Seraphina did not cry when she made the decision. She stood in front of her bedroom window as dawn crept slowly across the estate grounds, and she felt something inside her settle with terrifying calm.
The sun came up like it did every other day, but it wasn't. Below her window, workers arranged white chairs in perfect rows, florists adjusted garlands around the archway that would frame her vows, and security personnel coordinated discreetly near the gates.
Everything moved forward as planned. Except her.
Her phone lay on the desk behind her, screen dark, but Lucien's last message still echoed in her mind: If you walk down that aisle, you become his scapegoat.
She understood now that this was not simply about heartbreak or betrayal. This was about survival. Adrian was marrying her for her company, and he was sealing ownership.
She turned away from the window and walked slowly toward the mirror. The version of herself staring back looked composed, but there was a hardness in her eyes that had not existed a week ago. Five years of memory had brought something sharper into her.
"I will not marry him," she said aloud. Her voice did not shake. Saying the words made them real.
She had once imagined this morning differently. She had imagined nerves and excitement, she had imagined adjusting her veil while her mother fussed over her, and she had imagined walking toward a future she trusted. Instead, she felt as though she was standing at the edge of a battlefield.
Her phone vibrated.
Adrian: I hope you slept well. She stared at the message without opening it further.
The familiarity of his tone made her jaw tighten. He knew how to sound gentle. He knew how to craft normalcy.
She typed a reply carefully: I slept enough. The response came almost immediately.
Adrian: Today changes everything for us.
She almost laughed: Yes, she thought it did. Her phone buzzed again.
Adrian: I scheduled the announcement for immediately after the ceremony. It will secure our future. The word secure felt like a threat, she set the phone down without replying.
There was a knock at her door."Seraphina?" her mother called softly. "Hair and makeup artist will arrive soon."
"I will be ready," she answered. Her voice sounded steady, and that steadiness surprised her. After her mother's footsteps faded, she sat at her desk and opened her laptop.
Lucien had sent over documents overnight. Legal analyses. Voting structures for the board. Options for contingencies.
One file was labeled CONTRACT PROPOSAL.
Her pulse quickened, and she opened it. The document was clear and to the point. A temporary marriage contract. Equal share protection clauses. Independent financial authority. A public alliance that would block Adrian's hostile absorption by shifting controlling interest before he could finalize the motion. It was ruthless, it was strategic, and it was effective.
If she signed it before the ceremony, Adrian's carefully arranged takeover would collapse publicly.
She leaned back in her chair and stared at the ceiling. This was no longer about escaping a wedding, this was about detonating it.
Her mind shifted briefly to the version of herself who had once loved Adrian without reservation. That girl would have fought to save the relationship, that girl would have demanded explanations, and that girl had died in a hospital bed.
Seraphina closed the laptop slowly."I choose myself," she said quietly. The words felt unfamiliar and powerful at the same time.
Her phone rang. This time, she answered.
"Seraphina," Adrian said warmly. "I am on my way over. I want to see you before everything begins."
Her heart pounded once, hard."That breaks tradition," she replied evenly.
"I do not care about tradition," he said lightly. "I care about you."The lie was delivered flawlessly.
"I will see you at the altar," she said. He kept quiet.
"I would prefer sooner," he continued. Her silence stretched just long enough to sharpen the air between them.
"Adrian," she said calmly, "do you trust me?" The question caught him off guard.
"Of course," he replied without delay.
"Then wait," she said. She kept quiet, longer this time.
"Very well," he said smoothly. "Do not be late."The call ended, and Seraphina exhaled slowly.
He was nervous that was good. She picked up her phone and opened Lucien's contact.
"I am ready," she typed. The reply came seconds later.
Lucien: Then meet me at the courthouse in one hour. Her heart skipped.
One hour. The ceremony began at four, if she left the estate now, rumors would spread quickly. If Adrian discovered her absence before she returned, he would attempt to intervene.
Her gaze moved to the wedding gown hanging in the corner. A strange thought came to her, and she imagined something in her mind. She would not run, she would walk out dressed exactly as he expected but she would not be walking toward him.
Her mother knocked again gently."They are here," she called. "It is time."
Seraphina opened the door. Her mother smiled, unaware of the war unfolding behind her daughter's calm expression.
"You look pale," her mother said softly.
"I am fine," Seraphina replied. That was not entirely true.
She felt the weight of what she was about to do pressing against her ribs. But under the fear, there was certainty.
She allowed the stylists to guide her into the chair. Brushes moved against her skin, and pins secured her hair, the veil was fastened carefully. As she watched her transformation in the mirror, she understood how big her choice was.
She was about to humiliate one of the most powerful men in the city, she was about to ignite a public conflict that would reshape the business landscape, and she was about to defy the version of herself everyone expected her to be. Her phone vibrated discreetly in her lap.
Lucien: I am waiting. Her heart raced.
Her mother stepped back, eyes shining."You are ready," she whispered.
Seraphina rose slowly."Yes," she said.
She walked carefully and slowly, towards the door but instead of turning toward the grand staircase that led to the garden ceremony, she turned toward the private rear exit that led to the driveway.
Her mother frowned slightly."Seraphina?" she asked. "That is not the way." Seraphina looked back at her, love and apology showing briefly in her eyes."I know," she said.
Outside, a black car waited quietly hidden by the hedges.
Her phone rang. Adrian's name lit up the screen again. She let it ring once, twice, three times. Then she silenced it and stepped into the car. As the vehicle pulled away from the estate, her phone lit up with a message from Adrian: Where are you?
She did not reply. Instead, she looked straight ahead as the courthouse building came into view in the distance.
The ceremony clock had started and Adrian still believed she was preparing to walk toward him.