Chapter 6

The air in the cabin grew heavy and still. Sarah and Ben were watching from the galley entrance, their faces pale with shock and anger. Liam was watching me, a cruel glint in his eye. He was enjoying the show. He wanted to see me broken.

In my first life, I refused. I told her it was inappropriate. That refusal became the cornerstone of the complaint she filed against me. Liam backed her up, calling me insubordinate and unprofessional. It was the beginning of the end.

This time would be different.

I looked at Chloe, at her smug, expectant face. I took a slow, deliberate breath. And then, I knelt.

The action sent a ripple of shock through the crew members who could see me. My knees hit the plush carpet with a soft thud. I was on the floor, at her feet.

I reached out and my fingers brushed against the expensive leather of her designer shoes. I unbuckled the strap of the first shoe and gently slipped it off her foot. Then the other.

I did it all without a word, my face a blank canvas.

Chloe let out a soft, triumphant sigh. She leaned back in her seat, a victor enjoying the spoils of war. "Thank you, Ava. That's so much better. See? That wasn't so hard, was it?"

Her voice was a purr of satisfaction. She thought she had won. She thought she had stripped me of my dignity.

And then, as I was still kneeling, she "accidentally" knocked her freshly poured glass of champagne off the table.

The cold, bubbly liquid splashed all over me. It drenched the front of my uniform, soaking through to my skin. The sticky wetness clung to me, a final, physical act of humiliation.

"Oh, my goodness!" she gasped, her hand flying to her mouth in a perfect imitation of shock. "I'm so clumsy! Look at what I've done. You're all wet."

Liam chuckled. A low, ugly sound. "Looks like you'll need to change, Ava."

The laughter, the fake apology, the cold champagne soaking my clothes-it was all too much. I felt something inside me crack. I stood up slowly, dripping, and looked from her fake-innocent face to his amused one.

I didn't say a word. I just turned and walked away, leaving them to their victory.

I locked myself in the small crew lavatory. I leaned against the door, my body trembling. I looked at my reflection in the mirror. My hair was damp, my uniform was stained and clinging to my body, and my face was pale. I looked defeated. I looked pathetic.

From outside the door, I could still hear Chloe's lilting laughter. The sound echoed in the tiny space, mocking me, celebrating my shame. I closed my eyes and let the tears I had been holding back finally fall. They weren't tears of sadness. They were tears of pure, unadulterated rage.