Chapter 81 Eighty One

• MAYA’S POV
• The pathetic chain on that velvet tray still made me want to laugh. It had once been a sweet little gift from her mother, a piece of sentimental nonsense that Ariel clung to And it had made my skin crawl, seeing her flaunt it among real jewels — acting as though a worthless rusted trinket could stand shoulder-to-shoulder with my family’s legacy.
• So I had taken the real necklace, the one she’d meant to auction — flawless diamonds and swapped it for the fake gold. I’d been careful, of course. I wasn’t stupid enough to steal. I’d only tucked the true diamonds away safely. Ariel could have it back, maybe, if she learned her place. But for tonight, I wanted to see that shine go out of her eyes. I wanted to see her stand there with nothing but that tacky hand-me-down her mother had tried to pass off as precious. That was what Ariel needed to learn.