### Chapter 4
The words hit me like a physical blow. My whole body trembled as I looked down at Carly, crying without a sound.
It struck me then, the thing I'd been too overwhelmed to see. Carly hadn't been refusing to speak these past two days. She couldn't.
My stomach dropped. I crouched down and took her hands in mine.
"Carly, you can't speak, can you?"
She hiccupped through her sobs and nodded, her small face twisted in pain.
"Where else does it hurt? Tell Mommy. Don't be scared. Mommy won't let them get away with this."
I kept my voice soft, terrified she'd be too afraid to show me.
Carly stopped crying. She looked down at her feet.
I followed her gaze, and something inside me caught fire.
Her shoes were black, so I hadn't noticed before. But now I could see that one of them was darker than the other, the surface saturated with something wet.
My hands shook as I slipped the shoe off her foot. Cold flooded through me. Not fear. Rage.
The little toe on her right foot was a mangled mess of blood and flesh, crushed by something heavy.
How scared she must have been when it happened. I didn't need to imagine. I already knew.
My eyes burned red.
"Did your son do this, or did you tell him to?"
Maria showed no trace of guilt.
"Does it matter? Compared to the filthy things you've done, this is nothing. I could've had Owen beat her to death, and it would've been a mercy that I didn't."
I lost it. My foot slammed into her stomach.
Years of taekwondo behind that kick sent her flying back two or three yards. I heard something crack. A rib, at least one.
But even that was nothing compared to what Carly had suffered.
Maria sat on the ground, stunned and furious, jabbing a finger at me as she screamed.
"You trashy little bitch! You dare kick me?!"
The pack of sycophant parents finally saw their chance to perform. They rushed me and grabbed me by the hair.
"You've got some nerve! You think you can put your hands on Mrs. Perez?!"
"A homewrecker, and she has the gall to hit the real wife? Your daughter deserved everything she got. That's what happens when your mother is trash like you."
Even Teacher Lane came over and spat in my face.
"You don't know your place. Today everyone's going to teach you some manners."
Carly saw them swarming me and threw herself forward, crying, trying to pull me free. Owen came running out of nowhere, grabbed her by the braid, and yanked her to the ground.
Even then, she struggled to get back up, trying to shield me.
Ursula Lane watched the whole thing. She took Owen's hand, her voice dripping with flattery.
"Owen, sweetheart, just stand to the side. This sort of thing isn't for a child to handle. But you were very brave. A real little hero."
Owen puffed up at the praise, lifting his chin with a smug grin.
"She made my mommy upset. My only regret is that I just made Carly drink boiling water. I should've poured glue down her throat so she'd never talk again!"
I was pinned to the ground, covered in dirt, but none of it compared to the fury tearing through me.
"Every single one of you will pay for this!"
The crowd laughed. Sneers all around.
"Still running your mouth? Even now? Are you delusional?"
"Mrs. Perez is the wife of the CEO at the International Tower. If she said that, we'd believe it."
"Is that lying mouth how you wormed your way into Mr. Perez's bed?"
Maria walked over, crouched down in front of me, and pulled out an eyebrow pencil. She scrawled across my face, pressing harder and harder, until she got bored. Then she pulled out a razor blade and pressed it flat against my cheek.
"Consequences? I'd love to see how a piece of trash like you makes me pay. But first, let me show you the consequences of running that mouth." She angled the blade. "How about I carve 'whore' right across your face, so you never forget what you are?" She started to press down.
Before the sting could register, a helicopter roared overhead, whipping up a gale that blasted through the crowd and tore them off me.
I could finally see what was around me. And that helicopter was unmistakable.
It was the first birthday gift I'd given Walter after we started dating.
The helicopter touched down on the open ground by the entrance, and a man in a couture suit stepped out.
