Chapter 4

I was so pissed off by Patrick's twisted logic that I laughed. "Did I ever tell you to sneak around and be someone else's mutt? What's wrong with me posting proof of you lying and betraying me?

"How would you feel if your future wife put on a collar, let some guy walk her on a leash, and even called herself his mutt?

"Don't give me that bullshit about losing a dare. We all know what was really going on. No one's that clueless.

"Now you're acting like the victim and trying to get back at me, but what did I ever do to you? My own fiancé went off and played someone else's mutt, and Grace was all up in my face, mocking me. Am I just supposed to keep quiet?

"Ryden loves spreading my photos everywhere, right? Let him deal with the police himself."

When I said I was calling the cops, Patrick got even more desperate. "Zoey, can you just drop it already? It was just a stupid joke. If you get Ryden arrested, the Fosters and my family will be enemies."

"That's not my problem," I snapped.

I didn't feel like wasting any more words on him, so I just hung up.

The next day, I took the group chat screenshots to the police station and filed a report. The cops wasted no time and called Ryden in for questioning.

Even with the cops right there, Ryden was still acting all cocky. "Zoey, just wait.

"I don't care if you're Patrick's wife or not. If you don't drop the charges today, when you step out of this station, I'll have my buddies mess with you."

He shot a threatening look at the cops, not even trying to hide his arrogance. "Let me go now, and your wives and kids will stay safe. But if any of you lay a finger on me, I'll make sure your whole family pays the price."

There was a reason why everyone called Ryden an idiot. Just because his family had money, he thought he could do whatever he wanted. He actually threatened the cops and even tried to get physical.

By the time Patrick got to the station, Ryden was already cuffed and thrown into the holding cell for attacking a cop.

What caught me off guard was that Grace showed up right behind Patrick.

While Patrick was busy trying to explain things to the cops, Grace strutted over to me, looking all high and mighty.

"Miss Patel, look at the mess you've made. You pissed off Ryden, and now even Patrick's not backing you up. Why are you making such a fuss?" Grace sneered.

I shot her a sideways glance. "Wow, acting all innocent now? You know David and Patrick are both about to get married, but you're still getting all tangled up with them. Are you really their friend? Did you ever think about how this affects them?"

"Affects them?" Grace let out a mocking laugh. "What does that have to do with me?

"They're not my friends. They're just mutts I can call and send away whenever I want. If my dogs want to go out and breed with other bitches, of course I'm going to stop them."

I looked at her, completely lost. "Why are you even doing this? What's in it for you?"

Grace's eyes darkened with a twisted grin. "No reason. I just can't stand watching rich people like you have it easy.

"I can't stand how rich folks act like you're better than everyone. I do it just to humiliate you all. If you're having a rough time, that makes my day."

I raised an eyebrow and glanced behind her. "You all heard that, right?"

Grace spun around and realized Ryden's and David's folks were suddenly standing right behind her.

Her eyes went wide as she stared at me. "You were just trying to get me to talk?" Grace demanded.

"Idiot, did you really think I had nothing better to do than stand here and waste my time with you?" I shot back.

Parents who could raise a ticking time bomb like Ryden were just as much of a ticking time bomb themselves.

"You slut. This is all your fault. You ruined my son," Ryden's mom, Alice Foster screamed, charging over and slapping Grace hard across the face.

Her diamond-studded nails left three long, bloody scratches on Grace's cheek.

"What the hell? Why are you hitting me?" Grace screamed, clutching her scratched-up face as she stumbled backward.

She jabbed a finger at me, voice shaking. "Mrs. Foster, you've got the wrong person. It was her who called the cops on your son, not me.

"I'm Ryden's friend. If you want to blame someone, blame Zoey."

"You shameless bitch! You think I'm deaf or something? I heard every word you said. What, you can talk big but can't own up to it?" Alice snapped.

Alice grabbed Grace by the hair and started slapping her face and head hard, making Grace howl like a banshee. No matter how hard she struggled, she couldn't break free from Alice's iron grip.