Miriam sighed when she read it.
“I preferred no card.”
“I need the card.”
“Why?”
“Because she needs to understand the box came from me.”
Lena looked at me.
“Will that help?”
“No.”
“Then why?”
I thought about my mother at the apartment door.
My father refusing to look at me.
Vanessa moving into my office.
Adrian joking that my claims would look like jealousy.
“Because they have built the entire wedding around my absence,” I said. “I want the truth to arrive wearing my name.”
Miriam allowed it.
The courier instructions were precise.
Deliver the box to the bridal suite between 1:45 and 2:15.
Require signature.
Do not leave it unattended.
If the bride was unavailable, give it to the wedding coordinator.
The ceremony began at two.
The box arrived at 2:17.
Vanessa had already started walking down the aisle.
The coordinator signed for it and carried it into the church office.
According to Lena’s contact inside the venue, my mother noticed the black box when the coordinator entered through a side door.
She whispered to Vanessa’s maid of honor.
The maid of honor whispered to the best man.
Adrian looked toward the office.
The ceremony continued.
I knew none of that while sitting in my apartment.
At 2:20, my phone buzzed.
A message from Lena.
Coordinator has it.
