Emily Blair slowly drew her leg back, her expression eerily calm as she looked down at the man curled up on the floor, his face twisted in pain, flushed red, clutching

himself in agony.

The room fell silent. All eyes darted between her and the man, a mixture of shock and disbelief flickering across their faces.

Several men in the crowd had witnessed what she did. They sucked in sharp breaths, wincing in sympathy as they watched the man's tortured expression. Some even edged away, hands instinctively dropping to shield themselves, as if they could feel the pain themselves.

The man gasped for breath, glaring up at her. "Emily Blair, you've got a death wish!"

Emily's voice was cool and even. "You're still yelling. Guess I didn't kick you hard enough. Move your hands and I'll be happy to give it another go."

Laughter exploded around them, breaking the tension.

Emily wasn't surrounded by just that man-three or four others had formed a loose ring around her.

The rest eyed her like vultures, fists clenched, clearly itching to rush her and teach her a lesson for what she'd done.

"Emily Blair, you really think you can mess with my buddy and get away with it?"

Emily dropped her gaze, a faint smile tugging at her lips. "Just so you know, I've been recording everything on my phone since this started."

That wiped the sneers off their faces.

She continued, "You all know I'm competing in the Starlight Piano Competition. The organizers have a responsibility to ensure my safety."

"You can hit me, you can threaten me, but you can't silence me. And if you lay a finger on me, I'll send this recording straight to the organizers. They'll have to answer for what happens."

"Can you handle the fallout?"

The men stiffened, glancing at each other. The anger in their faces and eyes gradually faded as reality set in.

Emily was right. The people behind the Starlight Piano Competition weren't the kind of folks they could afford to cross.

Right now, there was nothing they could do to her.

Emily watched them with a faint, almost mocking smile. "So... what's it going to be?" Grinding their teeth, the men bent down to help their friend up from the floor.

She hadn't held back with that kick. Even after a few minutes, the man's face was ghostly pale. He was barely able to stand, relying on the others to support him.

Still wheezing, he glared at her. "Emily Blair, I swear, I'll make you pay for this. I won't let this go."

Her eyes were cold, distant. "Suit yourself."

The icy calm in her tone turned his threat into a joke. He flushed even redder with rage.

Emily turned away-and found herself locking eyes with Andrew Lane.

He'd been standing off to the side the whole time, watching with cool detachment.

Andrew had positioned himself protectively beside Isabella Austin, his arm wrapped around her shoulders, making it clear to everyone just how important she was to him.

The people clustered around Andrew didn't miss the message. They immediately started fawning over Isabella, eager to curry favor with her and, by extension, with him.

Emily's lashes trembled as she watched. There was an aching familiarity to the

scene.

Once, she had been the one standing by Andrew's side.

She'd always been beautiful-blessed with the best features of both her parents.

If she was being honest, she'd been the prettiest child in the neighborhood for as long as she could remember. And growing up hadn't changed that; she was still striking.

But beauty didn't just bring compliments. It attracted trouble too.

To some men, a pretty, slender girl from a poor background was irresistible.

Emily fit that description perfectly.

Before the Lane family had taken her in, she was still in middle school-yet she'd already been harassed several times, by neighbors, classmates, even a male teacher.

She'd been just a kid, with no idea how to handle it. All she knew was how to hide, how to run. She didn't dare tell her parents or the teachers, or anyone at school.