The Unloved Heiress Goes Rogue

Secrets

Raine POV

I winced as she pulled my hair back, rough, harsh, and unyielding as she applied pressure, ruthlessly yanking it and tying it back into an elaborate chignon, a wide smile on her face, while tears dripped down my cheeks.

"Stop crying" Summer snapped, looking impatient as she continued to do my hair, my body trembling as I stood still, feeling as though I was a virgin sacrifice about to marry a beast.

It wasn't far from the truth. Edgar Rosethorn was certainly no Prince Charming and certainly not the kind of man I had envisioned marrying. The thought of him touching me, of what a wedding night normally entailed, had my stomach churning so fiercely that I worried I might vomit on the floor in front of me.

I looked in the mirror, meeting Summer's eyes as she continued to hurt me, taking pleasure in my pain.

"Aren't you even minutely sorry for me considering it was meant to be you marrying Edgar Rosethorn?" I asked hollowly.

She smirked. "Why should I feel sorry for you? I was never going to marry the old man. Urgh, just the thought of him touching me" she shuddered "thank god that mother and father saw sense and offered you up instead."

She finished my hair and stood back, putting her hands on her hips and surveying me, nodding to herself in satisfaction. "At the very least, you make a beautiful bride, although you'll ruin your makeup if you don't stop that endless crying," she said with a snap.

I turned and looked at my sister. She looked beautiful as always, dressed in a pastel blue dress that only further enhanced her fair complexion and brought out the blueness of her eyes. Her blonde hair was cascading down her back in tiny ringlets and she moved gracefully as she stepped around to look at me.

"If you were in my position I doubt you would be smiling with happiness" I almost shouted at her "don't you have a conscience at all? How can you claim to be my sister and be so coldhearted?"

"Oh enough Raine" Summer's voice is dismissive "why do you think you're in this position to begin with? You're the bastard of the family, the mistress's child. Not to mention the defiant one. Who else did you think they were going to pick or sacrifice? I'm the one who they dote on. Not you" her voice was cold.

"What do you mean defiant?" I whispered, my lower lip quivering.

She looked at me in disbelief. "You've always gone against mother and father, even when you know how they take that. What do you call all those part-time jobs you've had?" she said shaking her head, a rueful smile on her face "they are embarrassed that you took on menial jobs to make money. Father just about had a fit the first time you told him."

"There's nothing wrong with working hard to make your own money" I argued back.

"It's that exact attitude that caused mother and father to serve you up on a silver platter to Edgar Rosethorn. Why can't you be like everybody else in the elite?" Summer asked shrewdly "polite, reserved, quiet and respectful. Why do you have to question everything and act as though being wealthy and privileged is something to be ashamed of?"

"I'm not ashamed of it. I just think there's value in working hard" I told her.

She wrinkled her brow. "Whatever you call it, I doubt that Edgar Rosethorn will approve of it either," she said abruptly and then sighed. "This will go easier for you if you just accept it. Hell, it might not even be as bad as you're thinking" she suggested brightly.

Not as bad as I was thinking? Was my sister insane? Delusional? What part of it was going to be good?

"Really Summer? In what way?" my voice is dead.

"He's rich Raine. You'll never have to work a day in your life. He's going to save our company, so you have to be grateful to him. You could ask him for anything and I bet he'll give it to you. So what if you have to put up with him for a little while" she shrugged "it's not for the rest of your life. He's going to die eventually and then you'll end up inheriting everything. Isn't that great? she enthused.

"I would rather marry for love Summer, the same as you" my voice is sharp.

"I don't intend on marrying for love" Summer looks at me incredulously "you're fooling yourself if you think that true love exists. I want to marry a billionaire and be taken care of for the rest of my life. That's my goal in life," she told me.

"What about education?" I asked, knowing it was futile as she shrugged again "pride? Helping other people?"

"I don't care about that," she said bluntly "all I care about is money."

"You're a monster" I whispered, "all of you are monsters."

"Maybe, but I'm not the one whose about to marry an old geezer for his money and for the sake of some old woman who can barely remember who the hell I am. Ask yourself something Raine" Summer studied her fingernails and then looked up at me with a sarcastic expression "would you be doing this if it wasn't for the love you had for grandmother?"

I bit my lip and said nothing. Summer giggled. "There you go. Love is simply a waste of time and an inconvenience. You're about to sacrifice your youth" she said as she stepped forward and fixed a loose tendril of my hair "and all for what? Grandmother isn't even..." she began to say and then abruptly stopped, her eyes widening and a look of panic crossing her face.

"Grandmother isn't even what Summer?" I asked, looking at her intently. "What were you about to say?" I asked as she began to glance away from me.

"Nothing", she said hastily.

"I don't believe you. You were going to say something" I continued but she snapped at me.

"Nothing Raine. Leave it. Finish getting ready and then come downstairs so that father can accompany you down the aisle. There's only a few minutes left and you can't afford to dawdle."

I stared at the back of her as she left, her steps hurried. She was eager to get away from me, as though she had almost divulged information she wasn't meant to. What had she been going to say about my grandmother? It seemed important and it had made her uncomfortable when I had pressed her on it.

Something was going on. I smoothed down my dress, wrinkled my nose in distaste, and decided to confront my mother and father about my grandmother. She should have been here for this ceremony and it hurt to know she was missing from a family event. It had been so long since I had seen her, I thought with a frown. I opened the door and peered cautiously down the stairs but to my relief, nobody was waiting for me. I quietly made my way downstairs and then glanced towards the hallway, seeing my mother and my father around the corner, involved in some sort of deep discussion. They had yet to notice my presence. For some reason, I felt compelled to keep my silence, slipping out of my shoes and walking forward on bare feet. They were oblivious to me, my father gesturing wildly to my mother, a look of frustration on his face. They were arguing about something, but what? Especially on today of all days?

My heart beat rapidly in my chest as I drew closer to the two of them. Any moment now, I expected them to acknowledge me, to order me to get ready but they remained deep in conversation and I paused, able to finally hear them, unabashedly eavesdropping.

"What are we going to tell her?" my father's voice is a hiss as he gestures angrily towards my mother.

She sighs, looking impatient. "It doesn't matter, by that time the wedding will be done and over with and she won't have a choice. It will be too late for her to do anything about it."

"It seems wrong" my father continues, even as he gives a deep sigh "keeping something like this from her. She's been asking for weeks now. I'm surprised nobody has let it slip" he added meaningfully, narrowing his eyes at my mother.

"The only other person who knows is Summer and I've given her explicit instructions not to inform Raine. The last thing we need is for her to find out and become overly" my mother paused, tapping her chin in thought "emotional. You know how she tends to be, especially when it comes to that infuriating woman" she sneered.

Infuriating woman? Who could my mother be talking about? My father rubbed his chin. "Nevertheless it could still cause a problem if we don't come clean."

"We can come clean after the ceremony" my mother snapped, rolling her eyes "anybody would think you don't have a spine. Have you forgotten about how much trouble our company is facing if we don't get Edgar Rosethorn's assistance?"

"N,o" my father said quickly "I haven't. I just feel..." he trailed off, rubbing the back of his neck, a look of discomfort on his face.

"Well don't think" his wife hissed "just go about today and pretend that nothing is amiss. You've managed it for the last few weeks, what's one more day?" she demanded frostily.

"But Raine" he tried to say.

"Forget about Raine. We're doing this for her sake. Do you want to ruin her big day?" my mothers voice goes unexpectedly tender as she bats her eyelashes at my father, causing him to relax his posture slightly "today is about Raine and merging our family with the Rosethorn's. Forget about everything else. We just need to get through today" she reiterated.

What was wrong? What had them so worried they needed to keep it secret? My mother began to smooth down her hair. "Now, Raine will be down here any minute" she reminded my father as he nodded tightly "and you aren't to give anything away" she warned.

"I won't" my father snarled "but if she hears that her grandmother, the reason she's marrying Edgar Rosethorn is already dead, we're both in for it. There's nothing else we can use to blackmail her into going through with this wedding."

"Precisely why we won't tell her" my mother said while my legs felt like they had planted to the ground.

Grandmother was dead? Not just dead but had been gone for weeks? That was the big secret they had been hiding? The reason I had been unable to visit her, let alone talk to her? Tears came to my eyes.

Don't let them catch you or they'll know you were eavesdropping.

The voice came to my mind unbidden, even as I fought to keep from crying. I slowly backed away, quickly grabbing my shoes and hiding around the corner, pressing myself up against the wall, my shoes clutched to my chest.

What do I do now? How could they do this to me?

They must have already known before they blackmailed me into marrying this horrid man!

I can't marry this man anymore, but how on earth am I going to get out of here, without being seen in a wedding dress?