She forced herself to stay upright and quickly grabbed a small spray bottle from her purse, misting it aromatically near her nose and mouth. This was an alertness spray she always carried—it could temporarily counter the effects of knockout drugs. Konan had developed this stuff himself, and it was incredibly effective. Anastasia remembered Ronan warning her about a floral-scented sedative that could incapacitate someone in under three minutes.

Thinking about the maid's sketchy behavior, Anastasia immediately pieced everything together. This had to be Whitney and Valeria's special little “gift” for her. After using the spray, Anastasia’s mind cleared up fast. She grabbed a tissue to cover her nose and quickly surveyed the room—windows locked tight, door bolted from the outside. This whole setup was obviously premeditated.

Suddenly, she heard footsteps outside. Someone was coming. Anastasia quickly faked passing out and collapsed onto the bed. Soon, two figures crept into the room, and a familiar voice spoke up. “Anastasia, payback’s a bitch, isn’t it? Hope you love the surprise we put together for you!”

Valeria stared at Anastasia lying motionless on the bed, her face twisting into a nasty grin. “Fucking finally! Thinking she could take them on—she was way out of her depth!” The kidnapping thing had been a bust last time, so now they were handling this personally. Whitney looked at Valeria with approval. “Too better now? Like I always tell you, patience pays off. You gotta think these things through—no rushing in half-cocked.”

“Totally, Mom. Next I’m gonna take some really disgusting photos and videos of this stat, then post them all over social media so everyone can see what a whore she really is. She’ll be viral for all the wrong reasons!” Valeria said with pure venom.

“Whatever makes you happy, honey. We should go now—our star performer is getting antsy,” Whitney said. “Perfect. You’re a genius, Mom,” Valeria linked arms with Whitney as they headed out.

A minute later, Anastasia heard Whitney talking to someone in the hallway. “Mr. Parker, everything’s set up. You can go right in. She’s completely unconscious, so you can do whatever the hell you want. Have a blast!”

“Awesome, thanks. Don’t worry—when I’m satisfied, I take care of my friends. I’ll send over that contract renewal as soon as I’m finished.” This Marco Parker was apparently one of Kingsley Corp’s business clients. Marco Parker was notorious as a sleazy player who’d fuck anything that moved. He’d met Anastasia once and hadn’t been able to get her out of his head, even suggesting that if he could ruin her once, he’d extend his contract with Kingsley Corp. So Whitney had jumped at the chance to arrange this whole thing. Talk about a perfect two-for-one deal!

She could completely ruin Anastasia’s life while locking down real business with Marco—brilliant! Plus, when Anastasia woke up, she’d never dare tell anyone. This kind of humiliation would be way too mortifying to go public with. Even if Anastasia came to, she’d have to eat this shit sub rosa in silence.

“Alright. Mr. Parker, I’ll get out of your way. Enjoy yourself.” Whitney quietly disappeared. She’d come back later to enjoy the fireworks. Let’s see if that stuck-up bitch Anastasia would still act so high and mighty after this!

Once Whitney was gone, Marco pushed the door open. Staring at the knockout on the bed, Marco was practically salivating, a… “Hey there, beautiful. Daddy’s here. Don’t worry, I’m gonna take real good care of you.” He started stripping off his shirt. But just as Marco leaned in close, Anastasia’s eyes snapped open, and she blasted him right in the face with her spray bottle…