Chapter 1: The Impossible Photograph
Elena’s fingers trembled so violently she could barely hold the golden locket. Inside, tucked behind a thin pane of glass, was a photograph.
It was not an old, faded portrait. It was a fresh polaroid.
In the picture, her mother looked older. Her vibrant auburn hair was entirely gray. She was sitting in a sterile room, looking directly at the camera. But the most terrifying part was what she was holding in her hands. A copy of yesterday’s local newspaper.
Elena stopped breathing. The air in the bridal suite turned to ice.
"My father told me she died in a car crash ten years ago," Elena whispered, her voice barely a breath. "I went to her funeral. I saw the closed casket."
She slowly lowered the locket and looked at Lily, the seven-year-old flower girl. "Where did you see her, Lily?" Elena pleaded. "Tell me exactly where she is."
May you like
Lily pointed a small, shaking finger toward the massive window overlooking the sprawling estate. "She's in the basement of the east wing," the little girl whispered. "She threw the necklace out of a tiny window when I was playing in the garden. She said to tell you the crash was a lie."
Marcus, the groom, went completely still. The east wing. A restricted, heavily guarded area of the estate owned by Elena's father, currently hosting the three-hundred-guest wedding.
