Chapter 2 - The Secret Behind the Ballroom
My father stepped between Vanessa and me.
"What exactly are you talking about?"
Vanessa looked at Brittany.
For the first time that evening, neither woman seemed certain of herself.
Brittany wiped her face.
"Mom, don't."
Vanessa ignored her.
"Richard, we need to discuss this privately."
"No."
Dad's answer came immediately.
"Whatever concerns Emily will be discussed in front of Emily."
I almost cried again.
It had been years since he had said something like that.
Vanessa folded her arms.
"You're making a mistake."
"Then tell me what it is."
She opened her mouth.
Closed it.
Then looked toward the charred dresses.
"Those gowns were part of a very important evening."
Dad frowned.
"I know about the charity reception."
"You don't know everything."
My stomach tightened.
Westbridge Academy held two events that night.
The student winter formal would take place in the east ballroom.
The adult charity reception would be held in the west ballroom.
Both events helped fund scholarships.
My father was one of the largest donors.
Vanessa chaired the organizing committee.
I had always assumed the evening was about supporting students who couldn't afford tuition.
Now her words sounded different.
Dad took out his phone.
"I'm calling the school."
Vanessa lunged for his arm.
"Don't!"
He looked down at her hand.
She released him.
"Richard, please. We can explain everything after tonight."
"No more delays."
He called the academy's headmistress.
"Margaret? It's Richard Bennett."
He paused.
"Has something been arranged concerning Emily tonight?"
My heart began pounding.
I watched his expression change.
Confusion.
Then disbelief.
Then anger.
"What scholarship announcement?"
Vanessa turned pale.
Dad listened for another moment.
"Thank you. We'll discuss this in person."
He ended the call.
I could barely breathe.
"Dad?"
He looked at Vanessa.
"Apparently, my daughter has agreed to transfer schools."
I stared at him.
"What?"
Vanessa spoke quickly.
"It's an excellent opportunity."
Dad's voice hardened.
"Margaret says Emily is being introduced tonight as the first student selected for a residential arts program in Switzerland."
I shook my head.
"I never applied for anything."
"Of course you didn't," Vanessa replied. "I handled the paperwork."
My entire body went cold.
Switzerland?
A residential school?
Thousands of miles away?
"Why would you send me away?"
Vanessa sighed.
"Because you need structure. You spend far too much time living in the past."
I stared at the woman who had once promised to love me.
"You were going to send me away without telling me?"
"Don't be dramatic."
"Without asking me?"
Brittany rolled her eyes.
"It's a fancy school, Emily. You should be grateful."
Dad stepped forward.
"Who authorized this?"
Vanessa hesitated.
Then she lifted her chin.
"I did."
"Under whose signature?"
Another silence.
Dad looked at me.
"Emily, did you sign any documents?"
I shook my head.
"No."
He turned back to Vanessa.
"Then somebody forged her signature."
Vanessa's expression changed.
"That's a very serious accusation."
"Yes, it is."
Dad reached for my shoulder.
"And we're going to find out exactly what happened."
Suddenly Brittany started crying.
"Mom, tell him!"
Vanessa snapped toward her.
"Be quiet."
But Brittany wouldn't stop.
"You said he already agreed!"
The words hung in the air.
Dad stared at his wife.
"You told our daughter I agreed?"
Vanessa's face turned red.
"She's upset."
Brittany shook her head.
"You said once Emily left, everything would finally belong to us!"
My heart seemed to stop.
Everything.
What did she mean by everything?
Vanessa grabbed Brittany's arm.
"Go to your room."
"No," Dad said.
His voice echoed through the dressing room.
"Nobody leaves until I understand what's happening."
At that moment, the doorbell rang downstairs.
Then we heard our housekeeper, Mrs. Collins.
"Mr. Bennett? There's a gentleman here to see you."
Dad looked toward the door.
"Who?"
"A lawyer, sir."
Vanessa closed her eyes.
Dad's expression sharpened.
"Send him into the library."
He turned toward me.
"Emily, come with me."
I glanced down at my ruined dress.
The blackened fabric still lay inside the metal container.
My beautiful evening had turned into a nightmare.
"I can't go to the dance now."
Dad looked at me with unbearable sadness.
"Sweetheart, I'm sorry."
I tried to smile.
"It's okay."
But it wasn't.
I had spent four years watching Brittany receive everything she wanted.
Private shopping trips.
Birthday vacations.
New jewelry.
Designer clothes.
Whenever I asked for anything, Vanessa called me spoiled.
Tonight had been the one thing I wanted.
And now even that was gone.
Dad knelt in front of me.
"Look at me."
I raised my eyes.
"Your dress can be replaced."
He brushed a tear from my cheek.
"But I can never replace the years I failed to protect you."
My chest tightened.
"Dad..."
"I should have listened."
Behind us, Vanessa made a disgusted sound.
"Oh, for heaven's sake."
Dad stood.
"One more word about my daughter, Vanessa, and this conversation ends very differently."
We walked downstairs together.
For once, he kept his arm around my shoulders.
In the library, a gray-haired man stood beside the fireplace.
He carried a leather briefcase.
Dad stopped.
"Thomas?"
The man turned.
"Richard."
I recognized him immediately.
Thomas Whitaker had been my mother's attorney.
He had handled her estate after she died.
I hadn't seen him in six years.
He looked at me, and his expression softened.
"Emily. You've grown so much."
I managed a weak smile.
"Hello, Mr. Whitaker."
He glanced toward Vanessa, who had followed us.
Then his expression darkened.
"I came because something extremely troubling happened this morning."
Dad approached him.
"What happened?"
Thomas opened his briefcase.
He removed a sealed envelope and placed it on the desk.
"Someone attempted to obtain control of the trust your late wife established for Emily."
I stared at him.
Trust?
My mother had left me something?
Vanessa began speaking.
"Thomas, perhaps we should discuss—"
He interrupted her.
"I received a document bearing Emily's signature."
He looked directly at me.
"It authorized transferring control of her inheritance to a newly appointed guardian."
My hands began trembling.
"I didn't sign anything."
"I suspected that."
Thomas turned toward Dad.
"And there is another problem."
He placed a photograph on the desk.
It showed Vanessa standing outside a law office with a man I had never seen.
Dad picked it up.
"Who is he?"
Thomas answered quietly.
"His name is Daniel Mercer."
Vanessa suddenly backed toward the door.
Thomas continued.
"He's the attorney representing the company that has been trying to purchase your late wife's property."
Dad frowned.
"What property?"
Thomas looked at me.
"The property your mother left entirely to Emily."
I swallowed.
"What property?"
He took a deep breath.
"Your mother owned the land beneath Westbridge Academy."
The room went silent.
Then Thomas said something that changed everything.
"And if Vanessa succeeds in removing you from the country before your eighteenth birthday, she may have enough time to challenge control of that inheritance."
I looked at my stepmother.
She wasn't smiling anymore.
For the first time, I understood.
May you like
She hadn't destroyed my dress because she hated seeing me happy.
She had destroyed it because she needed me gone.
