Chapter 8 - The Wedding Invitation
Claire wanted law enforcement involved immediately.
Maren agreed.
This was no longer about being polite.
A deputy accompanied them to Mercer House with the custody order.
By the time they arrived, the wedding had begun.
Nearly eighty guests sat on white chairs overlooking the ocean.
Music floated through the gardens.
Celestine walked down the aisle as though nothing had happened.
Elodie stood several feet away holding a basket of white petals.
Maren saw her daughter first.
Everything else disappeared.
Elodie looked beautiful.
And terrified.
The child spotted Maren beyond the chairs.
Her eyes widened.
“Mommy.”
Celestine heard her.
The smile on her face vanished.
Victor followed her gaze.
He went pale.
The officiant stopped speaking.
Maren entered the ceremony with Claire and Deputy Morris behind her.
Guests began whispering.
Celestine stepped away from Victor.
“You.”
Maren didn’t raise her voice.
“I’m here for Elodie.”
“This is my wedding.”
“I know.”
“You couldn’t stand to let me have one day.”
Maren almost couldn’t believe it.
“One day?”
She stepped closer.
“You took eighteen months of my daughter’s life.”
Celestine looked toward the deputy.
“What is this?”
Deputy Morris held up the order.
“Ms. Mercer, the permanent guardianship has been suspended. Elodie is being returned to her mother.”
Celestine laughed.
“No.”
The deputy remained calm.
“This is a court order.”
“I said no.”
Guests shifted uncomfortably.
Grant Mercer stood from the front row.
“Celestine.”
She snapped toward him.
“Sit down.”
Grant didn’t.
“I know about Adrian’s amendment.”
Celestine’s face changed.
Victor whispered:
“Celestine, don’t.”
She turned on him.
“You told them?”
“No.”
“Then who?”
Grant stepped forward.
“I kept a copy.”
Celestine stared at her father as though he had stabbed her.
“You pathetic old man.”
A gasp moved through the guests.
Maren saw Elodie flinch again.
She immediately crouched.
“Elodie, come here, baby.”
Elodie took one step.
Celestine grabbed her shoulder.
The deputy moved.
“Take your hand off the child.”
Celestine released Elodie.
For one hopeful second, Maren thought it was over.
Then Celestine saw the blue envelope in Maren’s hand.
Adrian’s letter.
Her eyes locked onto it.
“What’s that?”
Maren stood.
“Something Adrian wanted me to have.”
Victor whispered a curse.
Celestine heard him.
She looked from Victor to Maren.
Then she suddenly crossed the distance between them.
Maren reached for Elodie.
Celestine slapped her hand away.
Then—
SLAP.
Her palm cracked across Maren’s face.
Guests screamed.
Maren stumbled sideways.
Celestine yanked Elodie toward her.
“You aren’t her mother anymore!”
Elodie began crying.
Maren regained her balance instantly.
She knocked Celestine’s hand away from Elodie.
“Just try touching my child again.”
Something inside Celestine broke.
She seized Elodie and ran.
Not toward the house.
Toward the coastal path.
“CELESTINE!”
Maren ran after her.
The deputy followed.
Grant shouted for the guests to stay back.
But Celestine knew the estate better than anyone.
She cut through the hedges and onto the narrow grassy path behind the gardens.
Toward the cliffs.
Maren’s fear became terror.
“Elodie!”
“Mommy!”
Celestine dragged the crying little girl faster.
“Stop!”
Then the path widened.
The ocean appeared.
And beyond Celestine was nothing but sky.
She had reached the edge.
Maren slowed.
Celestine lifted Elodie.
And suddenly Maren understood Victor’s warning.
Celestine did not lose well.
She would rather destroy the thing everyone was fighting over than watch Maren take it from her.
“Let her go!” Maren screamed.
Celestine lifted Elodie out over the precipice.
Maren froze.
And behind her, the deputy reached instinctively toward his radio.
Celestine screamed:
May you like
“NOBODY MOVES!”
👉 The wedding guests had just watched Celestine’s perfect image collapse—but at the cliff, Maren realized exposing the truth might cost her the one person she had fought to save.
