Chapter Twenty-Three

At dawn, Sonya heads to the gym for a restorative yoga session. Mid-flow, Dobbs hijacks the instructor’s image, spewing taunts and weaving a lethal illusion: lights cut out, the door locks, exercise bands hiss like snakes, and the servant bell clangs. Dobbs urges Sonya to kill herself and claims the manor rejects her.

Shaken but determined, Sonya resists. A cold hand covers hers and a whisper—Clover—tells her Dobbs lies and that Sonya is stronger. Feeling the support of Clover and the other brides, Sonya turns on Dobbs with defiant mockery, challenging her to face-to-face confrontation. The lights snap on, Dobbs vanishes, and the door opens as Trey, alerted by blaring music and bells, reaches her.

In the kitchen, Trey and Cleo warm and steady Sonya. She recounts the attack and the surge of collective laughter she felt—brides and perhaps the manor itself—reducing Dobbs to a joke. Together they conclude Dobbs can’t directly kill without breaking her own curse and must drive victims to self-harm. They plan an in-house celebration dinner to rub in the win and renew resolve to recover the seven rings.

Later, Sonya successfully finalizes the Bayside Lotions and Potions website, guiding Carrie through its features and planning to go live pending Hogan’s review. Embracing the oncoming fall, she vows the manor’s “Lost Bride” name will end.

Over lunch, Trey updates Owen. Both men, frustrated yet clear-eyed, reaffirm that while direct confrontation isn’t the path, Sonya—Poole by blood yet independent by choice—seems fated to find the way through. They commit to protecting her and ending Dobbs’s reign.