The tires of the G-Wagon crunched over the white gravel driveway of the Bass Estate.

Carli parked the car next to the massive stone fountain. She took a deep breath, grabbed the manila envelope, and stepped out.

The front door opened before she reached the steps. The butler stood there, his face completely blank. He didn't say a word as she walked past him.

Carli stepped into the grand living room. The giant crystal chandelier cast a cold, harsh light over the marble floors.

Lilah was sitting on the velvet sofa. She was holding a hand mirror, admiring a heavy diamond necklace around her neck.

When Lilah saw Carli, she immediately put on a fake, sweet smile. "Carli! You're here!" She stood up and reached out to hug her.

Carli ignored her arms. She walked past Lilah and sat down on the opposite sofa. Her eyes locked onto the diamonds. It was Edna's necklace. Her chest tightened with anger.

Keri walked into the room carrying a cup of coffee. She looked at Carli's black suit and sneered.

Keri tossed a thick, gold-embossed invitation onto the glass coffee table. "Keep that safe. You are not leaving Lilah's side tonight. You will introduce her to the Gutierrez board members."

Carli didn't look at the invitation. She slowly unwound the string on the manila envelope. She pulled out the thick stack of trust transfer papers.

She slapped the papers down onto the glass table. The sound was sharp.

"Sign the papers giving up your management rights," Carli said. "Or Lilah doesn't get past the front door tonight."

Keri's face turned red. "How dare you speak to me like that! You are embarrassing this family over pennies!"

"Pennies?" Carli's voice was like ice. "You've been illegally skimming ten percent of the trust dividends for the last three years."

Keri gasped. Panic flashed in her eyes, quickly replaced by rage. She slammed her coffee cup down. "You ungrateful little bitch!"

Lilah immediately hid behind Keri's arm. She squeezed out two fake tears. "Mom, why does she hate me so much? I just want to go to the party."

Carli rolled her eyes. She tapped her knuckles against the glass table. "Sign it."

The heavy oak doors of the second-floor study suddenly swung open. Howard, Carli's father, walked out. His face was dark with fury.

His heavy footsteps echoed through the room as he walked down the stairs. He radiated absolute, suffocating authority.

He walked up to the sofa. He didn't look at the papers. He pointed a thick finger at Carli. "Apologize to your mother. Right now."

Carli tilted her head up. She looked her father in the eye. "No."

Howard's eyes widened. No one ever told him no. He snatched the papers off the table. He read the first page. He saw the demand for full control.

He let out a cruel laugh. He grabbed the thick stack of papers and ripped them in half. The sound of tearing paper filled the room.

Keri and Lilah smiled.

Howard threw the torn pieces at Carli's chest. The papers fluttered to the floor. "If you don't do exactly as you're told tonight, I will freeze every credit card in your name."

Carli didn't move. She didn't blink.

She reached into her bag. She pulled out three identical copies of the agreement. She set them on the table.

"If I don't get a signature right now," Carli said, her voice dead calm, "the IRS gets an anonymous email tomorrow morning detailing exactly how Bass Corporation hides its offshore accounts."

The air in the room vanished. Howard's face turned purple. The war had officially begun.

Howard stared at Carli. The vein in his forehead throbbed violently.

"You are insane," Howard roared. "You would destroy your own family?"

Carli sat perfectly still. She looked up at the man who had ignored her for twenty-five years. She felt nothing but pity.

Keri panicked. She lunged forward to grab the new stack of papers. Carli slapped her hand away hard.

Lilah saw her chance. She ran forward and grabbed Howard's arm. "Daddy, don't be mad! Carli is just acting crazy because Vaughn dumped her!"

It was the wrong thing to say. The mention of public humiliation pushed Howard over the edge. He ripped his arm away from Lilah.

He swung his thick arm back. He put all his weight into it.

His open palm cracked against the left side of Carli's face.

The sound of the slap echoed like a gunshot. The force of the hit snapped Carli's head to the side. Her cheek burned like fire. Her teeth cut into the inside of her lip. The metallic taste of blood filled her mouth.

The room went dead silent. Keri covered her mouth in shock. Lilah couldn't hide the massive smile spreading across her face.

Carli slowly turned her head back. She raised her thumb and wiped a drop of blood from the corner of her mouth. Her eyes were completely dead.

She didn't cry. She didn't scream.

She stood up. She looked down at Lilah, who was standing right next to her.

Before anyone could breathe, Carli swung her arm. She slapped Lilah across the face with every ounce of strength she had.

Lilah screamed. The force of the blow knocked her off her feet. She crashed onto the expensive Persian rug.

Lilah grabbed her rapidly swelling cheek and burst into loud, hysterical sobs.

"My baby!" Keri shrieked, dropping to her knees next to Lilah.

Howard raised his fist again, his face twisted in rage.

The front doors of the living room burst open. Vaughn stumbled inside. His eyes were red and puffy from the pepper spray, his face a blotchy, tear-stained mess. His chest heaved with ragged breaths. He must have driven like a madman, breaking every speed limit on the highway to track her down here so quickly. He had come to beg for forgiveness.

He stopped dead when he saw Lilah crying on the floor.

Vaughn's hero complex kicked in. He ran over and pulled Lilah into his chest. He glared at Carli with pure disgust. "What is wrong with you? Why are you so evil?"

Carli looked at her ex-fiancé holding her stepsister. The absurdity of it all hit her. She let out a loud, sharp laugh.

The sound of her laughter made everyone freeze.

Carli picked up a heavy gold pen from the table. She slammed it down on top of the trust papers. She pointed at the front door.

"Five," Carli said, staring right at Howard. "Four. Three."

Howard's hands shook. The threat of the IRS audit terrified him more than anything else in the world.

"Two," Carli said.

Howard snatched the pen. He pressed down so hard the nib almost tore through the paper. He signed his name at the bottom of the page.

Carli pulled the signed page out from under his hand. She checked the signature. It was perfect. She slid it into her bag.

She turned around. She ignored Keri's screaming. She ignored Vaughn's glares. She ignored Lilah's crying.

She walked to the front door. She picked up the gold-embossed gala invitation from the floor and dropped it into the trash can.

She walked out into the cold wind, leaving the monsters behind.

The gold-embossed invitation lay discarded in a trash can back on the Long Island estate, but Carli smirked as she looked out the window. She didn't need their permission. The Gutierrez family would welcome Edna Huffman's heir with open arms. The black Maybach pulled up to the glowing entrance of the Plaza Hotel.

The valet rushed forward and opened the door. A silver Jimmy Choo stiletto stepped onto the pavement.

Carli stepped out of the car. She was wearing Edna's vintage emerald velvet gown. The fabric hugged her waist and hips perfectly. The deep V-cut in the back exposed her bare skin to the cool night air.

Camera flashes exploded around her. The paparazzi shouted her name, desperate for a shot of the woman whose engagement had just publicly imploded.

Carli kept her chin high. She walked up the steps to the entrance.

Two massive security guards blocked the door. "Invitation, please."

Carli didn't have one. She reached into her clutch and pulled out the legal document her lawyer had just finalized. She handed it to the head of security.

"I am the sole executor of the Edna Huffman Trust," Carli said. "A primary donor to the Gutierrez Foundation."

The guard read the paper. His posture immediately changed. He handed it back and stepped aside. "Welcome, Ms. Bass."

Carli pushed open the heavy doors. The sound of a live symphony orchestra washed over her. The ballroom was blindingly bright, filled with massive crystal chandeliers and thousands of white roses.

She walked into the room. Heads turned immediately.

Skylar and Meredith, two socialites who had always hated her, leaned their heads together.

"Did you hear Vaughn dumped her?" Skylar whispered loudly. "She looks desperate."

Carli didn't even look at them. She walked straight past them, her posture perfect. She took a glass of champagne from a passing waiter. She walked to the edge of the room and stood by the massive windows, watching the crowd.

Suddenly, the orchestra stopped playing.

The crowd parted like the Red Sea. A heavy silence fell over the room.

Fletcher Gutierrez walked through the main entrance.

He was surrounded by bodyguards. He wore a custom-tailored black suit. He didn't wear a tie. The top two buttons of his shirt were undone, exposing his collarbone. He radiated absolute, terrifying power.

Carli watched him from across the room. Her breath hitched.

As Fletcher walked down the center aisle, he passed within ten feet of her. A wave of cold cedar mixed with tobacco hit Carli's nose.

Her fingers tightened around the stem of her champagne flute. Her heart skipped a beat. The mask. The smell was exactly the same.

She shook her head slightly. No. It was impossible. The king of Wall Street didn't hang out in underground sex clubs.

Fletcher's dark eyes scanned the room. For half a second, his gaze locked onto Carli.

A shiver ran down her spine. It felt like a predator had just marked her.

Fletcher looked away and kept walking toward the head table.

Carli took a deep breath to steady her racing heart. She turned away and started talking to a group of older investors, focusing on networking.

A loud, obnoxious laugh echoed from the entrance.

Carli turned her head. Her eyes turned to ice.

Vaughn walked into the ballroom wearing a white tuxedo. Clinging to his arm was Isla. Isla was wearing a massive, gaudy diamond necklace that looked ridiculous against her cheap dress.

Vaughn scanned the room. He saw Carli. He smirked, grabbed Isla's hand, and walked straight toward her.