Despite Nicole's disguise of a hat and mask, the visible bruises on her suggested she had suffered a harsh ordeal, which elicited a fleeting sense of grim satisfaction in Vicki.

Nicole, unfazed by Vicki's obvious shock, coldly ignored her, showing no interest in any interaction.

Intent on bypassing Vicki, Nicole moved to step forward, but Vicki reacted quickly, grabbing Nicole's arm firmly. “Hold up right there. What do you think you're doing?"

This confrontation occurred just after Vicki had arrived, finding her key card suddenly nonfunctional. She was about to call Jarrod when she ran into Nicole.

At that moment, Vicki returned to her usual imperious manner, carrying herself as though she owned the place.

"I'm going inside to see Austin," Nicole declared. Her frown deepened as she pulled her hand away from Vicki.

"Who allowed you to see Austin?" Vicki's face turned steely. She couldn't understand how Nicole had the nerve to just walk into Jarrod's house as if granted the entry.

"You claimed that if I complied with your demands last night, I could visit my child," Nicole asserted plainly.

Vicki scoffed in disbelief. "Did I really say that?"

Nicole affirmed, "Yes, you did. You said if I let you demean me, I'd be allowed to see Austin."

Vicki covered her mouth to suppress a snicker. “Are you out of your mind? What made you think that was true?"

Nicole's gaze sharpened. “Out of my mind? Don't you remember what you said?"

Vicki's reaction was just as Nicole had predicted.

Nicole understood that Vicki never planned to let her see Austin. It was all a ruse to degrade her.

Nicole was puzzled by Vicki's eagerness to torment her, while she saw herself pose no threat and wanted nothing to do with Jarrod.

Nevertheless, Vicki seemed to take pleasure in Nicole's misery, as if malevolence was ingrained in her very essence.

"Do you really want to see Austin that desperately?" Vicki asked, already scheming.

Nicole stayed silent, wary of Vicki's next words.

Vicki's voice oozed contempt as she proposed, “Become my brother's mistress, and you'll get to see Austin. How does that sound?"

Vicki was well aware of the darkness that had engulfed Lowe.