Chapter 7

Hunter POV:

The grand hall was ablaze with light, a dazzling spectacle of crystal chandeliers and fragrant floral arrangements. Laughter and polite chatter filled the air, the clinking of champagne glasses marking the celebration of a new union. My union. Guests mingled, dressed in their finest, their faces alight with anticipation. Ashley, radiant in silk and lace, floated through the room, accepting congratulations with a demure smile.

I stood beside her, clad in a perfectly tailored tuxedo, a fixed smile on my face. My gaze, however, kept drifting to the entrance, a restless, primal urge to seek out a ghost. I scanned the faces, the sea of elegant strangers, my heart a dull throb in my chest. She wasn't here.

The ceremony was about to begin. The priest cleared his throat. Ashley squeezed my arm, her smile unwavering. But my anxiety, a cold, creeping thing, refused to dissipate.

Where was she?

The car crash flashed before my eyes, a chaotic blur of metal and screams. Ashley was screaming, pulling at me, her face contorted in terror. I remember pushing at the twisted door, trying to free her, trying to soothe her frantic cries. My priority had been to get her out, to ensure her safety. I had been so focused on managing the crisis, on coordinating with the paramedics, on protecting my fiancée.

And I had completely, utterly forgotten about Bianca.

The realization hit me like a physical blow. A delayed, agonizing punch to the gut. The smoke, the flames, the sickening pain of her scream as the burning debris fell onto her legs. I hadn't seen it happen then, not directly. I had been too busy helping Ashley, too consumed by the immediate threat. But now, the fragmented images coalesced into a horrifying tableau. Her trapped, my neglect.

Where was she? What had happened to her legs? The nurses had mentioned severe trauma, a possibility of nerve damage. But I had brushed it aside, focused on Ashley' s seemingly minor injuries, on the upcoming engagement, on my life.

My mother, Corrine, stood near the entrance, her phone pressed to her ear, her face a mask of worry. She was dialing again, her brow furrowed in frustration. "Still off," she muttered, shaking her head. "I don't understand."

Adolfo, ever the pragmatist, frowned. "Bianca's always been dramatic. She'll show up when she's ready. Don't let her spoil your happy day, son."

Corrine turned to him, her eyes flashing with a rare defiance. "She's my daughter, Adolfo. And she was in that car with them."

My father just waved a dismissive hand. "She's fine. She always lands on her feet."

But my heart knew otherwise. A cold, creeping fear gripped me. Bianca always landed on her feet, yes. But what if this time, she couldn' t?

The ceremony was a blur. The priest's words, Ashley's vows, my own mumbled responses – they were meaningless sounds, background noise to the frantic pounding of my heart. I was a puppet, going through the motions.

As I reached for the ring, my fingers trembled. The cold, perfectly cut diamond glittered under the lights. But my mind was miles away, racing back to another moment, another ring.

"This is it, Hunter," Bianca had whispered, her eyes sparkling with mischief, yet holding a depth of sincerity that had disarmed me. She held up a twisted aluminum pull-tab from a soda can, its dull silver gleaming in the dim light of our secret library nook. "My solemn promise. We' ll be together. Always. No matter what."

I had laughed then, a husky, surprised sound. "A pull-tab? You' re proposing with a pull-tab?"

"It' s special," she' d insisted, her gaze fierce, unwavering. "It' s ours. Unique. Unlike anything else. And I' m stamping my claim. You' re mine. And I' m yours. Got it?" She' d slipped the rough metal onto my finger, a playful yet possessive gesture. "You' ll never forget it."

She was right. I hadn't forgotten. The memory of that cheap metal, the feel of it against my skin, the fierce, possessive love in her eyes – it was more real, more potent, than the gleaming diamond in my hand. It was a stark contrast, a brutal testament to the genuine connection we once shared, a connection I had so carelessly, so cruelly, destroyed.

Ashley cleared her throat, a sharp, impatient sound. "Hunter? Darling? The ring?"

I flinched, snapping back to the present. The diamond in my hand felt heavy, cold, foreign. A wave of profound nausea washed over me. I couldn' t do it. I couldn't put this symbol of a hollow future on Ashley's finger, not when the ghost of Bianca's pull-tab promise burned so fiercely on my own. It felt like a betrayal of a deeper, more sacred vow, one I hadn't even realized I'd made.

The realization hit me with the force of a tidal wave. It was never about Ashley. It was about revenge. And in my blind pursuit of it, I had annihilated the one person who truly saw me, truly loved me. The one person who had truly broken through my carefully constructed walls, not to shatter me, but to awaken me.

"No," I whispered, the word a raw, guttural sound. Ashley's face crumpled, pure confusion. The guests gasped. My father's face contorted in a silent rage. But none of it mattered.

The pull-tab promise. It was a childish game, a reckless taunt. But in my heart, it had been a genuine bond, a fierce, protective commitment she had offered. And I had destroyed it. I had destroyed her.

My hatred, my carefully nurtured desire for revenge – it was a flimsy veil, barely concealing a love that had taken root deep within me, powerful and undeniable. Every act of cruelty, every calculated blow, had been a desperate attempt to protect myself from the terrifying reality that I was falling for the very girl I was supposed to hate. The girl whose presence in my life was a constant reminder of my mother's suffering.

My revenge was not just on Bianca; it was on myself. I had silenced her, crippled her, driven her away. And in doing so, I had silenced and crippled my own heart. The irony was a bitter, suffocating truth.

Corrine, standing at the back, her face bloodless, was frantically trying to call Bianca. "She's not answering," she muttered, her voice trembling. "I can't reach her!"

Adolfo, my father, approached, his face a mask of fury. "What is the meaning of this, Hunter? What are you doing?"

But I barely heard him. My gaze swept across the bewildered faces of the guests, then landed on Corrine. "Bianca," I rasped, my voice hoarse. "Where is she? What happened to her?"

Corrine looked at me, her eyes filled with a fresh wave of tears. "She... she was in the car, Hunter. In the ambulance. She was badly hurt." Her voice broke. "They said... they said it was her legs. She might not... might not walk again."

The words struck me like a lightning bolt, rattling my very core. My legs. Bianca's legs. The legs that had soared and spun, that had once held me captive in a embrace. The legs I had seen twisted and crushed, engulfed in flames, while I saved someone else. My calculated revenge had not just broken her heart, it had shattered her body, her life as a dancer. It had destroyed the very essence of who she was.

My legs felt like lead. The room spun. The carefully constructed edifice of my revenge, of my indifference, crumbled around me. All that was left was the horrifying, agonizing truth: I loved her. I had always loved her. And I had destroyed her.

"I need to find her," I said, my voice barely audible. I pushed past Ashley, who was now openly weeping, her carefully crafted image in tatters. I strode out of the hall, ignoring the shocked whispers, the angry shouts of my father. My heart was a frantic drum against my ribs, echoing the urgency within me. I had to find her. I had to tell her. I had to beg for her forgiveness. Even if she never gave it. Even if she hated me forever. I had to try.