Chapter 8

Samantha caught a glimpse in the mirror—there stood a young woman decked out in the latest Prada, pointing arrogantly at her back. The clerk by her side looked beyond nervous. "Sorry, Miss Rivers. That outfit is from the Silent Thread limited series, the newest release of the season. There's only one piece and maybe... maybe you missed it earlier..." The woman scoffed, chin tilted high. "Are you blind? I told you I want the newest, most expensive stuff. Why didn't you recommend it when I was picking? Your screw-up, and now it's my fault for not seeing it?" The clerk looked flushed and flustered, voice trembling. "Miss Rivers, it was my mistake. I'm really sorry. Maybe you could take a look at some of the other options—?" Miss Rivers' expression darkened instantly. She exploded, "Why should I look at anything else? I said I want HER outfit! Make her take it off—now!" Samantha couldn't be bothered. She picked up the set she'd already taken off and strolled over to the cashier. "Hey! Stop! You!" Miss Rivers dashed over and blocked her path, barking, "That outfit's mine! Hand it over—take it off!" Samantha rolled her eyes. "And who decided that?" Miss Rivers whipped a shiny gold VIP card from her purse and slammed it down on the counter with a smug smirk. "Because I'm the top-tier premium customer here, I get first dibs on everything. Clerk, explain to this bumpkin how things work—tell her who really gets priority access!" The clerk's expression froze. Miss Rivers had a reputation—a rich heiress with no patience and a short fuse. All they could do was tread lightly and try not to get burned. She looked helplessly at Samantha and began explaining, "Ma'am, Miss Rivers' card is for top-tier members only. Requires at least a million in annual purchases, plus a five-million balance. It offers priority on all items. Please understand. If you're really interested, we can check other stores for restocks... though I have to admit, Silent Thread items sell out fast, and chances are slim. I'm really sorry." Miss Rivers shot Samantha a smug glance, her voice dripping superiority. "Since I like this piece, obviously it belongs to me. Even if there are more later, I'm the only one getting it. Anyone trying to steal what's mine—keep dreaming." After all, she was Sophia Rivers—the sole heir to a corporation worth billions. Ever since she was a kid, anything she wanted, she got. Even if she tossed it aside the next day, no one else was allowed to have it. Samantha tilted her head slightly. So this was her? The same Sophia Ethan had mentioned—the one throwing investment money at that scumbag couple? A faint, icy smile curved Samantha's lips as she ignored the card completely. Instead, she pulled out her phone and tapped a few times. A barcode appeared on the screen. She held it up toward the clerk. The clerk had never seen this kind of code before and carefully scanned it. The next second, her eyes widened in shock. "We deeply apologize, esteemed top-tier guest. This outfit is officially yours. Would you like to wear it out, or shall we wrap it for you?" Moments later, all the staff in the boutique gathered in a neat row behind Samantha, treating her with the utmost respect."What's going on here? Top-tier member? Since when does Aurelune have so-called top-tier members? These days scammers are everywhere, don't let yourselves get played like idiots!" Sophia's voice rose with frustration as she noticed the sales assistants completely ignoring her now, their attitudes taking a 180. She was fuming, feeling utterly humiliated like she just got publicly slapped. Samantha stood there, surrounded by the store clerks eager to help her, completely calm. She glanced over at Sophia, her eyes cold and dismissive, and said with a scoff, "Liking what I have doesn't mean you're actually capable of getting it." Sophia's face turned red with rage, her hands clenched at her sides. She was just about to snap back when her eyes landed on the countertop computer screen. The last scanned item was still displayed: Aurelune Top Member - Internal Code 006. As someone who ran the Rivers Group's fashion department, Sophia knew damn well what that 006 meant. Design teams usually had codes—001 for creative director, the rest numbered according to seniority. But 006 wasn't just a number. It was special, reserved for the few rare collaborators who had equal say with the in-house team, with substantial authority in both creative and decision-making roles. Her jaw unknowingly slackened. Aurelune's designers were notoriously closed off. There had never been whispers of any outside partnership. That this woman—this Samantha—was listed as 006 meant she wasn't just anyone. None of the salesgirls even glanced Sophia's way now, all focused on attending to Samantha. For the first time in her life, Sophia—who had always been treated like royalty—was being flat-out ignored. Her pride was burning. Her stomach twisted with the kind of frustration only jealousy could twist. Samantha had just put her in her place in front of everyone, and Sophia's skin turned blotchy from the shame and anger boiling in her. Then her eyes spotted something near the register—a bottle of black ink, already open, sitting beside a Parker fountain pen. Her lips curled into a sneaky smirk. While everyone was preoccupied, she silently filled the pen with ink, turned around, and suddenly flung it hard at Samantha's clothes. A scream rang out from one of the assistants, and splatters of ink bloomed across Samantha's outfit. Sophia let out a soft snicker, clearly satisfied, yet apparently still not done—she turned back and dumped the whole bottle of ink straight onto the counter. Half the ink spilled out and soaked into the linen outfit Samantha had just taken off. Feigning innocence, Sophia drawled, "Oops, clumsy me. My bad." There wasn't even a flicker of panic in Samantha's eyes over the ink. Instead, her gaze sharpened instantly—cold and piercing. But when she saw her sister's favorite linen outfit being ruined by that spilled ink, something in her face snapped. Her eyes darkened, pupils shrinking with fury. She stormed forward, yanked up the outfit, and then— Smack. A fierce slap landed clean across Sophia's face. Sophia froze. Her hand flew up to her cheek where five red marks started to rise. "You—You hit me?" she shouted, blinking in disbelief. This wasn't just anyone. She was Sophia, the only heiress to Rivers Group—one of the top four corporations in Lichester! Since she was a kid, maids, chefs, nannies, drivers, even so-called friends—who dared do anything but bow to her? She'd never been touched like this her whole life! Samantha met her gaze, that same chilling calm on her face. "Damn right I hit you. Or do you think I need to schedule an appointment?" Even the air in the room froze over from her words. Everyone felt that tremor in their bones. That was her sister's favorite outfit, now ruined with deep black stains. The fabric—linen-blended—was nearly impossible to restore if dyed. It was basically destroyed. "You psycho! Do you even know who I am?! You actually dared to slap me!" Sophia screamed, her voice climbing as her fury exploded. Her heavily-lined eyes went wide with rage as she lunged forward and swung straight for Samantha's face.