Chapter 3

The black Uber rolled to a stop outside the wrought-iron gates. Danika paid the driver, pushed the car door open, and stepped out into the salty Long Island wind that whipped through her thin floral dress.

Walking up the gravel driveway in her scuffed heels, she took a deep breath, pushed open the heavy oak double doors, and stepped into the Italian marble foyer.

The entrance hall was dead silent save for the ticking of the antique grandfather clock.

Before she could take a second step toward the stairs, her adoptive mother's shrill voice cut through the air from the main living room.

"So you finally decided to show your face? I thought you died in a gutter outside whatever trashy club you crawled into!"

Danika stopped and turned toward the archway. Devin Marshall sat on the velvet sofa in a tailored Chanel loungewear set, glaring at her like she was a cockroach on the rug.

Beside her, Mr. Brewer slammed his copy of The Wall Street Journal down onto the mahogany coffee table.

"You have completely disgraced the Brewer name!" he barked.

Danika bit the inside of her lip to stop her chin from trembling and walked into the room, keeping her back straight.

"Yesterday was my twenty-second birthday," she said quietly. "You were all in the city celebrating Alejandra."

Devin let out a harsh laugh and stood up, her eyes raking with disgust over Danika's wrinkled dress and the heavy concealer caked on her neck.

"And that's your excuse for staying out all night and whoring around in low-class bars?"

Danika opened her mouth to answer, but Mr. Brewer shot to his feet and pointed a thick finger in her face.

"You are an orphan who only survived because of our charity! What right do you have to complain under my roof?" He took a step closer, his face dark with fury. "Starting today, your share of the family trust fund is frozen. You won't see a single cent!"

The air rushed out of Danika's lungs. That trust fund was her only ticket to opening her own art studio and escaping this house.

"You can't do that," she said, her voice rising. "Grandfather left those shares to me in his will!"

Devin crossed her arms over her chest, her lips curling into a sneer.

"The old man was senile when he gave family assets to an outsider. As long as you live here, you follow our rules."

Danika's hands shook at her sides, her nails digging deep into her palms as her chest heaved for air.

Rapid footsteps pounded down the spiral staircase. Delmus, wearing a wrinkled Ivy League prep hoodie, took the steps three at a time and sprinted into the living room.

He threw himself directly in front of Danika, spreading his arms wide to shield her from their adoptive parents.

"What gives you the right to freeze Dani's trust?" Delmus panted, his chest heaving as he glared at the sofa. "You're the ones who ditched her outside that club on her birthday!"

Mr. Brewer scowled at his nineteen-year-old adoptive son.

"Delmus, stay out of this and get back upstairs to study for your SATs!"

Delmus jutted his chin out, his amber eyes blazing.

"If you're cutting off her trust fund, then cut mine off too! I don't want it!"

Devin's face twisted with rage as she pointed a manicured finger at the boy.

"You ungrateful little brat! We spent a fortune raising you, and this is how you repay us?"

Looking at the thin, stubborn back of her younger brother, Danika felt hot tears spill over her eyelashes. She reached out and tugged lightly on the hem of his hoodie.

"Delmus, stop," she whispered, her voice cracking. "Don't fight with them over me. It's not worth it."

Delmus reached back and squeezed her freezing fingers tight, glancing over his shoulder with a fierce look that said, I got your back, Dani.

He turned back to face Mr. and Mrs. Brewer like a wall.

"As long as I'm in this house, nobody touches my sister."

Mr. Brewer let out a cold, furious laugh and pointed toward the front doors.

"Fine! Since you two are so devoted to each other, you can both pack your bags and get out of my house right now!"

The threat hung heavy in the room. Danika's heart sank into her stomach; she knew her adoptive father would ruin Delmus's college applications without a second thought.

She pulled her hand out of Delmus's grip and stepped out from behind his shoulder to face the couple.

"Freeze my trust fund," Danika said, her voice trembling but loud. "Leave Delmus out of this. His college interviews are next month."

Devin opened her mouth to spit another insult, but a soft, startled gasp echoed from the second-floor landing.

Everyone looked up to see Alejandra leaning weakly against the carved wooden railing in a pure white silk nightgown, her eyes red and watery as she looked down at the room.