Chapter 3
The parents were left speechless. I'd just called out each of their backgrounds, leaving nothing hidden.
"What are you all standing around for? Get her.
"Seriously, don't tell me you're scared of her. Every single deal you got was because I begged Richard for it. And you two, Richard's the one who's been supporting you all this time.
"What are you afraid of? Go deal with her. If anything goes wrong, I'll cover for you," Susan shouted.
Everyone just exchanged nervous glances; nobody wanted to stick their neck out.
"You pathetic losers. After I'm done with them, you're next on my list," Susan snapped.
She lunged at me, trying to scratch and hit, but she was way out of her league. I grabbed her hair and yanked, had her screaming her head off.
Ryan tried to jump in and help Susan, but I just kicked him away like he was nothing.
"How dare you kick my son. You're dead." Susan shrieked.
Out of the corner of her eye, Susan spotted someone striding over, and she instantly puffed up with confidence.
"Richard's back. You and your daughter are finished. Today, nobody's walking out of this farm alive.
"Richard, save us. They're trying to kill Ryan and me," she screamed.
Susan shoved me hard, but she ended up tripping and falling herself.
She let out a piercing scream, crashing to the ground in the most dramatic fashion.
Richard dropped his cake and rushed straight to Susan.
"Honey, are you okay?" Richard said.
Susan collapsed into Richard's arms, sobbing, "Richard, this bitch is obsessed with you, and she just went after Ryan and me.
"Don't let them get away with this. I want their whole family to regret ever being alive."
I couldn't help but let out a cold laugh. "Who do you think you are? You want my family to regret living? You really think you're the queen of Prosperity Group? Dream on."
"Richard, did you hear that? Look at her, acting all high and mighty. Take her down already." Susan shrieked.
Richard exploded, "Are you out of your mind, messing with my family?"
Maybe it was the blood all over my face, but he didn't recognize me.
"Richard, you really outdid yourself. Not only did you keep a side chick and have a son with her, but you just stood by while they bullied Serenity," I snapped.
That was when Richard finally realized something was off. He leaned in for a closer look, and his face went pale with shock.
"Why are you here? Weren't you supposed to be out of the country?" Richard stammered.
"If I weren't here, how would I know you locked Serenity up in the pigpen?" I snapped right back.
People around us started whispering, shooting curious looks our way.
"Wait, is Serenity really Mr. Ryland's daughter? She has the same last name. Could it really be true?" someone whispered.
"So who is really Mr. Ryland's wife, and who's the mistress?" another person asked.
"Obviously, Serenity's mom is the mistress. I mean, Mr. Ryland wouldn't bring his mistress to a school camp, right? Ryan's mom looks so elegant. She's got to be the real Mrs. Ryland," someone said.
"But Serenity's mom is dressed super fancy too. That bag she just threw on the ground? There are only two in the whole world. One belongs to the princess, and she actually owns the other one," another person whispered.
"No way, that's gotta be a fake," someone scoffed.
"But this bag just barely hit the shelves; it hasn't even gone mainstream yet. How could there be fakes already?" another person argued.
"I'm totally confused now. Could it be that Ryan's mom is actually the side chick?" someone else whispered.
Susan screamed, "I'm not some side chick. Richard and I are officially married.
"Richard, say something. You can't let these parents think that about us. How's Ryan supposed to survive at school after this?"
Richard helped Susan up and pulled Ryan close, holding them both protectively.
"Valentina Ridge, you're just a fellow from my hometown. I only took you and Serenity in because you were a struggling single mother.
"Just because I helped you out doesn't mean you can dream about being my wife.
"Now, apologize to my wife and son. Since we come from the same place, I won't hold you and your daughter accountable," Richard said.
I couldn't help but let out a sarcastic laugh. "Richard, you seriously gonna protect them?"
"She's a little stubborn, and honestly, not all there. Let me talk to her by myself.
"Babe, just stay here. My old friend isn't exactly stable, and I don't want you setting her off," Richard said.
"What? Is she actually crazy? I don't care if she's got issues or not, you can't just go easy on her and her daughter," Susan snapped.
"Babe, just give me a minute, I'll take care of it. Don't get upset, just wait for me, okay? I'll get you that bag you want," Richard said.
"That's more like it. I want the one she's got, the global limited edition, just like the princess's," Susan demanded.
"Alright, alright, whatever you want, I'll get it for you," Richard said.
Richard didn't even give me a chance to protest. He just dragged me off, away from the crowd. 'Let's see if he's got anything decent to say for once,' I thought.