I looked at Adrian calmly.

—Why wouldn’t I marry?

His grip tightened around the jade ring.

—Then why are you asking for the pendant?

—Because it belongs to the Hayes family.

—It was our engagement token.

—Exactly.

I held out my hand.

—And you just asked me to return yours.

For several seconds, Adrian said nothing.

Mia touched his arm.

—Adrian, maybe Miss Hayes is angry. Don’t argue with her before the wedding.

He seemed to find an explanation he preferred.

Angry.

Of course.

Anything was easier than believing I had stopped loving him.

Adrian removed the twin-fish pendant from beneath his uniform and dropped it into my palm.

—Fine.

Then he leaned closer.

—But don’t regret this tomorrow.

I closed my fingers around the jade.

—I won’t.

He left believing he had won.

The next morning, I became Victor Shaw’s wife.

There was no mistake.

No correction.

No eighth application.

Victor himself came to the ceremony.

That surprised everyone.

For years, rumors had described him as a broken man who rarely appeared in public.

Instead, he arrived in a dark military uniform, walking with a cane but without anyone’s assistance.

A scar ran from his temple toward his ear.

His expression was cold.

His posture was straight.

And when he stopped beside me, he asked only one question.

—Isabella Hayes, do you know whose name is on the report?

I met his eyes.

—Victor Shaw.

—And you’re here voluntarily?

—Yes.

Something changed briefly in his expression.

Then he signed.

No games.

No delays.

One signature.

Ten years of waiting ended in less than five minutes.

Outside, Victor handed me a small velvet box.

Inside was a jade bracelet.

I hesitated.

—Your mother already added enough to the dowry.

—My mother didn’t prepare this.

He looked at me.

—I did.

—Why?

His answer was simple.

—Because if you’re my wife, you shouldn’t have to wear another man’s promise.

For some reason, those words hurt more than Adrian’s cruelty.

Victor noticed my silence.

—You don’t have to wear it.

I picked up the bracelet.

—Help me put it on.

His fingers paused.

Then he carefully fastened it around my wrist.

That afternoon, the news spread through the entire military district.

By five, my phone was overflowing with messages.

By six, Adrian knew.

He arrived at the Shaw residence before dinner.

The doors opened violently.

—ISABELLA!

Everyone at the table turned.

Adrian stood there breathing hard.

His eyes immediately found me.

Then Victor.

Then the marriage certificate beside my hand.

His face went white.

—What is this?

Victor continued pouring tea.

—You should address her properly.

Adrian ignored him.

—Isabella, answer me.

I placed my chopsticks down.

—What do you want me to explain?

—Why are you here?

I almost smiled.

—Because I married Victor.

—That report was a joke!

The room went silent.

Mrs. Shaw’s expression changed instantly.

Victor slowly lifted his eyes.

—A joke?

Adrian realized too late what he had admitted.

—Uncle, I didn’t mean—

—You altered a military marriage report?

Victor’s voice wasn’t loud.

That made it worse.

Adrian looked at me desperately.

—Isabella knew it was a mistake.

—No.

I interrupted him.

—I knew you changed it deliberately.

His face froze.

—I heard everything that night.

Mia, standing near the doorway, immediately lost her color.

I continued:

—I heard the bet. I heard you say I would come crawling back. I heard you say marrying your uncle would make me more obedient.

Adrian stared at me as if I had struck him.

—Then why didn’t you confront me?

—Because I was tired.

—You could have asked me to fix it!

—Seven times, Adrian.

My voice remained calm.

—I asked you seven times.

He took a step toward me.

Victor’s cane moved slightly between us.

A warning.

Adrian stopped.

—You don’t love him.

I looked at him.

—And?

That single word destroyed whatever argument he had prepared.

—You love me.

—Maybe I did.

—Maybe?

His voice cracked.

For the first time, Adrian Shaw looked frightened.

I touched the bracelet Victor had given me.

—The woman who waited ten years for you existed yesterday.

I glanced at my marriage certificate.

—Today she doesn’t.

Adrian suddenly looked at Victor.

—Uncle, annul this. She married you because she’s angry with me.

Victor placed his cup down.

—Do you want me to return my wife to you because you finally decided you want her?

Adrian’s face darkened.

—She was supposed to be my wife.

Victor’s eyes became colder.

—Then you shouldn’t have written my name.

Nobody spoke.

Adrian looked back at me.

—Isabella, come with me.

I didn’t move.

—No.

—I can fix everything.

—You already did.

I held up the marriage certificate.

—Thank you.

He looked as though he couldn’t breathe.

But Victor wasn’t finished.

He pulled a folder from beside his chair and placed it on the table.

—There’s another matter.

Adrian frowned.

Victor opened the folder.

Inside were copies of my previous seven rejected marriage reports.

I recognized them immediately.

But beside each rejection was an authorization code.

The same authorization code.

Adrian’s.

I slowly looked up.

—What is that?

Victor answered me.

—Your applications weren’t rejected by the military district.

My heart stopped.

He turned the first page toward me.

—Someone withdrew them before final approval.

Adrian went completely still.

I stared at him.

—You told me every time that headquarters rejected us.

He said nothing.

Victor opened another document.

—There’s more.

The eighth report—the one Adrian had changed as a joke—had triggered an internal review.

And investigators had discovered something else.

Mia’s name appeared repeatedly in Adrian’s records.

Housing allowances.

Special transfers.

Private payments.

And one confidential application submitted six months earlier.

Victor slid it toward me.

Adrian lunged forward.

—Don’t show her that!

Victor’s hand came down over the document first.

That reaction told me everything.

I looked at Adrian.

—What is it?

Nobody answered.

So I pulled the page free.

At the top were the words:

“DEPENDENT FAMILY STATUS APPLICATION.”

Applicant:

Adrian Shaw.

Proposed dependent:

Mia Collins.

My fingers tightened around the paper.

But it was the date that made my blood run cold.

Adrian had submitted it three days before asking the Shaw family to officially arrange our wedding.

I raised my eyes.

—Adrian…

His face had turned gray.

—Why were you registering Mia as family before marrying me?

Mia suddenly began crying.

—It isn’t what you think.

Victor looked at her.

—Then perhaps you should explain the final page.

He turned it over.

There was a handwritten declaration attached.

One sentence had been underlined.

“If Isabella Hayes discovers the truth, the marriage with her must not proceed.”

And beneath it were two signatures.

Mia’s.

And Adrian’s.