“You ruin everything, Audrey!” Taryn shrieked, leaning over me with wild, manic eyes. “My entire life, you’ve played the pathetic, delicate little victim! Grandma leaves you the townhouse because you were ‘so studious.’ Evan’s mother always complimented your quiet manners instead of mine! And tonight was supposed to be *my* night! I was supposed to be the center of attention, and you stood on that balcony looking at me like you were better than me!”
“You tried to kill me, Taryn,” I said, my voice trembling with raw, burning disgust. “You pushed me off an eleven-foot drop onto concrete paving stones.”
“I told you to get out of my way, and you didn’t move fast enough!” she snarled, completely unrepentant. “I tapped you! You threw yourself over the railing just to steal my spotlight! You’re a psycho, Audrey! And now you’re going to sign those papers, or Dad is going to tell the police that you jumped intentionally because you were secretly in love with Evan and couldn’t bear to see us marry!”
I stared at her in utter disbelief. The sheer depravity of their delusion was breathtaking. They weren’t just trying to cover up a crime; they were actively manufacturing a grotesque smear campaign to completely annihilate my credibility before I could even speak to an investigator.
“You’re insane,” I whispered. “All three of you are sick.”
My father stepped forward, pulling a heavy Montblanc pen from his breast pocket and unscrewing the cap. He placed the pen directly between my trembling fingers and pressed the paperwork against my chest.
“Sign the affidavit, Audrey,” my father commanded, his voice cold and devoid of any human empathy. “We are protecting this family. You will not destroy your sister’s wedding day over an unfortunate tumble. Sign it, or you won’t have a roof over your head when they discharge you from this bed.”
“No,” I whispered, clamping my jaw shut.
My father’s face darkened. He reached out to physically force my hand against the paper—
“Touch her again, Robert, and you’ll leave this hospital in handcuffs.”
