The Nobody He Owns
Seraphina Stone was the starlet who’d built a career on public meltdowns.
The moment she tasted my food, she flipped the table and screamed that it was disgusting. Then, pointing at a dove in a cage across the room, she ordered me to stew it for her, to “replenish her energy.”
The live comment feed scrolling across the giant monitor on set went wild with approval:
【YAS, QUEEN! SERAPHINA IS SO REAL!】
【This is the chaos we live for! Never compromise!】
【What’s the cook waiting for? Get that soup started for Seraphina!】
What they didn't know, what none of them could possibly know, was that the dove was the beloved pet of Caleb Sterling.
And if anyone touched that bird, every single person on this set would have their careers torched to the ground.
1
I’m Chloe Ross, a C-list actress so far down the Hollywood food chain I’m practically plankton. My one marketable skill, a flair for cooking, had landed me this gig as the on-air chef for Nature’s Embrace, a live-streamed wellness retreat show.
Every other person here was a bigger name than me.
So, naturally, by the time I brought the final dish—a pan-seared branzino—to the rustic farmhouse table, the other cast members had already devoured most of dinner.
“You must be exhausted, Chloe. Come, sit and eat.”
Seraphina Stone, sitting at the head of the table, beckoned me over with a saccharine smile, taking my hand in hers.
The live feed erupted.
【She’s so sweet! She actually remembered the cook hadn’t eaten!】
【OMG I wish Seraphina would hold my hand.】
【Did Chloe even wash her hands before touching our queen?】
【Ugh, Seraphina doesn’t even care that the chef smells like kitchen grease. A true angel!】
The screen was a waterfall of praise for Seraphina’s kindness, as if conveniently forgetting I was the one who had cooked the very meal they were all digesting.
Seraphina had skyrocketed to fame on a brand of weaponized “authenticity.” Throwing things and shrieking were just another Tuesday for her. Her fans adored her for “keeping it real,” hailing her as “Hollywood’s only authentic soul.” Here, she was the sun, and everyone else was a planet in her orbit.
With millions watching live, Seraphina delicately lifted a piece of the branzino to her lips. She chewed twice, her brow slowly knitting together in a frown.
“Pah—!”
She spat the perfectly cooked fish onto the floor.
In the next instant, she shot to her feet, her hands gripping the edge of the linen tablecloth. With a theatrical roar, she yanked it.
“Is this supposed to be food for humans? It’s inedible!”
The sound of shattering porcelain and glass exploded through the room. A tidal wave of gravy, wine, and leftover food flew straight at me. I jumped back, but a dark, greasy stain instantly soaked the cuff of my jeans.
The comment stream lost its mind.
【OMG SERAPHINA IS A LEGEND!】
【This is the content I signed up for! Never let them serve you trash!】
【That cook took forever with the last dish. She probably burned it.】
【The realest woman in Hollywood! We need more of this honesty!】
【FLIP THAT TABLE! That food looked gross anyway!】
【#TeamSeraphina!】
As part of the show's interactive gimmick, the live feed was projected onto a massive screen for the cast to see. Right now, everyone could read the dense scroll of cheers for Seraphina and accusations aimed at me. A few scattered comments murmuring 【kinda wasteful tho…】 were immediately buried under an avalanche of fan outrage and reported for removal.
The set descended into chaos. The other guests swarmed Seraphina, cooing and consoling her.
“Seraphina, are you okay? Watch your hands.”
“Just let it go. She’s only the cook.”
“‘Only the cook’? Her one job is to make decent food!” a guy in horn-rimmed glasses snapped at the actress who’d tried to de-escalate. “If Seraphina hadn’t tasted it first, we all could have eaten that garbage fish!”
The speaker was Liam Ashford, heir to the Ashford hotel fortune and Seraphina’s self-appointed knight in shining armor. After every one of her public spectacles, it was his family’s money and influence that cleaned up the mess, insulating her from any real consequences.
The actress who’d spoken up blanched, remembering the fates of others who had crossed Seraphina Stone. She fell silent.
The live feed surged.
【Liam protecting his woman! A real man!】
【Stop shipping them, ugh. Our girl is single and thriving!】
【He’s right. Who knows what was in that nasty fish.】
【Seraphina has a sensitive stomach. This Chloe person probably did it on purpose.】
【Why hasn’t the cook apologized to Seraphina yet?】
“It’s okay, everyone. It was my fault, I was too impulsive,” Seraphina said, tugging on Liam’s sleeve, her voice suddenly fragile. “Chloe worked so hard on all this food. It’s normal to mess up one dish…”
Liam smiled at her, a look of pure adoration on his face. “You’re just too good for this world, Sera.”
【See? She’s so kind. She always reflects on her actions after her episodes.】
【Don’t blame yourself, Seraphina! It’s the cook’s fault!】
【#CancelTheCook! We support Seraphina standing up for herself!】
Reading the supportive comments, a grateful smile touched Seraphina’s lips. “Thank you all for the comfort. But please, don’t be too hard on Chloe. I was also in the wrong… Hiss…”
She trailed off, clutching her stomach.
“Sera, what is it?” Liam immediately steadied her.
Seraphina managed a pale, brave little smile. “It’s nothing. Just a stomach cramp. It’s an old problem, it has nothing to do with Chloe’s cooking.”
Her words were gasoline on a bonfire. Liam whirled on me, his face burning with rage. “You did this on purpose, didn’t you? You served her rotten fish! Apologize to her right now, or I’ll make sure you never work in this town again.”
【APOLOGIZE TO SERAPHINA!】
【I’m so worried about her. Can we get this psycho cook fired and blacklisted already?】
【APOLOGIZE!】
【Get off the show! Get out of Hollywood!】
【CHLOE ROSS APOLOGIZE!】
【CHLOE ROSS APOLOGIZE!】
The screen was a solid block of text demanding my apology.
All I could feel was a bitter, hollow laugh stuck in my throat. Was it for my carefully prepared dish, now spat on the floor and declared garbage? Or for my own dinner, which was now a pile of trash at my feet?
My gaze drifted past Liam’s furious face to Seraphina. There wasn’t a trace of pain in her eyes. Only a poorly concealed glint of triumph.
I couldn’t understand where this came from, why she was targeting me like this. We’d never met before this show.
“It’s alright, Liam. If Chloe doesn’t want to apologize, let’s not force her,” Seraphina said, playing the magnanimous peacemaker.
But Liam wasn’t letting go. “She’s still defending you when she’s doubled over in pain because of your rotten fish! Do you have any conscience at all?”
Seraphina’s eyes drifted to the corner of the yard.
“Tell you what,” she said, her voice soft but laced with steel. “I saw that plump-looking dove over there. Chloe, you’re such a good cook. Why don’t you stew it for me? To help me recover. We’ll call it even.”
She was looking at a beautiful, all-white fantail dove, pacing elegantly inside a wicker cage.
And seeing that dove, it all clicked. I finally understood the source of her bizarre, relentless hostility.
The crew had found the bird wandering the property earlier and caged it. Before dinner preparations had even begun, Seraphina had ordered me to kill and cook it for her.
But I had recognized it instantly. On its leg was a delicate, gleaming gold band with a distinctive pattern.
It was the mark Caleb Sterling—the reclusive, all-powerful scion of the Sterling dynasty—put on his prized pets.
I had no idea how the bird had ended up here, but I would never mistake that mark. I knew Caleb valued his privacy above all else, and the last thing he’d want was his pet becoming a plot point on a globally streamed reality show. At the time, I’d simply told Seraphina the bird was too sinewy to eat and deflected.
I never imagined she would hold a grudge this long.
I took a step forward, positioning myself between her and the cage. I kept my voice as level as I could.
“Ms. Stone, that bird can’t be eaten. It has a leg band. It’s clearly someone’s pet.”
Seraphina arched an eyebrow, her voice dripping with mock pity. “First you said it was tough, now you’re saying it’s a pet. If you don’t want to cook it for me, just say so. You don’t have to keep making up excuses.”
Seeing Seraphina look so wounded, any flicker of doubt Liam might have had was extinguished.
“Seraphina has bent over backwards for you, and you’re still arguing? You’re the chef! Cooking is your job!”
The live feed chimed in.
【What is this cook’s problem? Is she obsessed with Seraphina?】
【It’s just a bird. If she wants to eat it, just make it for her!】
【I bet she’s doing this for screen time. So pathetic.】
【Wait, I think I do see a leg band. Maybe it is a pet?】
【Is that Chloe’s PR team in the comments? How much are they paying you?】
【So what if it’s a pet? She can just cook it. It’s an honor for the bird to be eaten by Seraphina.】
【What if the owner comes looking for it?】
【Who cares? Liam will just buy it for her!】
【Like Liam Ashford can’t afford one stupid pigeon?】
【I looked it up. It’s just a common dove. Nothing special.】
Buoyed by the comments, Liam puffed out his chest and addressed the cameras. “If the owner of this dove is watching, please contact the production team. I will buy it from you for ten times its market value.”
Amidst a sea of 【Liam is so rich!】 and 【Baller move!】, a single comment popped up: 【Did the owner agree to sell? This sounds like a forced sale.】 It was immediately swallowed by a flood of 【Money talks, dude】 and 【Who wouldn’t sell for 10x the price?】.
Another cast member chimed in. “Just do it, Chloe. It’s not like you got to eat anyway. We could all try some. It’s no big deal.”
I gritted my teeth. “You don’t understand. This bird is different. Messing with it will cause serious trouble.”
That was the last straw for Seraphina. She dropped the stomach-ache act entirely. She stormed over, snatched the cage, and unleashed her signature brand of chaos.
“You say no? Who are you to say no? You’re protecting this stupid bird because you want to steal it for yourself, don’t you? Well, I won’t let you!”
With a final shriek, she slammed the cage onto the stone patio.
The wicker frame shattered.
The terrified dove burst out, fluttering wildly before landing with pinpoint accuracy on my shoulder, letting out a mournful coo.
“How did it fly right to her?” one of the guests gasped.
Seraphina’s face twisted into a victorious sneer. “You all see that? She’s already tamed it. She was planning to take it for herself all along!”
Liam was right behind her. “Chloe Ross. No wonder you kept making excuses. You’ve been plotting this from the start.”
【Seraphina called it! Chloe is so manipulative.】
【She says it has an owner when Seraphina wants to eat it, but suddenly the owner doesn’t matter when she wants to steal it?】
【Is it possible the dove is actually Chloe’s? I mean, it flew right to her.】
【Get real. It landed on her shoulder so now it’s hers? Please.】
【Yesss, another Seraphina meltdown! This is so satisfying!】
I looked at the trembling bird on my shoulder, at Seraphina’s gloating face, at the cold, amused eyes of everyone around me, and at the endless stream of insults on the screen.
I sighed, a deep, weary breath, and finally told them the truth. “This dove isn’t mine. It’s Caleb Sterling’s.”
For a single, beautiful moment, the entire set was silent. Even the live feed paused.
The next second, Seraphina burst out laughing. “Chloe, if you’re going to lie, at least make it believable. Caleb is a friend of mine. He’s never owned a pet in his life.”
A wave of understanding washed over the other guests.
“I knew it. How would someone like Chloe Ross know anything about Caleb Sterling’s pets?”
“She almost had me for a second.”
“As if the Sterling heir’s pet would just show up here.”
Liam scoffed. “Chloe, you clearly have no idea who you’re dealing with. Caleb Sterling despises people who use his name to get ahead. Looks like you’re finished in this town without me even having to lift a finger.”
The live feed was a party.
【LMAO, she tried to bluff and got called. Epic fail.】
【Get her off my screen. I’m so sick of this clown.】
【Wait, Seraphina just called the Caleb Sterling by his first name? Is there something going on there?】
【I heard the Sterling heir had a famous ex he’s never gotten over. What if it’s SERAPHINA?】
【OMG IT MAKES SO MUCH SENSE!】
【No wonder Seraphina can be so authentic and never faces backlash. The Sterling family is protecting her!】
【I remember Liam saying he was friends with the Sterling heir.】
【Maybe Caleb asked Liam to look out for Seraphina since he can’t do it publicly?】
【Oh my god, is our girl Seraphina going to marry into the most powerful family in the country?】
【But why did they break up?】
Seraphina gave a shy smile at the comments. “Please don’t use his name so much. He doesn’t like the attention. Besides, I want to be recognized for my acting, on my own merit.”
Her vague, suggestive words sent the feed into a frenzy.
【You can do it, Sera! We believe in you!】
【So she broke up with him to focus on her career and become his equal? That’s so romantic!】
【OMG. He protects her from the shadows while she works to become a star for him. It’s a real-life fairytale.】
【Chloe Ross needs to apologize already.】
【She is SO screwed. You don’t mess with the woman Caleb Sterling protects.】
【Just cook the damn dove as a peace offering. Maybe Seraphina will ask Caleb to go easy on her.】
Seraphina saw that last comment and smiled graciously at me. “Chloe, if you cook the dove now, I’ll forget this whole thing ever happened.”
The other cast members were all nodding, and I could see the director off-camera frantically gesturing for me to agree. The name ‘Caleb Sterling’ was enough to make titans of industry tremble. If he was offended, everyone here would pay the price.
I knew then that it was hopeless. These people were beyond reason.
Ignoring all of them, I quietly pulled out my phone and dialed a number I knew by heart.
The cameraman, sensing drama, immediately zoomed in.
The call connected almost instantly. A deep, languid male voice came through. “Yeah?”
I held the phone to my mouth, my voice clear and steady.
“It’s me. Your precious dove is here on the set of Nature’s Embrace.”
“Someone just smashed him out of his cage and is demanding I stew him for dinner.”
“I thought you might want to handle it.”
There were two seconds of dead silence on the other end. Then, a voice, devoid of any discernible emotion, said:
“Five minutes. Stay put.”
After I hung up, Seraphina applauded dramatically. “Great performance. But if you’re going to hire an actor, at least make it realistic. We’re in the middle of the mountains. How could Caleb possibly get here in five minutes?”
I didn’t bother answering her. I gently checked the dove’s wing, finding a small scratch from a splintered piece of wicker. I found a first-aid kit and began to carefully clean the wound.
A guest tried again. “Chloe, just stop this. Apologize and cook the bird.”
“Yeah, we still have a show to film.”
“Come on, everyone knows Seraphina is the one that got away for Caleb Sterling. Don’t be so stubborn.”
At that, I finally looked up at the speaker. “Did Caleb Sterling tell you that himself?”
Then I turned to Seraphina. “If he’s your ex, how did you not recognize his voice just now?”
“Your phone’s volume was so low, how could I possibly hear it?” Seraphina snapped, taking an involuntary step back from the look in my eyes. “For all I know, you hired a voice actor who sounds like him months ago just for this moment.”
Liam stepped in front of her, shielding her as if I were about to attack. “That’s enough. You’re just digging your own grave.”
The live feed was still a cesspool.
【Can this be over already? I’m sick of looking at Chloe Ross’s face.】
【How dare she question if Seraphina is his great lost love? Is she implying that SHE is? LOL.】
【Five minutes? Why not five seconds? So fake.】
【The script is terrible. One star.】
【I can’t wait to see the look on her face when no one shows up.】
【But she seems so calm… what if it’s real?】
【Don’t be ridiculous. She’s a nobody. How would she even have his number?】
【I am living for the moment Chloe Ross has to get on her knees and beg for forgiveness.】
“It’s okay,” Seraphina said, slipping her benevolent mask back on. “Since Chloe called someone, the least we can do is wait.”
The feed lit up with praise for her patience.
【Seraphina is so gracious, she’s willing to play along with this charade.】
【She preaches chaos but she’s the kindest one there.】
【I’ll bet you a thousand dollars the person who shows up is a paid actor.】
【I’m actually excited to see who it is lmao.】
The set fell into a strange, tense stalemate.
Seraphina and Liam wore undisguised smirks, eagerly awaiting my public humiliation. The other guests were a mixture of detached amusement and pity for my pathetic last stand. The director was sweating bullets just off-camera, torn between the desire for a ratings explosion and the terrifying possibility of having angered someone truly powerful.
The minutes ticked by. The mountain air grew cooler, the only light coming from the production crew’s massive lamps that turned our small clearing into a miniature sun. Five minutes passed. The only sounds were the chirping of crickets and the whisper of the wind.
Seraphina’s smirk widened until it nearly split her face. She pretended to check a non-existent watch on her wrist.
“Oh, dear. Time’s up, Chloe,” she cooed. “Where’s your Caleb? Did he get lost?”
Liam snorted. “The cell service out here is terrible. Maybe the delivery guy she hired didn’t get his Venmo payment and bailed.”
Just as the words left his mouth, a low, deep thrumming sound echoed from the distance, a sound completely alien to the natural rhythm of the forest. It was a penetrating hum that grew rapidly louder, more visceral, more deafening.
It was the sound of helicopter rotors.
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