Chapter 3 - The Silver Pendant
Emily saw Daniel’s panicked signal. She set her glass of water on a passing tray, smoothed down the front of her dark navy dress, and began walking across the polished marble floor.
The eyes of the ballroom followed her. A hush fell as people wondered why a woman in an unbranded, patched dress was walking straight toward Richard Kensington, the most powerful man in Texas.
Daniel glared at her as she approached, leaning in slightly to whisper through gritted teeth, "Smile, keep your mouth shut, and let me do the talking."
Emily ignored him. She stopped a few feet away from the billionaire, holding her posture straight, her gaze calm and dignfied.
"Mr. Kensington, Miss Kensington," Emily said gracefully, offering a polite incline of her head. "It is a pleasure to meet you both."
Richard opened his mouth to greet her, but the words died in his throat.
His eyes weren't looking at her face. They weren't looking at her simple navy dress or her unstyled hair. His gaze was frozen, locked onto the silver half-sun pendant resting against her collarbone—and the small, faint, star-shaped scar peeking just above the neckline of her dress.
Richard’s face drained of all color. The glass of scotch in his right hand trembled violently, sending liquid spilling over his fingers before the glass slipped entirely, shattering onto the marble floor.
CRASH.
The sound echoed through the silent ballroom like a gunshot. Guests gasped. Security guards immediately reached for their jackets, but Richard waved them off with a shaky, terrified hand.
"Richard? What is it?" Eleanor asked, her voice trembling as she grabbed her brother’s arm. She followed his frozen line of sight down to Emily’s neck. Eleanor’s breath hitched. She placed both hands over her mouth, tears instantly welling up in her eyes. "Oh... my God..."
Daniel’s face flushed red with anger and terror. He assumed Emily had somehow offended the billionaire with her cheap appearance or her mere presence.
"I am so deeply sorry, Mr. Kensington!" Daniel shouted, stepping aggressively between Emily and the billionaires. He grabbed Emily by the upper arm, shoving her slightly back. "She shouldn't be here! She’s uncultured, sir! I told her to stay out of sight! Emily, get out of here right now! Go back to the car!"
"DON'T YOU DARE TOUCH HER!"
The roar came from Richard Kensington himself. It was a voice of pure thunder, vibrating through the entire ballroom.
Daniel froze, paralyzed with shock. "M-Mr. Kensington?"
Richard ignored Daniel completely. Shaking uncontrollably, the seventy-two-year-old billionaire stepped past Daniel, his polished shoes stepping over the broken glass on the floor. He stopped directly in front of Emily.
With trembling hands, Richard reached out, his fingers hovering inches away from the silver pendant. "Where... where did you get this?" he asked, his voice cracking with an emotion so raw, so overwhelming, that the entire room went dead silent.
Emily reached up, touching the pendant gently. "It was given to me by the woman who raised me... Mrs. Rosa Bennett. She said I was holding it when she found me thirty years ago."
Richard’s eyes welled with heavy tears. "And the mark... on your collarbone?"
May you like
Emily hesitated, then lightly brushed her collar dress aside, revealing the tiny, star-shaped burn scar. "A fire... thirty years ago."
Eleanor burst into heavy, uncontrollable sobs, falling to her knees right there on the ballroom floor. "It’s her, Richard... It’s our little Sophia... She’s alive!"
