“True,” I said. “But only someone who had access to this house this morning. Someone who wanted to stop the wedding without making a scene.” My voice grew firmer. “It wasn’t Hannah. She’s too unstable to sneak in unnoticed. No… this was someone who had reason to believe she could still control her son.”
Margaret’s lips thinned. “How dare you accuse me?”
But the room was already shifting. The bridesmaids whispered. Anne stared, pale and wide-eyed. Ethan himself appeared in the doorway, having overheard the last exchange. His face was stricken. “Mom?” he said, his voice breaking.
And in that instant, I knew I was right. Her silence said more than any denial could.
The confrontation that followed was ugly. Margaret finally erupted, admitting she had cut the dress because she thought if the wedding were delayed, she might still talk Ethan out of it.
