8
370words
After being discharged from the hospital, she was back to her old ways, flaunting champagne and designer items on social media.
She visited Mom with gifts,knowing our friendship was long over,just to gloat and spite me.
She brought a new man—not the greasy old guy from her photos,but a polished,handsome one.
He remained calm despite Mom’s cold welcome,reasoning that past conflicts should stay buried.
I paused.He knew something.
Testing him with key details,he nodded—he knew it all.
I doubted Lily’s charm could sttack a real rich guy.Something was off.
Lily smirked,“Emma,this is my destiny.There's no point in being jealous.”
Jealous of her?Only if the world had gone completely crazy.
The man,Nathan Reed,chatted up Mom,then pulled out a white bottle labeled“Health Supplement.”
He pitched it to her.
Mom,wary of scams,wasn’t fooled by his smooth talk.
Lily sidled up,linking arms with me.“Emma,let’s call the past a misunderstanding.We’re still bestfriends,right?”
I scoffed inwardly.Snakes like you don’t have friends or foes—just pawns.
One moment,shewas willing to sacrifice me, and the next, she was all sweetness and light.
Lily revealed her ture goal:she wanted to leverage my skills as an ad agency executive to create a marketing campaign for their supplement.
I examined the bottle’s fancy packaging—no production license.It was illegal to sell.
“Emma,this supplement’s gonna blow up.I’ve invested all my money into it.We're going to be rolling in cash!”
I smiled.Handing me your downfall?I’d be rude not to take it.
Despite Mom's protests, I agreed to help.
I joined Nathan and Lily at their“seminars”—really MLM schemes—claiming I was studying the product,but collecting evidence of their fraud.
Lily kept pressuring me to invest.I played broke.“I’m just a worker,not rich like you.”
She missed my sarcasm,thinking I was praising her,and poured more money in.
She dreamed of joining the elite,occasionally mocking me:“Emma Harper,you’re doomed to struggle your whole life.”
I nodded.Sure,not like you,born for prison.
A month later,I tipped off the police,who raided their MLM hub,arresting Nathan and Lily.
Lily had underestimated me, thinking I was just another marketer. What she didn't know was that I had studied advertising law.
I despised MLMs,preying on people like Mom.I was glad I could put an end to their scheme.
