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Stay tuned for more full movies, drama series, and trending stories updated daily.
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AmusantTranscription
00:00C'est parti !
00:30I traced his camera and began taking pictures of them.
00:32I stood frozen, like an outsider.
00:34Nearly every photo on Miles' camera was of Daphne and my fiancé.
00:37There wasn't a single shot of me, the actual bride.
00:40Daphne spoke as naturally as though she were the one getting married.
00:44Fiona, bring me that bouquet.
00:46When Nolan noticed I had not moved, he came over and gently took the flowers from my hands.
00:51Those eyes of his, eyes that had terrified countless men across negotiating tables,
00:55held a rare trace of warmth.
00:57Fiona, what are you staring at?
00:58Go choose the invitation design.
01:01I'll come over when we're done with the photos.
01:04Fiona, move a couple of steps to the side. You're blocking the light.
01:07I moved without a word and stood in the corner.
01:09At that moment, I finally understood how unnecessary I was.
01:12If this wedding had no need for me, then I wouldn't be there.
01:15I quietly picked up my bag from the bench and pushed open the door.
01:19The bell above it chimed once. No one called after me.
01:22I looked back. Daphne was twirling in front of the mirror while Nolan stood behind her.
01:26Adjusting the bow at her waist, Miles held up his camera.
01:29Yes, yes. That's the angle.
01:31The shutter clicked five or six times in quick succession.
01:34I turned away and walked out of the boutique.
01:37As I got into my car, the two black sedans assigned to protect me fell in behind me without a
01:42sound.
01:42My phone lit up with a message from the wedding planner.
01:45Miss Bennett, the wedding is coming up. Have you chosen the invitation design?
01:49Before I could answer, another message arrived.
01:52Or you could let your sister choose. She has excellent taste.
01:56The car was so quiet that I could hear every breath I took, one after another, as though I were
02:00counting something.
02:01What was I counting? How many times I had been forgotten in this relationship.
02:05I typed three words. Let her decide. I meant it. Let Daphne decide.
02:09Nolan would listen to her in the end anyway. The reply came almost instantly.
02:13Got it.
02:13I stared at those words and imagined the planner breathing a sigh of relief.
02:17Every decision the bride made was always changed afterward.
02:20They were probably tired of revising the plans over and over.
02:23It was easier to let my sister make the decisions from the start.
02:26Before I could put my phone down, notifications began pouring in.
02:29Miles was uploading photos to the group chat one by one.
02:33I opened one. His composition was excellent.
02:35The light fell perfectly across their faces.
02:37Nolan stood in a sharply tailored black suit,
02:40and the two of them looked like the stars of a bridal campaign announcing the future wife of the haze
02:44dawn.
02:45I had poured everything into this wedding,
02:46as though doing so could prove that I was not always the one who got forgotten.
02:50I never imagined that, in the end, I would still be pushed out of the frame.
02:54My phone lit up, went dark, then lit up again.
02:57Maz kept filling the group chat.
02:58I did not respond. No one noticed.
03:00I dismissed my escort detail and drove alone to the apartment I had been renting.
03:04A note was stuck to the refrigerator.
03:06Seven days until the wedding.
03:07I peeled it off, crushed it into a ball, and dropped it into the trash.
03:11The next morning, I checked my phone.
03:13The wedding planning group chat showed 99-plus unread messages Daphne had tagged me only once,
03:18in a voice message.
03:19I tapped it.
03:20Fiona, I changed the wedding song.
03:22The song you picked was too groomy.
03:23The wedding should feel lighter.
03:25Nolan replied immediately beneath it.
03:27Agreed. The original song doesn't suit the occasion.
03:30Half the family will be there.
03:32Choose something lighter.
03:33The original song did not suit the occasion.
03:35I had spent an entire month choosing it.
03:37It was the song my parents had played at their wedding.
03:39Hearing it always made my eyes burn.
03:40They had died far too young, and I had wanted them to be present in some small way.
03:45Nolan knew that so did Daphne, yet they still thought it was too gloomy.
03:49Daphne continued in the chat.
03:50Fiona never likes making decisions.
03:52We can just choose these things for her.
03:55Nolan replied with one word.
03:56Agreed.
03:57I stared at it without moving.
03:59Mass streamed past one after another.
04:01No one noticed that Fiona was in the group chat.
04:03No one noticed that Fiona was silent.
04:05I had no role in my own wedding.
04:07I opened my private conversation with Nolan.
04:09The last exchange was still from yesterday's bridal shoot.
04:12I had written,
04:13I'm a little nervous.
04:15He had replied with a head pad emoji.
04:16After that, nothing.
04:18He had not even messaged me privately after I left early to ask what was wrong.
04:22The only thing he had done was tag me in the group the night before.
04:24What happened?
04:25Did you get so nervous you left early?
04:27No one answered.
04:29No one cared.
04:30Daphne posted a photo with the caption,
04:32Fiona, today's shoot went perfectly.
04:34The dress is officially confirmed.
04:36And just like that, the matter was forgotten.
04:38Then they went back to discussing flowers,
04:41invitations,
04:41and the ceremony backdrop.
04:43Suddenly, I realized I was not merely unnecessary.
04:46Being unnecessary would at least mean I had once existed.
04:48I felt as though I had never been there at all.
04:50While I was packing,
04:51Daphne suddenly video called me.
04:55Fiona, you're moving way too slowly.
04:57The makeup team still isn't confirmed,
04:59so I booked one myself.
05:00I'm testing them out for you first.
05:01I looked at Daphne in front of the mirror and wanted to say something,
05:04but I no longer knew what.
05:06Two weeks earlier,
05:07I had told her my friend would personally do my bridal makeup,
05:09but it was as though my wishes never reached her.
05:12She simply made every decision for me.
05:14Had I never confronted them,
05:15had I never been unhappy,
05:16had I never stood my ground,
05:17I had.
05:18It always ended with the same line.
05:21Fiona, you're more mature than she is.
05:22Don't make a big deal out of this.
05:24Miles had known me longer than anyone,
05:25yet he always took her side.
05:27Then Nolan entered my life and pursued me relentlessly.
05:30The man known throughout the underworld for his ruthlessness and decisiveness
05:33would personally drive me home late at night
05:35and tell me my quiet, absent-minded ways were adorable.
05:38I thought he liked me that way.
05:40But after he met Daphne,
05:41his preferences seemed to change.
05:43Without realizing it,
05:44he began saying that women should be lively and decisive.
05:47One day, I finally said,
05:48Can you stop being so close to Daphne?
05:50You need better boundaries with her.
05:52I thought he would understand.
05:53Instead, he laughed,
05:54ruffled my hair,
05:55and dismissed it.
05:56Boundaries.
05:56Once you marry me,
05:57Daphne will be part of the Hayes family too.
05:59Do you expect me to treat her like a stranger?
06:01I fell silent.
06:03Of course, I didn't want them at each other's throats.
06:04But the words,
06:05You are more mature,
06:06so you should be more understanding,
06:08had weighed on me for years.
06:10For the first time,
06:11those words felt heavy enough to suffocate me.
06:13They had forgotten that I was only two years older than she was.
06:16I wanted gifts too.
06:17I wanted someone to ask me,
06:18Do you like this?
06:19But no one ever cared.
06:20I called my landlord
06:21and told him I was moving out that day.
06:23I'm moving out today.
06:25Are you sure?
06:25You've lived there more than four years.
06:27Four years.
06:28When Nolan and I first started dating,
06:30he had wanted me to move into the Hayes estate,
06:32a heavily guarded compound
06:33where his most trusted family members lived.
06:35Daphne said I should keep some private space before marriage
06:38and suggested I live alone.
06:40So I rented this apartment
06:41near the family's downtown headquarters,
06:43hoping I would see Nolan more often.
06:45He agreed,
06:46and every now and then,
06:47he would slip away from his security detail
06:49and spend the night.
06:50These rooms had witnessed the sweetness of our early love.
06:52Then the arguments,
06:54the silences,
06:54and the countless times he left in a hurry
06:56because of family business.
06:59Yes,
07:00I'm moving today,
07:01but now I had finally reached the end of my patience.
07:04The landlord sighed
07:05and told me to leave the keys in the mailbox.
07:07Not long after I hung up,
07:08the door opened from the outside.
07:09Nolan and Daphne walked in,
07:11laughing together.
07:12Daphne glanced back at him with a smile.
07:14You promise that when my lease ends,
07:16I can stay at your estate
07:17for a few weeks after the wedding?
07:19I want the room with the bay window in the east wing,
07:22and I want the curtains changed to pink.
07:24I stood in the middle of the living room,
07:26convinced I had heard her wrong.
07:28She spoke so naturally,
07:29as though she had every right to decide
07:31how long she would stay
07:32and how our future home would be decorated.
07:34Nolan did not object.
07:35He smiled indulgently.
07:37As long as Fiona doesn't mind.
07:38Fiona always takes care of me.
07:40Of course she won't mind.
07:41Something loosened inside my throat.
07:43What if I do mind?
07:45The room went silent for two seconds.
07:47Daphne stared at me.
07:49Perhaps it was the first time
07:50I had ever truly refused her,
07:51before she could say anything.
07:53Her eyes were already turning red.
07:55Nolan's tone sharpened with reproach.
07:57What's wrong with you, Fiona?
07:58You've always given her whatever she wanted.
08:00Now you're going to make an issue out of one room?
08:04I'm not making an issue out of it.
08:06Then what are you saying?
08:08Her lease is ending.
08:09She'd only be staying a few weeks.
08:10She's your sister,
08:11not some outsider we need to guard against.
08:14The estate is enormous.
08:15What difference would one extra person make for a few weeks?
08:19That is supposed to be our home after the wedding.
08:22The home of the future lady of the Hayes family.
08:24Which one of us is marrying you?
08:26That shut Nolan up.
08:27Daphne spoke softly.
08:28Fiona, I only wanted to be close to you.
08:31If you don't want me there, forget it.
08:33I won't move in.
08:34Nolan turned to me with reproach.
08:35Look what you've done.
08:36One sentence,
08:37and you've hurt her this badly.
08:39She's your sister.
08:41Can't you think about her feelings?
08:43And who thinks about mine?
08:45I lifted my head.
08:46You personally brought her into a company owned by the Hayes family
08:50and approved a salary far above everyone else at her level.
08:52She has almost nothing to worry about.
08:54What about me?
08:55All I have is-
08:57Enough!
08:58Be reasonable.
08:59She's your sister.
09:00I only take special care of her because of you.
09:02Do you really have to be this petty?
09:04Petty that word again.
09:05I smiled and stopped speaking.
09:07Daphne tugged it asleep.
09:08Nolan, stop.
09:10Fiona is probably just in a bad mood.
09:12He patted her hand, then softened his voice toward me.
09:15Fiona, I've already made the decision.
09:17It will be good for Daphne to stay with us.
09:19You two can keep living close to each other.
09:21I nodded, agreed.
09:23It was their home, after all.
09:24I would never live there.
09:26Nolan relaxed.
09:27Daphne dabbed at the corners of her dry eyes and smiled again.
09:30I turned back to my packing.
09:32Behind me, Daphne asked,
09:34So I really can change the curtains to pale pink?
09:37Whatever you like.
09:38That afternoon, I went to the headquarters of the Hayes Group, which Nolan controlled.
09:43On paper, the building housed shipping, hotel, and security companies.
09:47Everyone in the city knew what it really belonged to.
09:49I packed the access card to the Hayes estate, the key to Nolan's private office,
09:54and several files concerning the family's legitimate businesses that he had asked me to organize.
09:58At the reception desk, the woman immediately straightened when she saw me.
10:01Miss Bennett, shall I notify Don Hayes?
10:03Or I placed the bag on the desk.
10:05No, just give him this.
10:06Then I turned to leave.
10:08As I reached the dark carpeted staircase, Nolan's voice drifted through a half-open door.
10:12Two armed guards stood outside, and I slowed without meaning to.
10:15You want me to take you to your bridal manicure on Saturday?
10:18My fingers stiffened.
10:19A moment later, his amused voice carried through the doorway.
10:24All right, you want to look your best for the wedding, so I'll take you.
10:27I'll explain it to Fiona.
10:28I gave a bitter smile.
10:29I had already decided to let go.
10:31What was I still hoping for?
10:33Before the wedding, Nolan and I had planned to do one thing we had never managed during our relationship.
10:38To watch the sunrise together.
10:39He had been postponing it since winter, always saying he was busy and that we would go next time.
10:44At last, we had chosen this Saturday.
10:45Now he had postponed it again.
10:47But this time, I no longer cared.
10:49I pushed through the glass doors and drove straight back to Hartwell, the small coastal town in Maine where I
10:54had grown up.
10:54The next morning, I was cleaning the house my parents had left behind in Hartwell.
10:58Aunt Claire and Uncle Robert lived nearby, and Claire came over early.
11:02Fiona, take a break.
11:03I shook my head and told her I was almost done.
11:06Claire took my hand and patted it gently.
11:09All these years, you've always been the one expected to be mature.
11:12The one expected to give in.
11:14You've suffered far too much.
11:16She sighed, as if turning over years of memories in her mind.
11:19Daphne may have been adopted by your parents, but you always treated her like your own sister.
11:24You gave her everything.
11:26That child never learned when to stop taking.
11:30The relatives all knew, but they were afraid you'd feel uncomfortable, so no one dared say anything.
11:35Now you're both grown, and you're about to start a family of your own.
11:40I thought you would finally be free from taking care of everyone else.
11:43I smiled, but said nothing.
11:45After a while, I said,
11:46Aunt Claire, you and Uncle Robert should move in.
11:48An empty house doesn't stay in good shape for long.
11:51Claire looked startled.
11:52What do you mean, empty?
11:53You'll still come back after you're married?
11:55She smiled.
11:56I know you and Nolan will live at the Hayes Estate, but you'll need somewhere to stay when you visit
12:00us.
12:01I agreed, yet continued insisting that they move in.
12:04Claire thought I was only being polite and refused several times.
12:06I did not explain.
12:08I only thought that once I left, I might not return for many years.
12:11That evening, Nolan arrived for the pre-wedding family dinner, as arranged.
12:15Three black sedans stopped outside.
12:17His guards remained by the entrance, while Daphne stayed at his side like the hostess.
12:21They both looked surprised when they saw me.
12:23Fiona, what are you doing here?
12:24Nolan asked, as if I had no reason to be there.
12:27But I was the bride, and the family dinner had been arranged at my uncle's house.
12:31Wasn't I exactly where I was supposed to be?
12:32Oh, he was probably used to it by now.
12:34Whether I was present did not matter, as long as Daphne was.
12:38Fiona, good.
12:39You're here.
12:40Nolan said he was coming to see Uncle Robert, and I had nothing else to do, so I came along.
12:44I said nothing.
12:45Daphne had never liked Hartwell and rarely returned to the seaside town where we had grown up.
12:49I was genuinely surprised she had come so close to the wedding.
12:52Whether she had come for me or for some other reason no longer mattered.
12:55In the living room, Uncle Robert exchanged a few words with Nolan.
12:59Even with Nolan deliberately restraining his presence, the lieutenant standing behind his
13:02shoulder made the small room feel tense.
13:04Daphne sat beside Nolan, poured his coffee, and answered questions for him.
13:08As though she were the woman being introduced to the inner circle of the Hayes family,
13:11I sat there like an unnecessary piece of furniture.
13:13No one spared me a second glance.
13:15I checked my phone.
13:16Nolan had sent a message.
13:18I've been busy with the family and the wedding these past few days, so I neglected you.
13:22But why didn't you tell me you were going back to Hartwell?
13:25Neglected me.
13:25His tone sounded less like an apology, and more like an accusation that I had behaved
13:29irresponsibly by leaving on my own.
13:31He was always active in the group chat, joking with everyone.
13:33He even replied to Daphne between family meetings.
13:36Yet he rarely messaged me privately to ask whether I had eaten, what I was doing, or whether
13:40I was happy.
13:40That was why he did not know I had gone to headquarters.
13:43That was why he did not know I had come home.
13:45He did not know because he had never asked.
13:47My fingers moved.
13:48I know you are busy.
13:49Whatever occupied you no longer had anything to do with me.
13:51When the dinner ended, Robert stood to see them out.
13:54You two shouldn't see each other for the next few days.
13:56Let the anticipation build before the wedding.
13:58Nolan agreed.
13:59Robert turned to me.
14:00Fiona, go back to Boston with them.
14:02Stay in the bridal seat before the wedding so you don't have to travel back and forth.
14:05You can return for the family brunch after.
14:07I wanted to refuse, but when I saw the hope in his eyes, I swallowed the words.
14:11I went back to the old house to collect my suitcase and make sure I had left nothing behind.
14:15But by the time I stepped outside, Nolan's car was already gone.
14:18I stood in the doorway for two seconds.
14:20Then I looked at my phone.
14:21Daphne wanted to check the venue security and setup, so I took her ahead.
14:24I forgot you were still there.
14:26Have the guards drive you back.
14:27Forgotten.
14:27Again.
14:28How many times had Nolan forgotten me now?
14:30I drove away, but I did not return to Boston.
14:32I went somewhere far, far away.
14:34The wedding was scheduled for Monday.
14:36Three days later, the Hayes family had invited nearly every influential figure on the East Coast,
14:40and security outside the church was tighter than it had been for any family meeting.
14:43Nolan checked the navigation system and looked at Daphne.
14:46The hotel address is correct?
14:48Yes.
14:49I compared them one by one before choosing this one.
14:51It's upscale and close to your home.
14:54Picking her up here is easier than going to her apartment.
14:57You always handle things properly.
14:59Unlike Fiona.
15:00Uncle Robert only asked us not to see each other for a few days to preserve the anticipation,
15:04and she still haven't replied to a single message.
15:06His lieutenant, seated in front, glanced at him through the rearview mirror,
15:10then silently looked away.
15:11Nolan opened the door of the armored sedan.
15:13Daphne naturally slid into the front passenger seat.
15:16Let's go.
15:16Fiona will start rushing us soon.
15:18Daphne, that seat is for the bride.
15:20Ride with me.
15:21No.
15:22Nolan drives the smoothest, and the family convoys with us.
15:24I won't get carsick.
15:26Nolan shook his head with a smile.
15:27What am I going to do with you?
15:29The black convoy turned into the hotel entrance.
15:31Wedding security immediately cleared the way.
15:33Nolan walked in front.
15:34Daphne stayed at his side.
15:36Two family guards followed half a step behind.
15:38Miles lifted his camera and, out of habit, took several photographs of their backs.
15:42Good morning.
15:43How may I help you?
15:44We're with the Hayes wedding party.
15:46We're here to take the bride to the church.
15:47Nolan gave the room number.
15:49Room 302.
15:50The bride is Fiona Bennett.
15:51The receptionist checked the system.
15:52I'm sorry.
15:53The room was reserved, but Miss Bennett never checked in.
15:56Nolan stared at her as though he had not understood.
15:58His brow furrowed, and he pressed one hand heavily against the desk.
16:01Our wedding is today.
16:03Fiona was supposed to check in last night.
16:05Are you sure you haven't made a mistake?
16:07Exactly.
16:08Check again.
16:09Room 302 under Fiona Bennett.
16:11The receptionist looked at the screen once more and shook her head.
16:14I'm certain.
16:15She never checked in.
16:17Unbelievable.
16:18Did she go to the wrong hotel?
16:19She's the one getting married.
16:21How could she mess up something this important?
16:22Nolan took out the phone reserved for his private contacts and called Fiona.
16:26The call rang seven times, then went to voicemail.
16:28He didn't leave a message.
16:29He called her on FaceTime instead.
16:30The screen displayed the waiting animation until the call ended on its own.
16:34He opened their iMessage thread and sent more than a dozen messages.
16:37Where are you?
16:38We're at the hotel.
16:39Fiona, call me back.
16:40Not one received a reply.
16:41Each message seemed to sink into a bottomless well without an echo.
16:45She isn't answering.
16:45Nolan frowned.
16:46What is Fiona doing?
16:48Today is her wedding.
16:49She isn't throwing another tantrum, is she?
16:51Miles lowered his camera enough for half his face to show behind it.
16:54Hasn't she seemed different lately?
16:55She walked out during the dress fitting too without telling anyone.
16:58But this is the wedding, Daphne muttered.
17:00The church is surrounded by guests and media.
17:03No matter how angry she is, she can't treat this like a joke.
17:06She's humiliating Nolan and the entire Hayes family in public.
17:09Nolan's frown deepened.
17:11The guards nearby sensed that something was wrong.
17:13But none dared speak.
17:14He called Aunt Claire.
17:15Nolan?
17:16Did you pick up the bride?
17:17Aunt Claire?
17:18Fiona isn't at the hotel.
17:19Has she gone back to Hartwood?
17:20No.
17:22Wasn't she supposed to return to Boston for the wedding?
17:24She was meant to stay in the bridal ute last night.
17:27Claire sounded confused.
17:28Daphne is the maid of honor.
17:29And the planner said she was responsible for confirming the check-in and staying with the bride.
17:33We older relatives agreed not to see her again until after the wedding so we wouldn't interrupt her preparations.
17:38Ask Daphne.
17:39She's the maid of honor.
17:40She should know.
17:41Nolan looked at Daphne.
17:43She knew.
17:43How could she know?
17:44Daphne had spent the entire previous day with them.
17:47Lunch at noon.
17:47Drinks in the afternoon.
17:48Then some so-called bachelorette party at a private club owned by the Hayes family.
17:52Which had lasted until after one in the morning.
17:54She had remained in his sight the entire time.
17:56If Daphne had not been with Fiona.
17:58Then had Fiona spent the day before her wedding alone.
18:00Alone.
18:01He had messaged her the day before.
18:03Asking where she was and whether she was nervous.
18:05She had not replied.
18:06He had not asked again.
18:07He had assumed she was following the custom of avoiding the groom before the wedding.
18:10A thread of guilt stirred inside him.
18:12He began to understand that he might have done something wrong.
18:14But he still refused to admit it fully.
18:16What?
18:17Daphne didn't stay with Fiona?
18:19We told her to help with the preparations.
18:21How could she be so careless?
18:23Nolan said nothing.
18:24He stood in the hotel lobby.
18:25The Don who could remain calm in the face of guns and betrayal found.
18:28For the first time that his thoughts were in chaos.
18:31Let's go.
18:31We'll pick her up at the apartment.
18:32Nolan put away his phone.
18:33Fiona's probably angry because I left Uncle Robert's house in a hurry last time without bringing her back.
18:38Now that he thought about it.
18:39He really had ignored her feelings.
18:40The bride of a mafia.
18:41Don had been left alone in a small town by her own Fionga.
18:44In their world, how many people would turn that into dinner table gossip?
18:47Daphne followed him for two steps.
18:49Then suddenly slapped a hand to her forehead.
18:51Oh no.
18:52The wedding dress is still at my apartment.
18:53Nolan stopped and turned.
18:55What wedding dress?
18:56Fiona's.
18:57Yesterday, I used the pickup authorization she gave me to collect it from the boutique.
19:01I was in such a rush this morning that I forgot to bring it.
19:04Something finally struck Nolan as wrong.
19:06Not only had the bride failed to appear at the hotel, but the dress belonged to her.
19:09Yet the final confirmation, pickup, and storage of the gown had all somehow happened without the bride herself.
19:14Daphne had taken the dress home, hung it in her own apartment, and then forgotten it.
19:18Nolan frowned.
19:18Get in the car.
19:19We'll pick up the dress and go to Fiona's apartment.
19:21The convoy pulled out of the parking lot.
19:23Nolan gripped the steering wheel.
19:24His lieutenant and the security vehicles followed behind.
19:27His phone remained lit in the mouth.
19:28Fiona's conversation was completely silent.
19:30No reply came.
19:31What was wrong with her?
19:32She had wanted so badly to be a bride.
19:34To be the center of her own life for once.
19:36He had given her that chance.
19:37Why was she hiding now?
19:39After they collected the dress, Nolan did not start the car immediately.
19:42He gripped the steering wheel in silence for several seconds.
19:44Wait.
19:45Daphne's hand paused on the seatbelt.
19:47When we find her, apologize to your sister.
19:48Daphne thought she had misheard him.
19:50What?
19:51Apologize.
19:52Nolan repeated the word in the tone he used when issuing orders at a family meeting.
19:55It was not loud, but it allowed no argument.
19:58Why?
19:58Daphne frowned.
19:59I've been running around for this wedding while she throws a tantrum and disappears?
20:03And I'm supposed to apologize?
20:05Nolan turned toward her.
20:06Running around?
20:07You worked so hard that you didn't even know which hotel she was staying in.
20:11You worked so hard that her wedding dress is hanging in your apartment.
20:15What was she supposed to wear?
20:17And what about the makeup artist?
20:18Did you arrange one?
20:20The makeup team...
20:22I told them to wait at the hotel, but they said they never saw the bride.
20:26Nolan's face darkened completely.
20:28Even the guards outside the car could feel his anger through the glass.
20:31Daphne.
20:31He said her name.
20:33Do you actually want her to get married?
20:35Silence filled the car.
20:36Daphne lowered her head and twisted the seatbelt between her fingers.
20:40What if I do want her to marry?
20:42Just not you.
20:44Nolan stared at her.
20:45Daphne looked up, eyes red, something unreadable in her expression.
20:48Nolan did not answer.
20:50He looked away and started the car.
20:53The bay window room in the east wing was originally meant to be your sister's study after the wedding.
20:58If your lease expires, you can stay in one of the family's apartments.
21:01You don't need to move into our home.
21:03But Daphne sounded even more wounded.
21:05You already promised me.
21:07Nolan said nothing.
21:08They drove to Fiona's apartment building.
21:10Nolan turned off the engine and ordered the guards to remain downstairs.
21:15The three of them went up.
21:17No one spoke in the elevator.
21:18Daphne stood in one corner.
21:20Miles leaned against the wall, lifting his camera once before lowering it again.
21:23Nolan knocked once, twice, three times.
21:26The door opened.
21:27Fiona, I...
21:28The man standing there looked 27 or 28.
21:31With handsome features and damp hair as though he had just showered,
21:34he leaned against the doorframe lazily.
21:36Who are you looking for?
21:37Who are you?
21:38Nolan stepped forward, his expression turning lethal.
21:40It was the same look that had made family traitors beg on their knees.
21:44Why are you in her home?
21:47What is your relationship with her?
21:49He couldn't imagine his quiet, obedient fiancé hiding another man in her apartment.
21:53Anger surged out of control inside him.
21:55The guards near the elevator heard the commotion and instinctively reached toward their weapons.
22:00Tell Fiona to come out.
22:01From behind him, Daphne asked softly,
22:03Is Fiona with someone else?
22:06The words pierced Nolan like a needle, turning his face dark with rage.
22:09He raised one hand to keep the guards back, shoved the door open himself, and searched every room.
22:14No one was there.
22:15The man finally asked from the living room.
22:18What are you looking for?
22:19Watching Nolan rush around like a headless man.
22:21She moved out a while ago.
22:23Nolan spun around.
22:26Moved out?
22:27I'm the new tenant.
22:28Miss Bennett terminated the lease, and the landlord rented the place to me.
22:32A painful pressure built in his chest with nowhere to go.
22:34After several seconds, his voice dropped.
22:36Did she say where she was going?
22:38Mike?
22:38No.
22:39The man shook his head.
22:40The apartment was empty when I arrived.
22:42Nolan felt as though lightning had struck him.
22:45His ears rang.
22:46Daphne tugged at his sleeve.
22:48Nolan!
22:48Fiona!
22:49He shook her hand off and strode out.
22:50The hallway was empty.
22:52He took out his phone and called Fiona again.
22:54It was still turned off.
22:55Before, he had assumed she was sulking and waiting for him to coax her.
22:59Now he knew she had already left the apartment she had rented for years.
23:02For the first time, he was truly afraid.
23:05He stared at her name on the screen, and it suddenly felt unfamiliar.
23:08Fiona, his fiancée.
23:10Their wedding was only hours away, and he had no idea where she was.
23:13When she had moved out, or why she had ended the lease.
23:16He was the Don who controlled an information network spanning the entire city.
23:20And he knew nothing about his own fiancée.
23:22This obedient, sensible woman had never made him feel so helpless.
23:26Daphne followed him.
23:28Fiona may only have acted impulsively.
23:31We should go to Hartwell.
23:33Uncle Robert might know where she went.
23:34Nolan did not want to answer her.
23:36Her voice only grated against his nerves.
23:38He put his phone away and pressed the elevator button.
23:41The moment they left the building, Nolan called his personal lieutenant.
23:45Has Fiona been to headquarters?
23:47The man hesitated.
23:48Yes, last Thursday afternoon.
23:50Miss Bennett left a package at reception.
23:53I meant to report it, but you've been dealing with the situation at the docks.
23:57Nolan ended the call, opened the armored sedan, and started the engine himself.
24:01Daphne had barely opened the rear door before the car shot away.
24:04The security vehicles immediately followed.
24:07He drove into the underground garage of the Hayes headquarters and nearly ran into the building.
24:12Family members lowered their heads and stepped aside as he passed.
24:15His assistant and lieutenant silently handed him the package.
24:18Nolan opened it, the Hayes estate access card.
24:22The key to his private office, files concerning the family's legitimate businesses, and a small note.
24:27I'm returning these to you.
24:28Thank you.
24:29Thank you.
24:30Nolan crushed the paper in his fist.
24:31What did she mean?
24:33Had she already decided then that she no longer wanted the wedding?
24:36His phone kept vibrating.
24:38Daphne called three times.
24:39He did not answer.
24:40Miles sent a message.
24:41We need to go to Hartwell.
24:43There may still be time.
24:44Nolan did not reply.
24:45There was no time, the thought came without warning.
24:48He closed his eyes as memories surged into his mind.
24:51During the month of wedding planning, Fiona had tried to express her preferences.
24:55But somehow Daphne had ended up making every decision.
24:58Even the wedding dress.
24:59Fiona had only gone to be measured.
25:01Then the gown had ended up at Daphne's apartment.
25:04She would not mind.
25:05Fiona never minded.
25:06But why?
25:07Why did the fact that she usually did not object mean no one had to ask her?
25:10He found the old song she had chosen for the wedding and put on his headphones.
25:14The opening was soft, almost like water.
25:16He did not understand a single lyric, yet the melody tightened his chest.
25:20She had spent an entire month choosing it.
25:22Daphne had called it gloomy once, and they had replaced it.
25:25Had Fiona not had every right to be angry?
25:27Nolan removed the headphones and called Aunt Claire.
25:30Aunt Claire, has Fiona gone back to Hartweald?
25:33No, I just called her and her phone is off.
25:35What is going on over there?
25:36The bride is missing?
25:37I'll find her.
25:38Nolan ended the call.
25:39He used every legal channel the family could access.
25:42Yet for the first time, he hoped their vast network would fail.
25:45Because he was afraid she had left this completely precisely because she wanted to escape him.
25:49Not long afterward, Daphne and Miles arrived at the Hayes headquarters.
25:53They stood in the lobby.
25:54Daphne's eyes read Miles suddenly stoke.
25:56Nolan, I just realized Fiona is barely in any of the photos I took for you.
26:01Nolan looked at him.
26:02Miles scrolled backward through the camera on the day of the wedding shoot.
26:05Fiona had stepped out of the dressing room and stood in front of the mirror wearing her gown.
26:09Yet he had photographed Daphne with Nolan.
26:11He had recorded Daphne twirling.
26:13He had taken close-ups of Nolan adjusting the bow at her waist.
26:16Do you think she's angry with me?
26:18I think I was photographing you two the entire time.
26:22Nolan said nothing.
26:23The three of them stood motionless in the lobby.
26:25After a long silence, Daphne said,
26:27Maybe we should try something else.
26:29Nolan frowned at her.
26:30Fiona's missing, but the church, the family associates, and the media are already waiting,
26:35Daphne said tentatively.
26:37What if I walk through the ceremony with you in her place?
26:39Just so the guests haven't come for nothing.
26:42We can call it a temporary arrangement.
26:43Fiona will be furious when she hears about it,
26:45and if she's angry, she'll appear.
26:47Then we'll know where she is.
26:48That could work.
26:50I have a lot of photos of the two of you.
26:51It wouldn't be difficult to satisfy the media and the family associates for a while.
26:55Nolan stopped listening.
26:57He looked at Daphne and suddenly found her expression unfamiliar.
27:00Her sister had vanished on her wedding day.
27:02Daphne showed no fear.
27:04No urgency.
27:05Only a faint, hidden anticipation.
27:07He remembered all the plans that had been replaced.
27:10Each time, Fiona's opinion had been treated as unimportant.
27:13Each time, the final choice had become whatever Daphne wanted.
27:16All she had needed to do was appear considerate and capable in front of him.
27:19All she had needed was to make him believe she was more reliable than Fiona.
27:23Everything had naturally moved in the direction she wanted,
27:26and he had believed exactly that.
27:28No.
27:28Nolan shook his head.
27:31We find her first.
27:32Notify everyone in the family we can mobilize.
27:35But do not involve the police, do not harass her, and do not force her to come back.
27:38Search every place she might have gone.
27:40They made countless calls.
27:41Hayes vehicles headed toward airports, stations, and every possible residence.
27:46Fiona's co-worker said she had resigned the previous week.
27:49The landlord said she had ended the lease and settled the deposit.
27:52Aunt Claire questioned every relative in Hartwell.
27:55No one had seen her.
27:57Fiona seemed to have vanished from the face of the earth.
27:59She left no trace.
28:00Told no one.
28:01Not even a single sentence saying she was leaving.
28:04Nolan sat in the car while his phone screen lit and dimmed over and over.
28:07He searched his private contacts and the family information network again and again.
28:12Every person who might reach her had been questioned.
28:14Every place she might go had been searched.
28:16There was only one possible conclusion.
28:18Fiona didn't want to be found.
28:20The realization poured over him like a bucket of ice water.
28:24It was worse than an argument.
28:25An argument meant she still cared.
28:27Silence meant she still wanted him to come after her.
28:30But she had left nothing.
28:31She had not even bothered to say they were over.
28:34She had simply disappeared as quietly as though she had never existed in his life.
28:38She ended the lease.
28:39Returned everything.
28:40Quit her job.
28:41Removed every trace that connected her to him.
28:44It seemed that she no longer wanted him.
28:46The thought tightened around Nolan's throat like a rope until he could hardly breathe.
28:52Eight years passed.
28:54In the blink of an eye, Fiona returned on a summer evening.
28:57She dragged a suitcase through the arrivals hall at Boston Logan Airport and looked up at the sky.
29:02She did not know that after she disappeared eight years earlier, the Hayes family had searched every publicly available travel
29:08record from that airport again and again.
29:11The summer evening sky above Boston was gray-blue, with several clouds drifting lazily across it.
29:16During those eight years, Fiona had traveled to many places once a month.
29:20She emailed Aunt Claire to say she was safe.
29:22But she never shared a permanent address or revealed her next destination.
29:26The Northern Lights in Iceland.
29:27The stars over New Zealand.
29:29Hot air balloons in Turkey.
29:31The grasslands of Kenya.
29:32She learned to dive, ski, and surf.
29:34She spent three months in Lisbon, caring for stray cats at a neighborhood rescue center every morning.
29:39Then she lived for half a year in a coastal Portuguese town, where she kept two dogs, three cats, and
29:45a tank of goldfish in the yard.
29:46She did everything she had once wanted to do with Nolan, but had never managed.
29:50She watched a sunrise alone.
29:52Rode a Ferris wheel alone.
29:54Once, she had believed she would never do those things in this lifetime.
29:57Later, she realized that whether she could do them had nothing to do with whether someone stood beside her.
30:03Nolan did not marry during those eight years.
30:05The story of the Mafia Don abandoned by his bride on his wedding day spread through the East Coast social
30:10elite, the underground families, and the small town of Hartwell.
30:14The relatives discussed it for several days, then gradually stopped mentioning it.
30:19Nolan never explained why the bride had disappeared.
30:21He spent his days dealing with family meetings, legitimate businesses, and territorial disputes.
30:27Sometimes he traveled.
30:28The Hayes family's influence and legal holdings continued to grow.
30:32Headquarters moved three times, each office becoming larger and emptier.
30:36He never again allowed Daphne into the passenger seat of his armored car.
30:40He revoked her access to the Hayes estate, family headquarters, and private clubs.
30:44He never met her alone again.
30:46If there was business at the group, his lieutenant relayed it.
30:49If there were family obligations, he avoided them whenever possible.
30:52When Daphne came to headquarters looking for him, security stopped her and said Don Hayes was in a family meeting.
30:59When she called, eight times out of ten, his lieutenant answered and said Don Hayes was unavailable.
31:04What is this supposed to mean, Nolan?
31:06Avoiding suspicion.
31:08What suspicion?
31:09Nolan, I'm your fiancé's sister.
31:10You were.
31:11She's gone.
31:13You and I have no relationship now.
31:15Daphne fell silent.
31:16She had probably never considered that every kindness Nolan had shown her had existed only because of Fiona, not because
31:22she was charming, not because she was clever, not because she was dependable.
31:26It was because she was his fiancé's sister.
31:28He had cared for her because he loved Fiona.
31:30Once Fiona left, the connection between Nolan and Daphne vanished with her.
31:34I don't believe you.
31:35The moment she began to cry, he ended the call.
31:38Without Nolan's favoritism at the Hayes group, Daphne's life became increasingly difficult.
31:42Nolan had personally recommended her for a position at one of the family's legitimate companies and approved a salary well
31:49above that of others at her level.
31:51Even though her workload was light, people in the group had always whispered about the obvious favoritism.
31:56But Nolan was both the head of the group and the Don of the Hayes family, so no one dared
32:00say it aloud.
32:01After Nolan stopped intervening, the division head reassigned her.
32:04Her salary was adjusted to the normal level, and her workload doubled.
32:08She tried to see Nolan several times but never succeeded.
32:11Eventually, she was dismissed under the strict performance standards of the Hayes family's legal businesses.
32:16She had always believed she had earned everything through her own ability.
32:19She did not know that the job, the position, and every privilege had come from her sister.
32:23Fiona had asked Nolan more than once.
32:25My sister is highly capable.
32:27She only needs an opportunity.
32:29Please help her.
32:30She has no one else.
32:31If she can work at one of your companies, I'll feel better.
32:34Nolan had paved the road for her.
32:36Daphne mistook it for her own talent.
32:37She forgot that one nod from a mafia Don could open doors that remained closed to countless others.
32:43Among the relatives, the aftermath was even uglier.
32:45After the wedding was cancelled, Aunt Claire confronted Daphne.
32:48What did you do?
32:49Why did Fiona leave?
32:51Daphne said she did not know.
32:52Aunt Claire did not believe her.
32:54At last, someone became angry enough to reveal the truth.
32:57Fiona warned us again and again to keep it secret.
33:01She was afraid you'd be hurt if you found out.
33:04She was afraid you'd think you were different from everyone else.
33:07She always protected your feelings.
33:09What did you do for her?
33:11You are not the Bennett family's biological child.
33:14Your biological father worked for a rival crime family.
33:17During an act of retaliation, he killed Fiona's grandfather.
33:21He was latery sentenced to life in prison for murder.
33:24Your mother died giving birth to you.
33:26Fiona's parents were friends with your mother.
33:29They couldn't bear to see you left alone.
33:31So they applied to become your temporary guardians and later adopted you legally.
33:36But being adopted was never the problem.
33:38The problem is that Fiona protected you for all these years.
33:41And you treated her kindness as something you were entitled to.
33:45Fiona gave you everything and shielded you from everything.
33:48What did she ever owe you?
33:49Daphne's face went white.
33:50She opened her mouth but could not speak.
33:52She wanted to say it was impossible but the words caught in her throat as though someone were strangling her.
33:57A criminal.
33:57Her biological father was a murderer and the man he had killed was Fiona's grandfather.
34:02Her lips trembled.
34:03Tears poured down her face.
34:05She remembered every piece of candy Fiona had given her.
34:07Every dress.
34:08Every chance to choose first.
34:10She remembered Aunt Claire's hesitation and the knowing silence of every relative.
34:14They had all known.
34:15She alone had not.
34:16Fiona's constant concessions and Daphne's belief that she deserved them
34:20had never been because Daphne was more worthy.
34:23It had been because they pitied her.
34:25Once the truth spread, no one sympathized with her anymore.
34:29The Bennett family raised her as their own daughter for more than 20 years and Fiona protected her at every
34:34turn.
34:35Yet she watched Fiona be ignored and kept taking the place that belonged to her until Fiona finally left.
34:41Daphne insisted she had stolen nothing and forced no one.
34:44No one believed her.
34:45The relative's eyes changed.
34:47The courtesy, warmth, and concern they had once shown her disappeared.
34:51They had never treated her differently because she was adopted.
34:54But now they refused to keep overlooking what she had done to Fiona.
34:57No one invited her to Thanksgiving, Christmas, or other family gatherings again.
35:02Daphne lost that family completely.
35:04Miles lived with regret.
35:05Years earlier, Fiona had happily asked him to photograph her wedding and paid him well for the work.
35:10Yet she appeared in fewer than 10 photographs and not one showed her face clearly.
35:14In a rage, he smashed his camera.
35:16He sent Fiona a message.
35:19I'm sorry.
35:20But he knew she would never see it.
35:23And she did not want to.
35:25Fiona was gone for eight years.
35:27Nolan waited for eight years.
35:29He didn't know whether she would ever come back.
35:31Or whether she would even look at him if she did.
35:33Still, he waited with careful, fragile hope.
35:35At last, his lieutenant brought him news.
35:38Don Hayes, one of our contacts with an airport transfer company, thinks he saw Miss Bennett.
35:43Nolan shot up from the chair that symbolized the highest authority in the Hayes family.
35:47The elevator took too long, so he ran into the emergency stairwell, 16 floors.
35:53Even his guards struggled to keep up.
35:55By the last two flights, his legs were trembling.
35:57He was afraid that if he arrived too late, she would leave again.
36:01On the highway, security cars cleared the road in front of and behind him.
36:05The navigation system showed 40 minutes remaining.
36:07It still felt too slow.
36:09He had so much to say.
36:11Eight years of words.
36:12He was afraid she would listen and leave.
36:14Afraid she would say, I don't care anymore.
36:16Even more afraid she would refuse to see the once untouchable Don at all.
36:20He began wondering what he should say first.
36:22You're back?
36:23I'm sorry.
36:25I missed you?
36:26No.
36:27What he owed her could never be repaid with one sentence.
36:29He had ignored Fiona too many times.
36:31Yet she had still remembered his mother's birthday, arranged holiday family dinners,
36:36prepared gifts for family elders and business partners,
36:39and kept track of every important date he always forgot.
36:42She never sought attention.
36:45She was steady and sincere.
36:47More than once, port and shipping negotiations had nearly collapsed,
36:50and Fiona had stayed with the other side through cup after cup of coffee.
36:54In the end, the other party had relented and said,
36:56Don Haynes, your fiancé understands how to listen better than you do.
37:01She never bragged about those things.
37:04She never used the title of the Don's fiancé to interfere in family affairs or embarrass him.
37:10She steadied everything behind him so he could face the storms in the light and in the shadows without distraction.
37:18At the time, he had considered it natural.
37:21He had never asked whether she was tired.
37:23Even after he failed her, she did not scream or tear everything apart.
37:27She never spoke badly of him to anyone.
37:29She quietly returned his belongings and disappeared from everyone's sight.
37:33Even her departure had been dignified.
37:35The tunnel lights moved across his face, alternating between light and shadow.
37:39Eight years.
37:40What did she look like now?
37:42Did she still like apple pie from that little restaurant?
37:45Did she still sit by windows and stare into the distance?
37:48Did she still love that old song?
37:51By the time he realized it, the convoy had reached Hartwell.
37:54Not wanting to alarm her, Nolan ordered all the guards to remain outside town and drove in alone.
37:59He knew she would visit Uncle Robert and Aunt Claire.
38:01He rented a room at Hartwell's Only Inn for three days,
38:04driving the coastal road toward while the old Bennett in the house every day.
38:06On the third afternoon, he finally saw a woman pulling a suitcase along the narrow lane.
38:11She was thinner.
38:12Tanned, her expression was quiet, as though she were thinking of something or nothing at all.
38:17Her pace was neither fast nor slow, as though there were nowhere ahead she desperately needed to reach.
38:22Nolan got out of the car and stood in the road.
38:24Fiona looked up.
38:25She stopped for a moment and studied him for several seconds.
38:27You're back.
38:29Yes.
38:30After a pause, she asked,
38:32Have you been well?
38:33Nolan nearly cried.
38:34Had he been well?
38:34He had waited eight years and thought of her every day.
38:37He had kept their room at the Hayes estate exactly as it had been.
38:40He had used family connections to search every place she might have gone,
38:43yet never allowed anyone to drag her back by force.
38:46He had not been well.
38:47Not at all.
38:48But he nodded.
38:49I've been alright.
38:50They stood on the narrow road toward the old house,
38:52their shadows stretching long in the sunset.
38:55Nolan did not know what to say.
38:56The words he had saved for eight years vanished from his mind.
38:59These eight years, you...
39:00I went to a lot of places.
39:01Iceland, New Zealand, Turkey.
39:03I learned to dive.
39:04I got certified.
39:05You once said you watched the sunset by the sea.
39:07She smiled faintly.
39:08I did.
39:09It was beautiful.
39:10Nolan opened his mouth.
39:11He wanted to say he was sorry.
39:12That he missed her.
39:13That he wanted one more chance.
39:15But the words reached his lips and stopped.
39:17Fiona.
39:18She looked up.
39:19I'm sorry.
39:20I didn't take care of you.
39:21I let you suffer so much.
39:23I should have asked what you wanted.
39:24I should have listened.
39:25I should have...
39:26He couldn't go on.
39:27Fiona listened quietly,
39:28then lowered her eyes to the shadows on the ground.
39:31After a moment, she looked up and smiled.
39:32Nolan, I don't blame you anymore.
39:34I truly don't.
39:35I thought about a lot of things during these eight years.
39:37I used to believe I wasn't good enough.
39:39Not smart enough.
39:40Not beautiful enough.
39:41Not interesting enough.
39:42I thought that was why you...
39:43Later, I understood that it was never my fault.
39:45She looked at him.
39:46You didn't make me the most important person in your heart.
39:49That was not my fault.
39:50Nolan could only nod.
39:51He couldn't deny it because she was right.
39:52We shouldn't see each other again.
39:54Fiona pulled her suitcase past him.
39:55Nolan stared at her back.
39:56He followed and stopped her at the bend in the road leading to the old house.
39:59Fiona.
40:01I'm not asking you to forgive me.
40:03All these years, I've kept wondering when I started losing you.
40:06Fiona looked at him in silence for a long time.
40:08The wind lifted her hair across her face.
40:10She did not brush it aside.
40:11I left because I realized that no matter how hard I tried,
40:14how much I gave in, or how carefully I thought of you.
40:18You never saw me.
40:19I stood beside you, but your eyes were always on someone else.
40:23She drew a breath.
40:25You made me feel as though I did not exist.
40:27Nolan nodded and wiped at his tears with the back of his hand.
40:30The Mafia Don, who had terrified countless people,
40:32now looked as helpless as any ordinary man.
40:34I don't want to be the woman everyone overlooks anymore.
40:38I know.
40:38I was wrong.
40:39I can see how much you've changed.
40:41You look better.
40:42Stronger.
40:43You don't need me to live well.
40:44But Fiona, I need you.
40:46You're the only woman I have ever wanted to marry.
40:48I'll wait for you.
40:50No matter where you go, when you return, or whether you ever look at me again.
40:54I'll run the Hayes family properly.
40:56I'll slowly shut down the businesses that should never have existed.
40:59And I'll learn to live well, too, the way you did.
41:02If one day you're tired and want to come home, turn around.
41:05I'll be here.
41:06Fiona said nothing.
41:07She silently pulled her suitcase past him.
41:09Nolan stood there for a long time.
41:11He didn't follow her.
41:12He knew she would not turn back.
41:13She had finally learned to love herself.
41:15She had already rejected him.
41:16Not through silence, but through the clear words,
41:18we shouldn't see each other again.
41:19Nolan finally understood that respecting her boundary
41:22was the only thing he could still do for her.
41:24The realization cut through his heart like a dull blade.
41:26But for the first time, it stopped him from deciding on her behalf
41:29when she should forgive him and when she should return.
41:32He sat behind the wheel for a long time.
41:34In the passenger side compartment, beside a handgun,
41:36lay a bottle of prescription sleeping pills.
41:38Since the third year after she left,
41:40he had suffered from intermittent insomnia.
41:41At his worst, he had thought that if he truly could not endure anymore,
41:45he would swallow the entire bottle.
41:46The thought returned every so often like a shadow.
41:49But this time, he did not make Fiona responsible
41:51for his reason to live.
41:52He locked the gun back in its hidden compartment,
41:54took out his phone,
41:55found the number a therapist had given him months earlier,
41:58and scheduled an appointment for the next day.
42:00He would not wait for her to come back.
42:02He would learn to accept that she never would
42:04and rebuild his own life.
42:05Not so that he might one day become worthy of her again,
42:07but because he finally understood that no one
42:09should be responsible for another person's life.
42:11He drove onto the coastal road outside town
42:14and turned on the stereo.
42:15Her favorite old song began to play.
42:17He hummed two lines, badly off-cate,
42:19and laughed at himself.
42:20Tomorrow, he would return to family headquarters
42:22and finish the port project he had delayed for months.
42:24He would formally order several of their most dangerous gray businesses shut down.
42:28That weekend, he would return to Hartwell
42:30and help Uncle Robert repair the roof of the old Bennett house.
42:33Life had to move forward, not endured lived.
42:35The thought brought the faintest curve to his lips.
42:37Then an out-of-control truck crossed the center line.
42:40Its headlights slammed straight into his vision so bright,
42:42as bright as the afternoon he had first seen Fiona.
42:45Back then, he had not known who she was.
42:46He had only thought, I want to know that girl,
42:49braced with me.
42:49Needles shattered, the world overturned.
42:51Far behind him, his guards shouted his name over the radio.
42:54He could not hear them clearly.
42:56The metallic taste of blood filled his nose and mouth.
42:58His fingers moved, searching for his phone,
43:00but could not find it.
43:01The light before his eyes slowly dimmed,
43:03as though someone were drawing a curtain shut.
43:04He had only just decided to stop trapping
43:06the rest of his life in the past.
43:08How could he lose the chance to truly move forward now?
43:10The end?
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