Chapter 2

The party was already a circus by the time I arrived, fashionably late.

Ethan was in his element, phone in hand, live-streaming his every move.

"And here's the beautiful bride-to-be, everyone!" he boomed, pulling me into his side.

The camera zoomed in. I forced a smile. It felt like a mask.

Chloe was there, fluttering around him, playing the devoted best friend, her eyes glinting with something I now recognized as greed.

"Isn't this amazing, Ava?" she gushed, loud enough for the microphone. "Ethan is just the best."

I remembered those exact words from before. The script was repeating.

But the lead actress knew her lines, and the ending, this time.

My phone buzzed in my purse. A text from Liam, my brother.

"On standby. You sure about this, sis?"

I' d called him the moment I woke up, the moment I knew I was back. My voice had been shaking, a torrent of words about Ethan, Chloe, the money, the betrayal, the attack.

He hadn't questioned me, not really. He' d heard the raw terror. He was a tech CEO, logical, but fiercely protective. He' d said, "I'll get my people on it. What do you need?"

"Evidence," I' d told him. "And be ready."

I texted back a single word: "Showtime."

My heart was surprisingly calm. The terror of the morning had solidified into cold resolve.

I knew what they were. I knew what they would do.

And I knew exactly how to burn their whole charade to the ground.

Ethan led me to the small stage set up in the ballroom. The suitcase of "cash" was already there, a gaudy centerpiece. The "diamond" ring was in a velvet box in his pocket.

He was building up to the proposal, his voice dripping with fake emotion for his audience.

"Ava, my love, my life," he began, sinking to one knee.

The crowd oohed and aahed. His followers spammed heart emojis in the live chat.

He opened the box. The cubic zirconia flashed under the lights, just like I remembered.

"Will you marry me?"

I looked at him, this charismatic monster, this con artist who had destroyed me once.

My stomach didn't flip with excitement. It settled with grim satisfaction.

He looked a little uneasy at my silence. Chloe, from the side, shot me a sharp, urging look. "Ava, say yes!" she hissed, a little too loudly.