“I only needed copies.”
For the first time, he had nothing to order me to do.
I walked outside carrying one suitcase.
Olivia called before I reached the gate.
“I need to see you.”
“What happened?”
“Mason left his tablet logged into the wedding account.”
I stopped.
“And?”
“There are messages between him and Graham.”
My chest tightened.
“How much did Mason know?”
A long pause.
“Enough.”
We met that evening in a private lounge at the hotel.
Olivia showed me the messages.
Mason had known there was a trust.
Maybe not the whole history.
Maybe not Sofia.
But he knew money had been paid for my care.
He knew Graham had used part of those funds to help him with his first apartment and later business expenses.
One message was only a month old.
Mason:
Does Elise still think the trust ended years ago?
Graham:
She doesn’t ask about it.
Mason:
Good. Keep it that way until after the wedding.
I stared at the screen.
Olivia whispered, “I’m sorry.”
I looked at her.
“For what?”
“For marrying someone without asking enough questions about the way he treats people who can’t benefit him.”
“That isn’t your fault.”
“No.”
She swallowed.
“But what I do after knowing is.”
That sentence stayed with me.
The reception dinner was still scheduled for that evening.
The ceremony had already happened the day before.
Families had traveled.
Guests had come from across the country.
I assumed Olivia would cancel.
She didn’t.
“I need to say something,” she told me.
“You don’t owe anyone a public scene.”
“I know.”
“What are you planning?”
“The truth. Nothing more.”
Mason began dinner with a speech about family.
Of course he did.
Two hundred guests sat beneath chandeliers overlooking Boston Harbor while my brother thanked everyone for celebrating “love, loyalty, and new beginnings.”
I stood near the rear doors.
This time, not in black staff clothes.
Olivia had sent someone to my room with a dark blue dress.
No note.
Just the dress.
When Mason finished, Olivia stood.
“Before dessert, I need to correct something.”
The room quieted.
Mason smiled uncertainly.
“Liv?”
She looked toward me.
“Elise, would you come here?”
Every instinct trained into me since childhood told me to stay near the wall.
I walked forward anyway.
Diane’s face changed.
Graham leaned toward Mason.
Olivia turned toward the guests.
“Yesterday, some people here were told Elise Carter was assisting with the wedding because she preferred not to participate as family.”
She looked at Diane.
“That was not true.”
Nobody moved.
“Elise was intentionally excluded.”
Mason stood.
“Olivia, this is private.”
“No.”