Chapter 111
Chapter 111
Chapter 111
David’s POV
The air inside the cathedral felt too thick.
Like I was breathing through water.
My chest rose and fell too fast. Too shallow. Like my body did not know how to slow down.
I stood at the altar, hands locked together so tightly my fingers hurt. I did not loosen them. I needed something to hold onto. Something solid. Something real.
Because everything else felt like it might slip away.
The cathedral was full.
Every seat taken.
Rows and rows of people. Faces I knew. Faces I respected. Faces that judged. Faces that watched.
Investors.
Partners.
Friends.
Enemies pretending to be friends.
People who had seen me rise.
People who had seen me fall.
People who were here now to watch me rise again.
Or so I thought.
The organ started playing.
Soft at first. Then louder.
The sound filled the space. Wrapped around the walls. Around my head. Around my thoughts.
This was it.
This was the moment.
My wedding.
My future.
My second chance.
I swallowed hard.
My throat was dry.
I glanced at the priest. He gave me a small nod. Calm. Patient. Like this was just another ceremony. Just another couple.
But this was not just anything.
This was everything.
I lifted my head.
Everyone stood at once. Chairs scraped softly against the marble floor.
All eyes turned toward the doors.
I turned too.
My heart slammed hard against my chest.
The doors opened.
Light spilled in.
And then I saw her.
Isabella.
Standing there.
In white.
The dress flowed around her like it was made for her. Soft. Perfect. Like something out of a dream.
A veil covered her face. Light, thin, hiding her features just enough to make her feel distant. Untouchable.
My chest tightened.
She looked… unreal.
Too beautiful.
Too perfect.
Too good for me.
But she was mine.
She had chosen me.
After everything.
After all my mistakes.
After everything I had lost.
She still chose me.
She started walking.
Slow.
Steady.
Each step careful. Measured. Like she was not rushing. Like she wanted to feel every second.
The sound of her heels against the floor echoed softly.
My breathing got worse.
I tried to control it.
Failed.
My vision narrowed until it was just her.
Nothing else mattered.
Not the guests.
Not the whispers.
Not the world.
Just her.
Coming toward me.
Closer.
Closer.
Almost there.
I could see her hands.
Empty.
No bouquet.
Just her fingers resting lightly against the fabric of her dress.
That was strange.
But I did not think about it for long.
I could not think about anything.
She was almost at the altar.
Almost close enough to touch.
Almost mine.
The doors slammed open.
The sound cracked through the cathedral like a gunshot.
Everything stopped.
People gasped.
Heads turned.
The music faltered.
I blinked.
Confused.
Annoyed.
Then I saw them.
Anna.
And Yvonne.
Standing in the doorway.
Both of them looked terrible.
Hair messy.
Clothes wrinkled.
Faces pale.
Like they had not slept.
Like they had been running.
Like they were desperate.
Anna stepped forward.
“Stop!”
Her voice echoed loudly.
Too loud.
It bounced off the walls and came back even sharper.
“Stop this wedding!”
Murmurs spread through the crowd.
People started whispering.
Turning.
Looking.
Confused.
Curious.
Security moved immediately.
Two men stepped toward them, ready to grab them, drag them out.
I raised my hand.
“Wait.”
My voice came out harder than I expected.
The guards stopped.
I did not look at them.
My eyes stayed on Anna.
On the way she held those papers in her hand.
Shaking.
Like she was holding something important.
Or like she was afraid.
“Let her speak,” I said.
Let her embarrass herself.
Let everyone see how far she had fallen.
How desperate she was.
How she could not accept that I had moved on.
That I had chosen someone else.
That she meant nothing now.
Anna rushed forward.
Her steps uneven.
Her breath fast.
“David, listen to me!”
Her voice cracked.
I felt irritation rise.
“This is not the time, Anna.”
“It is exactly the time!”
She stopped a few feet away from the altar.
Close enough for everyone to hear her clearly.
Close enough for everyone to see her desperation.
“She is not who you think she is!” Anna said, pointing at Isabella.
The crowd went quiet.
That kind of quiet that presses against your ears.
I let out a slow breath.
Of course.
This again.
The same nonsense.
The same accusations.
The same obsession.
“Not this again,” I said.
“She is Lucia!”
The words hit the air.
Sharp.
Loud.
For a second, no one reacted.
Then the whispers started.
Confused.
Curious.
Shocked.
My jaw tightened.
“Enough,” I said.
“She is Lucia Mendez!” Anna shouted. “Your ex-fiancée! The woman you abandoned! The woman you destroyed! She is alive, David! She never died!”
My stomach twisted.
Something ugly moved inside my chest.
But I crushed it.
Immediately.
This was ridiculous.
Impossible.
Lucia was dead.
Everyone knew that.
There was a death certificate.
Records.
Proof.
“She had surgery!” Anna continued. “She changed her face! Became Isabella! This whole thing is revenge! She planned everything!”
Yvonne stepped forward beside her.
“David, listen to her!”
Her voice was hoarse.
Rough.
Like she had been crying for hours.
“We found the records!” Yvonne said. “There was no body! The death was never confirmed! Just paperwork! Just lies!”
I shook my head.
Slow.
Disbelieving.
“You have lost your minds.”
“No!” Anna said. “Look at the evidence!”
She held up the papers.
“They have the same body type! Same scars! Same birthmark! Same everything! It is her!”
The whispers grew louder.
People were turning now.
Looking at Isabella.
Looking at me.
Looking at Anna.
Waiting.
Watching.
Judging.
My chest burned.
Anger rose fast.
Hot.
Sharp.
“Enough,” I said again, louder this time.
The word cut through the noise.
“Lucia Mendez is dead.”
My voice was steady.
Firm.
Certain.
“She died two years ago. This is Isabella Valen. My fiancée. My future wife.”
I turned slightly toward the guards.
“Remove them.”
They moved forward.
Hands reaching.
Anna struggled.
“No! David, please! Just look at her!”
Yvonne’s voice broke.
“Ask her to remove the veil!”
That made me pause.
Just for a second.
A small, uncomfortable second.
Ask her?
Why would I need to ask her anything?
I knew who she was.
I trusted her.
Completely.
Still.
My eyes shifted.
Slowly.
Toward Isabella.
She had not moved.
Not once.
Not since Anna started talking.
She stood there.
Still.
Silent.
The veil hiding her face.
Her hands resting at her sides.
Calm.
Too calm.
A strange feeling crept up my spine.
Cold.
Sharp.
I ignored it.
“Tell them,” I said to her.
My voice was softer now.
But there was something under it.
Something tight.
“Tell them who you are.”
The guards held Anna and Yvonne back.
They were still fighting.
Still shouting.
Still desperate.
But everything around me felt distant.
Faded.
Like the world had pulled back.
And it was just me.
And her.
“Tell them,” I repeated.
“Please.”
For a moment, nothing happened.
Then she moved.
Slow.
Careful.
Her hands lifted.
Fingers reaching for the veil.
My heart started beating faster.
Louder.
Why was I nervous?
There was no reason to be nervous.
This was nothing.
Just a stupid interruption.
A pointless scene.
She pulled the veil back.
The fabric fell behind her.
And I saw her face.
That face.
The one I knew.
The one I had kissed.
The one I had trusted.
The one I had built my future around.
She looked at me.
Directly.
No hesitation.
No fear.
Just… calm.
Too calm.
Then she spoke.
“You are right.”
Her voice was clear.
Steady.
And something inside me broke before she even finished.
“I am Lucia Mendez.”
The world stopped.
Everything.
The sound.
The movement.
The air.
Gone.
Just silence.
Then the explosion.
Gasps.
Shouts.
People standing.
People moving.
Chaos.
But I could not hear it properly.
It sounded far away.
Like I was underwater again.
“What?”
The word barely came out.
My throat closed.
My chest hurt.
“I am Lucia,” she repeated.
Stronger now.
For everyone.
“For all of you.”
She turned slightly.
Facing the crowd.
“I am the woman David Rodriguez abandoned at the altar two years ago.”
My vision blurred.
No.
No.
That was not possible.
“She never died,” she continued.
“I never died.”
My head shook.
Slow.
Then faster.
“No…”
“She became me,” she said, touching her chest.
“Isabella.”
My legs felt weak.
I gripped the edge of the altar.
Hard.
“You are lying,” I said.
My voice sounded wrong.
Broken.
“You have to be lying.”
She looked back at me.
And for the first time, I saw it.
Not Isabella.
Lucia.
In her eyes.
In the way she looked at me.
Cold.
Sharp.
Knowing.
“I am not lying,” she said quietly.
“Everything you see. Everything you believed. It was all part of the plan.”
The words sank into me.
Slow.
Painful.
Like knives.
“You gave me everything,” she said.
Her voice was calm.
Almost soft.
“That mansion. Those cars. The jewelry. The investments. Your company.”
My stomach dropped.
“You signed every document. You handed it to me yourself.”
My fingers tightened against the altar.
“You trusted me.”
Each word hit harder.
“You loved me.”
My chest tightened so much I could not breathe.
“And I used that.”
The truth settled.
Heavy.
Crushing.
“This is revenge, David.”
There was no emotion in her voice now.
Just truth.
Cold.
Clear.
“For what you did to me.”
My knees buckled.
I caught myself.
Barely.
“You took everything from me,” she said.
“So I took everything from you.”
The crowd was chaos now.
Voices everywhere.
Questions.
Shock.
Phones out.
Recording.
Watching.
But none of it mattered.
Only her.
Only her words.
Only the truth.
“This is justice,” she finished.
My body gave out.
Completely.
I fell.
Hard.
The marble floor hit me cold.
Sharp.
Real.
Pain shot through me.
But I barely felt it.
My ears rang.
My vision dimmed.
Everything spun.
I lay there.
Looking up.
At the ceiling.
At nothing.
At everything.
And all I could see was her.
Standing there.
In white.
At the altar.
Where she had once stood alone.
Waiting.
Just like I was now.
Alone.
Destroyed.
And this time…
I understood.
Too late.