Sheryn clenched her jaws so hard, it was a wonder they didn’t crack. Her face was pale, and she felt a sting in her nose as she stared at Howard with teary eyes.

“Howard, how can you do this? We had an agreement! I’ve never once helped Rachel. I’ve always been on your side.”

People thought Howard was a lazy, good-for-nothing playboy, but that didn’t mean he was stupid.

Howard smirked, his gaze full of ridicule, like he was watching a cheap stage play.

“Sheryn, are you actually dumb, or do you just like believing your lies? Do you think everything you do is for someone else’s good?”

He leaned forward slightly, voice dripping with sarcasm.

“Be honest. Are you really doing this for me? Do we even know each other like that? You just can’t stand Rachel. You think you’re beneath her, so you came running to me for some kind of justice. Hate to break it to you, but you came to the wrong person.”

Howard always spoke this casually to people he didn’t like.

Just when Sheryn thought this was rock bottom, she realized there was still farther to fall.

Howard enjoyed toying with people who thought they were clever, especially when that person was Tyler’s cousin. He hated anything and anyone connected to Tyler.

He even made sure to rub salt in the wound.

“Ms. Lyons, why don’t you give your dear cousin a call? See if he’s willing to take you back?”

He stroked his chin and smirked.

“Then again, knowing him, I doubt he will. The guy probably got fooled plenty back in the day.”

Sheryn’s jaw trembled as she jabbed a finger at him.

“Howard, you bastard! No wonder even a divorced woman like Rachel wouldn’t give you the time of day! Maybe take a look in the mirror before you start mocking me.”

Her voice rose with fury.

“You think you’re any better? You’re no different from me. So what if your family’s rich? That still didn’t win you Rachel, did it? Let’s face it–we’re both in the same boat! So why waste time tearing each other apart?”

She had barely finished when her phone buzzed. One glance at the screen, and her face went even paler.

Her knees almost gave out, and she had to reach for the wall to steady herself.

A text message flashed before her eyes.

Every bank account and credit card she had was frozen.

She didn’t need to guess who was behind it. Tyler wasn’t showing her or Wilma a shred of mercy.

And as if on cue, Wilma’s name lit up the screen.

Sheryn slipped out of the room to answer, her voice small and guilty. She hadn’t told her mother about any of this.

“Mom…”

Wilma’s voice came through sharp and anxious. “Sheryn, what’s going on? The bank just told me all our cards are frozen! What did you do? I called Tyler, and he told me to ask you. So tell me straight, what happened?”

Sheryn opened her mouth twice, maybe three times, but no words came out.

Her mother knew her too well. If Sheryn was hemming and hawing like this, it meant she had done something seriously bad.

Wilma’s patience snapped. “Spit it out! What happened? If you’ve really screwed things up, do you think keeping quiet is going to help you?”