Part 2 of 3

Everett nodded once.

“I know.”

Bianca’s face lost color.

“How could you possibly know?”

Everett pointed toward the small black camera mounted beneath the balcony.

Richard had installed cameras after several packages disappeared from the front porch. Bianca had apparently forgotten they covered the garden too.

“Because I watched the last twelve minutes from the car,” Everett said.

No one moved.

Bianca’s assistant slowly lowered her phone.

Everett turned to the stylists.

“Please pack your equipment and leave.”

They did not argue.

Within minutes, the chairs, lights, and cosmetics were gone.

Bianca remained beside the patio table, twisting the ring Everett had given her.

“You are really going to make this into a serious issue?”

Everett stared at her.

“You humiliated my mother, ignored her refusal, and then lied to me before I had even finished asking what happened.”

“I was trying to help her.”

“No. You were trying to control her.”

Bianca crossed her arms.

“She has been difficult from the beginning. She questions every wedding expense, refuses to cooperate with the guest list, and acts as though I am trying to take something from her.”

Everett’s voice became quieter.

“Maybe because you are.”

The Discovery That Changed the Wedding

During his flight home, Everett had received an alert from his company’s security department.

Someone had attempted to access a private family account containing property records, trust documents, and insurance information.

The login had come from Bianca’s apartment.

At first, Everett assumed she had opened the wrong shared folder while reviewing wedding invoices.

Then he noticed the files she had downloaded.

They included the deed to my house, a copy of Richard’s trust, information about my savings, and legal documents related to decision-making authority.

Everett had returned early because he wanted to ask Bianca about it privately.

What he saw in the garden gave him the answer before he asked the question.

“Why did you download my mother’s financial records?” he asked.

Bianca looked toward me.

“I was helping organize the family estate before our marriage.”

“You were not authorized to do that.”

“We are getting married in two weeks. Eventually, these matters will affect me too.”

Everett shook his head.

“My mother’s property will never belong to you.”

Bianca’s confidence returned for a moment.

“You cannot be serious. This house is worth nearly four million dollars. She lives here alone. It makes no sense.”

I felt as if the air had left the garden.

For months, Bianca had encouraged me to move into a luxury senior community outside Savannah. She described it as a place where I would have companionship, prepared meals, and people available whenever I needed assistance.

I had believed she was showing concern.

Now I understood.

She did not want me comfortable.

She wanted me gone.

Everett took out his phone.

“I also found a draft agreement prepared by your attorney. It would have allowed someone else to oversee Mom’s accounts if she was declared unable to manage them.”

Bianca’s eyes moved toward the gate.

“That was only a precaution.”

“A precaution you never discussed with Mom or me?”

“Helen forgets things.”

I looked at her in disbelief.

“I forgot one lunch reservation because the date had changed.”

Bianca ignored me and focused on Everett.

“You are exhausted. Let’s discuss this after you sleep.”

“We are discussing it now.”

He opened a message and turned the screen toward her.

“Your attorney wrote that the wedding needed to happen before the property arrangement could be challenged. What property arrangement, Bianca?”

She said nothing.

The confident woman who had directed everyone in my garden suddenly looked very small.

A Celebration Built on Other People’s Money

The wedding had grown far beyond the intimate ceremony Everett originally wanted.

Bianca had selected a private coastal estate, imported flowers, custom table settings, and entertainment that cost more than Richard and I had spent on our first home.

Every time Everett questioned an expense, Bianca insisted her father was contributing.

That was also untrue.

Her family had financial problems no one had disclosed.

Everett had recently learned that Bianca’s father was facing several large business claims, while her mother had borrowed heavily against their home.

Bianca had planned to use her marriage to Everett as proof of financial stability.

She had also promised her parents that Everett would invest in their company after the honeymoon.

“Did you tell your father I had agreed to transfer three million dollars into his business?” Everett asked.

Bianca looked toward the house.

“He only needed temporary support.”

“I never agreed to anything.”

“You would have helped after we were married.”

“You mean you believed I would be easier to pressure after the ceremony.”

She stepped closer and lowered her voice.

“Everett, think carefully. Hundreds of guests are arriving next weekend. The announcements have already been published. Canceling now will embarrass everyone.”

He glanced at the uneven ends of my hair.

“You should have considered that before embarrassing my mother in her own home.”

Bianca’s expression hardened.

“So that is it? You are choosing her over your future wife?”

Everett did not hesitate.

“Anyone who asks me to choose between basic respect and a relationship has already made the decision for me.”

He removed his engagement ring from the chain he wore beneath his shirt. Bianca had asked him to keep it there while traveling because she liked the symbolism of matching jewelry.

He placed it on the table beside the scissors she had used.

“The wedding is canceled.”