She was the founder and CEO of a global production firm.
A self-made billionaire before the age of twenty-five.
An industry leader.
A public figure.
A mother.
A woman who controlled more narratives than the press could print
More influential than Evelyn can imagine.
An actress.
A hacker.
But of course, she couldn’t say any of that. Especially not at this table.
So instead, she leaned forward slightly, pretending to think. She tapped her finger against her lips, her expression was light, almost playful.
"Hmm... let’s see," she began.
She raised one hand like she was counting off points.
"Lazy."
There was a pause.
Evelyn tilted her head; she surprised but pleased. This stupid girl was making everything seem too easy. She smiled to herself.
"Soft," Heather continued, "a delicate little thing who just wants to be taken care of."
She smiled sweetly, like it was a complint.
"Doesn’t cook. Refuses to clean. Can’t keep a job. Barely knows how to care for a child."
"Completely useless."
She sighed and dropped her hand like the list had exhausted her.
Evelyn was smiling outwardly now. She was genuinely smiling. Because she had finally been proven right.
Lauren let out a soft giggle but tried to hide it behind her fingers, because she knew better than to be too obvious.
"Is that all?" Evelyn asked, her eyes bright with vindication.
Heather tapped her finger against her jaw again, pretending to think harder.
"Oh, actually," she said, grinning now. "No."
She leaned in slightly, her eyes on Evelyn.
"I’m also sexually woke. I maybe be lazy and soft as a pillow, but in the bedroom," she laughed because what she was about to say excited her.
"You all need to see in the bedroom. I give the best blowjobs and handjobs. I even know how to ride a dick like a fucking goddess."
There was a pause and a beat coming from all corners of the table.
Not to talk of the silence and shock in the eyes of everyone, who were now looking at her.
Caius blinked rapidly, he couldn’t believe what she just said or that she had just said that.
He cleared his throat and looked away, but the corner of his mouth betrayed him with the hint of a smile.
Amaranth stared at Heather, she was stunned. Even the servers had stopped moving. No one had expected her to say that.
"Well thank G*d the children don’t know what dick ans." Lily muttered under her breath. She couldn’t help but smile, because she liked Heather genuinely.
Evelyn’s mouth hung open, even she was caught by surprise. She believed Heather was a stupid girl, but what did she just say?
"What is wrong with you?" she whispered, completely horrified.
Heather shrugged. "Just being honest. That’s what you wanted, right?"
"This," Evelyn said sharply, "is exactly what I’ve been saying. She’s reckless. Unstable. She drinks—drank while pregnant! That’s why she lost the baby!"
Amaranth’s brows furrowed, and her expression turned from shock to sothing colder.
But Evelyn was on a roll now. "She’s wild. Irresponsible. And things used to go missing in our house whenever she was around. Jewelry, little things. She’s been like this since she was a child!"
Evelyn felt the need to defend herself because to her, Heather was an embarrassnt to them.
Heather tilted her head again, slowly.
"I used to flush them," she said, smiling. "Down the toilet. It was fun to watch them disappear. Especially your things."
She raised her glass. "Especially since that’s where you used to throw my mother’s belongings. Wasn’t it?"
Evelyn’s face went pale. "Don’t listen to her," she snapped. "She has no manners. No class."
Heather turned her eyes toward her.
"Eve," she said quietly, "should I tell them about the horses?"
Evelyn stared back at her, a flicker of sothing—fear?—crossed her face.
"No? I’ll do it then."
Heather leaned back.
"You told to clean the horse stable because I broke a vase. I was eleven. I missed a spot, so you hit . I fell, opened the gate by accident. The horses ran out, but not before kicking you in the face. That’s why your jaw sits the way it does now."
Amaranth placed her fork down gently.
"You’re unbelievable," Lauren muttered.
Heather turned to Lauren. "Or should we talk about the stairs?"
Lauren’s smile faded.
"You pushed while I was pregnant. Days after you flirted with my husband openly to ."
Lauren’s face tightened. "That’s a lie."
"I-I wasn’t even on the stairs that day." Lauren shouted.
"When Heather fell, I personally when you help you. And you were on the stairs." Caius said.
Lauren’s eyes twitched. What was she even going to say to this gullible people?
"I-I was—"
Heather’s voice was calm. "Where’s your husband, Lauren?"
Lauren faltered. "I—I don’t know what that has to do with—"
"You said you weren’t on the stairs that day," Amaranth interrupted softly. Her voice was no longer warm.
"I... I didn’t say that," Lauren stamred. "I said I don’t know what happened. It’s been years."
"You were the only one at the top of the stairs that day." Caius added.
Lauren looked around, panic blooming in her eyes. She turned to her mother for assistance.
"Don’t accuse your my daughter!" Evelyn snapped, her tone suddenly high and defensive. "Heather lies! She always has!"
Heather looked straight at her mother.
"You switched my grades with Lauren, so father would send to the farm," she said, voice even. "Made run on a treadmill for hours with a broken foot. And when I failed, you made walk back from school in the city. To make it ho faster and safer I walked through the trenches. I was eight. And there were pedophiles in that area."
There was silence.
Dead, biting silence.
Every eye at the table was no longer on Heather, they were on Evelyn.
Caius looked directly at Lauren. His voice was too calm.
"I never really asked you how you got hurt."
Heather didn’t look up from her glass.
Because I caused that, stupid, she thought dryly, her nails tapping lightly against the stem of her wine glass.
Lauren blinked, startled. "What?"
"Ask why?"
Lauren swallowed. She wasn’t sure she wanted to ask that. But she did anyway. "Why?"
Caius leaned back in his chair, his tone colder this ti. "Because I never wanted to know the truth. Deep down... I already knew you had sothing to do with it."
Lauren gasped sharply. Another ca from Evelyn.
"What?" Evelyn’s voice rang out in disbelief. "How can you say such a horrible thing about my daughter? You know Lauren. You know she’d never do sothing like that!"
"She wouldn’t hurt a soul," Mr. Lionel chid in, stern now. "Heather lies. She always has. She’s... she’s troubled. She’s been that way since she was little."
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