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Before Maxwell could finish, his father slapped him on the back of the head. "I told you not to be so arrogant! Mr. Crawford is a figure even more powerful than your grandfather!"
"Now that you've made this colossal mistake, your only hope is to beg Miss Crawford for forgiveness!"
My grandfather's reputation was known only to the older generation.
Maxwell's father had grown up hearing his own father's constant warnings: Never cross the Crawfords.
But since my parents' death, our family had withdrawn from the public eye, and the warnings were never passed down to the next generation.
The result was the arrogant ignorance of Maxwell and Cassandra, who had nearly brought disaster upon their families.
Seeing the elders he had always respected groveling before me, Maxwell's disbelief finally gave way to terror.
"Miss Crawford! It was... it was Cassandra! She misled me! That's why I didn't recognize you! It was all her fault!"
The expressions on everyone's faces were a masterpiece of shock and disgust.
Cassandra, who had been huddled to the side, leaped to her feet and launched herself at Maxwell, clawing and scratching.
"You were the one who said you knew a more fun way to torture her! How dare you pin it all on me!"
I sat back on the chaise lounge the servants had brought out for me and watched the two dogs tear each other apart.
Nathaniel, probably finding the display too embarrassing, finally had them separated.
Cassandra, realizing I was far more powerful than she could have ever imagined, crawled to my feet, sobbing.
"Miss Crawford! Please forgive me! I know I was wrong!"
I looked down at her severed finger and smiled faintly.
"Forgive you... I suppose I could. I'm not the type to hold a grudge."
The Thorpes and Cassandra looked relieved.
"But," I continued, "my ring. You threw it in the pond. It was my parents' engagement ring..."
At those words, dozens of faces, including my grandfather's, turned pale. My parents were my trigger, but they were my grandfather's, too.
"Oh, and my grandfather's cane. If I recall, that was a gift from you, wasn't it, Nathaniel?"
My grandfather's chest heaved with suppressed rage. His eyes, fixed on the pathetic pair, were murderous.
A split second before he could erupt, Nathaniel strode forward and kicked both of them back into the pond.
"You two worthless fools! Get in there and find that ring!"
"And the cane! Its value is more than both your miserable lives combined!"
They didn't dare disobey.
They began to search the chest-deep water, their wounds stinging in the murky depths.
Nathaniel wanted to drain the pond, but a single glare from my grandfather stopped him.
They searched until nightfall, managing only to find the cane.
After hours in the water, their wounds were beginning to show signs of infection.
They crawled to the edge of the pond, their faces swollen and bruised, gasping for breath.
"Miss Crawford... we really can't find it... please, let us go..."
My eyes flickered down to their intertwined hands. "Fine," I said.
"Until you find it, you can work for me to pay off the debt."
"But this was a ring that held the sentimental value of my parents' love. So, its monetary value is, naturally, quite high."
Cassandra nodded eagerly, about to call her family for money.
I added softly, "And no help from the Whitmores or the Thorpes. You have to earn it yourselves. It's the only way for a pampered prince and princess to learn the value of a hard-earned dollar."
The color drained from their faces.
