Erin''s small hand gripped mine as we approached the school gate the next morning. Her eyes darted nervously around the yground, searching for Jordan.


    "Remember what we talked about?" I asked gently.


    She nodded, her pigtails bouncing slightly. "Tell the truth. Don''t be afraid."


    "That''s right." I squeezed her hand reassuringly. "Your brother and I are right here with you."


    When she''d revealed the full extent of Jordan''s bullyingst night—stolen lunches, pushed down stairs, threatened with worse if she ever told—I''d seen a side of Eamon I hadn''t expected. His quiet fury mirrored my own, but we both knew confronting a child directly would solve nothing.


    The system needed to address this properly.


    "There he is," Eamon muttered, nodding toward a woman marching through the gate with a sullen boy in tow—Jordan and his mother, Mrs. Langley.


    "Let''s do this," I said, guiding Erin forward.


    As we approached, Mrs. Langley''s eyes narrowed. Recognition shed across her face, followed by immediate hostility.


    "You again?" she spat, pulling Jordan closer. "Haven''t you caused enough trouble?"


    I kept my voice level. "We''re here to speak with the school administration about an ongoing bullying situation. Since we''re all present, perhaps we could address this together."


    "Bullying?" Her voice rose sharply. "My Jordan would never—"


    "Erin," I interrupted, turning to the small girl beside me. "Tell Mrs. Langley what''s been happening."


    Erin looked terrified at first, her eyes flicking between me and Jordan. Then, drawing strength from my nod, she straightened her shoulders.


    "Jordan takes my lunch every day," she said, her voice small but clear. "He pushes me in the hallway when teachers aren''t looking. Yesterday he twisted my arm behind my back and said if I told anyone, he''d push me down the stairs again."


    Mrs. Langley''s face contorted with rage. "How dare you make up such lies about my son! Jordan is a model student!"


    Jordan smirked behind his mother''s arm, thinking himself protected.


    "She''s making it all up," he whined. "She''s just mad because nobody likes her."


    Eamon stepped forward, barely containing his anger. "My sister doesn''t lie."


    "Well, neither does my son!" Mrs. Langley''s voice grew shrill. "This orphan girl is clearly attention-seeking. Probably jealous of normal children with proper families."


    I felt something cold and hard settle in my chest. The casual cruelty in her words was all too familiar.


    "Watch your mouth," I warned quietly.


    She ignored me, turning her venomous gaze on Erin. "Your parents probably killed themselves to get away from such a troublesome child."


    Erin''s small body began to shake with silent sobs.


    That was it.


    Without hesitation, I stepped forward and pped Mrs. Langley across the face. The sound cracked through the morning air like a whip.


    "I told you to watch your mouth," I said calmly.


    Her hand flew to her reddening cheek, eyes wide with shock. "You—you hit me! You actually hit me!"


    "And I''ll do it again if you speak to this child that way."


    The yground had gone silent. Parents and children stood frozen, staring at the unfolding scene.


    "Do you know who I am?" Mrs. Langley shrieked, trembling with rage. "My husband is the headmaster of this school!"


    "I don''t care if your husband is the emperor of China," I replied coldly. "You don''t speak to children that way. Especially not about their deceased parents."


    Eamon had pulled Erin close, shielding her from the confrontation. She buried her face against his side, shoulders heaving with suppressed tears.


    Mrs. Langley was practically foaming at the mouth now. "You''ll regret this! Guards! Security!"


    A woman in professional attire hurried toward us, her heels clicking against the pavement. "What''s happening here? I could hear shouting from my ssroom."


    "Teacher Ross," Mrs. Langley said, instantly shifting to a wounded, tearful tone. "This man assaulted me! He pped me across the face!"


    Teacher Ross looked between us, her eyes widening as she recognized Mrs. Langley. "Mrs. Langley! Are you alright? Should I call the police?"


    "Not necessary," Mrs. Langley said, straightening up with newfound confidence. "But I want this girl expelled immediately." She pointed a trembling finger at Erin. "She''s been bullying my son and now brought her thug rtives to assault me."


    Teacher Ross turned to us with a distinctly cooler expression. "What''s your side of the story?"


    "This woman''s son has been systematically bullying Erin," I exined evenly. "Stealing her food, physical abuse, threats. When confronted, Mrs. Langley responded by insulting an orphaned child about her deceased parents."


    Teacher Ross''s face remained impassive, her eyes flicking between me and Mrs. Langley. I could already see which way this was going to go.


    "Those are serious allegations," she said finally. "Do you have any proof of this bullying?"


    "Erin''s testimony—" Eamon began.


    "I mean actual evidence," Teacher Ross cut him off. "Security footage, witnesses, reports filed with the school."


    "The school has security cameras," I pointed out. "Check them."


    Teacher Ross''s lips thinned. "Our cameras are for external security, not monitoring students. And Erin has never filed aint about Jordan before."


    "Because she was threatened," I said, my patience wearing thin.


    "Convenient," Mrs. Langley sneered. "No proof whatsoever."


    Teacher Ross nodded slowly. "I''m afraid without evidence, there''s little I can do about these bullying ims. However," her voice hardened, "physical assault against a parent on school grounds is grounds for immediate action. I''ll have to ask you all toe to the office."


    "This is ridiculous," Eamon snapped. "My sister is the victim here!"


    Teacher Ross''s expression didn''t change. "Sir, please lower your voice. There are children present."


    I''d seen enough. This farce had gone on long enough.


    "Call Conrad Thornton," I said, pulling out my phone. "Tell him to get Headmaster Gordon to the front gate immediately."


    Teacher Ross blinked in surprise. "Conrad Thornton? The major shareholder?"


    "That''s right," I replied, already dialing. "And tell Headmaster Gordon that Liam Knight is waiting."


    A flicker of uncertainty crossed her face for the first time. "I''m not sure the headmaster is avable—"


    "Make him avable."


    While Teacher Ross hurried away, Mrs. Langley watched me with narrowed eyes.


    "Who exactly are you?" she asked suspiciously.


    I ignored her, speaking into my phone. "Conrad? Yes, I need a favor. I''m at Reese Primary School and experiencing some... administrative issues. Could you make a call?"


    Conrad''s response was immediate. "Consider it done." <samp ss="meta-ref-static">The full series lives on My Virtual Library Empire (*).</samp>


    Ten minutester, a portly man in an expensive suit hurried through the front doors, followed closely by Teacher Ross. His face was flushed, either from exertion or anxiety.


    "Mr. Knight," he said, extending his hand. "I''m Headmaster Gordon. I understand there''s some sort of situation?"


    Teacher Ross leaned in to whisper something in his ear. His expression darkened as he listened.


    "I see," he said finally, turning to face us all. "Teacher Ross has exined the situation. It seems we have a serious incident of physical assault against Mrs. Langley."


    Mrs. Langley nodded vigorously. "That''s right, dear. This man struck me without provocation!"


    "After you mocked a child about her dead parents," I added coldly.


    Headmaster Gordon cleared his throat ufortably. "Regardless of what was said, physical violence is never eptable on school grounds. As for the bullying allegations..."


    He paused, ncing at his wife. "Without evidence, we can''t take action against Jordan. However, bringing outside adults to confront a student is a serious breach of school policy."


    I couldn''t believe what I was hearing. "So you''re saying the child who reported being bullied is the one in trouble?"


    Headmaster Gordon straightened his tie. "I''m saying there are proper channels for theseints. Confronting children directly and assaulting parents is not one of them."


    "And what exactly are these ''proper channels''?" Eamon demanded. "My sister was too terrified to report anything because of threats from this boy!"


    "I understand your frustration," Headmaster Gordon said in a tone that suggested he understood nothing. "But without evidence—"


    "So what''s your solution?" I cut in.


    He sighed heavily. "Given the seriousness of the incident, I believe we need to remove the source of the conflict. Erin will be expelled, effective immediately."


    Eamon''s face went white. "What? You can''t—"


    "The decision is final," Headmaster Gordon said firmly. "We cannot have parents being assaulted on school grounds, nor can we have students bringing outsiders to threaten other children."


    Teacher Ross looked smugly satisfied. "I''ll process the paperwork immediately," she said, turning to Eamon. "You can collect Erin''s things from her ssroom."


    I stood perfectly still, a cold fury building inside me. The corruption was so tant, so shameless—the wife of the headmaster could do no wrong, and a defenseless child would pay the price.


    "Mr. Knight?" Erin''s small voice broke through my thoughts. "Am I being punished because I told the truth?"


    The innocence of her question cut through me like a knife. Before I could answer, Teacher Ross spoke again.


    "The school has made its decision. Erin Grenville is expelled for causing this disruption."


    As the words left her mouth, amotion erupted at the school entrance. A man in an impable suit came running out, his face set with determination.


    "I think," he called out clearly, "the people who should get expelled are you guys."