Chapter 2

By the time Hailey snapped out of her shock, she threw herself in front of Julian to protect him, glaring at me as if I were some evil stepmother.

And after my sudden outburst, even my father, Richard, who had originally wanted to force Hailey into the household, stood frozen, not daring to make a move.

Hailey shrieked at me, "How can you hit him!"

Before she could finish her sentence, I slapped her too.

"What? Jealous? Here, let me share the love."

"Serena! You’ve gone too far!"

Seeing his sweetheart get slapped was too much for Julian to bear. He lunged forward to confront me.

But my personal bodyguard quickly stepped in, catching his arms and pinning him. With a swift kick to the back of Julian's knee, Julian fell hard onto the floor, kneeling right in front of me. As soft snickers broke out from the surrounding crowd, his handsome face flushed a dark, angry red.

I looked down at him coldly. The warmth that used to fill my eyes was replaced by absolute disgust.

It was the first time I had ever looked at him this way, and it made him freeze in shock.

In front of everyone, I stepped forward and pressed the heel of my stilettos hard against his shoulder.

—Right over the scar he had gotten from self-harming back when his family went bankrupt.

"Julian, you have a really short memory. What, just because you're wearing designer clothes, you actually think you're still the high-and-mighty heir of the Cole family?"

"Everyone in this room knows that if it weren't for me, you'd be begging for scraps on the street. No matter how high I’ve built you up over the years, you are still nothing but a dog kept by Serena Vance. How dare you bark at your master?"

I smirked, pressing my tongue against the inside of my cheek, and let out a soft laugh. "You must be tired of living."

With a flick of my eyes toward my bodyguard, Julian and Hailey were dragged out of the ballroom, kicking and screaming.

Then, I turned my gaze onto Richard.

"Dad, you seem to be living a very colorful life too. I didn't know you had a secret daughter."

Step by step, I approached this man who had climbed into high society solely by marrying my mother. I showed none of the respect a daughter should have.

"How long has my mother been dead? And your bastard child suddenly pops up? And she's actually older than me? What’s going on, Dad? Are you planning to pack your bags and leave this family empty-handed?"

Under the judging and mocking stares of the high-society guests, Richard pulled out a handkerchief from his pocket. With trembling hands, he wiped the cold sweat from his forehead and tried to explain weakly.

"No, Serena... I didn't mean to ruin your birthday party... It's just that your sister... she insisted on coming, and I couldn't stop her."

"Sister?"

I repeated the word, emphasizing it with dripping sarcasm.

"I don't have a sister." I turned my eyes toward the elderly man being rolled into the hall in a wheelchair. "Grandpa, don't you agree?"

The moment Grandpa Arthur made his entrance, the entire room fell dead silent.

Over all these years, even those who loved to gossip about my family never dared to show an ounce of disrespect toward my grandfather.

As a young man, he had built his business empire from scratch. He expanded his territory until he became the wealthiest man in the country.

The only mistake this legendary man had ever made in his life was giving in to his beloved daughter's wishes and letting her marry a gold-digging nobody.

Now that my mother was gone, Grandpa had nothing but cold disdain for Richard. If it weren't for the fact that Richard still held some shares of the Vance Group, Grandpa would have kicked this parasite out of the city long ago.

The guests bowed their heads respectfully. "Mr. Vance."

Richard trembled even more. He was terrified of Grandpa Arthur. Every time he faced the old man, he would shake. But at the same time, he harbored a deep, poisonous hatred for him. He hated that Grandpa always looked down on him and refused to hand over the company. That was why he had resorted to murder in my past life.

But this time, I would protect Grandpa. I would protect the only person who genuinely loved and shielded me.

Grandpa cast a freezing glare at Richard.