"Still the same old trash, huh?"
The words sliced through Sienna Brooks like a blade dipped in ice.
Across the office, Camille Blake stood with a smirk that didn't quite reach her eyes. Her designer heels clicked deliberately on the polished floors as she walked past the stunned team of designers.
The creative director, Vanessa Crowe, looked between Camille and Sienna with a spark of surprise. "You two know each other?"
"Oh, we go way back," Camille said, casually flipping her sleek hair over one shoulder. "She's a thief. Always has been. Steals ideas. Steals people. Once, she even tried to steal my fiancé."
Gasps erupted across the office floor.
Vanessa turned a mocking eye toward Sienna. "I guess when stealing's in your blood, it just… flows naturally, huh?"
The accusations landed hard. But Sienna stood her ground.
"If you're going to drag my name through the mud," she said sharply, "then do it with proof. Otherwise, it's just gossip."
Vanessa scoffed. "Surveillance footage is proof."
Sienna didn't flinch. "Your office is always locked after hours. How would I even get in unless you left it open yourself?"
Vanessa waved a dismissive hand. "I stepped out and forgot to lock it. A mistake—one that a lowlife like you took advantage of."
"Fine," Sienna snapped, her tone cold. "Then let's bring in the police. Let them sort through the evidence."
The murmurs died down instantly. The air grew tense.
Because no one wanted the police involved—not even Camille.
Her plan was to humiliate Sienna, blacklist her from the industry, and crush her spirit—not trigger an investigation.
Still, Camille smiled like the devil in a silk blouse. "Police, huh? Are you sure that's a good idea, Sienna? You really want your record made public again?"
Sienna's eyes narrowed.
Camille turned to the watching crowd and announced, "Didn't know our little office mouse here used to have sticky fingers? Or that she flunked out of university after being caught cheating on her entrance exam? Or that she seduced her advisor just to pass?"
Whispers rose like wildfire.
"Damn… she really pulled that kind of stuff?"
"She looks so plain—I didn't think she had it in her."
"I feel gross just sitting near her…"
"Total snake."
Sienna stared Camille down, her voice tight but calm. "You know what really happened."
Camille's expression didn't waver. "All I know is, the official report said thief. That's all anyone needs to know."
Back then, Sienna had hoped the truth would come out. That the system would clear her name.
It didn't.
And now, facing this same twisted game, she suddenly realized the police might not help her this time either. Not without hard proof.
Camille turned to Vanessa with a sweet smile. "Don't worry, Vanessa. No need to blow this up. Just handle it in-house. Quietly."
Vanessa nodded eagerly. "Of course, Miss West. I'll deal with it."
Then she spun on Sienna. "Someone like you has no business in the design world. You're a virus. And for the record—I'll be posting a company-wide statement on Design & Form about what you did."
Sienna's stomach dropped.
Design & Form wasn't just some local blog. It was the top platform in the U.S. design industry.
A post like that would destroy her.
Security arrived at the door, waiting for Vanessa's cue.
Vanessa didn't hesitate. "Throw her out."
Sienna was tossed out like garbage, her résumé and portfolio still on her desk upstairs.
The heat from the sidewalk hit her like a wall, but her body was colder than ever.
A black luxury SUV rolled up beside her. The window lowered.
It was Camille.
She looked at Sienna like a hunter staring down a wounded fox.
"All that time overseas. Fancy degrees. Hard work. For what?" Camille asked with a snort. "You thought you'd come back and reclaim your place? Honey, you were never part of this world."
Sienna didn't answer.
Camille leaned closer. "You think this is revenge? This is just a reminder. Stay out of my life. Stay away from my company. And stay the hell away from the West family."
Sienna clenched her fists at her sides.
"You always act like you're above everything," Camille continued, voice dripping with venom. "But I see right through you. Always hiding behind men. Always clawing for a place at the table."
She paused. "Let me make this crystal clear—as long as I'm breathing, you will never touch what belongs to me."
And with that, the SUV sped off.
Sienna stood alone on the sidewalk.
For a moment, all she could hear was the sound of her own breath, shaky and uneven.
No job. No backup. No support. Again.
She turned and walked home.
The apartment was quiet when she got in. Too quiet.
She made herself a cup of cheap coffee, opened her laptop, and started applying for jobs.
She'd survived worse. She'd clawed her way through college in a foreign country. She'd held two part-time jobs at once and still made top marks.
This?
This was just a new fight.
She was halfway through uploading her portfolio when a knock came at the door.
She opened it—and froze.
Standing there was a sharp-faced man in a dark suit. Next to him was a younger assistant with a tablet in hand.
"Dad?" she asked, shocked.
The man frowned. "So you are back."
This was Charles Brooks, her adoptive father and second heir of the Brooks estate.
He looked at her like she was some stranger on the street. "You didn't think to tell me you were in the country?"
Sienna straightened her spine. "I wanted to make something of myself before I came to see you."
He didn't soften. "You've been back a week and already disgraced the family name."
Of course, she thought. Camille had already called him.
She led him into the apartment, small and sparsely furnished, and poured him a cup of tea.
"I didn't leak that design," she said quietly. "It's a setup."
Charles looked around, unimpressed. "You think this place—this life—proves your innocence?"
Sienna said nothing.
Charles stood up, brushing invisible lint from his blazer. "You'll come home tonight. The media's already whispering. Do us a favor—stop embarrassing the Brooks name."
Then he left.
Sienna didn't follow.
She stood still for a long moment, then whispered to the empty room:
"I never planned to go back."