Chapter 3
The flashing red and blue lights of police cruisers painted erratic geometric patterns across the white floral arches and the crystal chandelier overhead. The ambient chatter of the wedding guests dissolved into a panic of shifting chairs and nervous murmurs. Maya’s breath hitched in her throat as two uniformed police officers strode purposefully down the central aisle, bypassing Julian without a glance, their eyes locked entirely on the bride standing beneath the altar.
Marcus stepped back from Maya, letting the manila folder slip from his fingers to scatter across the floor. The distance he created between them felt wider than the entire length of the hall.
"Officer, there must be some mistake," Maya’s mother cried out from the front row, standing up and clutching her designer handbag. "My daughter is the victim here! That man at the door is a liar!"
The lead officer stopped a few feet away from the altar, pulling a folded document from his belt pocket.
"Maya Lin?" the officer asked formally, his voice cutting through the tense atmosphere like a knife. "We have a warrant for your arrest on charges of grand larceny, corporate fraud, and identity falsification."
Julian smirked from the back of the aisle, turning on his heel to walk out of the venue just as the police arrived, completely unbothered by the authorities he had apparently summoned himself.
"Wait!" Maya shouted, pointing toward the retreating figure of Julian. "He’s the primary architect! He’s the one who stole the funds from the venture firm! Why aren't you arresting him?"
"Julian Vance is already cooperating with federal investigators," the officer replied smoothly, stepping closer and producing a pair of silver handcuffs. "He turned over the evidence voluntarily three hours ago. Everything points directly to you as the mastermind."
Maya looked desperately at Marcus, her eyes pleading for a shred of the love and trust they had shared just twenty minutes prior.
"Marcus, you know me," Maya whispered, tears streaming freely down her face now, ruining her immaculate wedding makeup. "You know I would never do this to you. Julian is setting me up because I refused to sign away my company’s remaining assets."
Marcus stared at her, his face an impenetrable mask of grief and disillusionment. He looked down at the forged signature on the property deed, then back at the woman he had planned to spend the rest of his life with.
"Maya," Marcus said slowly, his voice heavy with finality. "I don't know who you are anymore."
The officer stepped forward, gently but firmly grasping Maya’s wrist. The cold metal of the handcuffs clicked shut around her delicate wrists, binding her hands together over the white floral bouquet she was still mechanically clutching.
May you like
As the officers began to escort her down the aisle, past the rows of staring family and friends, Maya caught a glimpse of a small, unmarked black sedan parked right behind the police cruisers outside—and inside it, someone was filming her departure with a professional camera lens.
***
