The Law-Savvy Heiress

1 My background is a secret. My knowledge of the law is not. No matter who you are, if you break the law in front of me, I will report you. On the first day of my reunion with my wealthy birth parents, they tried to lock me in the basement to “reflect on how to be a proper lady.” I pulled out my phone and dialed 911. “Hello, officer? I’d like to report a case of false imprisonment.” My fiancé, a domineering CEO, wanted to have my corneas transplanted into his childhood sweetheart. On the operating table, I calmly addressed the surgeon. “Doctor, removing an organ against a person’s will carries a sentence of over five years, ten if it results in serious injury. Would you like to stop now, or would you prefer to do hard time?” The doctor’s hand trembled. My fiancé, Julian, was enraged. “In this city, I am the law. What’s the big deal about taking your eyes?” I pulled a recording pen from my pocket. “Excellent. That’s solid evidence of involvement with organized crime. The RICO task force is always looking for textbook cases like you.” … I pressed the stop button and waved the pen at him. “Mr. Polson, that part where you said ‘I am the law’? The audio quality is crystal clear.” “You—!” Julian Polson couldn’t believe I’d dare to threaten him at a time like this. He lunged for the pen, his face contorted with fury. “Give that to me!” I vaulted off the operating table in one smooth motion. “Robbery, defined as the taking of property from another by force, is a felony punishable by up to three years in prison.” At that exact moment, the doors to the operating room were kicked open with a tremendous crash. BANG! The sound was followed by a voice of righteous authority. “Freeze! Police!” Detective Miller, the officer who’d taken my call, burst in with three other cops. The dark, unblinking lens of a body camera was aimed squarely at Julian and the surgeon still holding his scalpel. “Officer, thank God you’re here!” I feigned innocence and ducked behind Miller, pointing at Julian. “This man claims to be the law of this city. He was threatening me with a weapon, intending to forcibly harvest my organs for that woman over there, Tia Harrington. The doctor is his accomplice. I have the entire conspiracy recorded on this pen.” Julian froze, staring at the uniforms. He’d lived a life of privilege and power; he’d never been in a situation like this. “This is a misunderstanding! It’s a family matter! I’m Julian Polson, the CEO of Polson Industries…” Miller let out a cold laugh and produced a pair of handcuffs, snapping one onto Julian’s wrist with a sharp click. “Polson, is it? I don’t care if you’re a CEO or the King of England, you answer to the law. And there’s no ‘family matter’ exemption in the Penal Code. Take him away!” As I looked at Julian’s face—a bruised, disbelieving mess—I straightened the collar of my hospital gown and offered a polite, educational smile. “Mr. Polson, be sure to study up while you’re inside. I’ll send you a copy of the complete Penal Code. Prime delivery, on the house.” It was late by the time I finished giving my statement at the station. Julian’s team of high-powered lawyers managed to get him out on bail, citing “medical distress” and posting an exorbitant bond. But his reputation was in tatters, and for now, he was holed up in a hospital, too busy licking his wounds to bother me. That didn’t mean I was safe. The moment I pushed open the door to the Harrington family mansion, a bone china teacup came flying at my head. CRASH! It shattered at my feet, sending shards skittering across the marble floor. My birth mother, Mrs. Harrington, stood in the foyer, her perfectly preserved face twisted into a grotesque snarl. “You ungrateful little witch! You’ve been back one day and you’ve already sent your fiancé to jail? You’ve dragged the Harrington name through the mud!” On the sofa, my birth father, Mr. Harrington, ground out his cigarette in an ashtray, his expression grim. “What are you waiting for?” he barked. “Lock the doors!” With an audible click, four hulking bodyguards emerged from the shadows, blocking my only exit. Mr. Harrington rose to his feet, looking down his nose at me. “In this house, I’m your father. That makes me God. Since you love calling the police so much, you can spend the rest of your days rotting in the basement. Men, take her phone, her recorder, any electronic devices she has. And then teach her a lesson she won’t forget.” Two of the guards grabbed my shoulders, their meaty hands digging into me as they forcibly emptied my pockets. My mother snatched my phone and smashed it on the floor, grinding it into pieces with the heel of her stiletto. “Go on, record that! Call the cops now! Let’s see you try!” Faced with this suffocating violence, I didn’t cry or scream. I remained calm, even taking a moment to mentally appraise the shattered phone. “That was a custom model. Worth about twenty-five hundred dollars. The recorder was three hundred.” I lifted my head, my gaze sweeping coolly over my parents and their hired muscle. “Right now, in a confined space, you are forcibly seizing my property through violent means. According to the Penal Code, that’s called home invasion robbery. It carries a ten-year minimum sentence.” “Ha! Robbery?” Mrs. Harrington shrieked, pointing a trembling finger at me. “I’m your mother! What’s wrong with taking something of yours? I have every right to discipline you! In this house, family law is the only law that matters! Do it!” A bodyguard raised his hand to strike. I ducked my head, bit down on a black button that looked like a simple decoration on my collar, and yanked it hard. “WEEEEEE-OOOOOO-EEEEEE!!!” An ear-splitting, high-decibel alarm shrieked through the house, piercing enough to be heard across the entire wealthy neighborhood. It was a military-grade personal alarm, audible from a quarter-mile away. The bodyguard recoiled, clutching his ears in pain, his grip on me slackening. I seized the opportunity, lunging for the floor-to-ceiling window and grabbing a chair. CRASH! Standing in the shattered frame, I took a deep breath and yelled out to the neighboring mansions. “HELP! HOME INVASION! THEY’RE GOING TO KILL ME!” My scream was bloodcurdling. The man living next door was none other than retired Supreme Court Justice Albright, a man famous for his zero-tolerance policy on crime. In that instant, the color drained from my parents’ faces. Five minutes later, the familiar squad car pulled up, and the familiar Detective Miller stepped out. He looked at me, and the corner of his mouth twitched. “Miss Lawton… have we met before tonight?” I calmly pointed to the wreckage of my phone on the floor, then to the bodyguards. “Detective, your timing is perfect. These men physically restrained me and violently robbed me of my personal property, valued at over two thousand dollars. I have reason to believe they are part of an organized criminal enterprise. Oh, and by the way, the micro-camera hidden in my cufflink recorded the entire incident. It’s automatically backed up to the cloud.” I rolled up my sleeve, revealing the tiny lens, which glowed with a faint blue light. Mr. Harrington’s eyes rolled back in his head, and he fainted on the spot. After my eventful evening, Mr. and Mrs. Harrington weren’t arrested, but after a stern lecture from Detective Miller, they were forced to sign a domestic violence injunction. The stress sent them both to the hospital with heart palpitations. I thought I might get a moment of peace, but trouble, it seems, never sleeps. The next morning, my brother, Leo, kicked over my suitcase, grabbed my black laptop, and smashed it on the ground before stomping on it for good measure. Tia, the girl who was supposed to be waiting for a cornea donation, rushed to his side, feigning concern. “Leo, don’t! She just came from the countryside. I know the computer is old, but she saved up for it for so long by doing odd jobs…” “So that’s what that weird smell is. You think this piece of trash she bought with garbage money belongs in our house?” Leo smirked, satisfied with the shattered screen, and tossed a wad of cash in my face. “Ten thousand dollars. That’s enough to buy ten of your broken computers. Take the money, and go kneel and apologize to Mom, Dad, and Tia.” Tia covered her mouth, a little giggle escaping. “He’s just looking out for you, sis. Out with the old, in with the new, right?” My lips twitched into a smile. I applauded. “Impressive, Leo. World-class computer-smashing technique.” I knelt and picked up the remains of the laptop with a sigh. Leo frowned. “Cut the crap. Is the money not enough?” I held up a finger. “This was a custom, military-grade workstation. The hardware alone cost eighty-eight thousand dollars. More importantly, it contained three years of core research data I was running for a national laboratory. It was the only copy. No backup.” I flashed him a bright, white smile. “According to legal precedent, the destruction of scientific data is assessed by its replacement cost. The value of this data set is… approximately seven hundred thousand dollars.” Leo’s smirk froze on his face. “Seven hundred thousand? Who are you trying to scam?” “The Economic Crimes Division and a state appraiser will determine whether it’s real or not.” I pulled out a backup phone and dialed 911. Because the amount was so substantial and the act so malicious, Leo wasn’t even eligible for bail. As he was led away in handcuffs, Tia screamed. The family butler, who had just arrived, looked like he’d seen a ghost. A family, after all, should stick together. My fiancé was out on bail, my brother was in jail, and my parents were in the hospital. The scorecard was looking pretty good. The Harrington family was in ruins, but Tia’s resilience was truly something to behold. Minutes later, she was live-streaming from the hospital hallway, tears streaming down her face like a soap opera star. “Everyone, my sister just got here and she’s already sent my brother to jail and put my parents in the ICU… Why would she do this to us? Do people who grow up poor all have hearts of stone?” The comment section exploded with people calling me a monster. Donations started rolling in. Tia seized the moment, displaying a QR code. “To save my brother and pay for my parents’ medical bills, I’m willing to accept any help you can offer…” I stood in a corner, recording everything. Once I had enough evidence, I walked up and tapped her on the shoulder. “Great performance. The Academy owes you an Oscar.” Tia jumped, then shrieked into the camera. “It’s her! Everyone, this is the woman who’s trying to destroy our family!” Facing the vitriol of millions of viewers, I calmly held a payment receipt up to the camera. “First, Mom and Dad’s medical expenses are fully covered by their insurance. You don’t need to fundraise.” “Second, my brother was arrested for destroying national scientific data. The evidence is conclusive.” “And third,” I said, pointing to the personal account number that was rapidly accumulating funds, “you are fabricating a story to fraudulently solicit money from the public. According to the Penal Code, that’s called felony fraud. I took a quick look, and it looks like you’ve already passed the fifty-thousand-dollar mark. That’s a minimum of ten years. Congratulations.” “This… these are gifts! Not fraud!” Tia stammered, her face pale. “You can explain that to the police.” Right on cue, Detective Miller appeared with his colleagues from the Economic Crimes Division. They escorted a stunned Tia away for fraud and slander. As she was placed in the police car, the tide in the live stream turned instantly. The screen was flooded with comments: “The Law Queen is a badass!” And with that, the entire Harrington family was neutralized. I had just left the hospital after dealing with Tia when I felt a sharp, sudden pain in my neck. A taser. As I slipped into unconsciousness, I heard Julian’s cold, menacing voice. “You had your chance to do this the easy way. Take her.” I woke up to a bucket of ice-cold water splashing over my head. The salty tang of sea air, the blinding glare of a spotlight, and an endless expanse of black ocean. My hands and feet were bound to an iron pole with heavy-duty zip ties, tied so tightly they cut into my flesh. We were in international waters. On Julian’s private yacht. “You’re awake?” Julian sat on a leather sofa, swirling a glass of red wine. Behind him stood two dozen burly mercenaries, the bulges at their waists indicating they were armed. And next to him, fresh out of the ICU, sat Mr. and Mrs. Harrington. Mrs. Harrington saw my predicament and burst into triumphant laughter. “You little bitch, you love calling the cops, don’t you? Go on, call them! We’re in international waters! Twelve nautical miles out, nobody’s laws apply to us!” Mr. Harrington’s face was a mask of pure hatred. He slapped a file against my cheek. “Sign this ‘Property Transfer Agreement’ and this ‘Psychiatric Guardianship’ form. Sign over all your shares to Tia, then jump overboard and feed the sharks. If you do, we might even give you a proper memorial!” They had searched me thoroughly. No phone, no recorder, even the alarm button on my collar was gone. They had learned their lesson and cut off all my lifelines. Julian sauntered over, tilting my chin up with the toe of his expensive leather shoe, his eyes glinting with amusement. “Zoe Lawton, don’t even bother. This yacht is equipped with a full-spectrum signal jammer. Right now, there are no police, no cameras, and no laws.” “In this lawless place, what are you possibly going to fight me with?” It was a hopeless situation. Utterly and completely hopeless. It was so perfect, I couldn’t help but laugh. “What are you laughing at? Have you gone mad?” Julian frowned. I slowly lifted my head, my eyes glinting with excitement. “Thank you, Julian.” My voice was raw, but it carried a bone-deep chill. “Ever since I came back, being forced into this ‘long-lost daughter’ role… it’s been exhausting.” “Dealing with scum, I had to cite the law. Facing violence, I had to call the police. I had to maintain this ‘law-abiding citizen’ persona, even calculating the force of my self-defense so I wouldn’t cripple you and have to pay damages.” Julian froze. “What are you talking about?” “You said it yourself. These are international waters.” “No signal. No cameras. No police.” I took a deep breath, savoring the taste of freedom. “That means… whatever I do to you… isn’t illegal, right?” “You’re insane! Get her! Kill her!” Julian scrambled backward, his voice cracking with fear. The two dozen mercenaries surged forward, brandishing iron rods. With a sharp snap, I broke the nylon zip ties. I took off my broken glasses and tossed them into the sea. I rolled my wrists, producing a series of loud, popping cracks. Looking at the thug leading the charge, I offered a standard-issue smile. “I forgot to introduce myself properly.” “Before I took up studying the Penal Code, my day job was… a combat instructor for mercenary units in North Africa.” “Since the law can’t touch you here…” I exploded into motion, a phantom blur, and sent the first man flying ten feet with a single punch. “…tonight, I am the law.” THUD! The 250-pound man crashed onto the deck with a sickening crack of breaking ribs that echoed across the water. The air went dead silent. Julian stared at me, his face a mask of disbelief. “You… how is that possible…” He waved frantically at the other thugs.