Chapter 1I was heading out of my brother's restaurant when the manager stopped me. "Excuse me, miss, you haven't paid your bill yet."
Looking at this unfamiliar face, I figured she must be new and didn't know me, so I explained politely:
"Just put it on the owner's tab. He'll know."
The female manager gave me a contemptuous once-over.
"Miss, this is a Michelin three-star establishment. We don't do tabs."
With that, she handed me a printed bill.
I glanced down—$100K for one meal.
Silverware maintenance fee: $10K.
Exclusive air purification service: $20K.
VIP mood enhancement service: $30K.
And a bunch of other ridiculous charges.
Holy shit! I had no idea my brother was running this kind of scam operation!
I laughed in disbelief. "I'm your boss Dante Blake's sister. If there's an issue, he can talk to me at home."
But she wouldn't let it go. "If you can't afford it, why put on airs? Now you're trying to name-drop Mr. Blake?"
Hearing this, I immediately shot off a text to my assistant:
[Tell my brother—either fire his manager or I pull all funding!]
....
"Miss, stop wasting everyone's time and pay up."
Her tone was smug and cutting, like she'd already pegged me as some gold-digging wannabe trying to dine and dash.
A few rubberneckers were already staring.
I frowned, not wanting to waste time on this BS, and pulled out my phone to call my brother directly.
But all I got was that annoying busy signal. Same thing when I tried again.
Middle of a workday—what the hell was that little punk doing?
I put my phone down and stared straight at this pushy woman, speaking slowly and clearly:
"I'm telling you one more time—my name is Poet Blake. I'm Dante Blake's sister."
"His phone's busy right now, but you can check his account. My photo and info are linked to it."
I thought this was the most straightforward way to handle it.
But when the manager heard my name, instead of checking, she burst into shrill, grating laughter.
She was practically cackling, drawing even more stares.
Then she leaned in close, dropping her voice so only I could hear:
"Still playing games? I've seen your face all over my honey Dante's social media!"
"You shameless homewrecker, sneaking around with my man!"
"And now you have the nerve to waltz into his restaurant and charge meals to his account? Do you have any shame at all?"
For a second I was stunned. I glanced at her name tag—Zoey Summers. Then it hit me with a wave of disgust.
This was Dante's girlfriend, the one he'd been so secretive about that he wouldn't even show me a picture.
So this vicious, stupid woman was his big secret.
How could his taste be this terrible?
Now I realized this wasn't some mix-up. The $100K bill was a deliberate setup to humiliate me.
Before I could say anything, she'd lost all patience.
"Since this lady wants to skip out on her bill, we'll have to detain her until the cops arrive!"
She waved her hand, and two burly security guards who'd been lurking nearby stepped forward.
One clamped his hand over my mouth while the other twisted my arms behind my back like he was wringing out a towel.
I struggled hard, but the strength difference made my resistance pointless.
Ignoring my furious glares and the horrified looks from other customers, they dragged me roughly toward the kitchen.
Then they threw me hard into a storage room in the back that reeked of disinfectant and rotten food.
The door slammed shut, cutting off all light and sound from outside.
Chapter 2
In the darkness, without saying a word, the manager lifted her high-heeled foot and kicked me hard in the stomach.
The pain made me curl up instantly, my gut churning.
"That's for spending my man's money!"
"That's for seducing him!"
She was shrieking, her voice twisted with jealousy and rage.
She looked down at me and ordered the two thugs: "Beat her. Beat her within an inch of her life!"
The security guards were obviously her cronies. Without hesitation, they started raining punches and kicks on me.
I gritted my teeth, swallowing every cry and groan.
It felt like my bones were being shattered piece by piece, my organs shifted out of place.
Her screaming continued: "Who do you think you are? You're nothing but a pathetic side piece!"
"I told you I'm his sister! Call Dante if you don't believe me—let me talk to him!"
I tried desperately to explain, but the woman ignored me completely. Finally, when I was dizzy and seeing spots, she raised her hand to stop them.
She planted her high heel on my shoulder and smiled down at me:
"You better pay for that meal today, plus another $100K."
"That's what you get for seducing my man and spending his money."
"I'm not scared of killing someone. Dante can clean up any mess for me."
I was curled up in agony, barely able to whisper: "That's my own money. I told you—just ask him if you don't believe me."
Her expression darkened. She kicked me again, and the two guards immediately understood, resuming their assault.
I knew that no matter what I said, she wouldn't listen. If this kept up, I might actually die here.
After they beat me until I coughed up blood, I used the last of my strength to fumble for my phone on the floor.
"Stop... I'll... I'll pay."
Satisfied with my surrender, she signaled the guards to stop and crouched down to pat my swollen face.
"See? Wouldn't it have been easier to just do this from the start? Had to learn the hard way."
"$200K. Not a penny less."
I lay on the cold floor, gasping for breath, my lungs burning.
I ignored her and called my best friend, Celeste.
She picked up quickly.
"Celeste, bring $200K to my brother's restaurant."
"I need it now."
Celeste paused, sensing something was wrong.
"Poet? What's going on? Your voice sounds..."
"Don't ask questions. Just hurry." I cut her off and hung up.
When Zoey heard "$200K," her eyes lit up with greedy excitement.
She probably thought I was so scared I was offering extra to make this go away.
She looked utterly smug and spat at me.
"Smart bitch."
Chapter 3
Celeste was lightning fast.
Within minutes, the storage room door was yanked open from outside.
Celeste rushed in with two bodyguards.
When she saw the blood at the corner of my mouth, my disheveled clothes, and me curled up on the floor, she was horrified.
She hurried over to help me up.
I shook my head, signaling her not to speak, and took the bank card with the PIN written on it from her hand, tossing it to the woman.
The woman pocketed the card without further harassment, waving dismissively:
"If this is a fake card, I know how to find you. Now get lost."
Fighting through the excruciating pain throughout my body, I limped out of that nauseating place with Celeste's help.
Once we were outside, I thanked Celeste: "Thanks, Celeste. I'll pay you back once I sort this out."
She looked at me with concern: "Don't worry about the money. But what the hell happened to you?"
I laughed bitterly: "My brother found himself quite the girlfriend. Time for me to settle some scores with him."
I pulled out my phone and found the restaurant's assistant manager's number.
He was the actual manager of the restaurant, someone I'd personally recruited who was completely loyal to me.
When the call connected, I cut straight to the point, my voice emotionless.
"You have ten minutes to fire a manager named Zoey Summers."
"Otherwise, the Blake family will withdraw all investment from the restaurant. Every last penny."
The assistant manager was terrified the moment he heard my voice.
He could probably tell from the weakness in my voice that something was seriously wrong, and he agreed frantically without daring to ask why.
I hung up and without pause, took a cab straight to the police station.
I gave the officer who took my statement the clearest, most logical account of everything that had just happened.
After filing a detailed report at the station, I went to the hospital for an injury assessment.
Holding the thick medical reports, the rage from being betrayed burned even hotter inside me, like oil thrown on a fire.
I needed an explanation.
I needed Dante to give me an explanation in person.
By then, my assistant texted me that he had found out Dante was at his villa.
The villa? Huh! My gift for him too.
I immediately called my driver and bodyguards came to pick me up, and we headed straight there.
But when I arrived, I was greeted by deafening heavy metal music.
And the sound of men and women making a ruckus, spilling through the doors and windows.
He was throwing a party—no wonder he hadn't answered my calls.
The front door of the villa was slightly ajar. On impulse, I didn't push it open right away.
Soon, I heard a familiar voice crying.
It was Zoey.
She was sobbing to a room full of people, painting herself as the poor victim bullied by an arrogant mistress who then turned the tables on her.
"...I just asked her to pay her bill, and she threw $200K in my face and had me fired..."
"Dante, she went too far. She doesn't respect you at all!"
"She just wanted to humiliate me, to make us break up!"
Inside, Dante's crew of trust-fund buddies all chimed in with righteous indignation.
Dante was loudly comforting Zoey in his arms, his voice full of sympathy and affection.
"Don't worry, babe. I won't let you suffer like this!"
Then, as if to prove his determination, he promised everyone:
"When I catch that woman, I'll make her get on her knees and apologize to you!"
Inside, those spoiled brats were still backing up Zoey, shouting about how they'd make me pay.
"Dante, just say the word and we'll drag her out here right now!"
"Yeah! Let her know who really runs this place!"
I couldn't listen to another word. I raised my hand, and my bodyguard kicked open the villa door.
The party music cut off abruptly. The loud laughter died instantly.
Dozens of shocked eyes turned toward the entrance.
"No need to drag anyone. I'm right here. Who wants to teach me a lesson?"
