I froze for a moment, my fingertips striking the railing subconsciously. I knew Isabel’s assets inside out. What was laid on the table was everything she owned. As I looked at her thin, fragile frame, a sharp ache gripped my heart. Her quivering fingers pulled out her phone. Frantically, she switched between over a dozen loan platforms. It took her an entire hour just to scrape together 150 thousand dollars. “Is that it?” Leonard scoffed, slamming his wine glass down. “Reena spends more than that on a single spa day.” Irena covered her mouth, laughing gently. “Isi, just admit defeat. Out of kindness, I am willing to let you off the hook.” Jasper shoved a stack of chips into the center of the table. “Call! Actually, raise—make it double!” Isabel’s face went ghastly pale. “Since you’re so desperate for money, let me help you…” Leonard abruptly smacked a button on the remote, and the screen flared to life once more. It was a fake video of Isabel, her face swapped in with artificial intelligence. Her movements were provocative and her voice seductive, as though she had filmed it herself. “This sounds divine—absolutely irresistible! I’ve got a stiffy already.” “A real heiress indeed. Of course she’s wild in bed!” “I’ll pay three million for the whole set!” Isabel shot up from her seat. She shook uncontrollably, staring in disbelief at her two childhood friends. In contrast, they only had eyes for Irena. Sweetly, they draped a coat over her shoulders. “Turn it off! Turn it off right now!” Isabel shrieked at the top of her lungs. Unfortunately, the frenzied shouting of bids drowned her out completely. A server stepped forward, bowing his head with a tablet in hand. “Ms. Jefferson, would you like to sell the rights to this video?” “That goes without saying! How else would you call? You’d have to fold!” The color drained from Isabel’s face. Covering her face with both hands, she broke into sobs. “I… I truly have nothing left…” Around her, the eyes of men glistened salaciously. Like a pack of wolves circling a dying deer, they were waiting for her to surrender before they pounced. My knuckles turned white from my tightly formed fists. I was about to get up to my feet when Isabel pulled something out of a pocket in her worn-out shirt. She carefully placed a dull, gray stone onto the server’s tray. “I’d like to exchange this for chips…” Hysterical laughter instantly erupted. Irena was doubled over. “Goodness gracious! Has poverty finally driven her mad? Did she really just try to exchange a random rock for chips?” The server nodded respectfully and walked off with the stone. A couple of moments later, he returned with 7.5 million dollars’ worth of chips, neatly stacked on a trolley. “Ms. Jefferson, here are your chips.” Stunned silence engulfed the crowd. Irena’s expression crumbled. “That bit of crummy rock was worth 7.5 million dollars?” Jasper sprang to his feet. “What kind of joke is this?” Leonard overturned his chair in a fury. “Fetch the appraiser! Now!”