The Billionaire’s Mask

Chapter 2

Ethan

The morning of my wedding arrived like any other day. I woke up early, showered and put on a nice crisp black suit.

I went downstairs, where I met Uncle George sipping his whiskey like it was water.

“Oh my! You look rather dashing, Ethan” he said, reaching out to adjust my tie.

“I look like this every single day, uncle.”

“Come on, boy, it’s your wedding today, ease up a little and take a damn compliment,” he teased

To anyone else, today would have been monumental, but to me? It was just another calculated step in a life dictated by power and precision.

“Partners from Europe are already calling to send their congratulations,” Uncle George said, sliding his phone onto the table.

“They’re optimistic this union will silence a few skeptics”.

I smirked. “It will do more than silence them, uncle”. “Once the Marcellis merge with us, our position in Europe becomes unshakable, and right after that, the acquisition in Dubai falls right into place”.

“Well, I believe you're right, son”, he said, pulling in closer. “I’m super proud of the man you’ve become, and I’m sure your parents are too.”

The look on his face said it all, and it gave my heart warmth. He gave me a tap on the shoulder and headed out.

At almost noon, I was shaking hands with business associates at the Cross Tower boardroom as I listened to their hollow congratulations. I knew they already had their eyes set on the deals that would come after the marriage; they could already taste the profit. I let them flatter me and pretend they were equals.

“We’ll continue this after the ceremony”, I said, finally rising from my chair. “Today is for appearances, but tomorrow, tomorrow belongs to power”.

They laughed and clapped on my back, calling me a lucky man. I offered nothing but a tight smile before heading out with my uncle and Marcus Keith, my oldest friend.

“Well, for a man who is about to get married, I expected you’d be more thrilled, “ Marcus teased as we slid into the limousine.

“Oh come on, this isn’t about thrill” I said flatly

“This is business, Elena Marcellis is just a means to an end”. Pretty, yes, but definitely replaceable.

“So you think she’s pretty then?” Uncle George gave me a sharp look. “Careful, Ethan, underestimating people has a way of coming back to bite”.

I waved him off, confident. “No woman in her right mind would ever walk away from me, especially not one whose family is drowning in debt”.

Shortly, we arrived at the venue… A lavish cathedral dripping with gold and every corner smothered with flowers. Guests murmured in clusters, investors sat in the first rows, as I stood at the altar like a king awaiting his crown. Camera flashes, whispers filling the air. Everything was perfect, until it wasn’t.

Back at the Marcellis mansion, as I would later learn, chaos had erupted.

“She’s gone!!” her mother, Vivianne, cried, tearing through Elena’s room. “I can’t find her anywhere!!”

“You useless woman!” Charles roared. “You had only one job! Keep an eye on her, and you let her slip away, You’re just completely useless”… he said, looking defeated and upset.

Meanwhile, across the city…..

“Flight 234 to Rome, boarding now at Gate 14,” the announcement echoed through the airport’s speakers, a confirmation that there was no turning back now.

My hands trembled as I clung to my boarding pass, still perfectly glammed up. I had escaped through the back door just an hour before I was to walk down the aisle. Everything went according to plan, I hid my backpack in the garden, and made my move after I had asked for a moment alone. Took off my wedding dress and slipped into some casual jeans and a simple sweater. Now at the airport, I looked like every other passenger; the only difference was that this wasn’t just a trip for me, it was a defining moment in my life.

The guilt of embarrassing my family slowly crept in, but I wasn’t going to sacrifice anymore for them. It was bad enough that I had to give up on my dreams, but getting married to a man I knew nothing of was never going to be my future. “A loveless marriage that was about survival, but what good was survival if it meant selling my soul to a man I had never met, only feared through whispered rumours.

My parents' words echoed in my head. “ You must obey”, “This is your duty to your family”. But I chose defiance, and as I stood at the terminal, backpack in one hand, dreams and hope in the other, all I could think of was whether I had dug my own grave or given my life a whole new meaning.

Back at the Cathedral

“It’s been 30 minutes, what’s happening?” I whispered to my Uncle, who shifted uncomfortably beside me.

“I’ll go find out,” he said as he quickly walked out to make a call.

The priest cleared his throat and leaned forward

“I'm afraid I don’t have all day, Mr Cross”…

“Just a moment, I’m sure it’s nothing” I said nervously.

Whispers turned into stares, curiosity transforming into amusement, then into ridicule. Investors, the same men who had shaken my hands that morning, now looked at me as though I had been stripped bare, my invincibility shattered before my eyes.

And then one by one, they left just like the cowards they were. Their disappointed gazes burned hotter than any flame. This wasn’t just a public humiliation; it was a dent to the Cross name. I forced myself to stand tall even as rage coiled in my chest.

“Where is she?” I asked my uncle through gritted teeth as he walked back in.

“Gone,” he said quietly, “No one knows where”. Those words hit me like a gunshot. I was dazed.

The cathedral emptied around me until it was just my uncle and Marcus left. My pride had been pierced, my name ridiculed, my image tainted.

“Let it go, Ethan,” Uncle George said, placing a hand on my shoulder. “ She’s not worth the stain on your reputation”.

I slowly turned to him, my voice low and dangerous. “You’re wrong, uncle. Today she made me bleed in front of wolves. Do you know what happens when a wolf bleeds, uncle? The others circle closer, and if I let this go, I show weakness and weakness means death “.

Marcus studied me silently, his usual humor gone.

“Slow down man, it hasn’t gotten to that” Marcus said a bit concerned.

Staring at the empty aisle, she should have walked on, my jaws clenched like iron.

“She thinks she’s free. She thinks she’s won.” I exhaled, calm settling in over me like ice.

“But Elena Marcellis has no idea who she has challenged.”

I straightened my cuffs as if the ceremony never happened, as if I wasn’t abandoned before half the city’s elite.

“She will pay,” I whispered to myself. “Even if it’s the last thing I do, she will pay”.