Chapter 3

I gritted my teeth. "Jasmine, do you have any idea who I am?!"

"Touch me again, and you'll regret this for the rest of your life!"

Enraged, Jasmine swung her hand and slapped me across the face.

My ears rang with a deafening crack.

My head snapped to the side, and the metallic taste of blood filled my mouth.

Gasps rippled through the crowd.

"Did she just hit her?"

"Isn't that taking it too far?"

Jasmine's eyes welled with tears instantly, her voice trembling. "She stole from us and won't admit it."

"I'm just trying to recover the store's property. What did I do wrong?"

With a few tears, she flipped the script and became the victim.

The bystanders fell silent.

Someone even murmured, "Retail workers have it rough."

"It's forty grand. Anyone would panic."

It was sickening.

Just because she cried, she had the right to hurt me.

Just because she claimed to be stressed, I deserved to be humiliated.

Jasmine glared at me, hissing, "Take off the hoodie. Search her underwear too!"

I snapped my head up. "Are you insane?!"

Her voice was ice-cold. "A brooch is small. It could be hidden anywhere."

Emboldened, Fiona reached for my hem. "Exactly. What if she stuffed it in her bra?"

My blood ran cold.

This wasn't about finding the brooch. They wanted to destroy me.

They wanted to strip away every shred of my dignity and grind it into the dirt.

I thrashed against them frantically.

"Get off me!"

"Don't touch me!"

"I'm Ethan Sterling's sister!"

Smack!

Jasmine struck me again, even harder than before.

My face burned, my vision spun, and my knees nearly gave out.

She pointed at me, shrieking, "You dare pretend to be Ethan's sister? Who do you think you are?!"

"Hold her down!"

"Nobody leaves until we check everything!"

They pinned me again.

My arms were twisted behind my back, a searing pain shooting through my shoulders as cold sweat broke out on my forehead.

Just then, a commotion erupted at the entrance.

Someone whispered in shock, "Ms. Sterling is here."

"Which Ms. Sterling?"

"Who else? Victoria Sterling."

Jasmine's face froze.

Through my tangled hair and the boutique's glass walls, I saw Victoria walking in.

She wore a tailored black suit, her hair pinned up, flanked by her assistant and bodyguards.

Jasmine clearly recognized her.

The woman who had just been acting like a ruthless tyrant suddenly went pale as a sheet.

Realizing what was happening, she gave the security guards a frantic look.

"What are you standing around for? Drag her to the back!"

My chest tightened.

"Victoria!"

Before another sound could leave my lips, Fiona clamped a hand over my mouth.

The two guards dragged me toward the back room.

I dragged my heels across the marble floor, leaving screeching marks.

Victoria's eyes scanned the room.

Jasmine rushed over to block her line of sight, forcing a fawning smile onto her face.

"Ms. Sterling! What a wonderful surprise to see you here today."

"Ethan mentioned yesterday that he was going to take me to dinner with you tonight."

Victoria's gaze fell on the glass counter—at the canvas tote and the familiar box of stomach medicine.

She froze.

That was...

Jasmine hurried to explain, "We had a small incident in the store. Please excuse the mess."

Victoria's brow furrowed. "Where is she?"

Jasmine blinked. "Who?"

Victoria looked directly at her. Her gaze was chilling, dangerous, vibrating with suppressed fury.

"My sister."