CHAPTER 2: THE MAN EVERYONE UNDERESTIMATED
The laughter didn't last.
My father took one slow step forward.
Then another.
He wasn't angry anymore.
That was the terrifying part.
He looked at Charles Blackwell like a man reading an old newspaper.
"You really don't remember me?" Dad asked.
Charles chuckled.
"Should I?"
"I've met a lot of mechanics."
A few guests laughed again.
Dad nodded.
"You're right."
"You've probably forgotten the people who fixed your mistakes."
Charles' smile faded.
"What are you talking about?"
Dad reached into his jacket and pulled out a worn leather wallet.
Not cash.
Not a business card.
A faded photograph.
He held it up.
Charles stared at it.
The color drained from his face.
"No..."
Dad smiled.
"Now you remember."
The church went dead quiet.
I frowned.
"Dad... what is that?"
He didn't answer me.
His eyes never left Charles.
"Twenty-eight years ago," Dad said calmly, "your company was one bad loan away from bankruptcy."
Charles' jaw tightened.
"You don't know what you're talking about."
"Oh, I do."
"I was the investor who kept your business alive."
The room exploded.
"What?"
"No way."
"That's impossible."
Ethan laughed out loud.
"This guy?"
"The mechanic?"
Dad looked at him.
"I've spent thirty years letting people think I was just a mechanic."
"I happened to enjoy fixing engines."
He shrugged.
"And hiding from people who only respect money."
Charles took one nervous step backward.
"You sold your shares."
"I bought them back."
Dad replied without missing a beat.
"Quietly."
"I never stopped owning part of Blackwell Developments."
Madison grabbed Ethan's arm.
"Ethan..."
"I don't like this."
For the first time all day...
Ethan looked uncertain.
He forced a laugh.
"Even if that's true..."
He wrapped an arm tighter around Madison.
"It doesn't matter."
"I'm marrying into billions."
He looked at me.
"You still lose."
I looked at him.
Really looked at him.
And suddenly...
I didn't recognize the man I almost married.
"No," I said quietly.
"You lost me."
I slipped the engagement ring off my finger.
His eyes widened.
I walked over.
Placed it in his hand.
"You sold your soul."
"But I'm keeping my dignity."
The guests burst into applause.
Not everyone.
But enough.
Enough to wipe the smirk off Ethan's face.
Then...
The massive church doors opened.
Five men in dark suits walked inside.
None of them looked at the bride.
None of them looked at Ethan.
They walked straight toward my father.
And the oldest one spoke just four words.
"Sir... they're waiting upstairs."
Every face in the church turned toward Dad.
Even Charles looked confused.
Then my father sighed.
"I guess it's time."
He looked at me.
"Sophie..."
May you like
"There's something I should've told you years ago."
End of Chapter 2...
