On the eve of our wedding, my fiancée, Nicole, abandoned me again. She went to accompany her foster brother, Chase, on a death-defying hike into the deepest, most treacherous peaks of the Alaskan backcountry. Everyone in our social circle was waiting for me to break. To scream, to cry, or to lose my mind in front of everyone. In my past life, that was exactly what I did. Terrified she would freeze to death or fall off a ridge in a storm, I spent millions mobilizing a fleet of search helicopters to scour the mountains, dragging her back just in time to walk down the aisle. The wedding went on as planned. She successfully inherited the multi-billion-dollar Lancaster empire. But later? She had me suspended from a helicopter, dangling in the freezing air like a broken kite, until my body was unrecognizable. All because on our wedding day, Chase had thrown a tantrum, vanished into the Alaskan wilderness, and was never heard from again. She had stood in the cabin of that helicopter, staring down at me with cold, venomous eyes. "I'd rather spend the rest of my life mourning at Chase's grave than spend another second with a monster like you." But God was merciful. When I opened my eyes, I was back—twenty-four hours before the wedding. Staring at the dismissive text Nicole had sent to my phone, I let out a cold laugh. I swiped to a different contact and typed: [Bring your bridesmaids tomorrow. Be at the house by six to pick me up.] Nicole, this time, I’m letting you go. I hope you don't regret it. After all, whoever marries me is the one who inherits the Lancaster fortune. … "Is she out of her mind? I’m calling security to bring her back right now!" Tyler slammed his groomsman’s suit onto the sofa, reaching for his phone. I pressed my hand over his wrist and shook my head. He stared at me, bewildered. "You know Chase is doing this on purpose, Bradley. It's his eighth stunt right before a major event. Even a saint would have lost their temper by now!" I looked down at my phone. A single word had popped up from the other woman: "Understood." I smiled faintly, letting my gaze drift. "Let her go. If she wants to run off into the wilderness, let her. I won't be the one regretting it." Tyler, who had been my closest friend for years, immediately caught the shift in my tone. His eyes widened. "Are you saying..." I nodded, a calm smile playing on my lips. "The Lancaster family has more than one daughter." Just then, a loud, obnoxious commotion echoed from the hallway. Nicole's circle of spoiled, wealthy friends sauntered in, looking at me with smirks on their faces. "Well, well. Look at the groom-to-be," one of them drawled. A girl with dyed red hair nudged her, snickering. "Careful, you have to call him the "older" groom. There’s a younger one waiting in the wings, after all. Let's keep our grooms straight." Tyler's face flushed with anger. "Watch your mouth! Bradley doesn't have to marry Nicole!" The redhead scoffed, taking a step forward. "Oh, the best man is getting defensive! Honestly, though, the older groom’s friends are quite handsome. Why don't we piggyback on Nicole's wedding and make it a double ceremony tomorrow? Don't worry, honey, I’ve got plenty of experience. I’ll make sure you enjoy yourself..." "Slap." My hand cut through the air, landing squarely across her face. The room fell deathly quiet. The redhead froze, her eyes wide with utter shock, unable to believe I had actually struck her. In my past life, I had been blind. I loved Nicole so much that I tolerated her toxic friends, swallowing every insult and cruel joke just to keep the peace. I didn't want Nicole to be upset, so I let them walk all over me. Now I realized: birds of a feather flock together. They were all just a pack of parasitic sycophants. She pointed a shaking finger at me, her face twisting in rage. "You... Bradley! You've gone too far. I'm calling Nicole right now. A vicious, violent man like you? Nicole will never let you step foot into the Lancaster estate!" I let out a soft, mocking laugh. Step foot into the Lancaster estate? Nicole didn't hold the keys to that kingdom. She dialed Nicole immediately and put it on speaker. "Nicole, you need to handle Bradley. He found out you're in the mountains with Chase, and he's completely lost his mind!" Nicole's voice crackled through the speaker, sharp and annoyed. "Watch how you talk about Chase." The redhead blinked, taken aback. Nicole continued, "Bradley is the groom, but Chase is family. Let me speak to him." The redhead thrust the phone toward me like a weapon, her chin tilted up. "Nicole wants to teach you a lesson." Nicole's exhausted, impatient voice filled the room. "Bradley, stop being so incredibly petty. A wedding can be rescheduled anytime. Chase is your brother—are you really so heartless that you don't care if he dies out there?" Even though she had caused my death in a previous life, hearing her blatant, casual betrayal still sent a dull ache through my chest. The phantom cold of that helicopter ride briefly gripped my throat. "My parents only had one child," I said, my voice deadpan. "I don't have a brother." Her impatience flared, her voice rising an octave. "Enough, Bradley! I've given you far too much leeway lately. As the future husband of the Lancaster heir, can't you show a shred of dignity or grace? For the next few weeks, you can go sit in my father's private sanctuary and copy the family's code of conduct until I get back. If you can't even do that, don't be surprised if I give your spot at the altar to someone else!" Just then, Chase’s trembling, tearful voice echoed in the background. "Bradley, it's all my fault. Please don't be mad at Nicole. I'll make her go back. My life isn't worth her risking hers in this storm anyway..." Nicole’s tone turned ice-cold. "Look at what you’ve done to him! I never realized you could be this malicious." Without giving me a chance to respond, she hung up. The redhead lowered her phone, giving me a smug, superior look. "If you still want to marry into the Lancaster family, you'd better start walking to the sanctuary and get to writing." With that, the group strutted out of the room, laughing amongst themselves. Tyler watched them leave, confusion written all over his face. "Do they seriously not know? Do they have no idea who actually holds the inheritance?" I shook my head. Neither my family nor Grandmother Lancaster had ever made the details of the trust public. Years ago, my grandfather had saved Grandmother Lancaster's life, helping her build her business from a penniless start into the titan that now dominated the East Coast. She never forgot that debt. When my family fell on hard times, she stood by my grandfather's deathbed and swore she would protect me for the rest of my life. My name, Bradley, had been chosen before I was even born. Regardless of gender, I was to inherit the promise. Because of this, the Lancaster daughters of this generation were named Nicole and Josephine. Technically, Josephine was the eldest, born to her late husband's first marriage. But because I had been hopelessly, blindly in love with Nicole, Grandmother Lancaster had placed her in charge of the primary New York operations early on. Josephine had been quietly reassigned to manage the remote, less lucrative West Coast branches. Everyone assumed Nicole was the sole heir to the multi-billion-dollar empire. They had no idea that the power of choice had always belonged to me. Suddenly, the front door was kicked open with a loud bang. A group of burly security guards stormed into the suite. Without a word, they grabbed my arms, hauling me off the couch. Tyler tried to intervene, but he was shoved roughly to the floor. "Get your hands off me!" I struggled, but I was outnumbered and overpowered, dragged toward the door like a common criminal. "Mr. Lancaster ordered Bradley to be brought to the sanctuary immediately. The rest of you, get out of the house," the lead guard barked at Tyler. I glanced back at my phone lying on the floor. Tyler caught my eye and gave a subtle nod. He knew what to do. They dragged me down the long, echoing corridors of the estate and pushed me through the heavy oak doors of the private gallery. When I finally stood up, the bespoke suit I had planned to wear tomorrow was stained with dirt and grease. It was a suit I had spent five years personally designing. There was no time to make another one before tomorrow morning. I clenched my fists. Nicole and her father had deliberately orchestrated this to humiliate me. Inside the gallery, the heavy scent of burning sandalwood was suffocating. Charles Lancaster—Nicole’s father—was slowly rolling a pair of silver meditation balls in his palm. His face was a mask of cold condescension. A guard pushed me down onto a velvet kneeling stool. I pushed myself up, refusing to stay down. Charles looked at me, his eyes filled with disgust. "So incredibly middle-class," he sneered, his voice dripping with venom. "Throwing a tantrum over such trivial matters." He set the silver balls down on a mahogany table, walking over to stand directly in front of me, looking down his nose. "Who do you think Nicole is? She is the future of the Lancaster dynasty, the heir to billions. What does it matter if she keeps a few close companions by her side? She's merely accompanying your foster brother on a trip, and you make a public spectacle of it. You don't have an ounce of the breeding required for a family of this stature." Before I could speak— "Slap." A sharp, burning pain flared across my left cheek. My ears rang from the force of the blow. Charles lowered his hand, his expression turning even more dismissive. "I'll be honest with you—I have never liked you. But my mother insists on coddling you. That doesn't mean you get to play the victim in this house." "Nicole is royalty. She is going to run this entire empire. You were already punching far above your weight; how dare you make demands?" "The wedding will happen when Nicole decides it happens. If she chooses to stay away for three years, or five, you will wait. Quietly. Obediently. Stop these cheap, pathetic desperate cries for attention." "Otherwise, with your jealous, petty attitude, I will personally ensure Nicole replaces you with a husband who actually knows his place." My cheek throbbed, the iron taste of blood filling my mouth. In my past life, this man had humiliated me repeatedly. He taught me to endure, to tolerate Chase, and to sacrifice my dignity for Nicole's whims. I had yielded every single time. And my reward had been a horrific, faceless death in the sky. A wave of cold, sharp hatred washed over me. Charles, entirely unaware of the fire burning behind my eyes, kept lecturing. "Your parents died too young to teach you respect, but now that you are entering our world, I will personally train you." "Without the Lancasters, you are absolutely nothing. Know your place." At the mention of my deceased parents, I snapped my head up. In the past, I tolerated this because I respected him as my future father-in-law, because I wanted to please Nicole. But today, I was done playing the martyr. This private sanctuary was filled with Charles’s life-long passion: rare, priceless European porcelain and glass artifacts. They were his absolute pride and joy. I took a deliberate step toward the nearest display case. With a smooth, sweeping motion of my arm— "Crash!" A million-dollar 18th-century porcelain vase shattered into a thousand jagged pieces on the marble floor. Charles’s pupils dilated. He froze, his face losing all color. "Bradley! Have you lost your mind?!" I didn't answer. I didn't hesitate. I swept my arm across the entire mahogany shelf. The sound of breaking glass and shattering ceramic echoed like gunfire in the quiet room. A lifetime of curated treasures lay ruined at my feet. The guards stood frozen, terrified to move. Charles was shaking so violently he could barely point his finger at me. "You... you manic lunatic! You've ruined everything!" He spun around, screaming at the guards. "What are you waiting for?! Beat him!" "Subdue this ungrateful piece of trash!" The guards snapped out of their shock, lunging forward to pin my arms. Just as their fingers were about to touch my jacket, a sharp, authoritative voice cut through the air. "Lay a single hand on Bradley, and I will have you ruined." The guards froze instantly, dropping their hands. Charles whipped around toward the door, his arrogant posture evaporating in an instant. He bowed his head, his voice trembling. "Mother." Staring at Grandmother Lancaster’s icy expression, Charles panicked, rushing forward to justify himself. "Mother, you can't blame me! Bradley has completely lost his mind!" "He showed utter disrespect, destroying my entire collection! I was only trying to teach him some discipline!" The elderly matriarch looked at him with profound disgust. "Even if Bradley wanted to burn this entire estate to the ground, I would hand him the matches." Charles gasped, his face twisting in protest. "Mother! How can you be so incredibly biased?!" "Nicole is the future of this family! She is inheriting a multi-billion-dollar empire! If she marries a violent, petulant man like this, what will high society think of us?!" Grandmother Lancaster let out a cold, sharp laugh, her heavy mahogany cane striking the floor with a resonant thud. "Who told you Nicole was the heir?"
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