From Gold-Digger to Queen

ts and the hundreds of guests mingling on the perfectly manicured lawn. Every head turned as she stepped out of the car, a solitary

left at the altar." "Did you hear? His childhood sweetheart tried to kill herself." And underneath the pity,

ubbed, presenting her as a talented but struggling architect from a humble background. Liam had insisted on it. He said it made

identity. The guests' cruel words, their condescending looks, they were all a consequence of her

its existence was a carefully guarded secret. Her family wasn't just wealthy; they were custodians of history, a clandestine organization with

she was going to marry Liam Maxwell. It was in their ancestral home, a plac

Robert Hayes was a man of quiet authority, his eyes holding the weight of generati

gued, blinded by love. "He' s bril

eyes. "Love should not require you to become smaller, m

. It was the price of his love. He had been so convincing, so charming in his manipulation. He' d told her it was for their safety, to protect them from the

of the calls she never returned, of the letters she never opened, was a fresh agony. In her past l

irst act of freedom would

pocket sewn into the layers of her wedding dress. She pulled out a small, antique silver locket. It looked like a simple piece of je

she pressed a hidden catch. A soft,

crackling with static that could not mask the years

silent. "Mom," she whispered, her vo

My dear child. We were so worried. We tried to reach you.

ring out of her. "I was a fool. You were right. Yo

voice was firm, the relief turning to resolve. "Wh

voice in the background, a lo

tears. "Liam isn' t here. He left to be with Olivia Chen.

lled with a protective anger. "We saw the news reports about that woman. We'

e had told her they were trying to sabotage their happiness. She had believed him. She remembered their faces in her past li

t I need you. I' m done with this lif

or argument. "Stay where you are. We will handle everything. Y

r, a feeling of coming home. She was no longer alone. She was not the weak, abandoned woman the world saw. She was Ava Hayes, and her