Chapter 19 - The Mask Slips
"Clara." Paige’s voice was a ragged, pathetic whisper, entirely devoid of the sharp, mocking edge she usually used whenever she addressed me. She pushed the door open wider, clutching the front of her ruined wedding gown like a drowning woman clinging to driftwood. "You... you came back."
"Don't sound so surprised, Paige," I replied, my tone icy as I strolled past my father as if he were nothing more than a coat rack. I stopped right at the threshold of her bedroom, refusing to cross the line into her domain. "You sent out a desperate distress signal, and let's be honest—trauma-bond dramatics are sort of your family's primary export. I wanted a front-row seat to see how the mighty have fallen."
Paige flinched as if I had struck her across the face. A wet, ugly sob hitched in her throat, and she reached out a trembling hand, attempting to grab the sleeve of my jacket. "Clara, please. You have to help me. You have to call Julian. Tell him... tell him you lied on that voicemail. Tell him it was just a joke, the way you always say it is! Tell him we were just messing around!"
I didn't flinch away; I simply stared down at her hand until, realizing I wasn't going to offer comfort, she slowly pulled it back, her fingers curling into tight, white-knuckled fists against her dress.
"A joke?" I repeated softly, the quiet danger in my voice making both my father and Paige freeze. "Is that what you call shoving someone with an injured shoulder into deep water while everyone stands around laughing? Is that what you call recording secret videos to humiliate me on family group chats? You think everything is a joke, Paige, until the punchline lands on you."
"I didn't mean for him to hear it!" Paige shrieked, the thin veneer of her pathetic victim act instantly shattering as her true, venomous nature flared back to life. Her face twisted into an ugly snarl. "He wasn't supposed to check your phone! He was supposed to be looking at the seating chart! You planned this! You purposely left your phone on the bridal suite vanity so he would see how much I hate you!"
May you like
I let out a cold, humorless laugh. "Give me some credit, Paige. I didn't need to plan anything. All I had to do was step back, sit on my hands, and let your own staggering arrogance destroy you. You did this to yourself."
"You ruined my life!" she screamed, lunging forward with a sudden burst of feral energy, her fingernails clawing toward my face.
