Chapter 1

Sarah turned thirty-one.

Her brother, Mike, gave her a gift, a small, heavy box.

Inside, a luxury smartwatch glittered, a Garmin Hermès, easily fifteen hundred dollars.

"Mike, this is... too much," she said, genuinely surprised.

He grinned, "Happy birthday, sis, it's from my first real bonus."

Sarah felt a warmth spread through her chest, Mike had never been this thoughtful, this generous.

She remembered paying his college tuition, co-signing for his first car, funding that backpacking trip through South America after he graduated.

He was her little brother, she'd practically raised him while their parents built their bakery empire.

This watch, it felt like a small acknowledgment, a step towards his own maturity.

She hugged him, "Thank you, Mike, it's beautiful."

That evening, her phone buzzed, not with birthday wishes.

Instagram direct messages, a flood of them, from an account she vaguely recognized: Brittany, Mike's new girlfriend.

"You jealous old maid," the first message read.

Sarah frowned, scrolling.

"Trying to leech off your boyfriend? He bought that watch for me."

"Give it back. Now."

Sarah's stomach tightened, the warmth from Mike's gift turned cold.

Brittany. She'd met her once, a whirlwind of cheap perfume and an unnerving stare.

Sarah had instantly disliked her, sensed the calculation behind her wide eyes.

Leech? Sarah, a Senior Marketing Manager at a top tech firm, financially independent since her college app made a modest fortune?

The accusation was absurd, insulting.

This was Brittany, staking her claim, not just on Mike, but on what she perceived as his access to money.

Sarah's money, Sarah's generosity, now twisted into something ugly.

The smartwatch on her wrist suddenly felt heavy, tainted.