The look on their faces? Priceless. I’d been waiting for this moment ever since I caught wind of David’s plan to donate a school building in Brenda’s name. Déjà vu from my past life. Not this time. I’d already called the cops. The charge? A wannabe heiress and her sidekick butler swindling from the Sinclair family.
No way was I just gonna watch them run their little con again. Today, they were getting dragged out in cuffs, no matter how much they tried to spin it later.
The officers were closing in when Brenda’s voice cracked, her words tumbling over each other.
“I didn’t do anything! It—it was their idea!”
I stepped in front of her.
“What idea? Care to share?”
Her eyes darted everywhere but at me. She turned toward the cops. “Why are you even here?”
The officer, completely unaware of the tension between us, just kept it professional.
“Miss Sinclair reported that you and your mother stole a significant amount of money from her family. The evidence is solid, so you’ll need to come with us.”
The students around us? Absolutely losing it.
“Wait, Brenda and her mom stole from Claire’s family? So Claire’s the real heiress?”
“But the butler said Brenda was legit. What is even happening?”
1/2
Chapter
+25 BONUS
“Seriously, how does the Sinclair family not know who their own daughter is?”
The officer caught some of the chatter and frowned, clearly thrown off.
“The Sinclair family heiress is, obviously, Claire Sinclair. Why would anyone think otherwise?” He paused, then added, “The Sinclair Corp CEO’s daughter wouldn’t have the last name Bart, would she?”
That shut everyone up.
Someone broke the silence first.
“Brenda, you made us bully Claire? Are you trying to drag us down with you
now?”
“She’s nothing but a thief! No wonder even with designer clothes, she always looked so cheap.”
“Oh, wait–I get it now. That woman earlier? Totally your mom. The maid, right? You two even have the same miserable vibe!”
Even with all eyes on her, Brenda stayed creepily calm.
I frowned, piecing it all together. This wasn’t just about stealing money–it had to be bigger. Way bigger. No way someone like Brenda, who lived for her fake reputation and dreamed of being a rich heiress, would look this smug after being accused of theft.
A jolt of panic hit me as I bent to grab my phone. Brenda’s earlier attack had smashed it to pieces. Great.
She noticed and, of course, couldn’t resist running her mouth.
“Claire, do you really think you’ve won? You think your cheap little stunts are enough to stop me? By tonight, Dad will personally come pick me up in his luxury car!”
Her arrogance didn’t faze me. If anything, it made what I did next feel even better. I plucked the phone right out of her hand. “You broke mine. This’ll do.”
Her jaw practically hit the floor. “Claire, how dare you?! That’s my phone! Give it back right now!”
Holding her phone, I turned to the crowd and raised an eyebrow.
