The phone clicked off, and the icy pool water swallowed me whole once more.Brandon Miller covered his mouth, doubling over with laughter. Victoria, standing beside him, watched with a tolerant smile.“Victoria, did you hear that? Julian said he’s going to make you beg on the streets! Who does he think he is?”Genevieve Stone, Victoria’s rival, joined in the mocking. She pointed at me with disdain.“Is your husband completely out of his mind, Victoria?”“Contact every global media outlet? Does he think he’s the UN Secretary-General?”
The surrounding guests erupted in a chorus of piercing laughter. They stared at me with eyes full of scorn, as if I were nothing more than a pathetic joke.Victoria’s face stiffened, clearly embarrassed that I was making a scene and humiliating her in front of everyone.She spoke coldly to Brandon.“Brandon, make him sober up. He needs to stop talking nonsense.”“You got it, Victoria!”Brandon excitedly pressed a red button on the control panel.The ride’s seat jerked violently, hurling me back into the sky at high speed.
The zero-G sensation made my stomach churn, the mix of champagne and that detox drink from earlier making me gag.“Aah—!”My scream was swallowed by the wind.Then, the seat plummeted down even faster, slamming into the pool water with a bone-jarring impact.Massive splashes erupted, and the chlorine-scented water instantly enveloped me, making me cough violently.I was tightly strapped to the chair, unable to move, subjected to being repeatedly tossed up and down.Every plunge and ascent was a suffocating torment.
