Chapter 4

The number 1550 flashed on the screen.

"A 1550! I told you! Patricia is the next CEO of Reid Group!"

"With a poised and accomplished heir like Patricia, the company's future is secure!"

The room erupted in cheers and applause.

I just narrowed my eyes. Right on cue. She'd scored the exact number that had once dangled over my head like a carrot.

My father shot me a look of pure contempt. "Wipe that pathetic look off your face. From now on, you live off your sister's generosity. You will be loyal to her."

"If you ever embarrass her, I will make you regret it."

I met his gaze, feigning confusion. "I haven't even checked my score yet. How do you know I'll be the one depending on her? Maybe it'll be the other way around."

My mother's hand cracked across my face before I'd even finished the sentence.

"Know your place! You think someone like Patricia would ever need to depend on you?"

Patricia glared at me, her eyes shining with performative hurt. "Jenny, I don't know why you're so determined to tear me down, but you've crossed a line. If your score is lower than mine, you will get on your knees and apologize to me."

She shoved the laptop toward me. "Your turn."

Under the weight of everyone's stares, I typed in my information.

The screen refreshed.

I let my face go slack with shock.

Score: 540.

"Five-forty? You could bubble in random answers and score higher than that!"

"She's a complete disgrace."

"And here I thought she had some hidden talent, the way she was talking. Pathetic."

Patricia let out a sharp, triumphant laugh.

"Jenny. On your knees. Now.

"You didn't even break a thousand. You really are mentally deficient. As the future CEO of Reid Group, I think the best place for you is a psychiatric hospital. You know what those are like, don't you?

"But if you apologize nicely... maybe I'll let you get treatment at home instead."

"Kneel to you?" I spat. "You're not worthy."

Patricia kicked me hard behind the knee. My father seized the opportunity, his heavy hand crushing my shoulder, forcing one knee to the floor.

My eyes flew to Grandma, wide with a desperation I didn't have to fake. "Grandma!"

She just shook her head, her expression one of profound disappointment. "You've let us all down, Jenny."

"The admission decisions aren't out yet!" I yelled, my voice straining.

My protest was met with a wave of ridicule.

"A 540? She couldn't get into a community college with that!"

"She's still fighting? The delusion is clinical."

"Throw her out. Let's see how long she lasts on the streets without the family name."

"Patricia is being too soft. A real leader needs to be ruthless."

My sister looked down at me with fake pity. "You heard them, sister. If you don't apologize properly, how can I ever command respect?"

When I stayed stubbornly silent, she gave a subtle nod to a bodyguard. His boot slammed into the back of my other leg, forcing me fully onto the ground. I struggled to rise, but Patricia placed her designer heel on the side of my face, grinding my cheek into the polished floor.

Gritting my teeth, I growled, "Patricia, you will not get into a single top-tier school."

"Oh, really?" she chirped, tilting her head. Her smile was saccharine as she grabbed my chin, forcing my head toward the ballroom entrance. "Then you're going to love this."

The admissions officer from Grathmond University had just walked in.

She leaned down, her whisper a venomous promise in my ear.

"You're going to watch them hand me my acceptance letter while you can't even get into a state school. When I leave for college, I'm sending you to the middle of nowhere. You can marry some farmer and pop out his kids."

With a final, gloating laugh, she released me and strode toward the officer, her posture the picture of victorious grace.

But the moment she reached him, her brilliant smile shattered.

And the final act of the show I had orchestrated… was finally beginning.