As much as her chest burned with hatred, she knew that blind fury would be her undoing. She couldn't shatter this moment recklessly; chaos without purpose would consume her. No, what she needed was a meticulous, piercing plan. A plan that would force her family to confront the cruelty they had draped over her life, make them feel its weight, taste it, shivering with remorse for every slight, every word, every betrayal and drown in the regret they had never earned the right to escape.
'Calm down,' she breathed under her breath, steadying herself.
"Yes, Miss. What is it?" Manson's voice cut through her thoughts once again.
"It's nothing, sir," she replied, her eyes locked on his, burning with quiet defiance.
Manson gave a slow nod and moved away. Brian followed, silent and efficient, leaving the living room cloaked in tense quiet.
"Honey, this is beautiful," Brett said, voice dripping with satisfaction.
He pressed the cheque against his palm, then drew Eva into a tight embrace, kissing her briefly before laughter bubbled up between them, light and careless.
"Mom! I need to speak to you!" Fallyn's voice snapped through the room, jagged with anger, shattering the brief illusion of calm.
In an instant, Eva guided Fallyn into her room, closing the door with a soft click that suddenly made the space feel smaller, more suffocating.
"What is it, baby?" Eva asked, her hands cupping Fallyn's with careful gentleness. Her eyes searched Fallyn's face, calm and tender, but the warmth only seemed to fuel the storm inside.
"You never told me," Fallyn's voice cracked, sharp with disbelief. "Mr. Thames is this young, this handsome! Why would you give Fiona to him?" Her words tumbled out faster than she could control, trembling with a mixture of shock and jealousy.
Eva's gaze softened, and for a moment, Fallyn thought she might melt under her mother's calm reassurance. "Baby you are too precious to us. We can't give you to Mr. Thames," Eva whispered, her voice barely audible, like a fragile secret meant to soothe.
But it didn't soothe. It ignited something entirely different. Fallyn's chest tightened, her heart hammering in her ribcage. Jealousy, raw and unyielding, surged through her like wildfire. Her hands, once held gently in Eva's, jerked free.
" I…" Fallyn faltered, her eyes cutting to Eva in silent accusation as the room closed in, thick with tension.
"Fiona gets to marry a billionaire, the heir of the Thames empire!" Fallyn's words exploded, her head jerking wildly as if the sheer thought of it disoriented her. "He's a fucking handsome billionaire, Mom! Can't you see that?!"
Eva's hands trembled as she reached for her daughter. "Baby we can't sell you to him," she whispered, her voice tight with desperation.
Fallyn wrenched herself from her mother's grip. "I don't care! I don't mind being sold to him!" Fallyn screamed, eyes ablaze with a fury so lethal that Eva would have been dead before she could blink.
Fallyn whirled around and slammed the door so hard the frame rattled, then tore out of the house like a tempest breaking free. Brett lunged after her, but she was already gone.
Brett spun back to Eva, who had collapsed onto the bed, trembling and sobbing.
"Honey" Brett's voice softened, catching Eva in his arms as he settled beside her. "Come here. It's okay."
Eva's shoulders shook violently. "Fallyn she's mad at me for not giving her to Manson," she choked out, her voice raw, trembling with a mixture of guilt, fear, and helplessness.
Brett held her tighter, letting the silence of the room speak for what words could not. Outside, Fallyn's fury raged, but inside this fragile space, they clung together, two hearts bracing against the chaos.
"You know we can't do that to our baby," Brett whispered, his voice soft but firm. "She's our precious, pretty little baby. Remember how hard it was for us to keep her, all the obstacles we faced, the risks we took to make sure she survived?"
The memory of Fallyn's birth weighed heavily on them both. She had been born with jaundice, a dangerous condition they hadn't recognized in time. Fiona had been the stronger one between them, but back then, they'd had so little knowledge, so little experience. For a while, it had felt as though they were standing on the brink of losing her forever. The thought alone made Eva's chest tighten.
"My pretty little baby, what if she gets sick from crying?" Eva murmured, rising from the bed, her hands trembling slightly. "She's in the living room. I need to talk to her."
Brett reached out and gently pulled her back down. "Come here, honey," he said, his tone patient, steady. "Give her a little space. She'll calm down, she'll come to us. Then we can buy her something expensive and plead with her properly."
For now, all they could do was hold each other and silently pray that their little girl would forgive them and understand.
Meanwhile, Fiona moved with calm precision toward her own room, unfazed by the emotional eruption around her. Her worries were far more complicated than sibling rivalries; she was facing an unknown, unpredictable force, and that demanded her full attention.
Fiona paced nervously in her room, back and forth, her mind spinning with what she needed to do next. Then Hazel popped into her thoughts like a spark, and she didn't hesitate. Snatching her phone from the table, she dialed her friend. After a quick, lively conversation, Fiona grabbed her bag and practically ran out the room.
By the time she arrived at the Kings Burger restaurant they had agreed on over the phone, Hazel was already seated, cool and composed as always. Some things never changed since their high school days.
"Hi, Hazel! How are you?" Fiona's voice bubbled with excitement. She waved and slid into the seat beside her, careful not to spill her nerves in her eagerness.
"Whassup, girl?" Hazel replied, a teasing grin tugging at her lips. "What do you want? Let's order." She waved at the staff, calling them over with practiced ease. Then she leaned back, eyebrows arching in mock accusation. "You didn't visit like you promised last time."
"Oh I was busy with my parents' laundry," Fiona said, a slight defensiveness creeping into her tone, though her fingers fidgeted under the table.
"What?" Hazel's eyebrows drew together, eyes narrowing slightly. "Laundry? That doesn't take long. You still could have made it!"
Fiona flushed, caught between guilt and amusement at Hazel's predictable scolding. She opened her mouth to argue, but a soft smile tugged at the corners of her lips. Some things, she realized, would never change Hazel would always be the punctual, teasing friend who kept her on her toes.
"Fallyn brought hers, so I had to wash hers too," Fiona sighed as the tray of burger and soda was placed in front of her. The warm smell of the food made her stomach rumble, but exhaustion weighed on her. "There was still some time to come over, but I needed to rest.
Hazel immediately grabbed a burger from the tray, taking a hearty bite as words tumbled out around her chewing. "When are you going to come to your senses? You're an adult now, Fiona, and with this treatment you can't keep letting it slide!"
Fiona couldn't help but laugh at how fierce Hazel sounded, the sharpness of her tone somehow hilarious. "Please swallow first," she managed between giggles.
Hazel swallowed, her eyes narrowing in mock exasperation. "Stop laughing! This is serious. You have to stand up for yourself," she grumbled, wagging her finger like a teacher scolding a student.
"Grumpy you," Fiona teased, though the playful smile quickly faded. Her chest tightened as she leaned closer. "Of course I will but I need your help to break free."
Hazel's eyes widened, surprise and curiosity flashing in equal measure. "Wow, since when did you become heroically brave?"
Fiona rolled her eyes, cheeks warming. "Come on, Hazel. Don't make it sound like a big deal."
"Yo, what's poppin'," Hazel said, leaning forward, elbows on the table, her eyes sparkling with excitement. The faint hum of the restaurant surrounded them, the clatter of dishes, the sizzle of burgers, and distant chatter but in that moment, it all faded. It was just the two of them, Hazel fully focused on what Fiona was about to say.
Within minutes, Fiona had laid everything bare to Haze; Alexander and Fallyn's secret affair, her parents cashing out by selling her off, and her desperate need to set the perfect trap to break free from their control. Each word spilled out like a confession, heavy with frustration and fear.
Hazel shook her head, disbelief etched across her face. "I had a hunch Fallyn was up to something," she muttered, voice low but sharp, "but not this. Dating Alexander? Damn he's ruthless. How can he date two sisters? That's sick."
Fiona's stomach tightened, the tension in Hazel's voice making her pulse quicken. "But selling you to a billionaire? Who is he?" Hazel pressed, eyes wide, curiosity flashing like a blade.
"I think, I've seen him on TV before," Fiona whispered, her fingers clutching the edge of the table like a lifeline. "Mr. Thames maybe."
"Manson!" Hazel's voice cut through the air like a whip, sharp and unyielding, leaving no room for doubt.