Chapter 2
Zoe’s accusation did not succeed.
She lacked concrete evidence to prove that Gary had assaulted me, and since I refused to admit to the abuse, the police could do nothing more than issue him a verbal warning.
Thinking I was still trying to protect Gary, Zoe sighed and said, “Why are you doing this to yourself?”
I simply smiled without responding. But in truth, I had already tucked away the hospital’s examination report.
Admitting to Gary’s abuse now would be letting him off too easily.
After the warning, we returned home.
Gary was in an extremely foul mood. His face was dark as if he had swallowed something rotten.
He glared at me angrily. “It was just a little scuffle. Did you really have to make a scene and humiliate me like that?”
His mother, Sandra, was equally displeased. “Was this really necessary? Running to the police over something so trivial? How embarrassing.”
His sister, Gina, was even more sarcastic. “You’re living off Gary right now. If you make a big deal out of this and he loses his job, how are we supposed to survive?”
Seeing that I remained silent, Gina grew bolder. “You’re
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overreacting! Even if Gary hit you, that’s just part of a marriage. It’s normal ups and downs! He’s not young anymore. Finding a wife isn’t easy. Do you think this is fair to him?”
I found her words laughable.
Living off Gary? A mere 200 dollars a month was what she called “support“?
Beating me into submission was that her idea of “marital harmony“?
So long as it didn’t affect Gary’s job or their comfortable lifestyle, did that mean I was supposed to endure the abuse?
And she wanted me to consider Gary’s difficulties? At his age, he already had a mistress waiting in line. He was hardly struggling to find another wife.
I let out a cold laugh. “How exactly have I wronged him? I don’t live off him. I don’t depend on him. If he loses his job and you all go hungry, what does that have to do with me? Look at yourselves, none of you work, just leeching off him. And you, Gina, you have nothing better to do than spread our family’s dirty laundry everywhere. If anyone should be ashamed, it’s you, not me.”
Perhaps I had always been too submissive around them. My sudden defiance left them momentarily speechless.
Gary, however, reacted swiftly, slapping me hard across the face. “How dare you speak to my mother and sister like that? Apologize to them, now!”
Sandra and Gina joined in, shouting furiously, “Ungrateful wretch! After all these years of Gary supporting you, how dare
you talk
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Chapter 2 back?”
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I looked at their furious faces and deliberately provoked them further. “Apologize? That’s never going to happen. After the way you’ve treated me, you still expect me to say sorry? Keep dreaming.
“The ones freeloading here are you, not me. Don’t try to pin that on me. And let’s be clear, this whole mess is Gary’s doing. He was the one who had an affair, not me. So why should I apologize?”
I purposely struck Gary where it hurt the most, making him explode in rage.
Losing control, he hit me again.
The house erupted into chaos, filled with the sound of crashing furniture.
Blinded by anger, Gary struck me several times across the face, hard enough to split my lip.
But I didn’t feel a thing.
Because I knew, this was the beginning of Gary’s downfall.
B
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