Chapter 6 - Alden's Secret Evidence
As the afternoon sun cast a golden hue over the Pacific coastline, Alden prepared to deliver the final blow to Sutton's meticulously constructed illusions. He returned briefly to the resort's main penthouse suite to retrieve his remaining personal belongings, knowing full well that he would walk straight into a storm of frantic family members. The moment he opened the door, Althia lunged toward him, her face flushed with anger and panic. ""Alden! Where on earth have you been? Your phone has been turned off for twelve hours, the caterers are refusing to set up the tables, and Sutton is having a complete nervous breakdown in the bedroom!"" Althia shrieked, her manicured hands trembling with rage. Stellin stood behind her, crossing his arms and demanding to know why Alden was carrying a duffel bag instead of preparing for the rehearsal dinner reset. Alden didn't flinch. He calmly placed his car keys on the entryway table and looked his future in-laws dead in the eye.
""The wedding is canceled, Althia,"" Alden said evenly, his voice cutting through the chaos of the suite. Sutton emerged from the bedroom, her silk robe flying open as she rushed toward him with tear-streaked mascara and a hysterical expression. ""What did you say, Alden? Are you insane? My friends are flying in from New York right now!"" Sutton screamed, grabbing his arm. Alden gently shook her hand off, stepping back as if her touch burned him. ""I saw you push Fallon down those stairs, Sutton. And I heard you laughing when her leg broke,"" Alden stated, the words hanging heavy in the stifling air of the penthouse. The room went dead silent. Althia's jaw dropped, and Sutton's hysterical demeanor instantly shifted into cold, calculating panic. ""He's lying! That clumsy bitch tripped over her own feet!"" Sutton shrieked, pointing a shaking finger toward the door.
""She didn't trip, and I have the digital receipts to prove it,"" Alden replied quietly, pulling his phone from his pocket and tapping the screen to play a crystal-clear audio recording he had captured weeks earlier during a private conversation where Sutton bragged about how easy it was to manipulate their parents into stealing Fallon's funds whenever she got in the way. Furthermore, Alden revealed that he had already forwarded copies of the text threads and bank logs to local detectives and Vesper's legal team. Althia stumbled backward, realizing that their entire empire of lies was crumbling in real-time. Without another word, Alden turned around, walked out of the penthouse suite for the final time, and left Sutton and her parents staring at the ruins of their social standing with absolute terror in their eyes.
