The next afternoon, I went to pick Sophie up from school. The moment I reached the classroom, I saw her standing alone in the corner. Her eyes were red, and it was obvious she'd been crying.

My heart tightened. I rushed over and threw my arms around her. "Sophie, what's wrong? Who hurt you?"

The moment Sophie saw me, she burst into tears, sobbing hysterically as her little hands gripped my clothes tightly. "Mommy, I'm so hungry… Cody took my lunch…"

Hearing that made my head buzz. I packed Sophie's lunch with exactly the right amount of food every day. If she hadn't eaten at noon, that meant she'd gone hungry for an entire day.

More importantly, with her medical condition, skipping meals could easily trigger low blood sugar or stomach cramps.

Suppressing the fury burning inside me, I turned to find Nicole.

Nicole was laughing and chatting with a few other parents, but the moment she saw me approaching, her face hardened.

"Madison, perfect timing. I was just about to talk to you. During lunch today, Sophie was incredibly stubborn. Cody just wanted to try some of her food, but she absolutely refused to share and threw a tantrum until she made him cry.

"I've already talked to Sophie about it, but you need to teach her some manners at home. Children shouldn't be this selfish."

I could hardly believe my ears. My daughter's lunch was stolen from her, and somehow she was the one in the wrong?

"Ms. Turner, the lunch my daughter brings to school belongs to her. Why should she be forced to give it to someone else? Is this how you handle things as a teacher?" I snapped.

My voice boomed down the hallway, drawing the attention of all the nearby parents.

Nicole seemed embarrassed, but her tone sharpened.

"What's with that tone? It's completely normal for children to share food! Besides, Ashley reached out to you in the group chat yesterday. You didn't want to cook for him, but was it really such a big deal for Cody to take a couple of bites today? Where's your sense of community?"

Shaking with rage, I jabbed a finger at her face. "Don't you guilt-trip me! My daughter's lunches are specially designed to be allergy-safe. You stood by and did nothing while Cody stole her food, and now you have the nerve to call my daughter selfish? Let me be clear. This is far from over!"

With that, I scooped Sophie into my arms and left.

As soon as we got home, I whipped up a fresh meal for Sophie. Watching her scarf it down made tears stream down my face as my heart ached for her.

I took out my phone and tagged both Ashley and Nicole in the group chat.

"You both owe me an explanation for what happened at lunch today. Since when is it okay for a kid to steal someone else's food? I'll be at the kindergarten tomorrow morning. If you don't apologize to Sophie, this won't end here."

The second my text went through, Ashley fired back a reply.

"Oh, look who's playing the victim and pointing fingers! You should take it as a compliment that Cody's willing to have a couple of bites of your food. Don't be ungrateful. You want to meet tomorrow morning? Fine by me! I'm not scared of you."

The group chat was unusually lively that night. Following her arrogant outbursts, Ashley started working the room and turning the other parents against me.

"Everyone, look at how ridiculous this woman is! She's just a single mother who couldn't even keep her husband, and she has a horrible temper to boot.

"Cody only felt sorry for her daughter and wanted to be friendly, which is why he had a few bites of her lunch. But here she is, causing a massive scene in the group chat.

"A child raised in a broken home is bound to have issues. If I were you, I'd tell your kids to stay far away from her daughter so they don't get corrupted."

A few parents who were close to Ashley immediately jumped in to back her up.

"Exactly. She acts so high and mighty all the time. Does she think her daughter's lunch is some five-star catered meal?"

"Kids from broken homes are always so selfish. I think Ms. Turner was right to call her out."

"Ashley, don't waste your breath on her. Your husband is an executive at a massive corporation, so why argue with someone from the bottom of the food chain?"

I looked at the messages on the screen, disgust curling in my chest as my fingers flew across the keyboard.

"The bottom of the food chain? A corporate executive? So that's where you get the audacity to steal from others? Since you all think stealing is perfectly justified, we'll settle this in person tomorrow. Then we'll see who really doesn't belong at this kindergarten."

After sending that message, I exited WhatsApp. Fury continued to churn violently in my chest, but I forced myself to calm down.

Ashley thought she could run the school like her personal playground just because her husband held some corporate title, to the point where even the teachers bent over backward to flatter her.

Did she honestly believe her meager background gave her the power to rule the world?

Walking out onto the balcony, I dialed my assistant.

"Look into who can access the kindergarten's surveillance footage. Also, look into the parents of a boy named Cody Brooks. I want a complete background check on his father. The more detailed, the better. I want to see every single card they hold."

After hanging up, I took a deep breath.

I'd always kept a low profile because I wanted Sophie to grow up in peace, even going as far as sending my driver to attend the previous parent-teacher meetings.

I never expected my discretion to be mistaken for weakness, leading them to think I was some pushover.

But since they were so determined to step all over me, then they'd better be ready for me to rain hell down on them.

…

Early the next morning, I arrived at the kindergarten gates with Sophie right on time.

Instead of heading to the classroom, I marched straight toward the principal's office. I wanted the principal to pull up the surveillance footage so we could get to the bottom of what happened yesterday.

Halfway there, Sophie suddenly tugged on my hand. "Mommy, I left my sketchbook in the classroom. Can I go get it?" she asked.

I nodded and let her go ahead while I waited for her in the hallway.

Minutes later, Sophie's heart-wrenching cries echoed from the classroom. My heart hammered against my ribs, and I sprinted toward the room, only to be met by a scene that made my blood boil.

Sophie was collapsed on the floor, her little face pale and drenched in tears. The chubby Cody was frantically ripping her sketchbook to shreds, making mocking faces at her with every page he tore. Ashley stood beside him with a dry piece of cheap bread, forcefully shoving it into Sophie's mouth.

"Eat it!" she hissed. "You little parasite. Aren't you super protective of your food? I'm going to make sure you get your fill today! You should be honored that Cody is even sparing your stuff a glance. How dare you try to hide from him?"

Sophie struggled desperately, coughing as the crumbs caught in her throat. Her little face turned red, and she could barely breathe.

Seeing her resist, Ashley brought her foot down onto Sophie's hand, which was bracing her on the floor, and ruthlessly ground the heel of her shoe right into it.

"Ah!"

A piercing scream escaped Sophie.

In that instant, the blood rushed straight to my head, and my sanity shattered. I charged into the room and kicked over a nearby desk, the thunderous crash startling everyone in the room.

Then, I grabbed Ashley by the hair, slammed her against the wall, and slapped her hard across the face.

I put every ounce of my strength into that blow, leaving Ashley completely dazed as blood seeped from the corner of her mouth.

I didn't stop there. I immediately swung my hand back, delivering another slap across the other side of her face.

"How dare you touch my daughter? You'll pay for this!" I screamed, my eyes burning red with rage.

Ashley finally snapped back to her senses and lunged at me, shrieking like a madwoman, "You bitch! How dare you hit me? Do you have any idea who my husband is?"

She grabbed a glass cup from the table and hurled it at me. I ducked out of the way, and the glass shattered violently against the wall, shards raining down onto the floor.

Ashley bent down, picked up a sharp piece of glass, and pointed it at me, a malicious glint flickering in her eyes.

"My husband is Trevor Brooks, the regional director of Northstar Capital. You think you can get away with hitting me? I'm going to end the life of both you and your daughter! I'm going to run you out of this city!"

Just then, Nicole and several security guards rushed into the classroom, drawn by the commotion.

Taking in the scene, Nicole didn't hesitate before pointing a finger at me and yelling, "Madison, what is wrong with you? How could you attack another parent inside this kindergarten?

"Security, stop her! If anything happens to Ashley, you won't be able to afford the consequences."

The security guards immediately started closing in on me.

Ashley's face twisted into an arrogant sneer as she clutched the glass shard. "Now you're scared? Too late. I'm going to make both you and your daughter grovel before me!"

Staring at her smug, insufferable face, I held Sophie tightly in my arms, my gaze hardening.

I ignored the security guards closing in around me. Instead, I crouched down and carefully took Sophie's hand in mine.

Her small, fair hand bore a deep heel mark, and the skin around it had already started swelling, the red bruising turning purple at the edges.

Sophie was trembling from the pain, but she bit her lip so hard, not daring to make a sound. She merely looked at me with terrified eyes.

The sight drove into my heart like a knife, stealing my breath away from me.

I stood up and swept a cold gaze at Nicole and the security guards. "Touch me and see what happens."

My voice wasn't loud, but the sheer iciness in my tone made the guards freeze in their tracks.

I pulled out my phone and called the police. "I need to report an incident at Sunnybrooks Kindergarten. A child has been assaulted, and a weapon is being used to threaten us."

After hanging up, I turned to Ashley, who was still shrieking.

"What did you say your husband's name was?" I asked. "Trevor Brooks from Northstar Capital?"

Thinking I was afraid, Ashley lifted her chin triumphantly, carelessly brandishing the shard of glass right in front of my face.

"What? Regretting your choices now? Let me tell you something. My husband has connections in Jevron that a low-life peasant like you couldn't even dream of! If you beg for my forgiveness right now, I might actually consider letting you off the hook."

Nicole chimed in snidely, "Madison, I warned you before that you need to learn your place. Ashley isn't someone you can afford to offend. Now that you've blown this completely out of proportion, not only is Sophie getting expelled, but you can forget about ever finding a job in Jevron ever again!"

Looking at these two pathetic clowns, I was so furious that I laughed.

Instead of wasting my breath arguing with them, I turned around and called my assistant.

"Pull up the documents on Northstar Capital and notify the legal department. We're moving forward with criminal charges. Also, tell whoever's in charge of Northstar Capital to get his ass down to Sunnybrooks Kindergarten in ten minutes!"