The remnants of blood and spilled wine on my face felt like a cruel reminder of my humiliation, a brand that marked me as unworthy. The beautiful gown I had carefully selected for the wedding was now nothing but a tattered mess, stained and unrecognizable. A wave of bitterness washed over me as I thought about it.
This dress was the most expensive piece of clothing I would ever wear. I had touched it countless time, feeling the soft fabric on my finger. I wrapped it and store it with full of care before the wedding, admiring its perfection and brilliance. I had waited so long for this day, dreaming of wearing it, envisioning myself walking down the aisle to marry Shawn, looking as brilliant as the Swarovskis adorning it—on what was supposed to be the happiest day of my life with the man I had secretly loved for years.
Six months ago, my whole life changed. Leta, the only daughter of the Larsen had been diagnosed with aplastic anemia. When her parents tried to give her their blood, they were dumbfounded to discover that their blood types didn’t match. A frantic search led them to my mother—my fake mother to be precise, the longtime housekeeper of the Larsens. In a moment of misguided compassion, she had switched me and Leta as infants, raising me as her own while keeping the truth hidden.
Unable to bear the thought of parting with her biological daughter, she became the maid of the Larsens for years. One reason was to earn a living and the other was to watch as her real daughter grew up. When the truth came out, she took her own life, drowning herself in the river near the Larsens' estate, leaving behind only a letter. I read that letter. It spanned two pages long and didn’t mention my name even once.
As soon as the truth came to light, the impact was too much for Leta to handle and she fell into a deep depression. In that moment of desperation, my biological father made a hasty decision: he swapped the marriage alliance with the Donovans, shifting it from Leta to me. He believed I was the better choice—healthy, resilient and equipped with a strong psychological constitution that made me well-suited for public appearances. Leta, in contrast, was fragile, better suited for the comforts of home and the role of a dutiful daughter.
Without a second thought, I agreed to the arrangement.