Chapter 2
I smiled. "Actually, I'm curious too. How did my custom-made gown end up in the hands of a stranger? You're the only one who knew where it was. So, Payton, have you thought about what you're going to say to the police when they come asking?"
"I didn't give it to her," Payton said.
Payton gritted his teeth, barely holding back his anger.
"Payton! Please make them stop! I don't want this. No!" Wendy cried, reaching out to him with tears streaming down her face.
Payton, without a second thought for my feelings, raised his hand, ready to carry Wendy out of there.
"Pin him down!" I barked.
As soon as I gave the order, the bodyguards shoved Payton's head right to the floor, holding him there with force.
Veins bulged on his forehead as he struggled, barely holding back his fury.
"Serena! Don't you dare touch her!" he shouted, his voice trembling with rage.
"Keep going," I said, my voice icy.
I stayed cold and unfeeling.
"No!" Wendy screamed.
Payton's eyes burned with rage and helplessness as he watched Wendy's dress being torn off right in front of him.
"What's all this commotion?"
A voice, full of irritation, broke through the chaos.
My eyes lit up, and I spun around.
"Ethan!" I called out.
Ethan Quinn was taken aback for a moment.
"Ethan!" I called out, unable to hide my excitement.
I threw myself into his arms, just like I always did after we'd been apart, eager for a big, heartfelt hug.
But instead of Ethan's warm hug, I got slapped right across the face totally out of nowhere.
Smack!
I grabbed my cheek, my face burning from the hit, too stunned to react.
It wasn't until Ethan spoke up, his voice cold and sharp, that I snapped back to reality.
"What did you do to my sworn sister?" he demanded, his words like ice.
I looked at him, stunned. "Sworn sister?"
"Ethan!" Wendy cried, her voice shaking with tears.
She rushed into Ethan's arms, clinging to him as she sobbed.
Seeing her dress in tatters, Ethan's eyes brimmed with heartbreak for her.
I was still in shock. "Ethan..."
Another slap hit me hard, my head snapping to the side. Ethan's words sent a chill down my spine.
"It's just a torn dress. How could you be so cruel, doing this to a girl over a piece of fabric?" he shouted.
That was when I realized the brother I once knew was gone.
"A piece of fabric?" I echoed.
My lips quivered.
In that moment, Payton's words echoed in my mind: "I didn't give it to her!"
Maybe he really was telling the truth.
Besides Payton, Ethan knew the code to my closet too.
"You really think this is just some fabric?" I said, my voice shaking with disbelief.
"Mom made this dress for me herself, right before she died! Did you forget?"
At the mention of Mom, Ethan's expression froze, a flicker of discomfort crossing his face.
But it lasted only a heartbeat.
He quickly went back to being cold. "Even if it means the world to you, it's just an object. How could it ever matter more than a living, breathing person!
"Mom would never stand by you if she saw you hurting an innocent girl just for some dress!"
My heart clenched, and I gripped the front of my dress, clutching the fabric tight against my chest.
"Get out! Get them all out of here!" I yelled.
The bodyguards immediately moved in.
"Let's see who dares!" Ethan warned, his voice cold and full of authority.
Ethan gave the bodyguards a deadly stare.
"You'd better remember who's really going to be in charge of the Quinn Group," he said, his tone full of threat.
The bodyguards stopped in their tracks.
I looked at him in disbelief.
The crowd was already cracking up.
"Damn, I can't believe this crazy chick is actually part of the Quinn family," someone snickered.
"Yeah, I heard the Quinns really did adopt a kid. Looks like this nutcase got lucky. She ended up with the richest family around," another chimed in.
"Who doesn't know our handsome Mr. Quinn? He's definitely the real Quinn blood. What's this lunatic barking about, thinking she can boss around the real owner just because she's got a few bodyguards? What a joke," someone else sneered.
Maybe Ethan still had a tiny bit of affection for me left, because he told his people to send the gawking fans somewhere else.
I gritted my teeth hard.
"Ethan, you're nothing but an adopted son in the Quinn family. My adopted brother!" I shot back.
Ethan's face darkened, his brows furrowing.
The bodyguards hesitated, caught between conflicting orders.
"Think it over. Why do you think Mrs. Quinn adopted me? Wasn't it so I could inherit the legacy?" Ethan said.
His words made the bodyguards hesitate, uncertainty flickering across their faces.
"If you don't want your careers ruined in this business, let Ms. Hood go right now," Ethan warned.
The bodyguard who was holding Wendy paused for a moment, then finally released her.
A dozen or so people shifted their allegiance and moved to stand behind Ethan.
I grabbed a vase and smashed it hard on the floor, making Wendy jump and cling to Payton, scared out of her wits.
I said, my voice trembling with disappointment, "Ethan, I was so wrong about you.
"Between us, it's just broken pieces now, like that vase!"
Ethan paused, and I locked eyes with him, refusing to back down.
I said, "But this house was left to me by Mom. None of you have the right to cause trouble here.
"Either you all leave right now, or I'll call the police and report you for breaking in.
"But before you go, Wendy, that dress stays here!
As soon as I finished speaking, I grabbed Wendy by the shoulders and, with a loud rip, tore the dress right off her.
She gasped, hugging her arms tightly, trying to cover herself.
Nobody was paying attention to the dress anymore.
Even I was stunned by what I saw around her waist.