Flames of Betrayal

Hope sparked in me as I wrapped Nicole in a hug.

"Mr. Hoffman remembered! He's on his way!"

Nicole's spirits soared, and she flipped the piano lid back open, her playing innocent and relentless.

"Dad says I'm clever for learning 'Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star'! He'll be so surprised!"

Nicole could not stop chattering about it, her face beaming.

Thirty minutes later, the doorbell chimed.

Nicole scampered to the door and leaped into Simon's arms.

"Daddy!"

However, there was Ella, right by Simon, and a whole posse of high-society types trailing behind them.

"What's with the extra kid at Hoffman's future wedding home?"

"Why hasn't anyone kicked this woman out yet?"

"Talk about a jinx..."

Their whispers and snide comments filled the air, every word a needle to my ears. A bodyguard was already on his way to remove me.

A chill of dread washed over me.

'Simon, can you really be this heartless?' I wondered.

My heart pounded as I gazed at him, the world around us fading away. I mustered a soft whisper, "Simon?"

However, Simon, almost on instinct, shoved Nicole from his arms and snapped at her with a fierce look, "Why are you calling out to me like that?!"

Then, avoiding my gaze in a fluster, he announced to the crowd, "We've crossed paths, but we're not close. I don't know where she came from, stirring up trouble."

Ella, perhaps deliberately, was toying with a bracelet, seemingly unbothered.

The weight in my heart sank like a stone, tugging at my insides with a sharp ache.

So, nine years together had dwindled to being labeled a 'troublemaker'.

Nicole stumbled backward, her eyes welling up. She sniffed and carefully changed her address.

"Mr. Hoffman..."

She made her way to the piano, took a seat, and said in a hushed tone, "Dad... Mr. Hoffman, may I play a song for you?"

She had longed to spend a proper birthday with her father.

In her innocent belief, she thought that reviving their shared memories would bring back the dad she knew.

However, before her fingers could grace the keys, a delicate, pale wrist stopped her.

Ella, all smiles, played the part of the hostess perfectly. "My future home won't tolerate any disruptions from a wild child."

Nicole's face went white as a sheet, tears streaming down uncontrollably, splashing onto the ground.

However, not a single soul showed any sympathy.

Rage boiled over in me when I saw my daughter's tears. I wrenched myself free from the grip of several towering bodyguards, snatched up a crystal cup from the table, and flung it at Simon.

The cup caught Simon off-guard, its jagged edge slicing a gash across his forehead.

"Bullying a child, how low can you go?!"

Breathless, with a fiery gaze, I stood there, staring down Simon.

The truth was plain as day. Simon had not sent that message.

It was Ella's scheme, using him to humiliate us publicly, to push Simon to cut ties with us once and for all.

However, I was done playing parts in the Hoffman family's twisted play.