As I was in a daze, Kelly thought I was guilty and laughed even more smugly. She called out to security, "You guys should lock this thief up right now. We'll deal with her properly when the police arrive!"

The security guard, armed with a baton, pressed me to the ground roughly. Panting, I struggled and shouted, "Kelly, you’ve lost your mind! My brother would never spare you if he knew you treated me like this!"

I had just finished speaking when she slapped me in the face. Then, she grabbed my chin and threatened me viciously, "Ha, you're not good enough. I'll show you who's more important in his heart."

She then dialed the phone and coquettishly said to the other end of the line, "Chad, where are you? I encountered a thief in the supermarket. She’s claiming to be your younger sister and said that you won't spare me if I touch her."

The man at the other end of the line sneered. "I'm on a business trip, Baby. Are you kidding me? I don't have any sisters."

I could not help but widen my eyes in disbelief as Kelly smugly handed over her phone.

Despite the burning pain in my cheeks, I yelled, "Chad, are you deaf? Can't you even recognize my voice? Don't forget. I paid for your supermarket!"

The man on the other end hesitated. He was about to reply when Kelly suddenly clutched her stomach and groaned. "Chad, my stomach hurts so much. The baby I'm carrying is probably upset. With me in this state, how can you be so patient with this thief?"

"Okay, okay, Baby. Handle it however you want. I'll handle all the consequences." With that said, he hung up, leaving me dumbfounded and Kelly even more smug.

She held her waist and touched her belly, raising her eyebrows provocatively. "Little wretch, you're no match for me. I'm pregnant with his child. After we get married, all of his money will be mine. Don't even think about taking a penny!"

I bit my lower lip as my gaze shifted to the pacifier and other items. Those were gifts my brother had asked me to carefully select for a business partner. I never expected them to be for her.

Seeing my unhappy expression, Kelly stepped on the back of my hand, grinding it repeatedly while smiling apologetically. "Sorry, everyone. This has caused quite the scene today. How about this? Everyone here will get their purchases for free. Just delete all the videos you took on your phone."

I gasped in pain, my heart skipping a beat.

People had been watching and had secretly taken a lot of photos and videos.

Without evidence, I could not hold her accountable even if I wanted to. I immediately interjected, "No! You can't delete them! If you don't delete the photos and videos, I'll give you tenfold in compensation!"

The long line of people waiting to get their phones checked by Kelly burst into laughter.

The man leading the line narrowed his eyes and looked at me kneeling on the ground. "Who do you think you are? Tenfold in compensation? If you can, pay that one million dollars first. If you don't have money, don't pretend that you do. I don't think you can even spare 100 dollars."

He claimed to be righteous, taking the moral high ground and scolding me profusely. He even raised his fist towards me indignantly, shouting that he would uphold justice.

Just as his fist was about to land on my eye, I jerked my head to the right, broke free, and pulled my card out of my pocket. "Who said that I have no money?"

Pinching the card between my index and middle fingers, I looked around, making sure I was within range of the security cameras.

"This is a top-of-the-line black card with a global limited production of only 100 pieces, with no quota limit. Whoever sends me photos of Kelly hitting me, I'll give them one million dollars."

To stir up the crowd, I set the price as high as possible. "One photo for one million dollars, with no upper limit!"

I had just finished speaking when someone immediately held up their phone and rushed towards me, saying, "Me, me.”

Kelly reached out her hand to block the person, forming a human wall with the security guards. She looked warily at the black card in my hand before smiling with relief as if she had thought of something. “You damned liar! It's not enough to just steal; you even forged a black card to deceive people. Do you know that forging bank cards is considered a crime and you will be imprisoned?”

She changed the subject and turned her head to speak to the restless crowd. “If there’s money in her card, it’s also illegal and will be frozen sooner or later. Not only will you not get a penny, but you'll also go to prison with her. However, I think she probably has no money and is playing tricks to scare people into siding with her. If she was really that rich, why would she even steal a baby pacifier?”

Kelly's remark immediately reversed public opinion. Some people who were originally driven by greed and were about to side with me changed their stance again.

“I think this sales assistant is right. If this woman were really that rich, why would she steal?”

"She always tells lies. There’s not a single word of truth. I wouldn't believe a thief."

“But what if it's true... That's a million dollars."

After arguing for a while, a woman took the lead in standing up. She expressed that she would believe me if I could afford the million-dollar compensation for the theft.

I agreed without hesitation.

The moment the black card was placed on the POS machine, an automated voice rang. “Sorry, the card isn’t recognized. Please use another bank card to pay.”

I could hardly believe my ears. "No way. How could it be? My black card is a coming-of-age gift from my parents. There must be something wrong with this machine!”

I grabbed the machine and shook my head frantically.

Kelly brought over three new POS machines. I tried several times, but the result was the same.

I shook my head in disbelief.

Kelly sneered and pulled out a similar black card. As soon as she tapped it on the POS machine, the machine immediately announced, "Payment successful."

The few people who had believed me also turned against me. They commented sarcastically.

"Why pretend to be rich when you don't have any money? How unlucky it is to run into a lunatic."

"She even said the POS machine was useless. It’s clearly a fake card. She almost scammed me."

"I think we should just let the sales assistant beat her to death. People like her are nuisances. If she pulls some kind of scam on us or our family, we'll be in big trouble."

"I agree. I agree!"

…

The chattering crowd was clamoring to beat me to death. Kelly took advantage of the situation and stood on a platform.

Holding a microphone, she directed the spotlight toward my face. "Anyone who punches this woman will receive 10,000 dollars from me. Anyone who slaps her will receive 20,000 dollars. The more severe it is, the higher the reward. I'll cover all the medical expenses!"

She mouthed silently to me. Just as I was about to be drowned in the crowd, I finally realized what she said. "I've already replaced your card. You're doomed."

The high reward excited the crowd and they surged over.

Punches rained down as I crouched on the ground.

I protected my head by gripping it with both hands. My back and spine felt like they had suffered serious damage. Several handfuls of my hair were pulled out. Enduring the intense pain, I curled up on the ground and tugged at the pant leg of the person who had hit me. Picking up the phone that had fallen in the chaos, I freed up one hand and quickly sent a distress text message to my family.

My eyes gradually blacked out from the beating. I gritted my teeth and called Chad, refusing to give up.

Once, twice... The call still did not go through, as I was kicked and beaten repeatedly.

Then, I was tied up on my back to a cart while everyone went to claim their rewards.

Kelly closed in slowly, holding a dagger. The cold, glinting blade reflected the ferocity in her eyes. "I'm telling you. I found that black card in Chad's bag long ago. I thought it was an anniversary gift from him, but I never expected it to end up in your hands. I secretly reported the loss and reissued it, so your black card has long been transferred to my name. I'm telling you now… Chad is mine. Don't even think about him!"

She had a frenzied expression on her face as she waved the dagger in front of me. "You rely on your face to seduce people, right? I'll cut it up. Let's see how a vixen like you can still seduce others after that!"

Kelly's tone suddenly became fierce, baring her teeth as if she was about to attack.

I was pale and on the verge of passing out. I gulped, turned my face away, and tremblingly pleaded, "I'm telling you, your actions are criminal! If you stop now, I'll let it go. Otherwise, things won't be settled so easily when my parents get here."

The cold blade danced back and forth in front of my face. My breathing grew heavier, and her movements slowed down.

I thought I had escaped, but she cut a long gash across my arm.

The air was thick with the smell of blood, and bright red blood flowed all over the floor. It was a horrifying sight.

Kelly spat in my face. "I'm telling you… Forget about your parents. Even if Chad comes, I won't spare you! How dare you steal my Chad?! Go to hell!"

She raised the dagger and stabbed it toward my eye.

My heart stopped. Just as the tip of the dagger was about to pierce my eye, a strong and powerful hand grabbed the blade.

A panicked male voice echoed from above. "Kelly, what are you doing? Have you lost your mind?"

Kelly looked over, her eyes filled with surprise. "Chad, why are you here? I'm dealing with a thief. She stole baby products from our supermarket and had the audacity to claim to be your sister. How disgusting!"

She quickly put away the dagger and muttered distressedly as she bandaged Chad's wound. "Why did you rush over? Didn’t you leave this matter to me? How about I chop off a few of her fingers? I'll hang them on the door. That way, no one will cause trouble in the supermarket again."

Chad froze, unable to speak. The voices of two elderly people echoed from behind. "Charlene is my daughter. Who dares to touch her?!"

The two elders exuded an undeniable aura of authority. Tears welled up in their eyes the moment they saw me. "Chad, what kind of brother are you? I told you to protect your sister and this is how you do things?"

They reached out to untie me. "My dear daughter… you've suffered."

Chad's face paled from the scolding. He knelt on the ground and apologized, "I'm sorry, Charlene. I'm late."