Mystery Bride's Revenge

The first guy had a classic surfer look, complete with untanned skin and a laid-back grin, while his brother had a more low-key, cool vibe. Dressed to the nines in their rocker best, they both rocked long hair and some stylish ear piercings.

"Hey, you must be Selina. I'm Thomas Cooper, lead singer and guitar guy. And that's my younger brother Luke, the one on bass Lydia's tokl us all about you, so let's see what you've got. We're all rooting for you. Thomas said with a smile that lit up the room. Luke just gave a subele nod as his bello.

Selina

et this show on the road.

shot back a nod and said, "Cool to meet you both. I'm all in. Let's get

Lydia clapped to grabs everyone's attention. "Right, let's rock it, people. We've got 20 minutes to bring it all together, so let's make it count and blow the roof off this place, got it!"

The opening act's set wrapped up, leaving a fifteen-minute break before The Rose was up. Starlight Club was buzzing with energy after that killer opener.

Ashley, nursing an orange juice next to Timothy, was starting to worry. "Hey, what's taking Kevin so long! And where the heck is Selina? I'm so worried. You think we should check on them?" Timothy took a casual sip of his drink "Nah, they're not kils. No worries"Ccontent © exclusive by Nô/vel(D)ra/ma.Org.

Ashley was uneasy though. If Kevin had scored, he'd have been back by now.

But then, when The Rose hit the stage, the place erupted with cheers.

At first. Ashley and Timothy couldn't quite see who was who in the dim light, just chatting with folks around about the band. But when the stage lit up. Ashley gasped, "What Selina?"

Timothy followed her gaze to the stage, his brow furrowing at the sight of Selma with a guitar in the lead guitarist's usual spor "What's going on Since when does Selina play with The Rose?" He had watched The Rose's shows before, and the guitarist was never Selina. Maybe the regular guitarist had an emergency, and Selina was just filling in for now. It seemed impossible for her to actually play with a hand like The Rose,

"Timothy, this is insane-we have to stop Selinat She can't embarrass herself like this." Ashley's concern was dripping with insincerity. It made sense now. Selina cut ties with the Harvey family and got into Starlight Chib because she joined The Rose, who was getting popular, and could look after berseli.

"Tused to think the band was good. But I can't believe Thomas and Luke got tricked by Selina into letting her play guitar... Timothy said with a smirk. "I can't wait for them to mess up. If they're bad sonight at Starlight Club, no one will book them again" He didn't think Selina could really play. To him, she was just a nobody; all looks, no talent. The idea of marrying her disgusted him like bugs on his skin. If he had to choose someone from the family circle, it'd be Ashley every time. Selina should have stayed out of the picture for good. Timothy had been stressed about Selina causing drama with her return, But Ashley told him Selina was leaving the Harvey family, so he was less worried. If Selina failed tonight and people thought she was with Thomas and Luke for money, the Harvey and Clark families would drop her.

"What? No, Timothy, we can't let this happen. I can't watch Selina mess up again. Now she's with two guys for money?" Ashley said it loud enough for others to hear. Timothy's friends looked entertained and started whispering. The Harvey family's heiress, gone for twenty-one years, now with rock stars for money? That was big news

The band's set roared to life with electric guitar riffs that filled the room

Selina, her head bowed, was lost in the music, each note alive around her, making her pulse race.

In the audience, Elaine had been praying to anyone who would listen. But seeing Selina owning the stage, she couldn't help but scream with joy. Thomas and Luke were floored. Once Selina got going, she commanded the stage, outshining the twins and going toe-to-toe with Lydia. During rehearsal, she had been just okay, but right now, she was on fire-born performer stepping up when it counted. Lydia, with a knowing smile, watched as the drums kicked in, in sync with Selina's guitar, sending the crowd into a frenzy

"Wow, Ashley, your sister's killing it the crowd shouted, flipping their opinion after Ashley's earlier smears suggested Selina was nothing more than a sellout. Now, everyone could see she wasn't bringing the band down, she was leading it with the swagger of a superstar. Ashley was seething. This was not how it was supposed to go. She'd been ready to film Selina's Failure and show it to the Harvey family, to prove Selina was out of the family for good, and that she, Ashley, was the only one worthy of their love. But Selina was rocking it, making Ashley's scheme

Timothy stood, stunned, watching Selina, who looked like royalty under the bright lights.

Upstairs in the VIP section, Trevon came back with a cryptic look. Having checked the security tapes and confirmed the times matched Cham's appearance, he wondered if it was really Selina.

Charley was pumped. Trevon, man, where've you been? Did you see that? The band's amazing!"

Trevon didn't reply. He just walked over, stood next to Charley, and turned to watch the stage. He caught sight of Selina and his expression shifted to one of shock. He pondered, "Why is Selina the one performing during The Rose's set? I've seen the lineup, and her name is definitely not on it.