Chapter 5 - The Table in the Corner
The private alcove was partitioned from the main ballroom by towering arched columns draped in white silk and cascading orchids.
A small, elegantly decorated table stood in the center, draped in pale pink linen, bearing a three-tiered vanilla cake adorned with silver sugar stars and three glowing candles. Around the table sat a pile of wrapped boxes—some small, some large, bearing colorful ribbons and gift tags written in careful handwriting.
Mrs. Donnelly stood nearby, beaming proudly, while Mateo and two other security guards stood discreetly near the silk drapery, forming a protective perimeter.
“Make a wish, Lily-bug!” Mrs. Donnelly whispered, clapping her hands softly as Nathaniel set Lily down on a velvet-upholstered chair.
Lily squeezed her eyes shut so tight her little nose crinkled, her hands clasped together in front of her chest. She blew out the three candles with a single puff of air, sending a tiny cloud of smoke into the air while the small group of staff members who had gathered nearby burst into quiet applause.
“Yay!” Lily cheered, clapping her hands. “Can I open the presents now, Mr. Nate?”
“They’re all yours, kiddo,” Nathaniel said, a rare, genuine smile touching the corners of his mouth.
Elena stood a few feet away, her arms wrapped tightly around her waist, watching the scene with a mixture of profound gratitude and overwhelming dread. She saw the way Nathaniel looked at her daughter—not with pity, not with condescension, but with the fierce, protective devotion of a father who had found something worth living for after years in the dark.
And she knew, with sickening certainty, that Victoria was watching them too.
From just outside the silk drapes, half-hidden by a marble pillar, Victoria stood with her champagne flute raised to her lips, her eyes fixed on the pile of brightly colored boxes. Her expression was not that of a jilted fiancée; it was the look of an executioner sharpening an axe.
“Go ahead, sweetheart,” Elena murmured, forcing herself to step forward and place her hand gently on Lily’s shoulder. “Open the first one.”
Lily reached eagerly for the smallest box on the table—a neat little package wrapped in silver paper with a pink satin bow, bearing a card from Mrs. Donnelly.
She ripped the paper away to reveal a small, beautifully carved wooden music box that played a gentle lullaby when wound up. Lily’s face lit up like the Fourth of July.
“It sings!” Lily gasped, holding it up for Nathaniel and Elena to see.
Then came the second gift—a colorful picture book about animals from the kitchen staff.
And then came the third gift.
It was a medium-sized box wrapped in glossy gold paper with an expensive silk bow, placed slightly apart from the others. A small white card rested on top, bearing neat, elegant handwriting.
May you like
Lily reached out her small hands, her fingers grasping the ribbon.
Neither Elena nor Nathaniel saw Victoria slip through the silk drapes until it was already too late.
