The Billionaire’s Fiancée Ruined a Maid’s Toddler’s Birthday in Front of Everyone, but the Last Gift Was the One That Destroyed Her

“Oh, how sweet!”

Victoria’s voice suddenly rang out across the ballroom, loud and dripping with artificial sweetness. She walked toward the pink table, her emerald silk dress rustling against the marble, drawing the eyes of all three hundred guests with her.

“Nathaniel, you are far too generous,” she said, stopping right in front of the little table. She looked down at Lily with a smile that didn't reach her eyes. “But we must let the others present their gifts first, shouldn't we? It’s only polite.”

Elena felt a sudden, icy wave of panic. She tried to pull Lily closer, but Victoria was already stepping forward, her eyes locked on the small pink table where three gifts were sitting.

The first was a simple sketchpad and crayons from the kitchen staff. The second was a small, hand-knitted plush rabbit—a replacement for the battered "Mr. Bun"—crafted by Mrs. Donnelly. The third was the small, velvet box Nathaniel had just placed down.

“Let’s see what the help has put together for our little guest of honor,” Victoria said, her voice carrying perfectly over the silenced orchestra.

She reached down and picked up the drawing pad and crayons. With a theatrical gasp, she let them slip from her fingers. They fell directly onto the wet marble floor near a melting tray of ice, the paper soaking up dirty water and the crayons scattering and snapping under the weight of her heavy heels.

“Oh! How clumsy of me!” Victoria gasped, her hand flying to her mouth in a mock display of horror. “I am so, so sorry. The floor is just so slippery.”

Lily’s smile faltered. Her lower lip began to tremble as she watched her new crayons roll away, broken into pieces.

“Victoria,” Nathaniel said, his voice dropping to a terrifying, sub-zero register. He began to stand up.

“No, really, let me make it up to her!” Victoria interrupted quickly, her eyes gleaming with a manic, cruel light. She reached for the second gift—the hand-knitted rabbit Mrs. Donnelly had spent weeks making.

Before anyone could stop her, Victoria held the rabbit up. “Oh, what a… charmingly rustic toy. But look, it’s already coming apart.”

With a sharp, deliberate twist of her manicured fingers, Victoria snagged a loose thread at the rabbit's neck and yanked it. The yarn unraveled with a sickening sound, the head of the toy drooping instantly as the stuffing began to spill out onto the floor.

“Oops,” Victoria whispered, her eyes locked dead on Elena’s pale, horrified face. “It seems it was poorly made anyway. Such a shame.”

A collective gasp rippled through the ballroom. The wealthy guests looked on in stunned, uncomfortable silence. No one dared to speak. No one dared to cross Victoria Hale.

Elena stood frozen, her heart shattering into a million pieces as she heard her daughter let out a soft, confused whimper. Lily didn't understand why the pretty lady was destroying her things. She only knew her beautiful night was ruined.

But Victoria wasn't done.

Her eyes drifted to the third gift—the small, velvet box Nathaniel had given Lily.

“And what did my lovely fiancé buy?” Victoria mused, reaching for the box. “Surely something appropriate for a… child of her station.”

“Do not touch that box, Victoria,” Nathaniel said. The sheer menace in his voice should have made her back away, but Victoria was fueled by a desperate, toxic pride.

She snatched the box anyway, opening it with a flourish. Inside was a breathtaking, custom-made porcelain music box. It featured a tiny, hand-painted carousel with a miniature mother and daughter riding the horses. It was an incredibly expensive, sentimental masterpiece.

“Oh, Nathaniel,” Victoria laughed, a sharp, ugly sound. “A porcelain music box for a three-year-old? She’ll just break it. In fact…”

Victoria’s eyes flared with pure malice. She held the music box high above her head, looked directly at Lily, and opened her fingers.

Smash.

The porcelain shattered against the marble floor, exploding into a hundred glittering, sharp shards. The delicate brass gears of the music box rolled out, letting out one last, distorted chime before going completely silent.

The ballroom went so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

Lily burst into tears, burying her face in Elena’s black apron. Elena wrapped her arms around her daughter, her own tears finally spilling over her cheeks as she looked down at the ruined remnants of her daughter’s birthday.

“There,” Victoria whispered, smoothing her emerald dress with an air of supreme satisfaction. “Now we can get back to the actual celebration. Nathaniel, darling, let’s go toast our—”