WHITE DRESS
Three months later.
The internet couldn't get enough of the story.
Videos from the wedding had gone viral.
Millions of views.
Millions of comments.
Everyone had an opinion.
Especially after the truth came out.
My mother had secretly used trust money for years.
Not legally.
Not with permission.
The investigation uncovered everything.
Luxury vacations.
Designer handbags.
Credit card payments.
Chloe's college tuition.
Even the down payment on Chloe's apartment.
All paid using funds that belonged to me.
The lawsuits came quickly.
The consequences came even faster.
My mother lost control of everything.
The trust was frozen.
Her accounts were audited.
People who once admired her stopped answering her calls.
Funny how that works.
As for Chloe?
Ethan never married her.
The moment he realized there was no access to my inheritance, he disappeared.
Completely.
Turns out true love has terrible timing.
One afternoon I received a text.
From Ethan.
The first in months.
Can we talk?
I laughed and deleted it.
Five minutes later another message arrived.
I made a mistake.
Delete.
Then another.
I still love you.
Block.
Simple.
Effective.
Beautiful.
A week later I attended the grand reopening of Carter Industries headquarters.
The company had been inactive for years.
Not anymore.
Hundreds of employees filled the lobby.
Reporters crowded outside.
Investors lined up to shake hands.
As I stood on stage, I spotted someone in the back.
My father.
He smiled proudly.
For the first time in years, he looked happy.
After the ceremony he hugged me.
"I'm sorry."
"For what?"
"For not protecting you."
I hugged him back.
"You do now."
His eyes watered.
"So what happens next?"
I looked up at the company logo.
The company my grandfather built.
The company that should have been mine all along.
Then I smiled.
"Now I build something better."
The crowd applauded.
Cameras flashed.
And somewhere out there...
My mother, Chloe, and Ethan were probably watching.
The same people who thought I was the daughter worth sacrificing.
The same people who pushed me out of my own wedding.
The same people who believed I'd walk away broken.
Instead...
I walked away with my future.
And they walked away with each other.
May you like
Which turned out to be punishment enough.
THE END
