Chapter 01

Hayley Grimroe is turning eighteen in two months and that's what she is waking up for with a smile each morning. The fact that when she turns eighteen she'll get quarter of a million dollars as promised by her parents, she won't allow anyone to kill her yet. And she would kill anyone that would stop her from getting the money.

"Good morning, Ms. Grimroe! I would like to remind you that you have a scheduled meeting with your mother today at 10 o'clock."

Although she said she wakes up every morning with a smile, it doesn't literally mean she wakes up and do exercise or something. She wakes up, smile and then go back to sleep. That's why Cristy, her personal secretary but more of a much older sister to her, wakes her up every day!

"Cristy," she groans, "Turn off the lights! They are blinding me!"

"Oh that is not the light, milady. That's the sun telling you to get up and take a bath. It's nine. You don't want your mother upset to the point where she takes back her promise, yes?"

Hayley abruptly sits up, her eyes snapped open revealing  her crystal clear green eyes. Then she get off her bed and started her stretches.

"I'm wide awake!" she repeats, bending to the other side and to the other. "Did mother say at the garden?"

"Yes, milady."

"Just call me Hayley! I like it better."

Cristy just gave a smile. Hayley has been bugging Cristy to call her by name but Mr. and Mrs. Grimroe would prefer if she address the young lady as milady. All of them employees at the mansion calls Hayley milady and she would give a grumpy face. 

"I'll be waiting outside so please, don't take too long, okay?"

"Okay!"

Hayley is still so sleepy but she needs to be a good girl and follow the rules set by her parents. If you are curious what she'd do with the money, where do teenagers spends it? Buying merchandise from 'influencers' and trendy stuffs online? No, not Hayley.

After getting a bath and putting on an expensive casual dress, she walks out of her room. Hayley greeted Cristy once again and they small talk on their way to the garden. In the middle of their garden is a green house surrounded with the most expensive and rare plants. And then there's her mother, having tea in the center of everything.

"Good morning, Mother!" She greeted, kissing the cheeks of her mother and then she bows a little at her mother secretary, Mrs. Brennan. After that, she took her seat facing her mother.

"My dear, Hayley! You've grown so beautiful like all these plants around us."

Hayley just forced a smile on her face. Yes, sometimes her mother is rather unusual, acting like they have not seen each other for long when last night, they had dinner together. 

"May I ask why you scheduled to meet today, mother? You and father are mostly away during the day."

"Oh yes! You see, your father and I talked and we agreed that you will be needing to transfer to another school, a more well known school."

That made Hayley stop chewing on her biscuit, staring at her mother confused. "But Mother I thought we agreed on--"

"Things changed, Hayley. You are a Grimroe. We only want the best for our daughter."

"But mother you and I talked--"

"No more buts, my dear," Mrs. Grimroe interrupts, "If you want the money for your birthday you better be a good girl."

Hayley's killer eyes appeared as her lips draw a line. This is not a good morning anymore! Her mother, Cassandra is ruining her day before it even started. She is pissed because she likes her school and everyone there is very friendly and they do not care about classes and if anyone was rich or poor! 

"Why do I need to transfer? We don't have a problem with my school's poor reputation for five years until today. Why?"

"Well you see..." Cassandra put down her cup of tea gracefully, then she glances at Hayley whose killer eyes were activated. Then Hayley saw a corner of her mother's lips rose up. "The Grimroe needs to be on top, my love. We can not lose this opportunity."

"What does that have to do with me transferring? Am I going to business school?"

"If you want to, dear. But we have something more that's planned," Cassandra pause to plaster her evil grin that irritates Hayley so much. "You are getting married."

Hayley just got back to her room from the meeting she had with her mom. She sits on her bed like a robot, staring blankly at her wall. Did she really just had that conversation with her mother about her transferring to another school because she is getting married?

"Cristy, I'm dreaming, am I not?" she asked without looking.

"I'm afraid you are wide awake, milady. But you might be in a haze, your brain must not want to process that you are getting married in two months."

Her lips were trembling, unable to stop her fingers from pinching her other hand. This is nuts! This is what she was so worried about. Getting married to someone she does not know, forcefully! She thought this tradition in rich people had stop! Sniffing, she could feel she's about to cry.

Cristy then sat next to her, rubbing her back and telling her it's alright. That there is two more months to change her parents' decision. 

"No," she sniffs, looking at Cristy with her eyes flooded with tears. "You heard her. If I don't get married, I'd lose the money they promised. If I lose that money, I will be breaking my promise to Lucas, Sister Roseta and the children! That's like choosing for my life or their life!"

"Now, now... you can always explain to Sister Roseta why you have to break your promise to her. She will understand, Hayley. You've been helping so much."

Hayley look down, sobbing as her tears started streaming down again. But those children at the orphanage, she can't let them starve or even get their home taken away. That money that she was about to receive was for the property. She wanted to pay off the orphanage bank loan for the property to stay theirs.

With the back of her hand, she wiped her own tears rashly. She knew right when she was younger, at a party with different people in suit and dresses, she was going to live hell throughout her life. But just because she is born in a top family isn't supposed to mean they can take her freedom away. 

"I'm going to fight for my freedom," she muttered, inhaling deeply and then blew it out. "I'm going to use that marriage for my freedom."