Chapter 4

I didn't even bother responding. I just shouldered past Shaun and kept walking.

By the time I dragged my heavy feet back to the estate, I spotted a very familiar suitcase tossed carelessly onto the front porch.

The clasps had shattered on impact. My clothes were scattered all over the concrete, covered in dirt and grime.

"Miss..." one of the senior housekeepers stood in the doorway, looking like he wanted to say more but didn't dare.

I bent down to pick up a mud-stained jacket. "What happened here?" I asked calmly.

He lowered her head, a trace of genuine pity in his tone. "Your father had the staff pack your things.

"He said it's a lesson. He wants you to remember exactly who runs this house.

I stood there in total silence. My fingers slowly curled inward, gripping the filthy fabric until my knuckles turned white.

[A lesson?

[Stomping all over my basic human dignity to beat me into submission?]

I turned around to march right inside, but my feet suddenly locked in place.

Over by the courtyard trash cans, a pile of violently shredded paper caught my eye.

Even torn to bits, I could still clearly make out the words "National High School STEM Innovation Challenge Application."

And right below it, the title of the project I had written out by hand.

The application had been absolutely obliterated. A cold breeze swept through the yard, blowing a few jagged scraps of paper right against my sneakers.

I squatted down. Piece by agonizing piece, I started picking up the shredded remains of my hard work.

Touching those torn edges sent an icy, piercing ache straight from my fingertips into my chest.

Forcing me to give up my spot wasn't enough for him.

He had to personally crush every last ounce of hope I had left. He wanted to strip away my right to even try.

A disgustingly sweet voice floated down from above. "Oh, Halle. Why are you sitting in the dirt? It's horribly unladylike."

Emma was standing half-hidden in the shadows of the porch.

Her arms were crossed over her chest, and a sickeningly perfect, triumphant smile was plastered across her face. "Dad made it clear. As of today, you're officially banned from the property."

She took a few leisurely steps toward me and leaned in close, dropping her voice to a vicious whisper. "Newsflash, Halle. Your mom is dead, and your dad doesn't give a damn about you.

"You literally have absolutely nothing and nowhere to go.

"Honestly, I'm dying to know. Where exactly are you going to run off to now? Who in their right mind would ever take in a stray like you?"

I lifted my head, staring blankly into her gloating eyes.

Her toxic little insults landed as lightly as feathers. They didn't trigger a single ripple of emotion inside me.

Right at that exact moment, the beat-up old smartphone in my pocket started vibrating.

With Emma watching me like I was a highly entertaining joke, I swiped the screen and answered the call.

"Are you Miss Halle Bond?" a voice asked. "It's Robert Vance, Chief Engineer of Project Zenith.

"We just finished the third round of validation on that quantum error correction model you left behind. It's a massive success!"

A muffled commotion echoed through the receiver, sounding like the entire lab was erupting in cheers.

Vance's tone suddenly turned dead serious. "The Board just issued an emergency mandate. We're officially bringing you on as the core consultant for the next R&D phase.

"A private jet is already fueled and will touch down at your local airport in two hours to fly you straight to the Neria headquarters."

Coming back to the Cobb family had only ever been a temporary escape.

Back at the lab, every variable had been leading to a dead end.

The crushing pressure forced me to come up for air, even if the price was stepping into the gilded cage of the Cobb estate.

Now, the good news echoing through the receiver felt like a breath of fresh air, finally blowing away the dark clouds hanging over my head.

Emma obviously couldn't hear the caller. The second I hung up, she put on an exaggerated, innocent act. "Who was that?"

"I heard the Jenkins family went totally broke and your mother had it rough her last few years.

"Did you take out a sketchy payday loan when she got sick? Are the collectors breathing down your neck now?

"Do you need me to spot you some cash?"

I stood up slowly, completely ignoring her little power trip, and replied with zero emotion, "You're right.

"This place was never my home. But you're dead wrong about one thing. I do have somewhere else to go."

I walked right out of the Cobb mansion and headed straight to the airport for my flight to Neria.

For the next few days, I threw myself entirely into the project's core proof of concept, completely ghosting the outside world.

The second I finally took a breather and turned my phone back on, my academic advisor Karen blew up my line. "Halle. Where the hell have you been?

"You're ditching all your classes! Do you have absolutely zero respect for the rules?"

I massaged my temples. I was way too exhausted to explain everything, so I gave a half-baked excuse. "I'm out of town, working."

Her voice instantly spiked an octave. "Working? Since when does someone from the Cobb family need a part-time job?

"Who do you think you're kidding?

"Don't think getting straight As gives you a free pass to lie to my face. I bet you're out partying and making a mess of yourself.

"I've seen plenty of delinquent kids just like you! What kind of future do you think you have without school, huh?"