CHAPTER 2 — MY BOYFRIEND WAS SLEEPING WITH MY STEPSISTER

The morning sun filtered through the sheer curtains, but the air inside the room was already suffocatingly tense.

Jason stirred on the mattress, yawning as he stretched his arms. He blinked up at me, rubbing his eyes with a sleepy, casual grin that made my stomach turn.

"Morning, babe," he murmured, his voice thick with fake affection. "You're up early. Hey, could you make some coffee? And while you're in the kitchen, hand me your platinum card. I need to run a few 'business errands' before noon."

"Business errands?" I asked, sitting at the foot of the bed, spinning his unlocked phone on my fingers. "Like booking a oceanfront suite at the Grand Regency for next week?"

Jason froze mid-stretch. His smile faltered, his eyes darting down to the phone in my hand.

"Wait—why do you have my phone?" He scrambled upright, reaching out awkwardly. "Mia, give that back. You know I hate people digging through my private stuff."

"I wasn't digging. Sabrina's message just popped up right on your lock screen," I said, tapping the glass. "She wants to know if you grabbed my card yet. She seems really worried about the deposit deadline."

Jason’s face turned from pale to blotchy red. He cleared his throat, adjusting his posture with a nervous chuckle. "Babe, come on. It's not what it looks like! Sabrina and I... we were planning a surprise trip for your birthday! Yeah! A surprise!"

"My birthday was six months ago, Jason," I said flatly.

"Well—it was an early surprise for next year!" he blurted out, stepping off the bed. "Look, don't be so dramatic! Sabrina is your stepsister. Why are you always so paranoid about her?"

PING!

His phone chimed again right in my hand. Another pop-up message appeared:

Sabrina: "Is the crazy bitch awake yet? Tell her you need $5,000 for 'inventory' so we can hit the boutique before lunch xoxo"

I held the screen right in front of Jason's nose. "Is 'crazy bitch' your nickname for me when you two are lying in bed together, or is that just for financial requests?"

Jason’s jaw dropped. He reached forward to grab the phone. "Mia, give me that—"

SWISH—BANG!

Before his hand could even touch the casing, I whipped my wrist sideways, driving the heavy metal corner of his phone right into his left cheekbone.

"AAGH!" Jason yelped, stumbling back two paces and clutching his face. "Did you just hit me with my own phone?!"

"Consider it an advance payment," I said, rising smoothly to my feet.

I unlocked my own phone, opened my banking app, and tapped the screen five times in rapid succession.

Ding! Account primary card canceled.

Ding! Secondary authorized user 'Jason Reed' removed.

Ding! Shared overdraft protection disabled.

Jason’s smartwatch immediately chimed with three sharp warning alerts on his wrist. He looked down at his watch screen, his eyes nearly bulging out of his head.

"My card... you canceled my card?!" Jason shrieked, his voice jumping an entire octave. "I had three hundred dollars worth of dry cleaning queued on that account! And my gym membership!"

"Correction: you had my money queued on that account," I said, walking over to the dresser, picking up my spare set of car keys, and sliding them into my pocket. "And as of right now, you're walking to the gym."

"Mia, stop!" Jason lunged forward, his face twisted in panic. "You can't just cut me off like this! We're a team! I've given up my career potential to support your little company!"

KNOCK, KNOCK, KNOCK!

The front door of the apartment rattled loudly, followed by the jingle of a key scraping uselessly inside the lock cylinder.

"Jason! Open up!" Sabrina's voice whined loudly through the door panel. "Why isn't the key working? Did Mia change the deadbolt again? My feet are hurting!"

I walked over to the hallway, unlocked the latch, and pulled the door open.

Sabrina stood on the welcome mat wearing a designer pink coat—bought with my money—holding a large iced mocha latte. She froze when she saw me, quickly dropping her phone into her purse.

"Mia!" Sabrina managed a sickly sweet smile, smoothing her hair down. "Oh, good, you're up! Jason said you weren't feeling well today. I came over to help you organize your closet!"

"Is that why you texted him asking if the 'crazy bitch' was awake yet?" I asked, leaning against the doorframe.

Sabrina's smile instantly evaporated. She glanced over my shoulder at Jason, who was standing in the living room holding an ice pack against his swollen cheekbone.

"Jason... what happened to your face?" Sabrina gasped, taking a step inside. "Did she hit you?!"

"She's lost her mind, Sabrina!" Jason yelled from behind me, holding up his smartwatch. "She canceled my cards! She took back the car keys! She’s acting like a complete psychopath!"

Sabrina whipped her head toward me, her eyes flashing with instant arrogance. "Mia! Are you insane?! Jason is your boyfriend! How dare you treat him like that?! Do you have any idea how much stress he’s under at work?!"

"Stress from sleeping with my stepsister, or stress from trying to siphon my bank accounts dry before Friday?" I asked.

Sabrina paled, but quickly puffed out her chest, dropping her fake innocent act entirely.

"So what if we're together?!" Sabrina sneered, crossing her arms tightly. "Jason never loved you, Mia! You're boring, you're obsessed with your work, and you treat everyone like an employee! He came to me because I actually know how to make a man feel appreciated!"

"Appreciated?" I chuckled softly, stepping right up to her. "You mean using my credit card to buy him three-thousand-dollar watches?"

"He deserves nice things!" Sabrina shrieked. "You have millions in company assets and you hoard every dollar! You're selfish!"

"Well, you won't have to worry about my selfishness anymore," I said, reaching out and snatching the pink trench coat right off her shoulders with a single violent jerk.

"HEY! My coat!" Sabrina yelled, stumbling sideways as her coffee spilled all over her silk blouse. "That's mine!"

"Check the tag, Sabrina," I said, tossing the coat onto the entryway bench. "Purchased on my corporate card last Tuesday. Along with your apartment rent, your car insurance, and your allowance."

"You... you can't do this!" Sabrina sputtered, wiping mocha off her shirt in pure horror. "I'm your stepsister! Mom told you to take care of me!"

"Mom isn't here, and neither is my patience," I said, grabbing Jason's leather overnight bag from the hall closet and tossing it right into Sabrina’s face.

OOF!

The heavy bag smacked her right in the chest, sending her stumbling backward out onto the carpeted hallway floor.

"Jason! Get out," I commanded, pointing toward the door.

"Mia, be reasonable!" Jason whined, shuffling forward with his hands raised. "Where am I supposed to go?! All my clothes are here! My laptop is here!"

"You have thirty seconds before I throw your laptop out the fourth-floor window," I said, reaching for the heavy aluminum briefcase sitting by the desk.

Jason’s eyes widened in sheer panic. He didn't even bother grabbing his shoes—he darted out the door in his socks, scrambling over Sabrina as she tried to pull herself up from the carpet.

"You'll regret this, Mia!" Sabrina screamed from the hallway, her hair disheveled, covered in iced coffee. "You're going to end up completely alone! Nobody will ever love a cold, heartless monster like you!"

"I'd rather be alone than spend another second looking at either of you," I said coldly.

BANG!

I slammed the oak door shut, locked both deadbolts, and slid the chain into place.

Silence instantly washed over the apartment.

Ding!

A crisp metallic notification chimed inside my mind, sending a ripple of cool energy down my spine.

[Host successfully eliminated immediate domestic threats.]

[First Retribution Objective Completed: Emotional & Financial Severance.]

[System Assessment: Satisfying.]

[Reward Granted: Sub-dimension Space Capacity Upgraded!]

[30 Cubic Meters ➔ 50 Cubic Meters.]

I closed my eyes and focused on my consciousness.

The vast, clean storage space inside my mind had expanded significantly. It was now the size of a spacious double garage—completely isolated from time, heat, and air.

I pulled out my laptop, sat down at the dining table, and opened my private business portal.

My phone buzzed on the table. A notification from my head accountant appeared:

Accountant: "Ms. Carter, the private equity firm just sent over the final buyout paperwork for Carter Logistics. They are offering $12.5 Million cash for immediate transfer if you sign today."

I looked out the window at the peaceful morning city, then down at the screen.

In forty-six hours, paper money would become useless scrap paper, but right now, $12.5 million cash could buy enough steel, food, fuel, and medical gear to survive the collapse of human civilization.

I picked up my digital pen, clicked the signature line, and signed my name.

"Let's start spending."