Chapter 2

The livestream chat exploded.

The viewer count climbed and climbed, and within minutes it had passed tens of thousands.

Some people who'd only stumbled in had no idea what was going on, and kept asking: "Who is this? Why is he slapping himself?"

The ones who knew the whole story filled them in: "That's Willow Delgado's dad. Willow slept her way to the top, and it broke him."

It didn't take long. The comments turned on me, all at once.

"Willow Delgado looked like such a good girl. Never thought she'd do something this shameless."

"I actually used to like her acting. When I heard she got the lead, I was excited. Never thought she'd throw herself away like this."

"Good thing her dad's got his head on straight. Discipline her right and maybe there's still hope for her."

Watching the people cursing me multiply, I panicked and lunged to grab his phone.

My father shoved me, and I went down.

He aimed the camera at me and shouted, "So you do know it's shameful?"

"When you were being a slut, you didn't mind the shame then? Now you want your dignity back? Too late!"

He called me a slut, over and over, and I broke down crying.

Bianca Edwards, my agent, hurried over, pulled my father aside, and shut off his phone.

She kept sighing, and said, heartsick, "I brought Willow up myself. I trust who she is."

"Ezra, smearing her like this will destroy her."

"Do you have any idea how long she fought, how much she went through to get this lead?"

The director beside her spoke up too, at a loss. "Mr. Delgado, do you think I took advantage of your daughter?"

He pointed at the woman next to him. "This is my wife. She's been watching me the whole time. You've got it wrong. There's no way I would ever touch her."

"I know you love your daughter, that's why I don't blame you. But I can't stand by and watch you ruin Willow."

"She's come so far, and it wasn't easy. A talent this good, right on the edge of a clear path ahead, and you come in and blow it all up like this."

"Hurry, find some way to explain it to everyone online. Otherwise all of Willow's years of work go down the drain."

But my father wouldn't be moved.

He gave a cold laugh. "If it wasn't you, then it was somebody else."

"I couldn't figure it out, how somebody so young could have people pushing her up this fast."

"Now I understand. She sold her body for it!"

"She used to not even be able to drink. She'd blush at the sight of a stranger. And now look at her, clinking glasses, hanging all over people, carrying herself like some cheap woman!"

"We don't want stolen money, and we don't want a role won by whoring around either."

He seized my arm hard and barked, "Come with me. We're going home."

I stumbled a step and looked back at the poster, unwilling to leave it.

I knew that the moment I walked out, I'd be starting over again.

Worse, I might get blacklisted from the whole industry, and never get another chance.

My father just said, cold, "Still not moving? You really do want the money and none of the shame."

"This role, you're quitting it. There is no room to discuss it with me."

I dropped to my knees crying and said to him, "Dad, this role really matters to me."

"I earned this role through my own hard work. Do you have any idea how much I went through all these years?"

My father slapped me hard across the face. "Hard work? You worked your way into someone's bed, that's what you did!"

Bianca came over and took hold of my father. "Ezra, calm down. You really have Willow wrong. I can promise you that."

But my father pushed her away.

He said to me, "Willow Delgado, you think these people helping you are doing it for your own good?"

"They're all destroying you, is what they're doing."

"You've only just started down the wrong road. Turn back now and it's not too late."

"I'm your father. I can't stand here and watch you go wrong."

"Nobody talking me out of it will work today. You're coming home with me right now, and you'll apologize to the whole internet, confess, and beg everyone to forgive you."