Behind the White Dress

The room erupted into chaos. Relatives gossiped and pointed, their murmurs a relentless tide.

"Unbelievable. Aria's luring her own brother-in-law!"

"She's been away for years, and this is the dirty secret?!"

"This is a dark day for the family!"

Betty's grip was knocked loose by a surge of my spiritual energy, sending her stumbling back in shock.

She shrieked, "What the hell?! As if stealing and being the other woman wasn't low enough. You're getting violent now?!"

I fixed her with an icy stare, my voice a calm storm of certainty.

"Betty, you've got nothing on me. How dare you label me the other woman? You're the one who wasn't here first."

That set her off like a rocket.

Her face flamed red, her eyes spitting fire. "You dare to play the victim?"

She hoisted my lucky charm, poised to hurl it down.

"I'll put an end to your smugness! I'll stop your little game with my husband! This trinket goes down, and we'll see who's left standing!"

A chill ran through me.

I locked eyes with her, each word deliberate. "Betty, that charm is bound to Joseph's life. You can't just smash it."

She froze for a moment before letting out a derisive laugh. "Stop scaring people with your nonsense! It's just a worthless charm. How could it possibly be deadly?"

The relatives around them quickly chimed in in agreement.

"Has Aria lost her marbles with all that spiritual mumbo-jumbo? Why's she spouting crazy talk?"

"Right? As if some trinket can control fate. Who's buying that story?"

I ignored their sneers.

"Believe it or not, that's your choice. However, if you break it and something happens to Joseph, you're on your own."

Betty's face went pale, my words clearly striking a nerve.

However, she quickly snapped back to her haughty self, tossing my hand aside. "Oh, please. You think I'm falling for this hocus-pocus?"

Betty's eyes gleamed with malice as she smirked. "Aria, you're so worked up over this charm. You didn't swipe anything else from my hubby, did you?"

She called out loudly to the relatives, "Come on, search her! Let's see what else she's hiding!"

The relatives exchanged uneasy glances, reluctant to cross a line.

Publicly frisking someone was a bit much, after all.

Betty's expression turned icy. "What's the matter? My husband's the top dog around here. You really want to cross me, the big man's wife?"

Her words hit hard, and the relatives' hesitation crumbled.

A gaggle of middle-aged women swarmed me, yanking at my robe from all sides.

"Stop it!" I yelled, struggling to get free.

However, I could not use my magic against so many ordinary folks.

My sleeve ripped with a harsh sound, exposing my pale arm.

More relatives piled on, some pinching, some tugging at my hair.

"Wow, look at that skin! Bet you've been charming the pants off the guys, huh?"

"Look at those rags. Who knows what shameful secrets you've got hidden?"

"Aria, I'm not trying to be harsh, but you lost your mom young, and you missed out on some life lessons. Going after someone else's husband? That's just low.

I was reeling, a mix of shock and fury boiling inside me.

Years of honing my inner strength, and for what? To be humiliated like that?

In the midst of the turmoil, the banquet hall doors burst open with a ruckus.

I glanced up and there was Joseph, looking sharp in his suit, striding our way.

"Joseph!" I blurted out, desperate for him to put an end to that spectacle.

However, Betty was onto me in a flash.

With an icy huff, she hurried over and latched onto Joseph's arm. "Honey, what took you so long?"

She was blocking him from seeing me, pouting up at him as she purred, "I've been waiting forever!"

Joseph chuckled and gave her cheek a playful squeeze. "I got caught in traffic. Were you worried?"