Mina's face twisted in an instant, all traces of her graceful composure vanishing. Gone was the elegant socialite; what remained was a woman on the verge of hysteria. "What are you all waiting for? Grab her phone!"
The people around surged forward and snatched Alicia's phone from her, quickly ending her livestream.
Mina, frantic, grabbed the phone herself to check the viewership numbers. When she saw that more than a hundred thousand people had been watching, she slapped Alicia across the face, her anger boiling over.
Alicia just smiled.
This was Mina's turfâthere was no way out for her.
But she'd already accomplished her goal.
More than that, as Alicia watched Mina lose her carefully cultivated poise, she felt a strange sense of relief. The so-called "upper class" was really nothing special after all.
Once, Alicia used to feel inferior whenever Mina was around, convinced Mina was born to be the heroine of life itselfâblessed with the finest upbringing, destined for privilege, her worth always seeming so much higher.
But now, all Alicia could see was someone ugly, petty, and pathetic.
The sharp crack of Mina's hand echoed again as she ordered someone to hold Alicia down, landing a second slap across her face. "You really thought I didn't know about you and Vincent? Alicia, you're just an orphan. If I want to get rid of you, it's as easy as snapping my fingers!"
Alicia met her gaze with a cold, almost mocking smile, as if she were looking straight through Mina and seeing Henry, the bully who'd tormented her years ago.
They really were siblingsâdown to the core.
"Lock her up! And get the PR team in here, now!" Mina barked, her voice trembling with panic. Years of carefully maintained reputationâdestroyed in a single night, all thanks to Alicia.
Alicia was shoved into a dark, cramped storage room, left to wait for the police.
She'd started the livestream before coming here. Everyone online had witnessed the thugs snatch her phone. Someone would call the policeâshe was sure of it.
And she'd made a point to mention Crystal Waters by name.
Suddenly, the door was kicked open with a loud bang. Henry stumbled in, reeking of alcohol.
Mina must have sent him. She couldn't risk getting her own hands dirty, but her brother was upstairs, already drunk in a private room.
"You little tramp. Think you can scheme against my sister? Think Vincent would ever marry you after this? Let me tell you, he'd only ever marry Mina!
Even if I killed you tonight, he wouldn't care!" Henry's face twisted with rage as he stormed forward, grabbing Alicia by the collar with a sneer. "You've been clinging to Vincent for years, and you still think I can't handle you?"
He began tearing at Alicia's clothes, spewing filth and curses.
In the suffocating darkness, Alicia didn't resist.
This time, she wasn't afraid.
Once you've found the nerve to go down fightingâsuddenly, the monsters aren't so terrifying anymore.
She let Henry shove her to the floor, let his fists rain down on her face, his hands clawing at her clothes.
Blood welled in her mouth, dripped from her nose.
Her face stung, swelling with every blow.
"If you weren't halfway decent-looking, you really think you'd be worth anything?" Henry spat, still bitter over the time Alicia had rejected him.
He fumbled with his belt, intent on violating her.
Alicia, thrown onto a pile of old furniture, watched him with a twisted smile. She wanted to humiliate him, to make him lose control. "Pathetic... even smaller in real life, huh?"
Henry, all ego and no self-control, lost it. He yanked her by the hair and slammed her head into the wall.
Crack.
Just before Alicia blacked out, the storage room door was kicked open again. Chaos erupted outside.
She could just make out the sound of police officers arguing with the club's management.
Rich Radiant and Over Him (Alicia and Vincent)
ï¤Chapter 33 Transmigration: I Have Storage Space in the Apocalypse ï¤Chapter 760 - 756: Encountering a Man with Evil Intentions "Officer, you have no right to search hereâour boss is friends with your chiefâ"
"We're responding to a call. Don't interfere with police business!"
"You want to obstruct justice? I'll arrest you too!"
Alicia felt a flicker of gratitude. Before all this, she'd made sure to meet with Detective Chester at the precinct.
"Bastards!"
She'd thought the first person to save her would be the police.
But the one who knocked Henry to the ground wasn't in uniformâit was Tyrone.
Was she hallucinating?
"Alicia... Alicia!"
...
She had no idea how long she was unconscious. When Alicia woke, she was in a hospitalâan honest-to-God VIP suite.
She was so stunned she tried to sit up, only to wince in pain as her shoulder throbbed.
Henry hadn't held back.
"You're awake." Tyrone was there, rising from the chair, his face grim. "What were you thinking, going to Crystal Waters like that? Did you think livestreaming would keep you safe? That you were being clever?"