Chapter 1 - The True Owner
Ethan Reed froze completely.
He stared at my plain gray sweater, then at my white sneakers, and finally at my face.
All the blood drained from his cheeks until he looked sick.
Natalie smiled triumphantly and pointed a perfectly manicured finger at me.
“Ethan, this woman just tore a three-thousand-dollar gown and is refusing to pay for it,” she announced.
She turned to Marcus, the security guard, who was still gripping my wrist tightly.
“Hold her while Ethan calls the police,” Natalie ordered.
Ethan did not move toward the phone.
Instead, his eyes darted from Marcus’s hand to my face in absolute horror.
“Let her go,” Ethan choked out, his voice trembling.
Natalie scoffed and crossed her arms over her chest.
“No, we need to make an example of people like this,” she argued.
Ethan finally stepped forward and physically shoved Marcus away from me.
“I said take your hands off Miss Avery right now!” Ethan screamed.
The entire store fell completely silent.
Natalie’s smug smile instantly vanished from her face.
“Miss Avery?” she repeated, looking genuinely confused.
I rubbed my bruised wrist and stared directly into Natalie’s terrified eyes.
“My name is Avery Sterling,” I said softly.
“I own this store, this building, and the entire company that signs your paychecks.”
Marcus took three rapid steps backward, looking like he wanted the floor to swallow him whole.
Natalie’s jaw dropped open as the realization hit her.
She had just physically detained and insulted a billionaire heiress.
“Miss Sterling, I am so sorry,” Ethan stammered, sweating profusely.
“I had no idea you were coming in for a site visit today.”
I ignored his apology and pointed to the emerald dress in Natalie’s shaking hands.
“I want the security footage from the last hour pulled up in your office immediately,” I demanded.
Ethan swallowed hard and nodded quickly.
I walked past a terrified Natalie and headed straight for the manager’s office.
Ethan followed me inside and locked the door behind us.
He sat at his computer, his hands shaking violently as he typed in his password.
I watched the screen intently as he opened the security software.
A large error message flashed across the monitor in bright red letters.
“The footage from the main floor is gone,” I noted, narrowing my eyes at him.
May you like
Ethan looked up at me with sheer panic in his eyes.
Someone had manually deleted the security tapes exactly two minutes before I was accused.
