Chapter 1

The music throbbed, too loud, in the Sterling ballroom my stepfather Richard had commandeered for Chloe Evans's birthday.

Not her sweet sixteen, she was older, but it had that desperate, grasping feel.

Sterling funds, of course, paying for the ice sculptures and the flowing champagne, all for a girl who was a scholarship student at my university.

My stepbrother, Ethan, beamed beside her, looking like he' d personally discovered her.

I stood near the edge of the crowd, watching Chloe.

She was good, I had to give her that. Her eyes, wide and innocent, scanned the room, landing on influential guests my stepfather wanted to impress.

She was playing the part of the grateful, overwhelmed girl perfectly. I knew better.

Suddenly, the music softened. Richard tapped a champagne flute.

"Friends, friends," he announced, his voice booming slightly too much. "A moment, please."

Ethan put a proprietary arm around Chloe.

"Tonight is special," Richard continued. "We celebrate Chloe, a truly remarkable young woman. But it seems even in moments of joy, darkness can try to creep in."

A hush fell. I felt a prickle on my skin.

Chloe' s eyes welled up instantly. She dabbed at them with a delicate handkerchief.

"It' s... it' s nothing, Mr. Thorne," she whispered, loud enough for the nearest people to hear.

"Nonsense, dear girl," Richard said, his face a mask of concern. "We are your family now. Ethan told me what happened. That you' ve been subjected to... well, cyberbullying. Vicious, anonymous attacks."

Chloe let out a small sob. Ethan glared into the crowd, right at me.

"And we believe we know who' s responsible," Ethan said, his voice tight with anger. "Someone who' s always been jealous of anyone who gets a little attention."

He didn' t need to say my name. Every head turned towards me.

"Ava," Richard said, his tone disappointed. "I am shocked. Truly. To think you would stoop so low, to hurt this sweet girl."

He gestured to Chloe, who now looked utterly devastated.

"You will apologize to Chloe. Now. Publicly."

My jaw tightened. Apologize for something I didn' t do? To her?

The crowd murmured. I saw the judgment in their eyes, the quick belief. I was the rich, spoiled Sterling heiress. Chloe was the underdog. It was an easy narrative.

I knew my mother, Victoria Sterling, the actual head of this empire, was in Europe on a "medical retreat." I also knew Richard was a glorified manager in a minor division, and Ethan, well, Ethan was just Richard's son, no Sterling blood, no real claim to anything. They were playing house with my mother' s money.

"Evidence?" I asked, my voice quiet but clear. "Or are we just going by feelings tonight, Richard?"

Chloe gasped, as if my question was an attack itself.

"Ava, that's enough!" Ethan snapped. "Just apologize!"

He took a step towards me, his face red.

Chloe pulled on his arm. "Ethan, no, please. It' s okay. I don' t want any more trouble."

Her eyes, though, flickered to me, a tiny, triumphant glint before the sorrowful mask returned.

Later, as I tried to slip away to a quieter alcove, Chloe found me. The party noise was a dull roar behind her.

"He really likes me, you know," she said, her voice no longer trembling, but cool and sharp. "Ethan. And your stepfather. They see me for who I am."

She smiled, a small, unpleasant curve of her lips.

"Maybe your days of being the princess are numbered, Ava."

I just looked at her. This girl, who wore ambition like a cheap perfume.

"You have no idea what you're dealing with," I said softly.

She laughed, a light, dismissive sound. "Oh, I think I do. I'm dealing with the future Mr. and Mrs. Sterling. Or at least, the future people in charge."

I almost smiled then. Her delusion was almost... amusing. If it wasn' t so actively trying to ruin my life. She thought Richard and Ethan were the Sterlings. She was in for a rude awakening.