CHAPTER 3 — The Fracture in the Lights
930 Words
The gala lights shimmered like stars trapped inside the crystal chandeliers. Music drifted beneath the hum of conversations, and waiters glided between guests like shadows.
Ariella walked down the staircase quietly, her fingers still trembling from the piano performance. People were still murmuring about it.
“Who is she?”
“So young…”
“She plays like she was born with the keys in her hands.”
Her father’s proud laughter carried across the hall.
“Ariella is my daughter! Yes, yes, I know—talented, gifted… thank you.”
He was glowing. She wanted to feel that glow too.
Ophelia stood beside him, smiling sweetly at the guests—yet her eyes followed Ariella with the cold sharpness of a blade.
Gina whispered something into Ophelia’s ear.
Ophelia nodded once.
Ariella pretended not to notice.
She kept walking.
Damien spotted her first.
He excused himself from a group of businessmen and crossed the hall.
“You disappeared after playing,” he said. “Are you alright?”
Ariella nodded. “Just needed air.”
“You were brilliant tonight.” Damien’s voice softened. “Proud of you.”
She smiled faintly. “Thank you.”
Before she could say more, Elias approached from the opposite direction.
“Your performance was exceptional,” he said calmly. “You have a rare touch.”
Ariella blinked at the compliment. Elias didn’t praise easily.
Damien shot him a look.
Elias ignored it.
“You should drink something warm,” Elias added. “Your hands must be tired.”
“She’s already with me,” Damien said, wrapping a protective arm around her shoulders.
Elias raised a brow. “I didn’t realize she belonged to you.”
The temperature dropped instantly.
Ariella stepped between them. “Please. Not here.”
Damien’s jaw tightened. Elias’s eyes cooled.
A waiter passed with a tray.
“Champagne?” the waiter offered.
Ariella took a glass—and Damien touched her hand gently.
“Not too much,” he murmured. “You haven’t eaten.”
She rolled her eyes with a smile. “I’m not a child.”
Elias watched the interaction silently.
Gina’s voice rose behind them.
“Oh dear, look at her… already drawing male attention like a magnet.”
Ophelia giggled. “She’s barely a woman.”
Ariella stiffened.
Damien turned cold. “Is there a problem?”
Gina lifted her chin. “We’re family, Damien. We simply want to make sure Ariella isn’t… misled by her emotions.”
Ophelia smirked. “Or by men who want something from her.”
Elias stepped forward. “She’s smarter than both of you combined.”
Gina’s smile faltered.
Ophelia’s eyes hardened.
Ariella’s heart raced. “Stop it. All of you.”
The tension lingered, heavy and bitter.
Before anything else could erupt, someone tapped a microphone near the stage.
“All guests, please join us outside for the ceremonial tree lighting!”
People began moving toward the garden.
Damien touched Ariella’s arm. “Let’s stay close.”
“I’m fine,” she said gently. “Really.”
But the unease was already settling into her bones.
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Outside — The Garden
Cold winter air brushed her skin. Golden lights twinkled from the enormous Christmas tree.
Children ran around laughing.
Couples whispered under the branches.
Ariella breathed out a slow, shaky breath.
Finally… quiet.
She stepped away from the crowd, closer to the shadowy edge of the garden. She needed space. She needed silence.
Crunch.
Footsteps behind her.
She turned slightly. “Damien?”
No answer.
Just the soft rustle of branches.
She took a slow step back toward the lights—but something made her stop.
A perfume drifted by.
Familiar.
Too familiar.
Ophelia’s perfume.
But Ophelia was across the garden… smiling at guests.
Ariella frowned.
Maybe she imagined it.
She spun around—
A dark silhouette moved past the trees.
“Hello?” she whispered.
No reply.
The air shifted.
A rough voice murmured from the darkness—
“Little princess…”
Her heart dropped.
A shadowy hand reached toward her—
But before it touched her, someone grabbed her wrist and yanked her firmly backward.
“Ariella!” Damien’s voice thundered.
She stumbled into him, breathless.
At the same instant, Elias appeared from the other side like he had been following the same trail.
“What happened?” Elias demanded.
Ariella pointed toward the trees. “Someone—someone was there. They said—”
But the spot was empty now.
Only wind.
Only shadows.
Damien’s arms tightened around her protectively.
“You’re shaking.”
“I heard them,” she whispered. “I know I did.”
Elias scanned the garden sharply. “Someone was watching her.”
“Where were you?!” Damien snapped at him.
Elias glared back. “Following the person who slipped behind her.”
“Both of you stop!” Ariella cried.
Her chest felt tight.
Damien exhaled slowly. “We’re going inside.”
Elias looked like he wanted to argue—but he stopped when he saw her trembling fingers.
He stepped closer, lowering his voice.
“Ariella, you’re safe now.”
But she didn’t feel safe.
Not at all.
Not with unknown shadows whispering to her.
Not with Elias watching everything like he knew more than he said.
Not with Damien holding her like he feared losing her.
Not with Ophelia glancing toward the garden with a smile that didn’t reach her eyes.
And above everything…
Not with the cold, unmistakable feeling that someone—someone who hated her—had planned this moment.
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- Writer
