"Miss Sullivan, it wasn't on purpose!"
Lily Lowell hurried down the stairs.
"Should we put the items in a bag first?"
She'd long disliked Sophia Sullivan.
A country girl who shamelessly climbed the social ladder.
Now acting like she belonged among the elite.
Liam Winston frowned deeply. "Such clumsiness. No sense of decorum at all."
The suitcase contained few belongings.
Just some plain clothes, not even jewelry.
Apparently, she'd barely spent the allowance he'd provided over the years.
Frugal indeed.
Pity he couldn't bring himself to care.
"Chloe's luggage takes priority."
Liam glanced at the damaged suitcase with undisguised disdain.
"Use storage bags for these things."
"As for the suitcase, the butler will buy you a new one tomorrow."
Sophia's lips twisted. "This suitcase was stolen from kidnappers."
"If not for it, we'd both be dead at the bottom of a river."
She'd protected this battered case for years.
Now it lay shattered.
Much like their marriage.
Liam scoffed. "That story might fool Grandfather, but not me."
Though childhood memories remained hazy,
he refused to believe Sophia had been his savior.
"Stop dawdling and pack her things!"
Lily jumped at his command. "Yes, sir."
But as she gathered the clothes, she deliberately trampled them underfoot.
"Miss Sullivan, the Madam always says people are like clothing."
Emboldened by the Winston matriarch's favor, Lily spoke boldly.
"Once stained, no amount of washing removes the mark!"
Sophia had treated Lily well these years.
Because she was the Winston family's distant relative.
Even when Lily's mistake angered Ethan Sullivan,
Sophia had negotiated the commercial land deal—
using perfume and her own crippled legs as bargaining chips.
Now the ungrateful wretch bit the hand that fed her.
The shift reflected the Winston matriarch's changed attitude.
"Dirty clothes can't be cleaned, true enough."
Sophia met Liam's gaze. "So I won't keep them."
Those modest garments never suited her style anyway.
"But mistakes demand consequences."
Her dark eyes turned fathomless.
Liam felt an unfamiliar chill.
This icy demeanor contrasted sharply with Sophia's usual docility.
Even Lily noticed the change.
She feigned innocence. "I serve the Winstons. Now that Miss Sullivan is divorcing—"
Slap!
The blow silenced Lily mid-sentence.
She clutched her stinging cheek. "How dare you hit me?"
"Because I felt like it."
"The Madam will hear of this—"
Slap!
Twin handprints bloomed across Lily's face.
She collapsed, wailing. "Sir, she's gone mad!"
Sophia grabbed her throat.
With her free hand, she yanked off Lily's necklace.
"Two slaps for the suitcase and clothes."
Lily gasped for air, tears streaming.
"Now I reclaim what isn't yours."
The emerald pendant bore an engraved "Ning"—
clearly not meant for Lily.
"You... this is assault!"
Wetness spread across Lily's skirt as she hyperventilated.
In that choking grip, she glimpsed the real Sophia—
a woman capable of murder.
Sophia crushed the necklace and turned away.
Lily whimpered to Liam. "Sir, don't believe her lies—"
"Get out!"
He kicked her aside, revolted by the urine stench.
"The Winstons tolerate no thieves!"
Sophia was already dialing her phone outside.
["Divorced. My assets are in M-Country. Can I crash at your place tonight?"]
Isabella Robinson's shock melted into glee.
["Hell yes! Finally dumped that loser! Forget sleeping—we're throwing a freedom party!"]
Even holding the phone away, Sophia heard her shriek.
["If The Decagon hears their founder's back, their servers will explode!"]