The murmurs reached her ears and the hand holding Emma’s wine glass trembled faintly.
Just as she was about to turn around, a sharp scream tore through the crowd.
The man who’d been struck wasn’t backing down. He immediately called over a group of his friends. As the mob surged forward, Cole and Theo’s bodyguards lifted their own beer bottles and moved in without hesitation.
With a deafening crash, chaos erupted. Fists flew, bottles shattered and the two sides launched into an all-out brawl.
Guests scrambled toward the exits. Emma instinctively stepped back, ready to leave.
But before she could move another inch, she saw a man rushing at her; wine glass raised high.
Through the chaos, she clearly caught a glimpse of Cole and Theo halting mid-fight. Both instinctively turned and ran toward her.
But then Juliet’s scream rang out.
The two men froze. And in the blink of an eye, they pivoted and ran straight to Juliet instead.
Another crash, this time, the wine glass shattered against the side of Emma’s head.
A blinding pain split through her skull. Her ears rang. Cold sweat slicked the back of her neck.
Just before her world turned dark, the last thing she heard was Juliet’s pitiful voice, “Theo, Cole, I twisted my ankle. It hurts so much…”
***
When she opened her eyes again, the room was crowded with people.
Her hands were tied; she couldn’t move an inch.
Juliet stood in front of her, crouching down to lift Emma’s chin, her usual timid act completely gone.
"Emma, how did you end up this pathetic?" she mocked, her tone dripping with ridicule.
Her wounds hadn’t even begun to heal. Every small movement sent waves of pain ripping through her body, like fire scorching through her organs.
Emma forced her eyes open. The circle of men surrounding them instantly made everything clear.
"You were the one who sent those men to attack me."
Juliet let out a soft laugh, not even bothering to deny it. "Think of today as a little punishment. Let’s see if you still dare to fight me for Theo and Cole. Just give up; you’ll never marry either of them."
"You’ve always wanted to know what I told them that day, haven’t you? Fine, I’ll tell you—"
Before she could continue, footsteps echoed from outside the door.
Juliet fell silent and quickly switched back to her sweet, innocent act. Before leaving, she glanced back with a smug smile.
As she walked out, the men surrounding Emma began to move closer, their faces twisted into sickening grins.
"They’re here for me. You just stay put and be a good girl."
Emma bit down hard on her lip, fury flashing in her eyes as she glared at them.
Their grins only grew filthier at her defiance. "Don’t look at us like that. If you want someone to blame, blame the two young masters from the Barrett and Blackwood families. They made their choice."
Laughter rippled through the group and one of them pulled out a phone, playing a video they had just recorded.
In the video, both Juliet and Emma are bound and helpless. Standing in front of them were Cole and Theo, who had rushed over, panic written across their faces.
Their eyes were locked on Juliet, filled with worry.
A man stepped between them and declared, "You can only take one of them. Leave the other for us, brothers."
