Three months had passed since Jessica's arrest, and life had settled into something resembling normal.
Mia's belly had grown significantly with the twins, and she'd finally stopped working so hard after Ryan's concerned nagging. Alvarez Innovations was thriving, with Emma running day-to-day operations while Mia took on more of an advisory role.
Ryan had been surprisingly attentive, attending every doctor's appointment, reading parenting books, even taking prenatal classes with Mia. The other couples in class found it hilarious that the billionaire CEO was earnestly practicing diaper changes on a doll.
The wedding planning was in full swing. Ryan had insisted on handling everything, and while Mia had been skeptical at first, she had to admit he was doing an amazing job. He'd chosen a beautiful venue, hired the best vendors, and even designed her dress with a famous designer who specialized in maternity wear.
Everything seemed to be falling into place.
Which is why Mia should have known something was about to go terribly wrong.
---
**One week before the wedding...**
Mia was having lunch with Emma and Grandpa Samuel at a trendy restaurant downtown. They were discussing final wedding details when Mia's phone rang.
Unknown number.
"Hello?" Mia answered.
Heavy breathing on the other end.
"Hello?" Mia repeated.
"You think you've won," a woman's voice said. It sounded distorted, like she was using a voice modifier. "But you haven't."
Mia's blood ran cold. "Who is this?"
"Someone who knows the truth about you. About what you really are."
"What are you talking about?"
"I know about the accident, Mia. The one from five years ago. The one you've been hiding."
Mia felt like she'd been punched in the stomach. "I don't know what you mean."
"Yes, you do. And soon, everyone else will too. Unless you do exactly what I say."
The line went dead.
Mia sat frozen, her hand shaking.
"Mia?" Emma asked, concerned. "What's wrong? You're pale."
"I... nothing. Wrong number."
But Samuel's sharp eyes saw through the lie. "What did they say?"
"It was nothing, Grandpa. Really."
Samuel didn't look convinced, but he let it drop.
After lunch, Emma pulled Mia aside. "Okay, spill. What was that phone call really about?"
Mia looked around to make sure no one could hear them. "Someone knows about the accident."
Emma's eyes went wide. "How? You said no one knew except your family!"
"I thought they didn't! Emma, if this gets out..." Mia's voice broke. "Ryan will never forgive me. Not after everything that's happened with lies and secrets."
"You have to tell him," Emma said firmly. "Before whoever this is does it for you."
"I can't. Not now. Not right before the wedding."
"Mia—"
"Please, Emma. Just... let me get through the wedding. Then I'll tell him everything. I promise."
Emma looked worried but nodded. "Okay. But if this mystery person contacts you again, you call the police."
"I will."
But Mia was lying. Because she knew exactly who would want to expose her secrets.
Jessica Blake.
---
**At the prison...**
Jessica sat in the visitor's room, a satisfied smile on her face.
Across from her sat a young woman with dark hair and cold eyes.
Victoria Chen.
"Did you make the call?" Jessica asked.
"Yes. She's terrified."
"Good. And you're sure about the information?"
Victoria pulled out a folder. "Completely sure. Five years ago, Mia Carter was involved in a car accident that killed two people. She was driving. The police report says it was an accident, but..." Victoria smiled. "With the right editing, we can make it look like she was drunk and fled the scene."
Jessica's eyes gleamed. "Perfect. When will you release it?"
"The night before the wedding. Maximum impact."
"And you're sure Ryan won't suspect you?"
Victoria laughed. "Why would he? We've never even met. As far as anyone knows, I'm just a concerned citizen who happened to find some disturbing information about his fiancée."
Jessica reached across the table and squeezed Victoria's hand. "You're doing the right thing. Helping me save my son from that woman."
"I'm doing this because once Mia is gone, Ryan will need someone," Victoria said. "And I'll be there. You promised me that."
"And I keep my promises. Once this is over, I'll personally introduce you to Ryan. He'll fall for you. How could he not?"
Victoria smiled. "I can't wait."
After Victoria left, Jessica sat back, satisfied.
By this time next week, Mia would be destroyed, Ryan would be free, and Jessica would have her son back.
Everything was going according to plan.
---
**Two days before the wedding...**
Mia stood in front of the mirror in her beautiful wedding dress. The designer had outdone himself—it was elegant, sophisticated, and perfectly accommodated her baby bump.
"You look like a princess," Emma said, wiping tears from her eyes.
"A very pregnant princess," Mia joked, but she couldn't stop smiling.
The dress shop owner brought them champagne—sparkling cider for Mia—and they toasted to the upcoming wedding.
Mia's phone buzzed.
Another unknown number. Another text.
**"Last chance. Call off the wedding, or I release everything."**
Mia's hands shook so badly she almost dropped her phone.
"Mia?" Emma asked. "What's wrong?"
"I need to go," Mia said suddenly. "I'm sorry. I need to... I need air."
She grabbed her things and rushed out of the shop, still wearing the wedding dress.
Emma ran after her. "Mia, wait!"
Outside, Mia leaned against the building, trying to catch her breath.
Emma caught up to her. "Talk to me. What's going on?"
"They're going to release information about the accident," Mia said, tears streaming down her face. "The night before the wedding. Emma, everyone will know. Ryan will know."
"Then tell him first! Mia, you have to—"
"Tell me what?"
Both women spun around.
Ryan stood there, having just arrived to surprise Mia at her dress fitting.
His face was confused, then concerned. "Mia, why are you crying? And why are you outside in your wedding dress?"
Mia couldn't speak. She just stood there, tears falling, her worst nightmare coming true.
Emma looked between them. "I'll... give you two some privacy."
She quickly disappeared back into the shop.
Ryan walked closer to Mia. "What's wrong? What do I need to know?"
Mia took a shaky breath. This was it. She had to tell him.
"Five years ago," Mia began, "I was in a car accident."
Ryan's expression softened. "Okay. Were you hurt?"
"No. But... two people died."
Ryan's face changed. "Mia..."
"It was late at night. I was driving home from work. A car ran a red light and hit me. My car spun out and hit two pedestrians. They died at the scene."
"That's terrible," Ryan said. "But it wasn't your fault if someone hit you—"
"The police investigated. They ruled it an accident. But Ryan..." Mia's voice broke. "I've lived with the guilt every single day. Those people died because of me."
"Because someone else ran a red light," Ryan corrected gently. He pulled her into his arms. "Mia, you can't blame yourself for that."
Mia pulled back. "There's more. Someone is threatening to expose it. They're going to make it look like I was drunk, like I fled the scene. They're going to release fake evidence the night before our wedding."
Ryan's expression darkened. "Who?"
"I think it's your mother. She's been in prison, but she could have gotten someone on the outside to—"
Ryan's phone rang. It was Tom.
"Sir," Tom said urgently. "We have a problem. Someone sent an anonymous package to every major news outlet in the city. It contains documents about your fiancée's past."
Ryan's jaw clenched. "What kind of documents?"
"Police reports about a fatal car accident five years ago. But sir, some of these documents look altered. Fake."
"Can you stop them from publishing?"
"I'm trying, but it might be too late. The story could break within hours."
Ryan hung up and looked at Mia. "We need to go. Now."
"Go where?"
"To fight this. Together."
---
**At Blake Enterprises...**
Ryan's crisis management team worked frantically, making calls, sending cease and desist letters, threatening lawsuits.
Mia sat in Ryan's office, watching the chaos.
"We might be able to suppress most of it," Tom reported. "But some outlets have already published online."
Mia pulled up one of the articles on her phone.
**"Mia Carter: Drunk Driver or Innocent Victim? Dark Past Revealed!"**
The article showed the police report—the real one—but with certain sections highlighted to make it look suspicious. They'd added fake witness statements claiming Mia had been drinking at a bar before the accident.
"This is a lie," Mia said. "I was never drinking. I was working late!"
"We know," Ryan said firmly. "And we'll prove it."
His phone rang again. This time it was an unknown number.
Ryan answered, putting it on speaker. "Who is this?"
"Hello, Ryan." It was Victoria Chen's voice, though Ryan didn't know that. "I'm the one who sent those documents."
"Why?"
"Because Mia Carter doesn't deserve you. She's a murderer who's been lying to you."
"She's not a murderer," Ryan said coldly. "And she didn't lie. I knew about the accident."
Silence on the other end. Clearly, Victoria hadn't expected that.
"You... knew?"
"Yes. And I don't care. Now, who are you and who's paying you?"
More silence. Then the line went dead.
Ryan turned to Tom. "Trace that call."
Within minutes, Tom had results. "Sir, the call came from a burner phone, but I traced the purchase. It was bought by Victoria Chen."
Ryan frowned. "That name sounds familiar."
"She's the daughter of Chen Industries. And sir..." Tom pulled up a photo. "She's been photographed with your mother multiple times over the past year."
Mia looked at the photo. "Your mother knew her before the arrest?"
"It appears so," Tom said. "I think your mother has been planning this for a long time."
Ryan's phone buzzed with a text from an unknown number.
A photo.
Jessica and Victoria, having coffee together just last month.
And a message: **"Your mother sent me. But I don't want to do this anymore. Call me."**
Ryan called the number immediately.
Victoria answered. "Mr. Blake."
"Why did you send this photo?"
"Because your mother is using me," Victoria said, sounding upset. "She promised me you'd fall for me after Mia was gone. But I realize now... that was never going to happen, was it?"
"No."
"I'm sorry. For everything. I'll send you all the real documents. The ones your mother told me to alter. Maybe they'll help you prove Mia's innocence."
"Why are you doing this?"
"Because I was wrong. And because..." Victoria paused. "Because no one deserves to have their wedding ruined like this. Even if I did want you for myself."
She hung up.
Within minutes, Victoria sent files to Ryan's email. The original, unaltered police reports. Witness statements from the actual accident. Everything proving Mia had done nothing wrong.
Ryan's lawyers immediately began sending these documents to every news outlet, demanding retractions and corrections.
But the damage was already done.
Social media was exploding with the story.
Mia's phone wouldn't stop ringing with calls from reporters.
The wedding, scheduled for tomorrow, seemed impossible now.
Mia sat in Ryan's office chair, her head in her hands. "Maybe we should postpone it."
"Absolutely not," Ryan said firmly.
"Ryan, there are reporters camped outside every venue. The church, the reception hall—"
"Then we'll change venues."
Mia looked up at him. "What?"
Ryan knelt down in front of her. "Mia, I don't care where we get married. I don't care if it's in a church or a courthouse or a parking lot. All I care about is marrying you. Tomorrow. Like we planned."
"But the guests—"
"I'll call everyone tonight. Change the location. Make it private, intimate. Just the people who really matter."
Mia felt tears forming again. "You really want to marry me? Even after all this?"
"Especially after all this," Ryan said. "You've been through hell because of my family. And you're still here. You're still willing to marry me. I'm not letting anything ruin that."
He kissed her gently.
"So what do you say? Will you still marry me tomorrow?"
Mia smiled through her tears. "Yes. A thousand times yes."
---
**The next morning...**
The wedding that was supposed to be a huge society event with five hundred guests became an intimate ceremony in Grandpa Samuel's garden with only twenty people.
But it was perfect.
Mia walked down an aisle of flowers, her arm linked with Samuel's, wearing her beautiful dress and holding a simple bouquet.
Ryan stood at the end of the aisle in his tuxedo, and when he saw her, his eyes filled with tears.
Emma stood as maid of honor. Tom was the best man.
The minister, an old friend of Samuel's, kept the ceremony short and sweet.
"Do you, Ryan Blake, take Mia Carter to be your lawfully wedded wife?"
"I do," Ryan said, his voice strong and sure.
"And do you, Mia Carter, take Ryan Blake to be your lawfully wedded husband?"
"I do," Mia said, smiling through happy tears.
"Then by the power vested in me, I now pronounce you husband and wife. Ryan, you may kiss your bride."
Ryan pulled Mia close and kissed her as everyone cheered.
When they pulled apart, both were laughing and crying.
"We did it," Mia whispered.
"We did," Ryan agreed.
As they walked back down the aisle together, officially married, Mia felt a sense of peace she'd never experienced before.
Yes, they'd been through hell.
Yes, Jessica was still out there, probably plotting revenge.
Yes, there would be more challenges ahead.
But they would face them together.
As husband and wife.
As partners.
As a family.
---
**Three hours later, at the small reception...**
Mia and Ryan were cutting their cake when Tom approached, looking serious.
"Sir, I'm sorry to interrupt, but you need to see this."
He showed them his phone.
A news alert: **"Jessica Blake Released from Prison on Technicality!"**
Ryan's face went white. "What?"
"Apparently her lawyer found an error in the arrest warrant. She's free, effective immediately."
Mia's hand instinctively went to her belly, protecting her babies.
Ryan pulled out his phone to call his lawyers when another text came through.
From Jessica.
**"Congratulations on your wedding, son. Enjoy it while it lasts. Because this is far from over. You took everything from me. Now I'm going to return the favor. And this time, I won't fail."**
Ryan showed the message to Mia.
For a moment, fear flickered in her eyes.
Then her expression hardened.
"Let her try," Mia said. "We've survived everything else. We'll survive her too."
Ryan pulled her close, kissing her forehead.
Around them, their small group of loved ones celebrated, unaware of the threat.
But Mia and Ryan knew.
The real battle was just beginning.
And this time, Jessica Blake had nothing left to lose.
Which made her more dangerous than ever before.