When Sebastian returned to the gala, the guests had already spread out across the gardens and castle halls.
Lydia stood alone beside the roses that should have belonged to Celeste, still wearing that disgusting red gown.
Who did she think she was?
Something rose in Sebastian's chest. It was a kind of nausea he had never felt before.
He strode toward her.
When Lydia saw him, her eyes lit up. She moved toward him with familiar intimacy and reached for his arm.
"Sebastian, you are back..."
She never got to finish.
Pain exploded across her scalp. Sebastian had seized a fistful of her hair and dragged her backward without mercy.
Lydia screamed. The wineglass slipped from her hand and shattered across the marble steps. Amber liquid splashed across her skirt.
The guests turned to stare,
