My eyes burned with rage as I glared at the woman who'd just slapped me.
"Serena Simmons, are you out of your mind?"
"What are you staring at? Serena did you a favor. If you don't take a little punishment, you think that heiress would've let you walk away? That's a ten-million-dollar dress—not ten bucks. Have you ever even seen ten million in your life?"
Kevin walked over when he noticed the commotion. Serena explained everything from start to finish, and he didn't object. Maybe there was some selfishness behind it. He just nodded and turned away.
I didn't expect him to be this cold. Even if our engagement was arranged by the previous generation, we'd been living under the same roof for years.
When they saw Kevin had no reaction, they went even further.
"You're just a discarded woman. The James family doesn't want you anymore—you think you can just walk away? Do what you're told like a good girl, and maybe the heiress will be merciful."
"Let go of me, Serena." She yanked my hair back so hard my scalp went numb.
"I'm warning you—if you keep stirring up trouble, don't blame me for what happens next."
"Oh, I'm so scared." One of them laughed. "Remember my name—Lisa Finch. So when you come for revenge, you don't pick the wrong person. A discarded woman talking tough? That's hilarious."
"The Finch family," I said through gritted teeth. "I'll remember. I won't let you off."
Another slap cracked across my face. The pain was blinding. My whole body trembled from holding back, teeth chattering.
Kevin waited, but I didn't beg. Watching me get beaten into this state, he only said flatly, "Just admit you were wrong and behave like before. I'll pay for the dress."
To him, it was that simple.
"This dress is mine. Why would I need you to pay? You'd better worry about yourselves—don't end up not knowing how you died."
"Rachel, why are you still so stubborn? It's just an apology. Why make this so difficult?"
"A discarded woman acting like some Tri-State heiress. Look at yourself—what part of you looks the part? Pathetic."
Their mocking laughter poured into my ears. I clenched my fists so hard a faint taste of blood rose in my throat.
Serena suddenly let go—and shoved me hard onto the gravel. A muffled groan escaped me.
"Sorry, Rachel. I didn't mean to."
"She's not that delicate. No need to pretend in front of me."
Kevin's words made me look up. The coldness in his eyes hit me like ice water.
I didn't want to deal with them anymore. I was about to get up and leave when someone rammed into me from behind. With a splash, I fell into the pool.
"What are you playing at? It's only five feet deep."
Kevin had looked worried for a second, but after hearing that, he assumed I was just trying to get his attention.
What none of them knew was that I'd been terrified of water since I was a child. Even though I wanted to overcome it, the darkness closing in around me dragged me straight into panic.
The suffocating grip of death wrapped around me layer by layer. They waited. I didn't come up. They started to get nervous.
A black figure dove in.
"Cough, cough, cough—"
The head of the Cox family walked over. "What happened?"
He heard my coughing and glanced in my direction. At first, he assumed it was just an accident—but when he saw the man beside me, his eyes went wide with terror.
He didn't know me, but he knew Ethan Rodriguez.
I forced my eyes open, swept a glance over the crowd, and my voice cut through the air, ice-cold. "It's gotten cold. Time to go bankrupt."
