Chapter 4 - Vanessa Was Locked Inside The Bridal Suite
Hotel security reached the bridal floor within minutes.
They found the bridal-suite door locked from the outside using an improvised obstruction jammed through the decorative handle.
Inside was Vanessa.
Barefoot.
Still wearing her bridal undergarments and robe.
Terrified.
Her reception dress was gone.
So was one small overnight bag.
Vanessa had a bruise on her forearm but no serious injury.
The wedding coordinator was found in a nearby service bathroom.
Also physically safe.
Someone had locked her inside.
When Vanessa saw me, she grabbed my jacket.
“Who was downstairs?”
I looked at her.
I couldn’t answer immediately.
Because the truth sounded insane.
“Someone dressed as you.”
Her face went blank.
Then:
“Mallory.”
I stared at her.
“What?”
Vanessa started shaking.
“She came here.”
“Who is Mallory?”
Her answer was the first piece of our real mystery.
“My sister.”
I had known Vanessa had an estranged half-sister.
I did not know her name.
Vanessa had spoken about her exactly twice in four years.
Both times ended with:
“She isn’t part of my life anymore.”
May you like
Now I understood that sentence had been hiding an entire history.
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