Chapter 6
The world tilted.
For eleven years, I had carried the word thief like a stone tied to my throat.
Now Grant Ashford said the truth in one sentence.
She framed Mara.
I wanted relief.
Instead I felt sick.
Celeste was breathing hard.
Her eyes darted from the door to the screens.
Julian noticed.
“Roman, lock the room.”
Roman pressed a button.
The door clicked.
Celeste spun around.
“You cannot trap me in here.”
Julian said, “I am asking questions in my own house.”
Grant took a small drive from his jacket pocket.
Celeste went still.
“You carry it?”
“Every day,” he said.
“Why?”
“In case your lies finally found a victim I could not ignore.”
She laughed, but it cracked.
“You ignored plenty.”
Grant flinched.
He deserved that.
He handed the drive to Julian.
“Play the file marked Studio Three.”
Roman inserted it.
The screen went black.
Then the old campaign studio appeared.
I saw myself at sixteen.
Thin.
Hopeful.
Wearing white silk and borrowed diamonds.
Celeste was there too, blonde and glowing, smiling at people who were not looking at her enough.
The video showed the dressing room.
Celeste entering alone.
Celeste opening my bag.
Celeste placing the missing diamond necklace inside.
My breath left me.
I stumbled.
Julian caught me again.
The footage continued.
Celeste removed my silver bracelet from the same bag and put it into her pocket.
Then she walked out and screamed that the necklace was missing.
I heard my younger self crying on the old video.
“I didn’t take it.”
No one believed me.
No one helped.
I watched security guards search my bag.
I watched Celeste comfort me with one hand while destroying me with the other.
Beatrice whispered, “My God.”
Julian looked at Celeste.
“You ruined a child.”
Celeste’s face twisted.
“She was not a child. She was competition.”
I stared at her.
“I was sixteen.”
Celeste stepped toward me.
“You had everything I wanted.”
I almost laughed.
Everything?
My mother was sick.
My rent was late.
I modeled because we needed medicine.
But Celeste saw my face on a poster and decided that was everything.
Julian turned to Roman.
“Call the police.”
Celeste smiled.
“You won’t.”
May you like
Then she looked at Ivy.
“Because I know what happened to your wife.”
