The Bride They Rejected Owned Half Their Empire Chapter 02
“You stand here talking to me about breach compensation payouts?”
Kael stared me down with a dark, furious expression.
I glanced at him briefly, then said nothing in reply.
There was no need for me to speak.
At least twenty of the prominent business guests in attendance were already whispering among themselves.
They knew full well just how massive the Harrington real estate portfolio truly was.
Thirty percent of its total market value would be enough to fund an entire new city development project from the ground up.
Brianna snatched the prenuptial covenant away and flipped straight to the seventh clause.
Her face drained of color inch by inch as she read the words.
“Did you write this clause into the contract?” Her voice turned shrill with panic.
“I am merely the intended bride. I would never have the authority to alter an official family betrothal agreement.”
I tilted my head slightly.
“This clause was written and sealed by both families at the very start of the negotiations.”
“If you wish to dispute its validity, you should ask which member of the Harrington family approved the final draft.”
Brianna turned to glance at a middle-aged man standing beside her.
He flipped through the contract papers quickly, speaking in a low murmur.
“This was drafted and formally signed by the late Mr. Graham Harrington during his negotiations with the Voss family. I was not part of the discussions back then.”
Mr. Graham Harrington—Kael’s late grandfather, the former patriarch of the Harrington estate.
Kael clenched his fist tightly, then slowly relaxed it again.
“Take her to the private lounge at the back of the ballroom.”
He did not look at me, his voice lowered to a cold, restrained tone.
“We will settle this matter properly once the wedding ceremony has concluded.”
Two security guards dressed in black suits stepped forward to escort me away.
I offered no resistance.
I knew fighting against the Harrington family on their own private estate would accomplish nothing.
I had already laid all my most critical cards on the table. All I needed now was time.
They led me to a quiet private lounge behind the grand ballroom.
The door was locked securely from the outside.
An unopened bottle of mineral water and a plate of untouched wedding favor candies sat on the table before me.
I unwrapped one piece of candy and popped it into my mouth.
It was cloyingly sweet, bitter lingering at the back of my throat.
My phone vibrated suddenly.
An incoming video call request popped up on the screen.
It was from Seraphina.
I hesitated for two seconds, then accepted the call.
On screen, Seraphina sat alone in her private suite, her hair loose over her shoulders, wearing a smug smile straight at the camera.
“Elowen, you must have had quite the exhausting ordeal today.”
“How does it feel being locked away in that quiet little room? Does it have proper air conditioning? Kael hates the cold, so the Harrington mansion always keeps the heating cranked high.”
“Did you call just to ask if I’m warm enough?”
“Of course not.” She tilted her head playfully.
“I wanted to tell you personally—I planned every single part of today’s wedding fiasco from the very beginning.”
I stayed silent, listening without reaction.
She continued her taunt without pause.
“Dad originally planned to write my name directly on the betrothal papers.”
“But Grandfather insisted on following the old family tradition and naming only the eldest daughter.”
“Dad had no choice but to write the official title instead of my given name.”
“But he promised Mom privately that I would still be the one walking down the aisle as the official bride.”
“And guess who suggested letting you take the bridal spot first, only to be publicly rejected by the Harringtons right here at the wedding?”
My throat tightened with suppressed anger.
She leaned closer to the camera, grinning wider and more arrogant than ever.
“That was all me.”
“Seraphina.”
“Don’t be mad at me, Elowen.” She waved her hand dismissively.
“You know Kael’s heart belongs only to me. Even if you cling to this betrothal paper and refuse to leave, he’ll never lay a finger on you.”
“You’d end up trapped alone in this massive Harrington mansion with no one to talk to. It would be no different from being placed under house arrest.”
“Why put yourself through that? Just sign the termination papers and step aside gracefully.”
“If you step aside for me, I’ll marry into the Harrington family, and everything will work out perfectly for everyone.”
“When you say step aside… are you asking me to give way to you, or are you demanding everything that belongs to me?”
“Obviously you step aside for me.” She said it like it was absolute, unquestionable fact.
“Elowen, you grew up far away from the Voss household your whole life.”
“All the Voss family resources, social connections, and business dealings have been managed entirely by me for years.”
“Marrying into the Harrington family is what I rightfully deserve.”
She lifted her left hand to brush her hair back casually.
The emerald bead strand heirloom glinted brightly on her wrist under the room lights.
I recognized it instantly.
It was one of my birth mother’s most precious hidden heirlooms.
Dad had once told me this emerald set was handed down to Mom by her own mother, with explicit instructions to pass it on to the eldest daughter of the next generation.
“Seraphina, that bead bracelet on your wrist belongs to my mother.”
She glanced down at the jewelry on her arm and laughed casually.
“This old thing? Dad gave it to me.”
“He said the Voss family has no true eldest daughter anymore—and I’m the one who counts as the oldest now.”
“Did he literally say there is no eldest daughter left in the family?”
“Yep.” She tilted her head again, her tone cold and triumphant.
“You stopped mattering to him a long time ago.”
“Aren’t you happy, Elowen? This is my little welcome gift to you.”
“Every last heirloom your mother left behind is now in my possession.”
“You’re welcome to go back to the Voss manor and search if you don’t believe me. There’s nothing left there for you at all.”
My hands trembled slightly with rage, but I did not end the video call.
“Seraphina… all those childhood stories you told Kael—are they your real life experiences… or mine?”
The proud smile on Seraphina’s face faltered for half a second.
“What exactly are you talking about?”
“I left the Voss family at age six to live with my grandmother in Coastal Haven Town.”
“You told Kael you spent your own childhood years living there too, didn’t you?”
She had no reply, falling silent instantly.
“You even showed him old childhood photos taken at the Coastal Haven harbor pier—two braided pigtails, a red sundress, standing right by the waterfront docks.”
“The little girl in those photos was me.”
Seraphina stayed quiet for two full seconds on the video call.
Then she laughed again, cold and unapologetic.
“Fine, those photos are yours. So what?”
“Kael fell in love with the story behind those memories—not your plain, ordinary face.”
“And now that story belongs entirely to me.”
“Elowen, even if you stand right in front of him holding this betrothal paper… do you think he’ll ever truly see you? Or only the fake version of me he’s already fallen for in his mind?”
