Eve Vaughn figured as much. Birds of a feather flock together.

But the thought that Mason Lawson was this sort of person behind the scenes—toying with girls so ruthlessly—left Eve Vaughn deeply disappointed.

Just then, a sharp question cut through the air.

"What are you two doing, skulking around like that?"

Mia Kendall and Eve Vaughn both jumped, turning to see that a patrolling bodyguard had spotted them.

Without a second thought, Mia Kendall pocketed her camera, grabbed Eve Vaughn, and bolted.

...

In the private room.

Hamilton Hale still hadn’t arrived, so the others were playing bridge.

Just then, the club manager walked in, apologizing nervously.

"Young Mr. Kendall, my sincerest apologies. Just now... we caught two female paparazzi." The manager handed him a camera as he spoke. "Take a look, these are the photos they were taking. Our boss wants to know how you’d like to handle them. Also, your entire bill for tonight is on the house. The boss says it’s our fault for the security lapse that allowed paparazzi to sneak in."

Eric Kendall took the camera. A glance confirmed it: pictures of him and that little model.

The photos weren’t half bad, actually. They made him look... quite handsome.

The little model beside him quickly added, "Those paparazzi are despicable! If you ask me, we should just break their legs!"

Eric Kendall tossed the camera aside and said to the manager, "You heard her. Break their legs."

"Yes, Young Mr. Kendall. We understand."

With his orders given, the manager hurried off to see to it.

Eve Vaughn and Mia Kendall were now gagged and stuffed into burlap sacks.

But because they were women and couldn’t take a beating, they were only bound and not subjected to punches and kicks.

When the manager returned, he ordered the bodyguards, "Let them out!"

His men opened the sacks and hauled Eve Vaughn and Mia Kendall out.

The manager gave a sinister smile. "You two little thieves have some nerve, daring to sneak into The Aegis Club to take photos! I bet you have no idea what kind of place this is, or who you’re dealing with!"

With that, he slowly walked over and pulled the gags from their mouths.

The manager said viciously, "Count yourselves unlucky today. You walked right into the line of fire! Young Mr. Kendall gave the order: break both your legs!"

The moment the manager finished speaking, Mia Kendall yelled, "Go tell Eric Kendall that I’m Mia Kendall! I’m his sister!"

"You’re Young Mr. Kendall’s sister?"

The manager froze, eyeing her with deep suspicion. "If you’re Young Mr. Kendall’s sister, why wouldn’t you walk in through the front door instead of skulking around outside taking pictures? I’ve never seen any sister act like that."

Mia Kendall shot back, exasperated, "It’s family business! I can’t explain it to you! Just let us go, or I guarantee you’ll regret it!"

Eve Vaughn quickly backed her up. "You’d better believe her. She really is Eric Kendall’s sister. If you break her legs today, this whole club will be shut down by tomorrow!"

The manager hesitated. He clearly didn’t believe them. 𝑓𝑟ℯ𝘦𝓌𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝑐ℴ𝓂

’If she really were Eric Kendall’s sister, she’d be a debutante from a prestigious family,’ he thought. ’Would a lady like that really dress up in a club uniform and pose as a waitress just to sneak some photos?’

Still, just to be safe, the manager decided he should go ask Eric Kendall himself.

Before he left, he pointed at Mia Kendall and Eve Vaughn. "I’m going to ask him right now. If you two are lying to me, then broken legs will be the least of your worries!"

A short while later, the club manager returned to Eric Kendall’s private room.

Eric Kendall was clearly losing his patience. "You can’t even handle a little thing like this? We’ve caught paparazzi here before, haven’t we? Deal with them the usual way and stop bothering us!"

"No, no, Young Mr. Kendall, this time is different," the manager said, bowing obsequiously. "One of the paparazzi claims she’s your sister. A... Mia Kendall?"

Eric Kendall’s eyes narrowed. He understood immediately.

’So after all this time, it was that little brat Mia,’ he thought.

"We were afraid we might have the wrong person," the manager said timidly, "so we came to ask you what to do."

Eric Kendall replied flatly, "I don’t have a sister. I’m an only child. Anyone who dares impersonate my sister deserves double the punishment."

The manager was instantly invigorated. "I knew it! Those two have the air of country bumpkins. How could they possibly be related to Young Mr. Kendall?"

Eric Kendall suddenly remembered something. "Oh, right. After you break their legs, send them to the hospital to get the bones set. Just make sure you don’t cripple them permanently."

The manager grinned, laying on the flattery. "Young Mr. Kendall, you truly have a soft spot for the ladies. Understood. My men know how to pull their punches. You can rest assured."

「In a small storage room.」

Eve Vaughn and Mia Kendall were tied up together, looking utterly dejected.

"Mia, why isn’t he back yet?" Eve Vaughn asked weakly. "When are they going to let us go? I wish they’d just tell us something already!"

Mia Kendall shifted her aching shoulders. "Don’t worry. Once he reports to Eric, he’ll be right back to let us go."

Eve Vaughn sighed softly. "When it rains, it pours."

Mia Kendall was still analyzing what went wrong. After thinking for a while, she said, "Next time, we leave the second we get the shot. No getting greedy. If we’d just left after the first few pictures, no one would have ever noticed us. It’s my fault. I wanted to get a clearer photo... didn’t think I’d end up losing the battle and the war."

Eve Vaughn quickly cut her off. "Don’t even talk about a ’next time’! There won’t be a next time for me. I’ve never been tied up like this in my entire life!"

"That’s what you call being in it together, through thick and thin!" Mia Kendall said.

Just then, the storage room door opened, and the manager walked in with several bodyguards.

Mia Kendall, already positioned to be freed, turned and held out her bound wrists to him. "Hurry up and untie us! Can’t you see how these ropes are chafing our skin?"

The manager snorted, a cold smile playing on his lips. "Still trying to play the little Kendall Family princess, are we?"

Mia Kendall stared at him, bewildered. "What do you mean? Didn’t you just go see Eric Kendall?"

’Logically,’ she thought, ’if he went and confirmed my identity, he shouldn’t be acting like this.’

The manager shot her a disdainful look and enunciated every word. "Then you’d better listen closely! Young Mr. Kendall said he’s an only child. No brothers or sisters. But he was merciful enough to give us another order: after we break your legs, we’re to send you to the hospital to have the bones set."

"What?!"

Mia Kendall and Eve Vaughn cried out in unison, staring at the manager in disbelief.

They never, ever expected this outcome.