Chapter 7: The Checkbook

"You signed," Langston said again.

Three hundred people were listening, and I did not lower my voice.

"I signed a marriage license, Langston. I'm ending it."

He blinked. "That's not what I meant."

"What did you mean?"

His eyes went to the folder in his hand, then to his mother.

"Nothing," he said. "I'm upset. Can we go somewhere private?"

"You're the one who wanted a public wedding."

A reporter in the second row lifted a phone.

Judith crossed the aisle in four sharp steps.

She took the divorce petition out of her son's hand and tore it once down the middle.

"This is a stunt," she said, for everyone. "A very sad one. Flora is under stress, and we'll treat it that way."

"The original is with the court," my lawyer said from beside me, in a pleasant voice. "You may keep that one as a souvenir."

Judith ignored her. She looked at me.

"Ellery Hospitality is withholding every invoice from Marden Events," she said. "Breach of contract. You disrupted a client's ceremony."

I kept my face still.

"Your ceremony," I said, "had a different bride on the program than the one in your contract."

"Twelve of your people will wait until the lawyers sort it out."

That was the move.

It was clever, and it was cruel, because I had told my team they would all be paid by Sunday.

Behind me, I heard someone shift in the chair row.

"Mrs. Ellery," a calm voice said.

Elias Cushing had stood up.

He did not raise his voice either. He was already holding his phone.

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