Chapter 3

"Start the stream," Cedric said to the cameraman.

Jayden faced the camera, tears rolling down her perfect cheeks. "I just want to say... Cedric and I are like brother and sister. He left his wedding because he heard I was in a car accident. He was just worried about me. Please, don't misunderstand."

Kacie watched the performance, feeling numb. "A car accident? You don' t have a single scratch on you."

Jayden' s composure faltered for a second. She looked helplessly at Cedric.

He stepped in immediately. "She was cleared by the doctors, but she' s suffering from emotional distress. That' s why she' s here." He looked directly at the camera. "I'm warning everyone to stop these baseless rumors. If this continues, my legal team will take action."

He signaled for the cameraman to stop the stream. The performance was over.

Jayden turned to Kacie, taking her hand. Her touch felt like ice. "Kacie, I'm so sorry this happened. It' s all my fault."

Kacie pulled her hand away and let out a dry, humorless laugh. "No. It's my fault."

She looked at Cedric. "I was wrong. Wrong to trust you. Wrong to believe I could ever be enough for you."

"I'm going home," she said, her voice flat.

"I'll take you," Cedric offered, a flicker of guilt in his eyes.

Just then, a nurse came in. "Miss Moore, it's time for your blood test."

Jayden immediately shrank back against the pillows. "Oh, no. Cedric, you know I can't... I have a phobia of needles."

Cedric hesitated, looking between Kacie and Jayden. The choice was clear on his face before he even made it.

Kacie didn' t wait for his decision. "It's fine. I'll go by myself."

She turned and walked out of the room. As the door swung shut behind her, she caught a final glimpse of Cedric, sitting on the edge of the bed, holding Jayden' s hand, comforting her.

Her heart felt numb. She couldn't tell if it was pain or just disappointment anymore. A final, crushing resignation.

She had to leave. Not just this hospital, but this life she had fought so hard for. She would disappear. Completely. No body, no trace. Just gone.

That evening was the first family dinner since the wedding. It was supposed to be a celebration. For Kacie, it felt like a funeral.

She walked in and saw them all in the living room. Burt and Carroll Moon were laughing with Jayden, who sat between them on the sofa. Cedric was kneeling on the floor in front of Jayden, massaging her calf.

"Oh, you're here," Carroll said when she saw Kacie. Her smile vanished. The warmth in the room dropped several degrees.

"Jayden was at the hospital all day for check-ups," Cedric explained, not looking up. "Her leg is sore." He glanced at Kacie. "The elders are here. Don't make a scene."

"I won't," Kacie said quietly.

At the dinner table, she was invisible. All the attention, all the conversation, all the affection was directed at Jayden. Cedric peeled shrimp and cracked crab claws for Jayden, placing the meat carefully on her plate. It was an act of care he used to reserve for Kacie.

She remembered the first time she had come to this house for dinner. The Moons had been polite but cold, their disapproval a tangible thing in the air. She had thought they were just stuffy, reserved people. Now she understood. They weren't cold. They were just cold to her.

She ate in silence, the food tasteless in her mouth, each bite a struggle. The pain in her chest was a dull, constant throb.

"Cedric, would you mind getting everyone some soup?" Carroll asked, smiling at her son.

Kacie remembered a time when Cedric cooked fish soup just for her, telling her it was his secret family recipe.

Jayden pouted playfully. "But Cedric, you promised that your famous fish soup was only for me."

"This is chicken soup, silly," Cedric said patiently, his voice impossibly gentle. "The fish soup is still just for you."

That was it. That was the truth she had been avoiding. The casual, thoughtless intimacy, the gentle tone, the exclusive promises. That was his real love. The tenderness he showed Kacie was just a pale imitation.

"I'll get the soup for you, Kacie!" Jayden said, standing up with a bright, false smile.

"I can get it," Kacie said, trying to stop her.

"It's no problem. I know my way around this house better than anyone," Jayden said, a clear declaration of her place here.

She went into the kitchen. The strong smell of fish broth wafted out, turning Kacie's stomach.

Jayden returned, carrying a single bowl. "Did you know," she said, her voice low and meant only for Kacie, "that Cedric and I had a childhood engagement? Our parents arranged it when we were kids."

The words hit Kacie' s already bruised heart.

"Men's promises," Jayden added with a smirk, "they're not worth much, are they?"

A sharp pain shot through Kacie' s chest. Acid rose in her throat.

"Are you okay, Kacie?" Jayden asked, her expression one of mock concern. "You should take the soup. Cedric is waiting."

Kacie tried to refuse, to push the bowl away, but her hands were shaking. The hot soup sloshed over the side, spilling all over the front of her dress. But it wasn't Kacie who screamed.