Evelina grabbed two fresh glasses of champagne from a waiter. She plastered on a flawless, high-society smile and marched toward the secluded lounge area.

Corinne sat alone on the velvet sofa. She watched her cousin approach. Her index finger tapped a rapid, silent rhythm against the leather of her clutch bag. She took a breath, instantly relaxing her facial muscles into a mask of pure vulnerability.

"Corinne, darling," Evelina cooed. Her voice was dripping with artificial sweetness. Her eyes, however, scanned Corinne from head to toe like a security laser, searching for threats.

Corinne reached out to take the offered glass. She forced her hand to shake. A violent, uncontrolled tremor. A few drops of the pale liquid sloshed over the rim and splashed onto the back of her hand.

Evelina caught the tremor immediately. A flash of pure contempt lit up her eyes. She sat down right next to Corinne, pressing their shoulders together.

"I have to admit, I'm shocked," Evelina whispered, leaning in close. "Why on earth are you here with Justus Wilson? You know he's Corwin's biggest rival."

Corinne lowered her eyelashes. The thick lashes hid the absolute zero temperature of her stare. She made her voice crack.

"I... I didn't have a choice. He offered me a way back."

Evelina took a sip of her drink. "A way back to what? Six years ago, you left this city in pieces. Have you forgotten what happened?"

Corinne's shoulders jerked upward. Her breathing hitched, turning rapid and shallow. She acted exactly like a woman plunging headfirst into a severe PTSD flashback.

She slammed the champagne glass down onto the coffee table. Her hands flew to her lap. She twisted her fingers together until the knuckles turned white. The act was so pathetic it made her own stomach churn with disgust.

Evelina watched the panic attack. The rigid tension in her own spine melted away. The wariness was replaced by a sickening, arrogant pity.

"I... I've been seeing a therapist," Corinne stammered, her chest heaving. "Dr. Evans. He said... he said I needed closure."

"Closure?" Evelina raised an eyebrow.

"I can't sleep," Corinne whispered, tears pooling in her eyes. "I have nightmares. Every night. He told me I had to face the environment where the trauma happened."

Evelina almost laughed. New York was nothing but a graveyard for Corinne. It was a pathetic excuse. But Evelina nodded, pretending to swallow the lie.

Evelina reached out and placed her hand over Corinne's trembling fingers. Beneath the guise of comfort, Evelina pressed down hard. Her sharp acrylic nails dug viciously into the soft flesh of Corinne's hand.

Pain shot up Corinne's arm. She didn't pull away. Instead, she lifted her head. A single tear spilled over her lower lid and tracked down her cheek. She looked at Evelina with wide, terrified eyes.

Evelina leaned closer, her lips brushing Corinne's ear.

"Stay away from Corwin," Evelina hissed, the sweetness completely gone from her voice. "If you try to play the victim with him, I will ruin whatever is left of your miserable life."

More tears cascaded down Corinne's face. She nodded frantically, her chin trembling like a frightened child.

Evelina smiled. She released her grip. She looked down at the deep, red half-moon indentations left on Corinne's skin. Total dominance.

Just as Evelina prepared to stand up, a shadow fell over them. Corwin appeared at the entrance of the lounge area.

Evelina's face transformed instantly. The viciousness vanished, replaced by angelic concern. She raised her voice just enough for Corwin to hear.

"Oh, Corinne, it's okay. I'm here for you. We'll get you the help you need."

Corinne looked up through her blurry, tear-filled vision. She saw Corwin. She violently flinched, shrinking back into the corner of the sofa.

Corwin's cold eyes swept over the scene. His gaze snagged on Corinne's wet face and trembling shoulders. He stared at her tears for exactly half a second.

He didn't step forward. He didn't offer a word of comfort. He turned his back on her, speaking sharply to a passing waiter.

"Bring my fiancée a fresh drink."

Corinne watched his broad back as he walked toward the bar. The tears kept falling, but the corners of her mouth twitched. A microscopic, chilling smile formed where Evelina couldn't see it.

Evelina stood up quickly. She hurried after Corwin, slipping her arm through his. Before they turned the corner, Evelina shot one last triumphant glare over her shoulder at Corinne.

Corinne sat alone in the dim light. She casually wiped the tears from her face with the back of her hand. She opened her clutch and pulled out her phone. Her fingers flew across the screen, typing a heavily encrypted message.

Phase one remote digital tracker initiated on the target's social network pings.

She hit send. The confirmation pinged back instantly.

Corinne picked up the champagne glass she had abandoned. She downed the liquid in one smooth swallow. Her eyes were dry. They were as cold and sharp as shattered glass.

From the hallway outside the lounge, the shrill, piercing laugh of Candi Hodges echoed off the walls. The next wave of humiliation was walking right toward her.

Corinne stepped out of the lounge and turned toward the hallway leading to the restrooms. Three tall figures blocked the narrow corridor.

Candi Hodges leaned against the flocked wallpaper. She held a half-empty martini glass in her hand. Her eyes raked over Corinne with undisguised disgust.

Behind Candi stood Trish O'Malley. Trish let out a high-pitched, grating snort, acting as the perfect, mindless echo chamber.

Candi tilted her wrist. A splash of the sticky, clear martini flew through the air and landed directly on the hem of Corinne's velvet dress. It left a dark, ugly stain.

Corinne stopped walking. She looked down at the ruined fabric. Her hands tightened around her clutch. A violent urge to strike surged through her veins, but she forced it down into her stomach.

Candi took a step forward. "Did you buy that off a clearance rack? You don't belong here anymore, Corinne. You're a stain on this room."

Trish giggled loudly. "Remember when Corwin threw her out? She didn't even have shoes on. Look at her now, pretending she's somebody."

Several guests lingering near the hallway turned their heads. Their eyes locked onto the confrontation, hungry for drama.

Corinne lifted her face. She blanked her expression. She made her eyes look hollow and dead, perfectly mimicking the broken shell she was six years ago.

Candi saw the lack of resistance. It fueled her arrogance. She reached out and flicked a strand of Corinne's hair. "And this hair. God, you look like a drowned rat."

Corinne jerked her head away. The movement was small, jerky. The exact reaction of a cornered, terrified prey.

Candi stepped right into Corinne's personal space. She lowered her voice into a venomous hiss.

"I can't believe you have the nerve to show your face. After what you did to Alex. You let that baby die. You're a murderer."

Corinne's pupils blew wide open. Her lungs seized. The air was violently sucked from her chest. It felt like a massive iron fist had just crushed her heart into a pulp.

Her hands clenched into fists at her sides. Her nails sliced straight through the skin of her palms. Warm blood welled up, dripping down to stain the metal clasp of her clutch bag.

Trish didn't notice the blood. She kept talking, her voice loud and grating. "She belongs in a prison cell, not a penthouse."

Candi took a dramatic step backward. She pinched her nose with her free hand. "God, do you guys smell that? It smells like rotting garbage. It smells like guilt."

More people gathered at the edge of the hallway. Cell phones were pulled from pockets. Camera lenses pointed directly at them.

Corinne stared at Candi. The hollow emptiness in her eyes vanished. For one fraction of a second, a terrifying, predatory coldness bled into her gaze.

She swallowed the metallic taste of blood in her mouth. She needed a reason. She couldn't strike first. She needed the perfect legal justification to break this woman in half.

Corinne took a shaky step backward. Her voice trembled violently. "Please. Just let me pass."

The retreat was the ultimate trigger. Candi thought she had won. She thought Corinne was still the weak, pathetic victim from six years ago.

Candi raised her hand. Her long, red-painted index finger jabbed viciously into Corinne's shoulder.

The physical impact pushed Corinne backward. A dull ache bloomed in her collarbone. That was it. That was the line.

Corinne raised her arm. It looked like a clumsy attempt to block the finger. But beneath the velvet sleeve, every muscle in her arm locked into solid iron, ready to snap Candi's wrist.

Heavy, measured footsteps echoed from the end of the hall.

"Corinne."

It was Justus.

Corinne's hand froze mid-air. She forcefully aborted the kinetic energy building in her muscles. Her arm dropped.

She instantly morphed her face back into a mask of pure terror. She spun around to look at Justus, her chest heaving.

Candi saw Justus approaching. She rolled her eyes and dropped her hand, but a nervous twitch betrayed her bravado. "Save it, Wilson. We were just catching up."

Justus walked up to Corinne. He didn't look at her. He locked his eyes on Candi. His stare was so freezing, so utterly devoid of humanity, that Candi physically shivered.

Corinne wrapped her hands around Justus's arm. Her body was shaking violently. Justus felt the tremors. He knew it wasn't fear. It was pure, unadulterated rage vibrating through her bones.

Justus leaned his head down. "Are you alright?" he murmured, his tone playing the part of a concerned escort.

Corinne kept her head down, letting out a small, fabricated sniffle. "Not yet," she whispered back, her voice barely a breath against the ambient noise. "Just give it a minute."

Corinne murmured an excuse about needing fresh air. She released Justus's arm and walked toward the glass doors leading to the outdoor terrace.

Candi, smelling blood in the water, immediately detached herself from the crowd and followed.

The heavy glass door clicked shut behind them. The thumping bass of the party was instantly muted. The cold Manhattan night wind whipped across the terrace, biting into Corinne's exposed skin.

"Hey!" Candi barked from behind her. Her voice was thick with arrogant entitlement.

Corinne stopped. She turned around slowly. The fragile, terrified mask she had worn all night dissolved into the chilling wind. Her face settled into a mask of absolute, terrifying stillness.

Candi marched forward, her heels clicking aggressively on the stone tiles. "You think you can play the victim in front of Justus Wilson and make me look bad? You're nothing but a pathetic whore."

Corinne didn't say a word. She just stared at Candi. Her eyes were completely dead, looking at the woman as if she were already a corpse.

The total silence infuriated Candi. The lack of fear was an insult. Candi's face twisted in rage. She pulled her arm back, her hand raised high, aiming a vicious slap directly at Corinne's face.

The heavy diamond ring on Candi's finger caught the moonlight. If that hit connected, it would tear Corinne's cheek open.

Corinne's eyes tracked the trajectory of the hand. Her brain's tactical analysis kicked in, processing the speed and angle in a fraction of a second.

Just as the palm descended, Corinne shifted her weight. She pivoted her torso a mere two inches. The slap sliced through empty air.

Before Candi could recover her balance, Corinne's left hand shot out like a viper. She clamped her fingers around Candi's wrist like a steel vice. Simultaneously, her right hand gripped Candi's forearm.

Using Candi's own aggressive forward momentum, Corinne panicked and threw up her hands. She delivered a desperate, clumsy shove that sent the off-balance Candi stumbling backward over her own stiletto heels.

Candi's ankles twisted violently. Her body flailed backward in a chaotic, uncontrolled arc. She slammed heavily onto the hard stone tiles of the terrace with a sickening thud.

A sharp, agonizing scream ripped out of Candi's throat. The crisp, unmistakable sound of a bone snapping echoed in the cold air. Candi curled into a fetal position, clutching her rapidly swelling wrist, sobbing hysterically.

Corinne stood perfectly still. Her breathing hadn't even elevated. The hem of her velvet dress settled elegantly around her ankles.

The glass doors burst open. Evelina, followed by Corwin and several guests, rushed onto the terrace. They froze at the sight of Candi writhing on the ground.

Evelina gasped loudly. She ran to Candi, dropping to her knees. But her eyes shot up, glaring at Corinne with absolute venom.

Instantly, Corinne slapped both hands over her mouth. Her eyes widened in horror. She forced her shoulders to shake violently, backing away until she hit the glass railing.

"She... she tried to hit me!" Corinne stammered, her voice cracking with fake panic. "I just... I just put my hands up to block her, and she tripped!"

"You liar!" Evelina shrieked, pointing a shaking finger at Corinne. "You're a psycho! You attacked her!"

Corwin stepped out of the shadows. His dark eyes darted from Candi's twisted wrist to Corinne's trembling, terrified form pressing against the railing.

"She broke my arm!" Candi wailed, tears streaming down her face. "Corwin, call the police! Have her arrested!"

Justus stepped out from behind Corwin. He calmly walked over and stood directly in front of Corinne, shielding her from the crowd. He let out a low, mocking laugh.

"Call the police," Justus agreed smoothly. He raised his hand and pointed toward the upper corner of the terrace wall. "I'm sure the security cameras caught everything. Including who threw the first punch."

The red recording light on the dome camera blinked steadily in the dark.

Evelina's face went chalk white. Her mouth opened, but no sound came out. She knew Candi had followed Corinne out here to start a fight.

Corwin stared at the camera, then back at Justus guarding Corinne. His jaw locked. His eyes were pitch black, unreadable, but he didn't say a single word.

Corinne peeked out from behind Justus's broad shoulder. She met Corwin's gaze. For one split second, the fear vanished from her eyes, replaced by a sharp, mocking gleam.

"I think we've had enough socializing for one night," Justus announced loudly. "This crowd is getting a bit too aggressive for our taste."

He wrapped his arm securely around Corinne's waist and guided her toward the doors. He left the chaotic terrace and Evelina's furious face behind.

As they turned the corner into the hallway, Corinne dropped the trembling act entirely. A cold, satisfied smile touched her lips. The first drop of blood had been drawn.