Chapter 25 Echoes Of Control

• (POV: Isabela)
• The days leading up to the Linarez gala felt like wading through heavy water, slow and suffocating. The secret escape plan felt like a fragile paper boat launched onto a stormy sea. Every time I tucked away the burner phone or checked the envelope of Camila's savings hidden beneath the floorboard, my heart hammered with a sickening mix of desperate hope and bone-deep fear. Camila’s whispered warning about those who smiled too brightly echoed constantly, making me second-guess Rena’s every helpful suggestion, every encouraging word, even as I desperately needed to believe in her.
• I moved through the required motions – dress fittings, guest list approvals – like a ghost haunting my own life. Mateo's presence was a constant weight, sometimes silent and observant, sometimes issuing quiet commands that chipped away at my already fragile sense of self. The memory of the controlling dinner, his hand on my thigh, his decree about my food, lingered like a bruise.