Chapter 3

I walked into the flagship designer boutique on Rodeo Drive like a ghost. The air was thick with the scent of expensive leather and perfume. Across the gleaming marble floor, I saw them.

My team.

They were running wild. Jessica was posing in a $10,000 gown, pulling at the delicate seams. Another girl was spraying a $500 bottle of perfume into the air like it was air freshener. Chloe was holding court, a queen in her imagined kingdom, urging them on.

"Don't worry about the price tags!" she shouted, laughing. "It's all on me!"

Liam was there, holding a ridiculously expensive handbag, looking at Chloe with pure adoration. He caught my eye and his face hardened. He walked over to me, his voice a low growl.

"What are you doing here, Ava? Came to ruin this, too?"

"I just came to see what you bought with my future," I said softly.

He flinched. "What are you talking about? Chloe is being generous. It's her money. You should be happy for her. You should apologize."

I just looked at him. "You stole my wallet, Liam."

"I... I borrowed it to show Chloe you had nothing to worry about," he stammered, his eyes shifting away. "You're just being paranoid."

I didn't argue. I just watched as one of the girls, laughing too hard, stumbled and knocked a tray of cosmetics off a counter. Glass shattered. A dark red lipstick smeared across a pristine white handbag. The store staff winced but, following their instructions, said nothing.

Chloe saw me watching and sauntered over, a smirk on her face. "See, Ava? This is what fun looks like. You should try it sometime." She gestured to the chaos. "Don't worry, I can afford a little mess." She pulled out her phone and flashed a screenshot of a bank account with a balance of over $100,000. A photoshopped image, I knew.

"Are you sure?" I asked, my voice deceptively sweet. "That's a lot of damage. That handbag alone is five grand. The perfume, the dress Jessica is stretching out... it adds up."

Liam stepped in front of me, protective. "Stop it, Ava. You're just jealous." He was so blinded by his need to be a hero that he couldn't see the truth right in front of him. He thought he was protecting the poor, vulnerable girl from the spoiled rich one. The irony was suffocating.

"I'm not jealous, Liam," I said, my eyes locked on Chloe. "I'm just waiting for the bill."

Chloe laughed, a high, brittle sound. "Let them tally it up! Let's go, girls! To the register!"

They descended on the checkout counter like a pack of hyenas, dumping armfuls of merchandise. The total, including the damages, was astronomical. The lead salesperson looked nervous.

"The total is one hundred and fifty-three thousand, four hundred and twenty dollars," she said, her voice trembling slightly.

"Perfect!" Chloe chirped. She pulled out the first of her new, shiny credit cards and slid it into the machine.

The machine beeped.

Declined.

Her smile tightened. She tried another card.

Declined.

And another. And another. The beeps became a rhythm of failure.

Declined. Declined. Declined.