Chapter 4
Dad took me to urgent care while his lawyers stayed behind.
I wanted to stay.
I wanted answers.
Instead, I sat on an examination table with a cold compress pressed against my neck while a doctor inspected the burn.
“Superficial,” she said. “Painful, but it should heal without scarring.”
Dad exhaled for what felt like the first time in an hour.
I watched him.
“You thought it was worse.”
“I didn’t know.”
He sat beside me.
“That’s the part parents hate.”
I almost smiled.
Then I remembered the school.
“Elena Ruiz.”
Dad’s expression changed.
“We’ll find her.”
“What if there are more?”
“There probably are.”
The words hit hard.
I stared at my old sneakers.
“I thought the worst thing Madison had done was make fun of my clothes.”
Dad leaned forward.
“You did nothing wrong by not knowing.”
“I watched her bully other people.”
His eyes sharpened.
“What people?”
I thought back.
Little things.
A freshman Madison mocked for bringing homemade lunch.
A boy Chloe called “thrift-store prince.”
A girl who disappeared from chemistry after being accused of stealing someone’s calculator.
“I should have said something.”
Dad was quiet.
Then he spoke carefully.
“Maybe.”
I looked at him.
I expected comfort.
Instead he gave me truth.
“You probably should have.”
It hurt.
But I appreciated it.
Dad continued.
“And now you know what silence costs.”
My eyes burned.
“I hated when people stayed silent today.”
“I know.”
He put his hand over mine.
“What matters is what you do with that feeling.”
My phone buzzed.
Then buzzed again.
And again.
I looked down.
Dozens of notifications.
The cafeteria video had been posted.
The caption read:
POOR GIRL ATTACKS WESTBRIDGE STUDENTS, THEN CALLS BILLIONAIRE DADDY.
“What?”
Dad took the phone.
Comments were exploding underneath.
Some supported me.
Others accused me of staging everything.
Then I noticed the account that posted it.
WestbridgeTruth.
Created that afternoon.
The first clip began after Madison had dumped the noodles.
It showed me standing angrily while Madison backed away.
The footage had been cut.
“They edited it.”
Dad’s face hardened.
“Someone did.”
Another post appeared.
A photograph of me getting into Dad’s SUV.
LIAR EXPOSED. SHE PRETENDED TO BE POOR TO SPY ON STUDENTS.
My stomach turned.
“She’s telling everyone.”
“Madison?”
“Who else?”
Dad handed the phone to Daniel, who had entered the room.
“Preserve all of it.”
Daniel nodded.
“We already have digital forensics working.”
I looked at Dad.
“You already have what?”
His eyebrow lifted.
“Avery, someone assaulted you, fabricated a disciplinary report, and may be involved in a fraud scheme targeting children.”
He paused.
“I’m not sending one lawyer.”
Despite everything, I almost laughed.
My phone rang.
Unknown number.
Dad shook his head.
I answered anyway.
“Hello?”
Silence.
Then a girl whispered.
“Is this Avery?”
“Yes.”
“My name is Elena Ruiz.”
I sat upright.
Dad immediately leaned closer.
“Elena?”
“I saw the video.”
Her voice trembled.
“I saw who your father is.”
I looked at Dad.
He motioned for me to put the call on speaker.
I did.
Elena continued.
“Mrs. Flores gave me your number.”
Dad frowned.
“She shouldn’t have—”
“Please don’t blame her.”
Elena sounded terrified.
“She helped me when nobody else did.”
I spoke softly.
“What happened to you?”
Silence.
Then I heard her breathe.
“Madison locked me in the equipment room.”
My stomach tightened.
“Why?”
“Because I got the highest grade in AP Chemistry.”
I blinked.
“That’s it?”
“No.”
Elena’s voice became bitter.
“I also got selected for a summer science program Madison wanted.”
Dad took out his phone and began typing notes.
Elena continued.
“They took my phone. Chloe filmed me crying through the window in the door. Sienna stood outside.”
“Did anyone help?”
“A janitor found me after almost four hours.”
I closed my eyes.
Four hours.
“What happened when you reported it?”
“The school said there wasn’t enough evidence.”
“But there were cameras.”
“They said the camera near the equipment wing was broken.”
Dad and I exchanged a look.
“What happened next?”
“A week later, they accused me of stealing answer keys.”
My skin went cold.
“I didn’t.”
“I know.”
“My parents couldn’t afford a lawyer. The school threatened to put academic dishonesty on my permanent record unless I withdrew voluntarily.”
Dad whispered something under his breath.
Elena heard him.
“Is that your father?”
“Yes.”
She went silent.
Then she said, “Mr. Harrison?”
Dad leaned toward the phone.
“I’m here.”
“My scholarship was from your foundation.”
His face tightened.
“I know.”
“I wrote three letters.”
He froze.
“What?”
“I wrote three letters to the Harrison Foundation.”
Dad stared at me.
“I never received them.”
“I figured.”
Her voice broke.
“I thought maybe people like you just put your names on scholarships and didn’t care what happened after.”
Dad looked devastated.
I had almost never seen guilt on my father’s face.
Business mistakes made him angry.
Personal failures made him quiet.
“Elena,” he said, “I’m sorry.”
She began crying.
“My mother took a second job because Westbridge told us we owed tuition for the rest of the year after I withdrew.”
Dad stood.
“They charged you?”
“Yes.”
“But you were fully funded.”
“That’s what my mom said.”
Dad looked toward Daniel.
“Get her family counsel. Tonight.”
Daniel nodded.
Elena heard him.
“No, please. We can’t afford—”
“You’re not paying anything.”
Dad’s voice was firm.
“If Westbridge took money from you while billing my foundation, you may be a victim of fraud.”
Elena went quiet.
Then she whispered, “There’s more.”
My heartbeat quickened.
“What?”
“After I left, another scholarship student contacted me.”
“Who?”
“His name was Noah Park.”
Was.
The past tense frightened me.
“What happened?”
“He was expelled for fighting.”
“Did he fight someone?”
“No.”
Elena’s voice lowered.
“He was beaten.”
My hands went cold.
“By who?”
“I don’t know. He refused to tell me.”
Dad sat again.
“Where is Noah now?”
“I haven’t heard from him in six months.”
“Do you have a number?”
“Yes.”
“Send it.”
“I already tried. It’s disconnected.”
Dad looked at Daniel again.
Daniel left the room immediately.
Elena whispered, “Avery?”
“I’m here.”
“You need to be careful.”
My stomach tightened.
“Why?”
“Because when I started asking questions, someone put copies of my mother’s immigration documents inside my locker.”
I stared at the phone.
“What did that mean?”
“They wanted me to know they had information about my family.”
Dad’s face became furious.
Elena continued.
“And ten minutes ago, I got another message.”
“What did it say?”
Her voice shook.
“It said I should have learned the first time.”
I stopped breathing.
“Who sent it?”
“Unknown number.”
Then I heard a noise on her end.
A car door.
Elena gasped.
“What?”
I asked.
Another car door slammed.
She whispered, “Someone just pulled up outside my house.”
Dad stood immediately.
“Elena, lock your doors.”
“They’re coming up the driveway.”
May you like
“Elena!”
The line went dead.
