Rachel sat completely still for a moment, feeling her face get white hot. Deciding that she wasn’t going to endure one more second of Colette’s deranged abuse, she pushed her chair back and got up from the table. “You know, this is beyond absurd. For a while there I actually felt bad for you, even though I was violently ill for a week because of your actions. But now I have nothing but pity for you. You’re right, I will never be like you—thanks so much for the compliment! You’re nothing more than a spoiled, entitled little shit. And unlike you, I’m proud of my roots—I’m not talking about my birth father, I’m talking about the honest, hardworking mother who raised me, and the amazing family that supported her. We didn’t make some crazy fortune overnight, and we won’t ever need to hire some fancy butler to teach us manners. You don’t live in the real world, you never have, so I’m not even going to try arguing with you—it’s way below my pay grade to bother. You sit in your perfect little eco-luxury bubble, while your father’s companies are the biggest polluters in China. You may have all the money in the world, but you are the most morally impoverished child I’ve ever met! Grow up, Colette, and get a life!”

With that, Rachel walked out of the hotel and onto the Bund, followed closely by the two bodyguards. “Shall we call the car, miss?” one of them asked.

“You know, if you don’t mind, I’d like to get some fresh air. I think I’ll be fine from here—I’ll see you guys back at the house.”

Rachel began walking down the famous curved boulevard, looking up at the gleaming art deco buildings and the red Chinese flags fluttering above them. As she passed a happy bride and groom getting their picture taken outside the Peace Hotel, her phone began to ring. It was Carlton.

“Rachel! Are you okay?” he said, sounding anxious and euphoric at the same time.

“Of course. Why?”

“That fight you just had with Colette—”

“How did you know about that?” Rachel gasped.

“Someone videoed the whole thing on their phone from the mezzanine right above your table. It’s gone viral on WeChat! ‘Spoiled Bitch Epic Takedown,’ that’s what they’ve named it. Blimey—nine million views already!”

17

NEWSPAPERS AROUND THE WORLD

LOS ANGELES DAILY NEWS

MAR VISTA CHILD KIDNAPPED IN PRIVATE JET

Breaking News—Van Nuys Airport was the scene of a high-speed chase last night at around 9:50 when LAPD officers pursued a private jet containing a two-and-a-half-year-old kidnapping victim as it sped down runway 16R. At least four squad cars were involved in pursuing the jet but failed to prevent it from taking off and leaving U.S. airspace.

Minutes before, the child’s father, Bernard Tai, had made a frantic 911 call reporting that his daughter, Gisele, had been kidnapped from their home at 11950 Victoria Avenue in Mar Vista. Gisele’s babysitter allowed an unidentified woman into the home while Tai was out, and the woman departed with the child. By the time the police had tracked down Gisele at Van Nuys Airport, she was already aboard the private aircraft.