"Thirty thousand," the attendant announced.
Raya and Anna froze, their eyes flitting between the price tag and each other.
Thirty thousand for a bracelet.
It was more than Anna earned in a month.
Raya's mind raced. Twice the ten thousand she had initially planned to spend, her carefully calculated rebellion, the little lesson she wanted to teach Adrian, was suddenly dwarfed by this price.
Anna's jaw tightened. She opened her mouth to protest, but before she could, a voice cut through the quiet tension like a blade.
"I'll take it."
Raya's head snapped up. Camilla Reyes.
She entered the store with the same calculated confidence she always carried, her "minors"... no, friends... following close behind, eyes scanning the room with excitement and expectation.
"What are you trying to do, Camilla?" Raya asked, her voice calm but laced with steel. She didn't flinch. She couldn't. Not now.
