Chapter 526

Claude lowered his voice, his words carrying a fervent weight. "And today, I want everyone here to see, to grasp without a shadow of doubt that you, Hannah, are the only one who matters to me, Claude. Even that soon-to-be fiancée of mine cannot shake your place by so much as an inch."

Hannah tried to reason with him, her tone steady but troubled. "Don't you fear that Bonnie will see me like this and grow jealous? Wouldn't that ruin your own engagement party?"

At her words, Claude's lips curved into a cold, arrogant smile. "What reason does she have to be jealous?You attend my engagement ceremony merely as family. I've already made it clear to the Sandoval family-l have a sisterly figure who grew up by my side, someone dear to me, and I want her present to witness my happiness. They agreed. If Bonnie cannot endure such a bond, it only proves her immature, unworthy of joining the Hobbes family."

"You're insane.. Utterly out of your mind!" Hannah felt a chill rising from her feet to her chest.

"Insane?" Claude's eyes darkened, menacing and bottomless. He leaned close, his breath brushing her ear."If I were truly insane, I'd drive out every guest this very moment, tear apart this engagement, and turn it into our wedding instead. Anna, you're right. I am half-mad... But I'm still holding back. So don't test me.Prepare yourself. I'll be waiting for you."

As he spoke, his sharp gaze landed on Hannah's wrist. Seizing her moment of distraction, he swiftly tore the security wristband from her.

"Give that back!" Hannah's face drained of color as she lunged for it.

Claude sidestepped easily, clenching the security wristband in his hand, his smile sharp as frost."I know you sent your location to Vincent. This little trinket, I'll be keeping it. Don't place your hopes on him saving you. Today,you belong to me alone."

He allowed no room for protest, signaling to the stylists nearby.

The stylists came forward at once, ignoring Hannah's frantic resistance. They pressed her into a custom-fitted, figure-hugging mermaid wedding dress, fastening every clasp, every zip, smoothing each detail until it clung perfectly to her frame.

When at last they finished, the mirror reflected Hannah draped in bridal white, her face like a sheet of ice.

Claude's eyes shone with admiration and satisfaction. "Beautiful," he said with genuine praise before gesturing to his assistants. "Take her to the ceremony."

Two bodyguards in black suits "escorted" Hannah-almost by force-out of the dressing room and toward the grand hall already brimming with guests.

Just as they turned a corner in the corridor, Hannah suddenly came face to face with another figurein a wedding dress-Bonnie.

In that instant, both women froze.

Hannah's eyes widened, disbelief washing over her as she saw Bonnie wearing the exact same wedding gown. The style, the fabric, the details-every stitch was identical.

Yet, the dress, clearly tailored for Hannah's figure, sagged and gaped on Bonnie. The bust hung loose, the waist misaligned, making her seem like a child awkwardly swallowed in her mother's clothes, exuding only discomfort and embarrassment.

Bonnie, too, looked at Hannah. Her face paled for a fleeting moment, but she quickly forced back her composure.

And then, Hannah understood it all. Claude's plan was laid bare-he wanted not only her presence, but Bonnie's public humiliation. Before all the guests, he meant to declare his obsession with her without disguise.

Claude seemed deaf to the murmurs spreading through the crowd, blind to the strange, questioning stares.With a faint smile of twisted delight, he strode to Hannah, slipping her arm into his with force, locking her in place. "Be good, Anna. It's only ceremony, nothing more. Soon, it will pass. Now smile-it's supposed to be the happiest day of my life."