Chapter 1
Becoming a millionaire has ruined my life.
Well, not the becoming part, to be fair. That was all glitter and gold and dreams come true. My downfall began the second I knew I had to get rid of the money.
I close my eyes for a heartbeat, then snap them open just as fast. The idea of what could have been gnaws at me, each thought dragging me deeper into the slow, sticky envelope of this cell. It’s worse than trying to wipe away a piece of Starburst melting in the sun.
A mess that just keeps spreading, nomatter what I do to try and clean it up.
God, I’m starving. The tick of the clock is starting to drive me up the wall, and just as I’m about to beg for a call to my mum, the door creaks open.
About time. I’ve been cooped up in here far too long.
The badge on this man’s chest readsOfficer Alonso. That relaxes me a little. It’s nice to see another Spanish surname around here. I look him in the eye, but the question in my mind never leaves my lips. Am I going to jail? That’s what I’m wondering. I don’t look good in orange, but I doubt Mr Alonso will lose any sleep over what colour best suits my olive undertones.
“It’s your lucky day, girl,” he tells me, “André Saidi’s here.”
Officer Alonso leads me to a small room. He opens the door, and I step inside. The lights here are cold, like those of a hospital waiting room: four white walls, a floor lamp, a rectangular table, and two black plastic chairs. A languid plant lies abandoned in one corner. That’s all for decor. He tells me to sit and leaves me in the sterile quiet. Great, another interrogation, I think to myself.
The squeak of rubber-soled shoes on the plywood brings me out of my thoughts. André Saidi enters the room and knocks on the door behind him. I don’t flinch or jump; instead, I stay still.
André is the owner of Saidi & Co, the most respected law firm in the UK. As he enters the room, his gaze sweeps over me, as if he’s seeing me for the first time. I bet he wishes he didn’t know me at all.
André is also my boss.
He has the darkest black skin I’ve ever seen and not a single hair on his head. Not even a little fuzz. He rubs his eyelidsand sighs, taking a seat across from me, silent.
I wait, and then I wait for another beat before a sigh leaves my lips. His silence speaks volumes. It’s like he possesses a superpower; that look he’s giving me right now makes me feel as insignificant as a flea beneath his shoe. I feel like a five-year-old girl who’s just been caught misbehaving and has earned a scolding from the teacher.
But I’m a 20-year-old girl who’s had a bit of a wild weekend. And I don’t feel like going through this shit.
“I guess sorry doesn’t cut it,” I mumble.
He snorts again.
“Oh, really? And how did you reach that conclusion, Vera?” His fingers grip around the edge of the table, but his expression remains neutral, sceptical, almost. “Doesn’t cut it for me, and won’t for the police, either.”
I huff in return. Not like I want the help of any of those idiots. But I guess I have no choice.
“That’s why you’re here. What should I tell them?”
“You said on the phone you have an explanation for all this.”
A heartbeat. My pulse quickens.
“I do.”
“Will it get you out of here?”
I don’t really know. Pull me out of this mess or sink me further into it, those are the only options. The odds seem equally balanced.
“Maybe.”
His upper lip quivers, a subtle gesture that betrays what’s really going through his mind. André has never trusted me. That much, I know. His wary eyes have always watched me from a distance, always waiting for the moment I would mess up.
I wasn’t like them. I didn’t belong at Cutnam, the prestigious institution tucked away near Hampstead, the finest law school in the world. A place that, if not for my scholarship, I could never afford. I stressed my words in the wrong syllable sometimes, and my accent wasn’t classy, refined, whatever that meant. I didn’t have the right connections, the right ancestors.
Yet, he couldn’t dismiss me. I had earned my place at the school. And I had earned my place at Saidi through the Chance Program—an honour for law students who haven’t yet graduated. Only three students worldwide won the scholarship. One in Europe, one in Asia, and one in America.
