Not A Small-Town Girl

Danielle’s anger simmered beneath the surface. She thought, ’So this is how it is going to go today, huh? All the blame shifts onto me?’

"You swear?" Danielle’s voice was icy, her eyes locking onto Skylar’s with a cold fury that could freeze the room.

"Miss Danielle Darling, I know you’re jealous of Miss Audrey’s beauty and talent," Skylar said, a sharp edge in her tone, "but you can’t just ignore the truth, can you?" She didn’t flinch. She had just taken a few hard slaps from Danielle, and the sting of them was still fresh.

David’s jaw tightened, his eyes darkening as he turned to Nathan. "You know what to do, right?"

"Yes, Mr. Charrington," Nathan responded smoothly.

The bodyguards, positioned silently by the door, shifted as if on cue. The air in the room grew thick, and heavy with the anticipation of violence. Anyone unfamiliar with David Charrington might have thought the Darling family was about to be torn apart. Nathan’s voice cut through the tension like a knife.

"Teach her a lesson."

Skylar, their

Smack! Smack! Smack!

slaps rang out, each one sharper and more punishing than the

slap split Skylar’s lip, blood trickling down her chin as she staggered back. She felt two teeth loosen in

They hit her more than ten times, each blow landing with brutal force, like the bodyguards were

Audrey across the room still hung in the air, but now, Skylar was taking the brunt of the punishment. Skylar, who had always been by

overwhelming, as if the slightest wrong word would send them

caught

hell do

is the Darling family!" Howard’s voice cracked with anger as he tried to regain control of the situation. "You can’t just go around hitting