Chapter5
1544 Words
The next morning, Angela woke to a message.
ASHTON:
Be ready at 9 a.m.
Angela stared at it.
She typed:
FOR WHAT?
His reply came immediately.
WEDDING PREPARATIONS.
She sat up.
THE WEDDING IS IN FOUR DAYS.
CORRECT.
YOU COULD HAVE TOLD ME.
I JUST DID.
Angela threw her phone onto the bed.
“Unbelievable.”
Five minutes later, it rang.
“Hello?”
“Miss Caldwell?”
“Kiara?”
“Ashton's assistant.”
“What does he want?”
“Your wedding preparations begin today.”
“Of course they do.”
“Someone will pick you up in thirty minutes.”
Angela sighed.
“Fine.”
She ended the call.
Then her phone rang again.
Aiden.
She hesitated.
“Hello?”
“Don't marry him.”
Angela closed her eyes.
“You're the third person to tell me that.”
“I'm serious.”
“So am I.”
“Angela, you don't understand.”
“Then explain.”
“I can't.”
“Then why call?”
“Because you're in danger.”
“From Ashton?”
Silence.
Angela's heart tightened.
“Aiden?”
“You need to leave before the wedding.”
“Why?”
“Because the moment you become Mrs. Walter, whoever is watching your family will know exactly where to find you.”
Angela went still.
“Who is watching my family?”
“I don't know.”
“You're lying.”
“No.”
“Then tell me what you know.”
Aiden hesitated.
“I know your mother didn't disappear willingly.”
Angela's grip tightened around the phone.
“What happened to her?”
“I don't know.”
“Then find out.”
“Aren't you afraid?”
“I'm terrified.”
Her voice shook.
“But I'm tired of being the only person who doesn't know what's happening to me.”
Silence.
Then Aiden said softly:
“That's why I want to help you.”
Angela frowned.
“Why?”
“I don't know.”
The answer was so honest it unsettled her.
Aiden continued.
“Every time I look at you, I feel like I should remember something.”
Angela's heart skipped.
Before she could answer, the call ended.
***
The Walter mansion was chaos.
Stylists.
Designers.
Makeup artists.
Wedding planners.
Angela was dragged from one room to another.
“This is ridiculous,” she muttered.
Kiara laughed.
“You're marrying Ashton Walter.”
“That still doesn't explain all this.”
“It does in this family.”
Angela stopped in front of a mirror.
For a moment, she imagined her grandfather walking her down an aisle.
Then she remembered his face.
Don't marry him.
Angela's smile faded.
“Kiara?”
“Yes?”
“Why did Ashton choose me?”
Kiara froze.
Angela noticed.
“You know.”
“No.”
“Everyone says that.”
“Because it's true.”
“Then why do you look nervous?”
Kiara opened her mouth.
A voice came from behind them.
“Because she doesn't know.”
Angela turned.
Ashton.
His eyes moved over her.
She was wearing a simple white dress.
Not the wedding gown.
Just a fitting.
Still, something changed in his expression.
Angela noticed.
“Are you staring?”
“Yes.”
She blinked.
That answer surprised her.
Ashton seemed equally surprised that he'd said it.
Angela looked away first.
“What do you want?”
“To talk.”
“About?”
“Your grandfather.”
Her expression hardened.
“What about him?”
“His treatment will continue after the wedding.”
“You said that already.”
“I want you to understand something.”
“What?”
“This marriage isn't about the money.”
Angela laughed.
“Then what is it about?”
Ashton stepped closer.
“You.”
Her heart skipped.
She stared at him.
“What?”
“You asked why I chose you.”
“Yes.”
“This is the answer.”
He reached into his pocket.
He removed an old photograph.
Angela's breath stopped.
It was the same woman from Aiden's phone.
Her mother.
Standing beside a younger John Caldwell.
And beside them—
A much younger Walter family.
Angela looked up.
“Where did you get this?”
Ashton took the photograph back.
“Your mother left it behind.”
“Where?”
“I don't know.”
“Then why do you have it?”
“Because my father found it.”
“Why?”
Ashton didn't answer.
Angela stepped closer.
“You promised me answers.”
“I promised to protect you.”
“That's not the same thing.”
“No.”
“Then tell me the truth.”
Ashton looked at her.
“Your mother and my family were connected before you were born.”
“How?”
“I don't know everything.”
“Then what do you know?”
“I know she disappeared the night something happened to my grandfather.”
Angela's heart pounded.
“What happened?”
“His will changed.”
She stared at him.
“What does that have to do with me?”
Ashton didn't answer.
Angela's eyes narrowed.
“Your grandfather's will.”
Ashton nodded.
“You said you needed a wife because of his will.”
“Yes.”
“What exactly does it say?”
Ashton looked away.
“Tell me.”
“My grandfather left controlling shares in Walter Industries to my father.”
“And?”
“There was a second condition.”
Angela waited.
“If I marry before the board meeting, I inherit the shares.”
“And if you don't?”
“My brother does.”
Angela's eyes widened.
“Aiden.”
“Yes.”
Suddenly everything clicked.
Aiden didn't want the wedding because—
“You're fighting your brother.”
“No.”
“Then why does he keep warning me?”
Ashton stared at her.
“Because Aiden believes marrying you will expose something that could destroy this family.”
Angela's heart raced.
“What?”
“I don't know.”
“You're lying.”
Ashton stepped closer.
“Angela.”
“No. I'm done being kept in the dark.”
She turned to leave.
Ashton caught her hand.
This time, he stopped himself before pulling her closer.
“There's one more condition.”
Angela looked at him.
“What?”
“You can't tell anyone about the contract.”
“Why?”
“Because if the board discovers this marriage is fake, I lose everything.”
“And Aiden gets it.”
“Yes.”
Angela stared at him.
“So your brother has a reason to stop the wedding.”
“Yes.”
“And someone else is threatening me.”
“Yes.”
“And my mother is connected to your family.”
“Yes.”
“And you still expect me to walk down the aisle?”
Ashton held her gaze.
“Yes.”
Angela laughed.
“You're insane.”
“Probably.”
“Why should I trust you?”
“You shouldn't.”
She froze.
Ashton stepped closer.
“But you can trust me to keep you alive.”
The words sent a chill through her.
“That's not reassuring.”
“It wasn't meant to be.”
Angela stared at him.
“Fine.”
“Fine?”
“I'll marry you.”
His expression changed.
“But if you ever lie to me again—”
“I will.”
Angela blinked.
“What?”
“I will lie.”
“You're unbelievable.”
“I'm being honest.”
She stepped closer.
“Then here's my condition.”
“What?”
“If I'm going to be your wife, I want the truth eventually.”
Ashton looked at her.
“Eventually?”
“I'm giving you until our first anniversary.”
Something shifted between them.
A faint smile touched his mouth.
“You're giving me a deadline?”
“Yes.”
“And if I don't tell you?”
“Then our divorce will be real.”
His smile disappeared.
Angela turned away.
Neither of them noticed Aiden standing in the hallway.
He had heard everything.
His phone vibrated.
UNKNOWN NUMBER:
THE WEDDING CANNOT HAPPEN.
Aiden stared at the screen.
Another message appeared.
IF ASHTON MARRIES ANGELA CALDWELL, EVERYONE WILL LEARN WHAT HAPPENED TWENTY YEARS AGO.
Aiden looked toward Angela.
Then toward Ashton.
His fingers tightened around the phone.
A third message appeared.
YOUR MOTHER IS NOT THE ONLY PERSON WHO DISAPPEARED THAT NIGHT.
Aiden's face went pale.
He immediately typed:
WHO ARE YOU?
The reply came.
SOMEONE WHO KNOWS WHAT ANGELA REALLY IS.
Aiden's blood ran cold.
Inside the room, Angela was looking at Ashton.
Neither of them knew the wedding was no longer just a contract.
It was a countdown.
And someone had already decided that Angela Caldwell would never make it to the altar.
Outside, a black car waited beyond the estate gates.
Inside it sat a woman who had been missing for twenty years.
She watched the mansion through binoculars.
Her eyes fixed on Angela.
Then she whispered:
“My daughter.”
She lowered the binoculars.
“And Ashton has no idea who he's marrying.”
- Writer
