When The Unwanted Genius Breaks The Contract

A heavy set of car keys slammed onto the glass coffee table, the sharp clatter echoing through the Booth family mansion.

"Our engagement is off."

Dwayne Burks stood over the sofa, looking down at Adelaide Booth with undisguised disgust in his pale blue eyes. As the arrogant young heir to a Wall Street investment firm, he had resented being tied to the biological daughter the Booth family had only brought back from a Midwest slum less than a month ago.

Adelaide did not even lift her eyelids. Her long fingers kept scrolling down her phone screen.

"Yeah, whatever. Sign the papers and get lost."

Dwayne's throat tightened, the rest of his prepared insults choking behind his teeth as his chest heaved with sudden irritation.

Footsteps hurried down the grand spiral staircase. Brittanie Booth, the adopted daughter raised as an Upper East Side socialite, rushed over and grabbed Dwayne's tailored sleeve. Her eyes were rimmed with red, yet she pressed her body closer to his arm.

"Dwayne, please don't be so harsh on my sister."

Dwayne immediately wrapped his arm around Brittanie's waist, pulling her against his side.

"Brittanie is the one I actually love. Ghetto trash like you isn't worthy of carrying the Burks name."

Adelaide let out a soft scoff and finally raised her dark eyes, sweeping a cold glance over the pair. Her lips curved into a mocking smirk.

"A trash bin really is the best match for you two. Stay locked together forever."

Brittanie's face drained of color. Tears pooled in her eyes as she bit her lower lip, her shoulders trembling.

"Addie, how could you say that? I've been trying to put in a good word for you this whole time."

Sharp stiletto heels clicked rapidly down the hallway. Eleanor Booth, the matriarch of the house, stormed into the living room, her voice slicing through the air.

"Adelaide! Are you bullying your sister again?"

Adelaide looked coldly at her biological mother.

"If you don't need your eyes, you can donate them to someone who actually uses them."

Eleanor's chest rose and fell violently, her face flushing a dark purple as she pointed a trembling finger right at Adelaide's nose.

"You ungrateful wild brat! Brittanie is ten thousand times more sensible than a disappointment like you!"

Suddenly, Brittanie gasped and threw her weight backward, crashing onto the expensive Persian rug. She clutched her ankle, sobbing aloud.

"It hurts... Addie, why did you push me?"

Dwayne dropped to his knees and pulled Brittanie into his arms, glaring up at Adelaide as if she were a violent criminal.

"Have you lost your mind? How dare you lay a hand on her!"

Adelaide crossed her arms over her chest, watching the clumsy performance without a flicker of warmth.

"There are three high-definition security cameras covering every angle of this room. Do you need me to pull the footage and teach you how to stage a better fall?"

Brittanie's spine stiffened for a fraction of a second before she buried her face deeper into Dwayne's suit jacket, crying even louder.

"Mom, I'm scared..."

Eleanor crouched down to hug her adopted daughter, twisting her neck to glare venomously at her own flesh and blood.

"Apologize to Brittanie and Dwayne right now! Otherwise, I am cutting off your trust fund immediately!"

A freezing smile touched Adelaide's lips as she stood up from the sofa, her tall figure casting a shadow that instantly suffocated the room.

"Cut it off? Do you really think I care about a few crumbs of charity from the Booth family?"

Eleanor's breath hitched under that piercing gaze, making her rage burn even hotter.

"Fine! If you have so much backbone, get out of this house and don't take a single cent with you!"

Dwayne sneered from the floor.

"Without the Booth family sheltering you, a useless dropout like you won't survive a single day in New York."

Brittanie wiped her tears, pretending to plead while a victorious glint flashed in the depths of her eyes.

"Mom, please don't kick Addie out. She'll starve to death on the streets by herself."

Adelaide pressed her knuckles together until the joints popped with a crisp crack, picking up her black jacket from the sofa cushion.

"Save your crocodile tears. Watching you makes my stomach turn."

Eleanor rushed forward to block the foot of the stairs, puffing up her chest to assert her maternal authority.

"You are not going upstairs to pack a thing until you apologize! You owe the Burks family an explanation today!"

Adelaide's gaze swept over Eleanor like a sheet of ice.

"Move."

Her voice was quiet, yet it carried the crushing weight of someone accustomed to absolute command. Eleanor's heart dropped into her stomach, and her feet involuntarily stumbled half a step back before her face burned red with humiliation.

Without sparing them another glance, Adelaide walked straight up the stairs.

"By the way, make sure the legal paperwork for that broken engagement is finalized today."

Dwayne shouted at her back, his pride stinging.

"You're going to regret this! Don't come crawling back begging me to take you back!"

Adelaide paused on the landing and tilted her head slightly, leaving a disdainful smirk behind.

"Regret? You'll find out soon enough who was actually reaching above their station."

The three people in the living room were left speechless, the air dead silent under the lingering pressure of her departure. Several seconds passed before Eleanor gritted her teeth.

"Unreasonable! Let her suffer out there and see how many days she lasts!"

Brittanie leaned against Dwayne's chest, her lips curling into a hidden, icy smile.

"Dwayne, we can finally be together."

Upstairs, Adelaide pushed open the door to the second-floor bedroom and swept a cold glance around the room she had occupied for less than four weeks. She pulled a black canvas duffel bag from the bottom of the closet, tossed it onto the mattress, and walked over to the wooden desk.