CHAPTER 3 — The Purse Nobody Wanted Opened
Amanda's face drained of every trace of color.
The tiny metallic sound had been so faint that most guests ignored it.
But not Detective Harris.
His eyes dropped to the silver evening purse clutched against Amanda's chest.
"What was that?" he asked calmly.
Amanda forced a smile that looked painfully unnatural.
"My... my makeup."
The detective didn't respond.
Instead, he watched her hands.
They were trembling.
Not slightly.
Violently.
A whisper swept through the ballroom.
"Why is she nervous?"
"I thought Vivienne was the suspect."
"Did you hear that noise?"
"I think it came from Amanda's purse..."
The mood shifted almost instantly.
For the first time all evening...
The suspicion wasn't aimed at me.
Chloe noticed it too.
She spun toward the guests.
"Stop it!"
"My cousin would never steal from me."
"You're all letting this woman distract you."
She pointed at me again.
"She's manipulating everyone."
I didn't answer.
I simply stood beside Victoria, one hand resting protectively over my baby.
There was no need to defend myself anymore.
The truth had begun defending me.
Detective Harris walked toward Amanda with measured steps.
"Ma'am."
"I'm going to ask you a simple question."
Amanda nodded too quickly.
"Of course."
"Will you voluntarily allow us to examine your purse?"
For one long second...
No one breathed.
Amanda's lips parted.
Closed.
Then she laughed.
A high, strained laugh.
"Seriously?"
"You think I stole my own cousin's wedding ring?"
"No."
The detective replied evenly.
"I think you're refusing to answer a simple question."
Amanda looked desperately toward Chloe.
"Say something."
Chloe immediately stepped between them.
"This is ridiculous."
"You can't search my family."
Detective Harris remained calm.
"I haven't searched anyone."
"I asked for consent."
"There is a difference."
Eleanor marched forward, furious.
"This is harassment."
"You should be searching the real thief."
Victoria folded her hands.
"Interesting."
Eleanor glared at her.
"What?"
Victoria's voice remained soft.
"When the accused was your daughter-in-law..."
"You believed searches were perfectly acceptable."
"But now that it's your niece..."
"Suddenly you're concerned about people's rights."
Several guests exchanged uncomfortable looks.
One elderly man quietly murmured,
"She has a point."
Another nodded.
"A very good point."
Across the ballroom...
Dominic looked sick.
He glanced at me.
Then at Amanda.
Then back at me.
For the first time since we'd arrived...
Doubt appeared in his eyes.
Not about me.
About everything else.
Amanda swallowed hard.
"I..."
"I don't have to prove anything."
Detective Harris nodded.
"You're correct."
"You don't."
He stepped back.
"But until we recover the missing ring..."
"No one leaves."
Amanda's breathing became faster.
Much faster.
Victoria turned toward the wedding planner.
"Has the surveillance footage been secured?"
"Yes."
"And copied?"
"Yes."
"No one has accessed or edited the files."
The planner nodded immediately.
"Our security manager locked the system the moment your office called."
Chloe frowned.
"What office?"
Victoria met her eyes.
"Hawthorne Estates Corporate Security."
"The same department responsible for protecting every property owned by the Ashcroft Group."
The name echoed through the ballroom.
Ashcroft.
Again.
Guests began pulling out their phones.
Not to record.
To search.
Within seconds...
Expressions changed.
One woman covered her mouth.
"Oh my God..."
Her husband looked over her shoulder.
"That's impossible."
"What?"
"The Ashcroft Group..."
He stared at his screen.
"...owns luxury hotels."
"Commercial towers."
"Private hospitals."
"Half the downtown waterfront..."
Another guest whispered,
"They're worth billions."
Someone slowly turned toward me.
"Vivienne..."
"...is an Ashcroft?"
I lowered my eyes.
I had spent years hiding my last name.
Not because I was ashamed.
Because I wanted one relationship in my life that existed without money.
Without influence.
Without people treating me differently.
I thought Dominic loved me for me.
Maybe he did.
Once.
But he had never loved me enough to stand beside me when it mattered.
Detective Harris' radio crackled.
He listened briefly before nodding.
"The surveillance team has located something."
Every head turned toward him.
"What did they find?" Chloe demanded.
The detective looked toward the security office.
"They're reviewing footage from the bridal suite."
Amanda's knees almost buckled.
I noticed.
Victoria noticed.
The attorney noticed.
Even Dominic noticed.
"That's impossible."
Amanda whispered.
No one had asked her anything.
The detective looked directly at her.
"What is?"
Amanda froze.
"I..."
"I mean..."
"No one could have seen anything."
Silence.
Detective Harris tilted his head.
"Seen what?"
Amanda couldn't answer.
She had trapped herself.
Chloe rushed to her cousin's side.
"She's nervous because you're accusing her."
"Anyone would be nervous."
The detective nodded.
"Perhaps."
He paused.
"Or perhaps she's nervous for another reason."
Just then...
One of the venue's security supervisors hurried into the ballroom carrying a tablet.
He walked directly to Victoria.
"Ma'am."
"We found an important sequence."
Victoria glanced at the screen.
Her expression didn't change.
But she handed the tablet to Detective Harris.
The detective watched silently.
Ten seconds.
Twenty.
Thirty.
Then he looked up.
His eyes settled on Amanda.
"Interesting."
Chloe stepped forward.
"What does it show?"
"I'm afraid I'll need everyone involved to watch it together."
Amanda suddenly took one step backward.
Then another.
Her breathing became frantic.
"No..."
She whispered.
"No..."
Without warning...
She turned and ran.
The ballroom erupted in screams.
Guests jumped aside as Amanda sprinted toward the side exit, clutching the silver purse against her chest.
"Stop her!"
Detective Harris shouted.
Two officers took off immediately.
Amanda kicked off her high heels and raced down the marble hallway.
The purse slipped from her grasp—
She caught it.
Kept running.
One officer nearly reached her.
Amanda shoved a catering cart into his path.
Silver trays crashed across the floor.
Champagne glasses exploded into hundreds of glittering pieces.
The entire hallway filled with shouting.
She made it another twenty feet.
Then—
One of the black-suited corporate security officers stepped into her path.
He didn't tackle her.
Didn't grab her.
He simply moved once.
Fast.
Precise.
Amanda collided with him and stumbled backward.
The silver purse flew from her hands.
It hit the marble floor.
The clasp burst open.
Lipstick.
Perfume.
A compact mirror.
A silk handkerchief.
Everything spilled across the hallway.
And then...
Something else rolled slowly across the polished marble.
A diamond ring.
The ballroom fell completely silent.
No one moved.
No one breathed.
The enormous center diamond caught the light from the crystal chandeliers, scattering tiny rainbows across the floor.
Chloe stared at it.
Amanda stared at it.
Then Amanda closed her eyes.
May you like
As though she already knew...
Her life had just ended.
