A strong hand plunged into the water. It grabbed me. Pulled me up.
Colton.
He stood on the stage, soaking wet. His eyes were blazing. Red-rimmed.
He pulled me into his arms. He wrapped his jacket around my shivering body.
"Jo! Jo! Can you hear me?" he yelled. His voice was raw. Filled with terror.
I coughed. Water spewed from my lungs. I blinked. My mind was still a mess.
"Colton," I whispered.
He saw I was alive. He saw I was okay. Then, with a roar, he spun around. He lunged at Jax.
"I'll kill you!" Colton screamed. Pure, unadulterated rage.
The stage erupted into chaos again. Screams. Shouts. Fists flying.
I watched it all. My mind numb. Hollow. What had I done? So many things. So many mistakes. But what? I couldn't remember.
The spectacle ended with Colton being dragged away by the police. Accused of assault. Accused of disturbing the peace.
Jax's people took me home. They dumped me on the cold, damp floor of my house.
"This is just the beginning, Joleen," Jax's agent sneered. His voice was chilling. "Stay quiet. Cooperate. Or your brother will face worse."
They left. The house was silent again. I lay there. Soaked. Shivering. But I felt nothing. No cold. No pain.
My mind replayed the fragmented images from the water tank. I tried to piece them together. But only a throbbing headache came.
Who was I? What had I done?
The next day, the internet exploded. "Cleansing Ceremony Ends in Brawl!" "Tech Mogul's Philanthropic Efforts Derailed by Violent Thug!" "Joleen Spencer: The Woman Who Ruined Everything!"
The videos were everywhere. My struggles in the tank were blurred. But still, the humiliation was clear.
Colton's valiant act of protecting me was twisted. Edited. He was the aggressor. The unhinged maniac.
The comments section was a cesspool of hatred. "She's a gold digger! Always was!" "Karma's a bitch!" "Her brother's a criminal! Like sister, like brother!" "Poor Jax. What a nightmare family!"
My fingers trembled as I scrolled. The words were knives. Each one piercing deeper.
This was Jax's revenge. To destroy me. To make me a public enemy.
My phone rang. An unknown number.
I answered. It was Jax's agent.
"Did you see the news, Joleen?" he asked. His voice was smug. "How do you like it?"
I said nothing.
"This is just step one," he continued. "Jax has more. A lot more. About you. About your brother."
"Colton's juvenile record. The assault charges. Your 'rich old man' seven years ago. The married one."
He paused, letting his words sink in. "It doesn't matter if it's true, Joleen. All that matters is that we say it's true. The public will believe us."
"So," he concluded, his voice like ice, "if you don't want your brother's life and your life utterly destroyed, you will listen."
