At the mall.
I'd just bought my son a toy car when the property manager called.
“Ma'am, there's trouble. You'd better get to Sunmont Villa right away.”
A bad feeling twisted in my chest. I grabbed my son's hand and hurried over.
From a distance I could already see Shelagh standing in the doorway, chin lifted, barking orders at the workers hauling my things out of the house.
“Take all the dead woman's junk out and burn it. I won't have my baby tainted by bad luck.”
I rushed forward and stopped them.
“Every one of you, stop right now.”
“Shelagh, this is my house. You have no right to touch a single thing in it.”
Shelagh smiled and pulled out a property deed.
“Blake signed the villa over to me ages ago. I could tear it down to the ground and it still wouldn't be any of your business.”
I hadn't expected Blake to move so fast. Two days, and he'd already transferred the deed into Shelagh's name.
Shelagh shot my son a look and sneered.
“What are you staring at? Your mother's too useless to keep a man, and you're just as worthless. Every asset your family has will belong to my baby someday.”
“Oh, look at you, about to cry. That's all a little bastard like you knows how to do. Go on, cry. Cry yourself to death, nobody's coming to save you.”
My son's eyes went red, his whole face crumpling.
I couldn't hold back. I stepped up and slapped her across the face.
Blake arrived just in time to catch that exact moment, and he exploded.
“Evelyn, what is wrong with you now?!”
I dodged the hand he reached out to shove me and threw the question back at him.
“What gives you the right to hand my house to Shelagh? It's the only thing I have left of my mother.”
“Get out of here right now, or I'm calling the police.”
Blake frowned.
“It's just a house. Are you really going to make a scene over it? Fine, I'll buy you a bigger one.”
“Shelagh's pregnancy is fragile. If anything happens to the baby, you won't be able to live with the consequences.”
I had no more breath to waste on him. I pulled out my phone to dial the police.
Shelagh snatched it from my hand and smashed it against the floor.
“Evelyn, you've gone too far.”
“Somebody grab the madam and lock her in the basement.”
The words were barely out before two men lunged and seized me.
Seeing it, my son sobbed and begged Blake.
“Daddy, let Mommy go, please don't hurt Mommy.”
Blake grabbed my son by the shirt and shoved him at one of his men.
“Keep him quiet.”
My son thrashed against the grip.
“Let me go, I want my mommy, I don't want a daddy, Daddy's a big bad villain!”
I watched him, and my heart bled.
But Blake acted as if he'd seen nothing, ordering them to keep dragging out my mother's belongings to be destroyed.
Just as they were about to throw me into the basement.
A squad of well-trained bodyguards stormed through the door.
At their head was Thaddeus James, CEO of Sanchez Group's rival company.
One flick of his eyes, and his men kicked the ones holding me clean off.
He apologized to me.
“I'm late. I've already registered a new identity for you. From now on you're Evelyn James, my sister.”
“Every asset under Evelyn Hayward's name has been transferred to you, including this house.”
I brushed the dust off my clothes and said, my voice cold:
“Then what are you all standing around for? Arrest these trespassers.”
