The Bride They Rejected Owned Half Their Empire Chapter 01
I was mistaken for a fraud at my own wedding—and I made the groom regret every second of it.
Right there in front of all the guests, the groom lifted my bridal veil.
The moment he saw my face, he smashed his wine glass to the floor.
He said I was not the woman he was meant to marry.
Rage burned in his eyes.
“Who are you? The one I’m supposed to marry is Seraphina Voss—who do you think you are?”
“Guards! Drag this impostor out of here at once!”
Whispers spread through the crowded ballroom as every guest murmured among themselves.
I turned my gaze to Kael Harrington.
“Are you absolutely certain the woman you intend to marry is Seraphina?”
He let out a cold sneer.
“The marriage was arranged between the Harrington and Voss families. It’s written in black and white!”
“The formal betrothal papers clearly state the eldest daughter of the Voss household.”
“The Seraphina you’re so fixated on is only the second daughter.”
“What proof do any of your words actually hold?”
Kael fixed me with a sharp stare.
I picked up the prenuptial covenant from the table, flipped to the second page, and angled the document so he could read the words clearly.
“The phrase ‘eldest daughter of the Voss household’ was not written by me. It was drafted by your own Harrington family. Read it for yourself.”
He glanced down at the text.
His Adam’s apple bobbed, and he had no retort to offer.
The best man leaned over to peek at the paper, murmuring quietly.
“Kael… it really does say eldest Voss daughter.”
“Shut up.”
Kael slammed the covenant hard against the tabletop.
“Seraphina is the eldest daughter as far as our families are concerned. You waltz in pretending to be someone else, and now you hide behind literal wording to save face?”
I pulled an official document from the inner pocket of my bridal gown.
The embossed seal of the notary office glinted plainly on the paper.
“This is a certified abstract of the Voss family household register, notarized just three months ago.”
“Alden Voss’s eldest daughter is Elowen Voss, born March 1998. His second daughter is Seraphina Voss, born November 2000.”
I held the document out directly in front of him.
“I am the eldest. She is the younger one. Do you need me to count their birth order for you?”
A heavy silence hung over the grand ballroom for three full seconds.
A woman wearing a navy couture evening gown stood up from the main guest table.
Brianna Harrington grabbed her handbag, walked up to the stage, took the document, skimmed it over, then looked straight at me.
“Young lady, your name is Elowen?”
“Yes.”
“I could not care less if you’re Elowen or any other Voss.”
“This marriage arrangement was negotiated personally between me and Mrs. Voss, and we agreed the bride would be Seraphina.”
“You negotiated with my stepmother?”
“That is correct.”
“Did you ever confirm the details with my father?”
Brianna’s polite smile faded slightly.
“Your father granted your stepmother full authority to handle this matter on his behalf.”
“But my father’s private family seal is stamped on this betrothal contract.”
I nodded toward the page in her hand.
“One is merely a verbal promise. The other is a legally sealed official document.”
“You’ve been in the luxury real estate business for decades, Mrs. Harrington. I’m sure you know which one holds real legal weight.”
Brianna’s expression darkened with unease.
Kael shot his mother a glance, then pulled out his phone.
“I’ll call Uncle Alden right now and settle this once and for all.”
He dialed the number and put the call on speaker mode.
“Uncle Alden, it’s Kael. The eldest daughter named in the betrothal papers is Seraphina, isn’t she?”
A long silence stretched out from the other end of the line.
I tightened my grip on the notarized document in my hands.
“Kael,” my father’s voice came through the speaker, tired and worn.
“This marriage arrangement was always meant for Seraphina.”
Low murmurs and chatter broke out among the wedding guests.
A mocking smirk tugged at the corner of Kael’s lips.
My father kept speaking.
“Elowen grew up away from the family all these years and has never been close to us.”
“I have no idea why she showed up uninvited to this wedding. Pay her no mind, Kael. I’ll have her stepmother come collect her shortly.”
“You hear that?” Kael lowered his phone and stared down at me coldly.
“Your own father doesn’t back your ridiculous claim. What are you still doing here embarrassing yourself?”
A few guests snickered from the audience below the stage.
I ignored their mocking laughter.
I locked my gaze firmly onto Kael’s eyes.
“I heard every word my father said about the marriage being meant for Seraphina.”
“But he avoided answering one crucial question.”
“What question?”
“Why does the official contract state ‘eldest daughter of the Voss household’ instead of simply writing Seraphina Voss’s name?”
He paused for a moment, caught off guard.
“It was just a careless drafting error.”
“A legally sealed family contract with a careless mistake?”
I let out a quiet, cold laugh.
“Kael Harrington, you run a real estate empire. Would you ever sign a formal business contract with the wrong name printed on the signature line?”
He had no reply.
An awkward, heavy silence settled over the room.
The side entrance of the ballroom swung open.
A woman stepped inside, her eyes already glistening with feigned tears from a distance away.
It was my stepmother, Marigold Voss.
She hurried up to the stage and grabbed my wrist tightly.
“Elowen, darling, what on earth are you doing here? I’ve been searching everywhere for you.”
I pulled my arm free from her grasp at once.
Her eyes flickered with panic for a split second before she turned right back to Brianna and Kael, bowing repeatedly in apology.
“Mrs. Harrington, Kael, I offer my sincerest apologies for this terrible disruption.”
“Elowen hasn’t lived under our roof growing up, and she’s always been distant and unfamiliar with the family.”
“This entire mess is entirely my fault for not keeping a closer eye on her.”
Brianna’s stern expression softened a little.
Marigold turned back to face me again.
“Come along, Elowen. I’ll take you home. This is not your place to be.”
My gaze fell on the vintage emerald bangle wrapped around her wrist.
It was my birth mother’s most precious heirloom.
“Marigold.” I spoke her full name sharply.
Her brows twitched in alarm.
“Was writing ‘eldest Voss daughter’ on this contract my father’s genuine decision… or did you make that call behind his back?”
“That is your father’s private family matter. As merely a stepmother, I have no authority to interfere in such things.”
“You claim you had no involvement. But you explicitly told Mrs. Harrington the bride would be Seraphina.”
“Do you dare repeat that lie in front of this sealed betrothal contract?”
She parted her lips but could not utter a single word in response.
Brianna stepped forward to cut the tension short.
“That is quite enough now that Mrs. Voss has arrived. Take her away quietly.”
“The Harrington family will choose not to press any charges for today’s disruption.”
“Choose not to press charges?”
I folded my notarized documents away slowly, my tone calm and unrushed.
“Mrs. Harrington, have you read the seventh clause of the prenuptial covenant?”
Every pair of eyes in the room fixed onto me instantly.
I enunciated each word clearly and deliberately.
“The breaching party shall compensate the opposing family with thirty percent of their total asset value.”
Dead silence swallowed the entire ballroom in an instant.
Kael whipped his head around to stare in shock at the marriage covenant.
“Did you intentionally add this clause yourself? Or were you simply planning to ignore it entirely?”
