Chapter 5

KAIA

“Over my dead body,” I said through clenched teeth. “I’m never going to do that.”

Anger flashed through Vivian’s face, and it was exactly what I’d expected. She was always used to getting her way that it bruised her ego whenever she got rejected.

She stood up angrily, slamming her fists against the table while her eyes blazed with fury.

“Do you have any idea what I’m willing to do for you?” She spat. “I’m about to give you your freedom on a platter of gold.”

Her words made me laugh. Not because they were funny, but because she sounded like a clown.

“A platter?”

“Yes!” Vivian screeched. “What do you think will happen? You think that little Attorney is going to save you? With all the evidence that has been gathered against you? Wake up from your slumber, Kaia.”

Her words sank deep into me, striking the fear I’d tried to bury inside me. Although I had faith in Roman, I couldn’t help the doubts that also crawled in.

Bryce Holloway was ruthless, and he knew the most influential people in the city. He could easily make a phone call and the man in the highest rank of power would respond with fear.

And if he wanted—he could make me rot in jail till whenever he wanted.

I stared at Vivian, my fingers fidgeting slightly as I tried not to show any hint of fear. She waited patiently for my response, waited for me to say that I’d accepted her proposal.

But…

“You can go to hell for all I care and rot there,” I spat out. “For years, you’ve constantly put me against my father, telling him untrue things about me and almost making him disown me.”

Tears formed in my eyes at the reminder of the past that flashed through my mind. I recalled how many times I’d been punished for things Daniella did, but Vivian had lied to my father about.

She sneered, brushing my words and pain off like they didn’t matter. Or like I was overreacting to the pain she’d caused me since childhood.

“Don’t tell me you still hold a grudge from the past, Kaia.”

“Why wouldn’t I hold a grudge?” I laughed bitterly. “You almost ruined my life. And you think it’s nothing?”

“You’re overreacting at this point, Kaia.”

“Overreacting?” My voice cracked softly. “Turning me against my father wasn’t enough, you’re trying to keep me away from his will now? That’s going against what he wanted.”

Vivian slammed her fists against the table for the second time, and it attracted a few laughs and eyes that glanced at us.

“Fredrick never knew what he wanted,” she rasped. “He had so much hope for you, but look at how you turned out.”

Holding back my tears from falling was harder than I thought. So, I let them fall freely, even though I hated acting that vulnerable in front of a woman that loved watching me break.

“I… I turned out just fine.”

She laughed mockingly, her fingers pointing at me as she tilted her head backward.

“You? Come on, Kaia. You made the worst mistakes all your life. Look at your choice of a husband. You even struggled to make it through college and got pregnant at sixteen.”

That was typical Vivian Bennett.

Always mocking you with the same things she’d caused to happen. Yes, I’d gotten pregnant, and I had a miscarriage after.

“I was sixteen!” I cried. “I was young and naive. You know how much I suffered after making that mistake.”

A surge of emotions coursed through my body as flashbacks replayed in my mind.

There wasn’t a hint of pity or remorse on her face when it happened ten years ago, and there was none now that I was repeating it.

Vivian held on to her belief that I’d deliberately made a mistake that ruined the relationship I had with my father.

“Your father did everything for you, Kaia. Yet you disappointed him.”

Hot tears streamed down my cheek, and I sobbed without control. Having to remember something that traumatic made my stomach ache.

I felt the wave of nausea burning through my body, but tried my best to avoid throwing up there.

“You lied about me to my father, Vivian,” I sobbed. “But it didn’t matter to you because I wasn’t your biological daughter.”

She tutted. “You think you’re so innocent, Kaia, and that’s your problem. Fredrick showered you with so much love that he left Daniella hanging in the shadows because you took his attention away from her.”

That wasn’t true. My father loved us both equally, but Daniella kept messing things up, and started showing signs of waywardness.

“Daniella never appreciated Dad’s efforts,” I said.

“Lies,” she snarled. “Look, I’m not going to stand here and watch you run your mouth about events that occurred more than a decade ago.”

I exhaled sharply. “Me neither.”

She straightened her shoulders and faced me squarely. My eyes glanced around the space for Jessie as I struggled to keep my knees from going numb.

“I’m going to give you one last chance,” Vivian said. “Are you accepting my offer or not?”

Another sharp pain cut through my lower abdomen, and I clutched my stomach tightly.

“I’d rather eat glass than accept your offer.”

Her lips pressed into a thin line as she grabbed her bag. Vivian shot me a cold glare, her voice laced with disappointment.

“Just so you know,” she stated as she picked up the document she’d placed on the table. “That will is going to be read with or without your presence. I’m going to make sure of it.”

How could Vivian be so certain?

Roman said the will couldn’t be read without me… unless Vivian knew something I didn’t.

I barely paid attention to her as the pain in my stomach kept getting worse. She kept talking when all I wanted was for her to leave.

“And you’ve just lost your chance of freedom. Enjoy your life sentence, Kaia.”

My eyes trailed after her retreating figure. The sound of her heels clicking on the floor echoed through my ears until she was completely gone.

I tried to turn around to leave as well, but the pain prevented me from taking a step. My breaths turned heavy, and I didn’t notice anything until…

Something warm trickled down my legs, and a familiar voice yelled at me.

“Kaia! You’re bleeding!”