Page 1 of The Obedient Lie
Chapter One
EMILIA
At the Academy, we didn’t justknowthe rules.
Wewerethe rules.
Wealth, sharpened like a weapon. Every girl here was born into a future someone else had already chosen. Every boy was bred to protect—or destroy—for his family’s name.
And I’d played my partperfectly. Because I wasn’t just like the rest of them.
I was Emilia Adams—twelfth-generation daughter of the Adams bloodline. One of the oldest families in the country. My name wasn’t just whispered.
It waswatched.
Bred for influence. Polished for alliances. Trained to smile, to speak, to strike—in that order.
And the Caplans had been circling since I was fifteen.
Two years beside Griffin Caplan. The dynasty golden boy. Quarterback. Future political heir. The boy everyone expected me to marry.
And I’d done what was expected of me.
The loyal girlfriend. The untouchable cheer captain. Destined for marriage, legacy, and clean headlines.
TheAdams Crown Jewel.
Obedient. Loyal.
Until tonight.
Until I walked in on Griffin with his hands on my stepsister’s hips. His tongue down her throat. The same stepsister who publicly humiliated me any chance she got.
Leaked private files to the press. Spread rumors sharp enough to tarnish even the darkest of reputations.
And something in me snapped.
Quiet. Clean. Final.
I didn’t cry or scream, no, I wouldn’t give him the satisfaction.
I did something a lot worse, especially, in our world.
Ichose.
I crossed the lawn like I was walking into battle. The thump of music warped around me. Phone screens lifted.
And I felt it. What is she doing over here.
Because I wasn’t walking toward Griffin.
I was walking towardthem.
And I knew better, hell everyone knew not to cross family lines. Especially not between the Caplans and the Crows.
This wasn’t just an old rivalry. It wasdynasty warfare.
Decades of blood-borne hate, forged in backroom betrayals and front-page silence. The kind of hate whispered through dinner parties, branded into surnames like tattoos.
