The Stolen Bridal Carriage

Everyone in this town knows that when a family gives a daughter away in marriage, the parents always have a grand bridal carriage custom-built for her, adorned with thousands of pearls. Every single pearl on that carriage must be personally harvested by her mother and father—the more pearls, the more cherished the daughter is, and the more her future husband will value her. My own bridal carriage was finished six years ago. But nineteen times now, my wedding date has been set, and each time, my younger foster sister, Lena Bennett, has found some excuse to stop it. This time, on the very morning of my wedding, she locked me in my room again. By the time I smashed through the window and stumbled into the banquet hall, bruised and bleeding, the ceremony was already underway. Lena was sitting in my carriage, led by my brother, Ryan Bennett, toward my fiancé, Nathan Sinclair. My parents stood by the side with tears in their eyes, pleading with Nathan to treat their daughter well. The moment my best friend, Megan Hayes, saw me, she blocked the entrance and pinned me down. "Yes," she confessed, "this whole bride-swap plan—we all came up with it together. Lena is seriously ill. Everyone just wants to grant her dying wish. Try to be understanding." Ryan hurried over and warned me, "Mom and Dad said that if you just behave this one time, not only will they give you ten times more wedding gifts later, but they'll also finally treat you and Lena exactly the same from now on. If not, don't expect to stay in our family estate." I clenched my fists and refused to let a single tear fall in front of them. What they don't know was that over the years, my adoptive parents, Daniel and Susan Ward, had already quietly prepared wedding gifts worth hundreds of thousands for me. So, whatever love and belonging my biological family promised? I don't want it anymore. Chapter 1 I stared at the diagnosis my brother had just shoved into my hands. The hospital's name was smudged past reading, and the corner bore a crooked, obviously forged stamp. How many times was this now, Lena getting sick? Stomach cancer last year. Bone cancer the year before that. Before that, it had been heart disease, leukemia, and depression. Even I could tell it was fake at a glance. I refused to believe our parents couldn't see it too. The drums and instruments of celebration rattled through the banquet hall, stabbing straight through my eardrums and into my chest. Megan Hayes stood beside me in the pale pink bridesmaid's dress I'd picked out for her with my own hands. Her voice was clipped with impatience. "Take my advice and don't make a scene. You're from a small town, remember—marrying Nathan was already reaching above your station. If you humiliate him in front of everyone, don't be surprised when he really doesn't want you anymore." She glanced past me, into the hall. "And it's not like we were hiding it from you on purpose. You're just too petty, always acting like the whole world owes you something. Honestly? Nathan and Lena look good together." I stared at her, my throat scalded shut as if someone had poured molten lead down it. I couldn't get a single word out. She'd been my only friend since I'd moved to this city. Years ago, when the other students had ganged up on her, I was the one who'd stood between them and her. We'd been inseparable all four years of college. Just days ago, trying on my wedding dress, she'd thrown her arms around me, laughing. "Back home, they say an unmarried girl only gets to stand as a bridesmaid once in her life. Hazel, I have to be the one standing up there with you. I want to see your happiness with my own eyes." Now she stood on the other side of it from me. The noise from the hall swelled louder. "Nathan, if you ever dare mistreat my darling Lena, I don't care how old I am, I'll come after you myself." That was my grandmother—the one who'd always doted on me. "Landing a girl as wonderful as Lena, Nathan's going to spoil her rotten. The rest of us can only be jealous." That was one of Nathan's friends, the same one who'd been so friendly to me just last night. Every blessing landed on me like a blade. My brother could see I wasn't ready to give this up. He frowned and caught my arm. "Don't go in there and embarrass yourself. I'll tell you straight—this wedding was Nathan's idea from the start." A shudder ran through me, and a ringing filled my ears, drowning out everything else. "Hazel, I like you. Be with me." Back then, nobody believed the proud, unreachable Nathan Sinclair would actually sit quietly in the library for three straight years, just to be near me. Or that he'd be the one to drop to one knee in front of me the tenth time my own parents forgot my birthday. "Hazel, I'll marry you on your birthday. That way, everyone will have to celebrate you, whether they mean to or not. You deserve the best this world has to offer." I looked down at the ring on my finger, the diamond scattering little shards of light that made my eyes sting. Today was my birthday. I peeled my brother's fingers off my arm and stepped into the banquet hall. Chapter 2 Nathan and Lena stood face to face, their expressions solemn. They were about to exchange their marriage vows. Our parents' eyes went red with joy. Nathan bent down and pressed a kiss to Lena's forehead. I suddenly remembered, years and years ago, Nathan holding my hand as we stood in front of the Sea Mother's shrine by the water. "When we get married, I want to ask God to let me live exactly one day less than you. That way, when we're old, I'll never have to watch you leave me first." His eyes had been full of tears back then, like he really would love me for the rest of his life. The hall fell silent all at once. Every pair of eyes swung toward me, and the whole room sucked in a breath. They looked away in a hurry, none of them daring to meet my gaze. Nathan's face changed. He pulled Lena behind him without even thinking about it. "Hazel, if you're angry, take it out on me. It was my idea to keep you locked up—I insisted on giving Lena a wedding. Don't take it out on her. She's done nothing wrong." My parents rushed over and each grabbed one of my arms, as if terrified I might hurt her. My father's face was hard as he warned me. "Today is a happy day. Don't you dare cause trouble. Lena's health can't take the shock." My mother's voice was pure pleading. "Hazel, do it for me. After everything we've done for you all these years, just listen to me this once. Please?" My mouth felt glued shut; even opening it took effort. "So all that kindness you showed me was just so I'd fold at a moment like this?" I was the one who was actually their birth daughter. But because I'd only been found and brought home later, they'd always kept a little distance between us. All these years, whenever they bought something, they asked Lena first, what she liked, then handed me the same thing as an afterthought. Whenever we ate out, the whole table was covered in Lena's favorite dishes. Nobody ever remembered that I was allergic to seafood. It was like I was some distant relative boarding in their house, owed nothing but the bare minimum of duty. Ryan's brow furrowed. "Lena's this sick and you're still keeping score? Hazel, do you have any idea how unlikable you look right now? No wonder nobody likes you." My chest clenched hard. I glared at him, my eyes burning. "Save that story for someone who'll believe it. Since I came home, how many times has she been sick? Can any of you even count that high anymore? Want me to take her to the hospital right now and find out if she's actually sick at all?" My mother's expression froze. "And whose fault is that? If you hadn't come back, trying to take everything away from Lena, why would she be so insecure? We should never have let you come back in the first place." The last thing holding me up inside gave way. Had my mother forgotten? It wasn't me who'd begged and clawed my way into ruining their family. Ten years ago, my parents had tracked down my adoptive parents. They'd clung to me, sobbing so hard they could barely speak. "Hazel, sweetheart, we've been looking for you for fifteen years. Come home with us. We can't lose you again." Now I tipped my head back, holding my tears in, and looked at them, stubborn to the last. "If you'd told me from the start that you already had a new daughter—if you'd told me you didn't want me anymore—I would never have come home at all!" Chapter 3 The crack of the slap sent my face snapping to one side, and a stinging heat spread fast across my cheek. I stared at Lena in disbelief. She struck a righteous pose. "Hazel, you can bully me all you like in private, but how could you talk to Mom and Dad like that?" My parents still had my hands pinned. I didn't even have the chance to dodge. The second slap landed just as hard as the first. "That one was for Nathan. How could you humiliate him in front of all these people, with no regard for his reputation at all?" My cheek throbbed until it went numb, but the sting wasn't what got to me—it was how absurd the whole thing felt. I wrenched myself free of my parents' grip. Before I could even find my footing, Nathan's mother stormed over, her face twisted with disgust. "Enough! Do you know what kind of occasion this is? You had to make a scene like this, with absolutely no sense of restraint. As if you were ever good enough to marry into the Sinclairs." The moment she turned to Lena, her whole expression melted into a smile. "Lena's the sensible one. This is exactly what a daughter-in-law should be. My son is lucky beyond words that he gets to marry you. You're worth a hundred of those countryside girls." Nathan looked embarrassed. He shot me an unhappy look. "See? It's exactly because you never know how to behave that my mother's never satisfied with you." I stared at him, my throat tightening. It wasn't hard to guess why—every single time his mother had gone after me, he'd chosen to say nothing. He'd never once stood firmly on my side, which was exactly why his mother felt free to look down on me. She knew that no matter how far she pushed, Nathan would never back me up. The murmurs around us grew louder. Embarrassed, Nathan lowered his voice. "Hazel, go on home for now. Just a month." He reached for my hand. "In a month, you'll still be my wife." I didn't answer. My gaze slid past everyone and landed on the bridal carriage sitting in the corner. Pearls studded every inch of it, catching the light in a soft glow. Nobody knew that while our parents had spent all their time nursing Lena through one fake illness after another, every single one of those pearls—normally something an elder in the family dove for by hand—had been gathered by me, one trip after another, into the ocean, myself. I stared at that carriage, my voice coming out rough. "And the carriage?" My father frowned. "We'll have another one made for you later. This one goes to Lena for now." My mother sounded impatient. "Lena's real parents are no longer here. It's sad enough that she has no family to dive for pearls on her behalf. What's the harm in letting her have the carriage?" Give it up. Again. All these years, how much had I already given up for her? The recommendation slot at school—given to her. The promotion at the company—given to her. My parents' love, my brother's favoritism—given to her. And now, even my husband. My nails dug hard into my palms. "No. This carriage is mine. I built it myself, and I'm taking it with me." Ryan grabbed for my arm. "Hazel, stop being unreasonable! It's bad luck for a Bennett daughter to marry without a bridal carriage—she'll live in poverty her whole life! How can you be so selfish, so vicious? "There are so many people watching. Don't embarrass our family any further." I bit down hard enough to taste blood, the coppery tang spreading slowly across my tongue. I spoke, each word deliberate. "Fine. But then I'll tell God the truth, too. That you lied to her." The moment I said it, every face in the room changed. Nobody here would dare deceive God. Ryan panicked. He kicked out at me, hard, trying to stop me before I could move. My head cracked against the corner of a table, and the world tilted into a dizzy blur. Before I could get back up, he'd already snatched a torch from beside him and hurled it straight at the carriage. The flames roared to life instantly, pearls popping and cracking one after another as they burned. Ryan sneered through gritted teeth. "No evidence left now. Let's see you go crying to anyone." The firelight lit up every face in the room. Not one person moved to help. My parents shot me a cold glance, then turned and hurried Lena away from the flames. Nathan looked thoroughly irritated. "I told you—this was just supposed to be a wedding for your sister, to make up for what she's missed out on. I'm still registering our marriage in a month. What more do you want? "You made this mess. You clean it up yourself. "Go home and apologize to Lena. Otherwise, don't even think about marrying into the Sinclairs." With that, he led Lena off to the banquet hall next door. The wooden carriage burned fast. Ten years of swallowed grievances and compromises burned right along with it, gone for good. He'd been wrong about one thing. I was never a woman who had no choice but Nathan Sinclair. My phone buzzed. The second I picked up, an anxious voice came through before I could even say hello. "Sweetheart, are they giving you a hard time?" Every ounce of grief I'd swallowed down came rushing up at once. Tears spilled over. "Dad. Mom. I want to come home." A crash of noise came from the other end, like a chair had been knocked over. "Don't cry, sweetheart! We're coming to get you right now!" Chapter 4 I clutched the handful of pearls I'd salvaged from the fire, utterly disheveled. I pushed the front door open to a house already buzzing with noise. A table stood in the middle of the room. My parents had brought in a group of family elders to add Lena's name to the family Bible. I'd been back with the Bennetts for ten years. Forget the family Bible—I hadn't even gotten my adoption paperwork sorted out yet. Every time I asked, my parents had some excuse ready. Today the Sea Mother hadn't given her blessing. Tomorrow the date was inauspicious. Just wait a little longer. That "little longer" had turned into a full ten years. The moment they saw me, my parents' eyes darted away. "Lena just got married. It wouldn't look right if she weren't in the family Bible yet. Once she's better, we'll get you added too." "Don't bother." The whole hall went quiet. I reached up and pulled off the gold locket I never took off—the one my parents had given me, faces full of guilt, the day they'd first gotten me back. For ten years, I'd looked at it whenever I was sad, whenever I felt wronged, and told myself it was proof they loved me. It wasn't until today that I finally understood. Love never needed proof to begin with. The same way everyone in this house had been perfectly willing to play along with Lena's little act, pretending right along with her that she was sick. "The carriage, I don't want. The family Bible, I don't want. This locket—I don't want that either. "None of it. I don't want any of it." My father's face went dark. "Are you doing this out of spite? Think carefully, Hazel. Once you hand it over, there's no taking it back." "It was never mine to begin with," I said, my voice level. "And I'm leaving this house." Nathan pressed down hard on my shoulder. "Hazel, stop making a scene. I can't take you home with me yet—not until my mother's calmed down. Go apologize to her properly, and we'll figure out the rest after that." Ryan let out a scoff, like he'd just heard something funny. "Hear that? Nobody wants you. "That's enough. Stop this. Where exactly do you think you're going if you leave us?" Lena blinked, all innocence. "If Hazel doesn't want it, can I have it?" Ryan didn't hesitate. He fastened the locket around her neck himself. "Of course you can. She never deserved it anyway. As far as I'm concerned, you're the only sister I have." If I'd heard that even a year ago, I probably would have cried myself sick over it. But I'd heard it so many times by now that it didn't stir up so much as a ripple. I turned and walked toward the door. Behind me, my father's voice rose, deliberately loud. "Nathan, you make sure you treat Lena right from now on. Give her a child soon. Lena deserves the best this world has to offer. You take care of her, for the rest of her life." Ryan laughed even louder. "I've got exactly one precious sister. If you ever wrong Lena, I'll be the first one coming for you. As for Hazel—guess she just wasn't lucky enough for that in this life." Their words hit me one after another, like needles driven straight into my ears. My steps faltered, but I didn't look back. I walked straight out through the Bennetts' front gate. Today was my birthday. It should have been the most important day of my life. Instead, all I had left were a few scorched pearls in my hand, pressing sharp little dents into my palm. I didn't hesitate. I raised my hand to toss them into the trash. Then, out of nowhere, two pairs of warm, familiar hands closed gently around mine.