Chapter 3

That evening, Sophia's family showed up.

Her parents, Simon and Sasha, along with two male cousins and her third aunt filled an entire sofa.

Sophia sat off to one side, sobbing quietly, her eyes as red as a rabbit's.

Sasha crossed one leg over the other.

"Sophia has never had to put up with this kind of bad treatment in her life. Now that she's married into your family, she's being berated to her face."

Simon smoked, flicking his ashes onto the floor of my home.

"Some people never start their own families. They just keep mooching off their parents and spend every day eyeing their older brother and sister-in-law's property.

"If you can't raise your son properly, send him over to me. I'll discipline him myself. One beating a day, and all his problems will disappear."

My parents smiled ingratiatingly and swore on their lives.

"Riley will definitely move out this year. We won't let him disturb Jacob and Sophia's lives anymore."

Early the next morning, I called a tow truck and had my car taken to the workshop.

A little after two that afternoon, chaos erupted at home again.

Jacob and Sophia were arguing once more.

Then came that familiar slam of the door.

Sophia emerged from the storage room with a hammer in her hand, striding purposefully toward the stairs.

Less than half an hour later, my phone rang.

It was the owner of the workshop, and he sounded troubled.

"Mr. Kerr, someone's smashed your car."

My heart sank.

"The person who did it said she's Sophia. She said you're family and told me not to meddle in your affairs."

When I arrived at the workshop, I stood at the entrance and looked at my white Tesla.

The entire front end had caved in. The hood was crumpled into a heap of scrap metal, and the windshield had shattered until only the frame remained.

The left side of the body was dented inward by two feet. Even the main chassis beam was bent.

The workshop owner stood beside it.

"The engine, frame, and undercarriage are all ruined. It can only be scrapped."

I walked slowly around the car.

The fresh hammer marks across its body, one after another, felt like blows struck against my very bones.

Sophia stood some distance away, leaning against Jacob as she sobbed in fits.

He held her, speaking in a casual, almost dismissive tone.

"As it happens, my car got scratched too, so I brought it in for repairs at the same time. Sophia mistook your car for mine again. It's not that big a deal. Just take care of it."

He pointed to the car beside mine.

His Lucid was indeed there.

It had only one shallow scratch on the body, barely as deep as a fingernail.

I said nothing.

I took out my phone, started recording, and filmed everything from the front of the car to the rear, from the hammer marks to the wrecked undercarriage.

The owner took a scrapping form from a cabinet and began recording the details one by one.

The VIN number, purchase date, and mileage.

I stood beside him, checking each item against the records. I signed each line, then glanced at the car.

Perhaps because I hadn't paid them any mind, Sophia pulled herself out of Jacob's arms.

She yanked the gold bangle off her wrist and tried to press it into my palm.

"Riley, take this. I'm sorry."

Before I could react, Jacob's expression changed slightly.

"Riley, don't tell me you're going to squeeze money out of your own sister-in-law, too?"

I pulled my hand away.

"This car cost 37,000."

Sophia's eyes reddened, and her shoulders began trembling again.

Jacob stepped in front of her and shouted at me.

"Sophia doesn't understand these things! Why are you trying to scare her?"

Fuming, he pulled out his phone and dialed a number.

It wasn't long before my phone rang.

Dad's voice was so loud that it rattled through the receiver.

"You're asking Jacob and Sophia for money? Riley, don't do something so disgusting."

I gripped my phone, digging my fingernails into my palm.

"I didn't ask her for money."

Mom's voice cut in from beside him.

"That bangle was one of Sophia’s wedding gifts. What would it look like if you took it? Wouldn't that make people think our family bullies our daughter-in-law?!"

"I didn't take it!"

Dad roared.

"And you still think you're in the right! Sophia didn't do it on purpose. What’s smashed is smashed. Besides, it's Jacob's property anyway. What right do you have to throw a tantrum here?"