THE BILLIONAIRE'S KIDNAPPER

10 years after graduation, I drove my old Ford to the reunion.

My former classmates arrived in Lamborghinis, Ferraris, Maybachs, and even a gold Bugatti. Compared to their cars, mine looked downright pathetic.

Their words were laced with mockery, barely concealed beneath thinly veiled smiles. The only one who comforted me was Dolly Stevens, the former cheerleading assistant, who even hinted that I would be driving a luxury car someday.

Back in high school, I had top grades and was in great shape, which was why the cheer coach personally recruited me onto the team. However, my personality never quite fit in with the other girls. If it were not for Dolly's constant messages, I would not have bothered coming tonight at all.

I had canceled an important meeting with overseas investors just to spare two hours for this event. Alas, instead of the long-lost camaraderie I had hoped for, I was met with relentless boasting and empty chatter.

Inside the banquet hall, champagne flowed freely, laughter filled the air. Conversations revolved around luxury cars, investments, and social status.

I hated this atmosphere. Turning around, I prepared to leave.

Dolly immediately reached out to stop me. "There's nothing shameful about driving a cheap car, Nicole. Don't be in such a rush to go."

I was just about to respond when a former male classmate, who had mocked me, glanced at me with a sneer.

"Yeah, yeah, we haven't seen each other in years. Don't you want to catch up?

"Though… It looks like no one really wants to talk to you anyway. I mean, showing up in that broken old Ford? How can you even compare to us 'successful people'?"

By the end of his sentence, he had already burst into laughter.

I looked up at him and said coldly, "No need. I only came as a favor to Dolly. Next time, don't bother inviting me to gatherings like this."

The moment I said that, Merla Ivanov, the one everyone had been fawning over, suddenly stood up.

"What do you mean by that, Nicole? Are you saying we're not worthy of having dinner with you?"

Merla stood tall, her gaze filled with contempt. Once the captain of the cheerleading squad, she had always been stunning and arrogant. At this moment, her fiance was the heir to the powerful Reno crime family, one of the most notorious in the city. Naturally, everyone flocked around her.

She deliberately twisted my words, and the crowd quickly chimed in.

"Oh wow, driving a beat-up Ford and still looking down on us?"

"Before I came, I thought our top-performing, coach's favorite team member would've turned out impressive. Guess not."

"Good grades in school don't mean a thing. After graduation, you're just another nobody who left home only to be grinding away in New York."

Left home? They were not wrong. In a city like New York, no matter what job a person had, they would always feel like an outsider, never truly belonging.

"Grades mean nothing now. Once you step out of school, it's all about money and power."

I took a deep breath, eager to escape this pretentious gathering.

"Everyone, I sincerely apologize, but I have an important meeting coming up. This dinner is on me. Order whatever you want. Just send me the bill later."

I reached for the door handle, ready to leave, but Merla suddenly blocked my way.

The next second, the doors swung open. A dozen burly men in black suits entered in formation, each wearing a golden badge on their chests, a symbol of the Reno Family.

One of the city's oldest and most powerful mafia clans.

Merla downed the rest of her drink, wiped the corner of her lips, and spoke in a chilling tone, "Did I say you could leave, Nicole?

"This meal alone is worth at least a hundred thousand dollars. Do you think your measly salary can cover that?"

At that moment, a man with an eagle tattoo on his chest, his low-cut shirt revealing part of the ink, pushed me back into my seat.

Lifting my chin, he leaned in close.

"After all these years, you're still just as pathetic."