All Chapters of They Called Me a Squatter in My Own Home: Chapter 1 - Chapter 9

9 Chapters

Chapter 1

Three days after my father’s death, I was home, planning his funeral. A woman and a group of bodyguards stormed in.She shoved me, hard. "Who the hell do you think you are?" she screamed. "Get out of my house! Now!"I froze, stunned. A new housekeeper? Maybe my brother Liam hired her. I kept my voice calm. "This house is mine. Liam knows that. If you have a problem, take it up with him."Her face twisted into a mask of rage. Then she slapped me."Yours?" She scoffed, looking me up and down with disgust. "This is my boyfriend Liam's house. And you look like you don't belong here. I don't know if you're the new maid or the cook, but I don't care. Get the hell out. Now."My blood ran cold. I pulled out my phone and texted my assistant.[Tell Liam to get home and handle his girlfriend. Now. Or he won't see a dime of the family money.]..."One hour!" she shrieked, pointing at me. "Pack your shit and get out! Stop squatting in my mansion!"Her mansion? The whole thing was absurd."This hou

Chapter 2

Amber stalked toward me, holding a bottle of red wine like a weapon.I recognized it. Dad’s prized 1947 Romanee-Conti. A fifty-thousand-dollar bottle."Wow, a real treasure trove in here," she said, her eyes gleaming as she scanned the walls of vintage wine. "The old man really knew how to live.""Those were my father's," I said, struggling to my feet. "Don't touch them.""Your father?" Amber’s laugh was a screech. "Stop pretending, you whore!"She raised a wine bottle high, her eyes locking onto the hand I had planted on the floor for support. She aimed for my fingers."These are the hands you play the piano with, right?" she sneered. "The same hands you use to play the whore and seduce men.""No..."CRASH!The bottle slipped from her grasp, shattering on the floor right next to my hand.Dark red wine splashed everywhere. Shards of glass flew like tiny daggers.A razor-sharp piece sliced across the back of my hand. A deep gash instantly split the skin open. Blood welled up, dark and t

Chapter 3

Twenty minutes later, the crunch of tires on the gravel driveway broke the silence.Chloe was fast.She's one of the top lawyers in the country, and my only true friend.The cellar door creaked open. Amber swaggered out, a greedy smirk on her face."Money's here?"I followed close behind, my good hand clutching my injured wrist to keep it steady.Blood seeped from between my fingers.Each beat of my heart sent a wave of searing pain through the wound.The front door opened and Chloe strode in. She was wearing a black Armani suit, flanked by two professional bodyguards.Her eyes scanned the wine stains on my clothes, the blood on my lip. Her entire face turned to ice."Stella?" Her voice was low and dangerous. "Who did this?"I gave her a slight shake of my head, a silent warning not to react yet."Do you have the money?" I asked, keeping my voice steady.Chloe took a deep breath and pulled a tablet from her briefcase. "Will a wire transfer work?""Yes, of course!" Amber practically sal

Chapter 4

The music and laughter died instantly.All eyes landed on me.Or more specifically, on the stark white gauze wrapped around my wrist.When Liam saw me, the flush of excitement drained from his face, leaving it pale.The champagne flute nearly slipped from his hand."S...Stella?" His voice shook.But Amber was oblivious to the shift in the room.She wasn't scared to see me. A cruel smirk played on her lips. She clung to Liam’s arm."Baby! That's her!" She pointed a perfectly manicured finger at me, her voice a poisonous whine. "That's the woman who bullied me!""Look at the mess she is. Her hand is ruined," she sneered. "Serves her right."Liam’s first instinct was to push her off.He’d always been afraid of me.He knew Dad favored me. He never dared to talk back.But his friends were watching. He couldn't make a scene.So he just stood there, frozen. Trapped.I ignored the sideshow. I walked right up to Liam and stared him down."You wanted me to kneel and apologize, didn't you?"Liam’

Chapter 5

The moment the cuffs snapped shut, Amber fell apart."No! No! You've made a mistake!" she shrieked, struggling. The handcuffs scraped against her diamond bracelet."Liam! Help me! Do something!" Her voice was hysterical. Mascara ran down her face in black streaks. "This is a setup! She's getting back at me!"All his friends took a step back.No one wanted any part of this.The same men who had been fawning over her moments ago now stared like she was some kind of freak.Whispers rippled through the room."God, extortion...""What on earth did she do?""I knew she was bad news..."Liam had never felt so humiliated.His girlfriend, arrested in LA's most exclusive club. Everyone was laughing at him.His face flushed crimson. Rage blinded him."Did you have to take it this far?" he snarled. "It was just a scratch! You called the cops over a goddamn scratch?"I felt nothing but ice in my veins.This was the brother I had raised for twenty years.He didn't even ask how I got hurt. He only ca

Chapter 6

CRACK.I slapped him with everything I had.The force snapped his head to the side.He stumbled back, clutching his cheek, his eyes wide with shock.The room gasped. The air went still."That was for dancing on our father's grave," I said, my voice dangerously low."And for letting that idiot smash the crystal piano Dad gave me!"I swept my eyes over the rich kids who had been enjoying the show.Their smirks were gone, replaced by fear.No one said a word.My eyes landed back on Liam.He was still holding his face. He wouldn't meet my gaze."You keep calling yourself the heir." I took a slow step toward him. "That mansion in Beverly Hills? The Porsche 911 in the garage? The hundred-thousand-a-month trust fund? You think you've earned any of that?"Liam’s lips trembled. He tried to argue."I... of course I'm the heir!" He tried to sound tough, but his hand was still on his face. "Dad's gone. I'm his only son!""Son?" I let out a cold, hollow laugh. Whatever love I had left for him vanis

Chapter 7

With Liam stunned into silence, I decided to tell him everything."Twenty years ago, your birth mother was an employee at my father's company." My voice was flat. "She was under a lot of pressure. She set a fire at the office and killed herself. My mother was badly burned trying to save people. She didn't make it."Liam's face grew even paler."Before she died, your mother left you, a newborn baby, on our doorstep.""I was eight years old. I begged my father to keep you." A flash of pain crossed my face. "I promised our father I would raise you as my own. Because you were just a baby, and your life mattered."The air in the room was thick with the horrible truth.Everyone was stunned."I gave you twenty years of my life. My youth." My voice began to tremble, not with sadness, but with rage. "I sent you to the best schools, gave you the best of everything, loved you like a real brother.""And what did I get in return?" I laughed coldly. "An ungrateful, cold-blooded snake.""A loser who

Chapter 8

Three months later, the verdict came down.Amber Lynn was found guilty of breaking and entering, assault, and extortion. She was sentenced to five years in prison.The one-million-dollar demand made it a major felony.No probation. No chance of parole.The day the news broke, I was in my office, reviewing blueprints for a new project.Chloe came in, a satisfied smile on her face."It's done," she said, placing the court document on my desk. "Five years. She'll serve every day."I nodded and went back to my work.Liam’s situation was even worse.After being thrown out of the club, his fair-weather friends all vanished.No one wanted to take in a broke, former rich kid.His phone was cut off, his credit cards were frozen. He had nowhere to live.For the first few days, he tried calling old contacts.But as soon as they heard his voice, they hung up.No one wanted to be associated with a "criminal's boyfriend."After a week, Liam was on the street.The nights in Los Angeles are not kind t

Chapter 9

One year later, Los Angeles.I stood in front of the newly completed LA Arts Center, looking at the building I had helped design.Its sleek, flowing lines shimmered in the California sun."Ladies and gentlemen, Stella Sterling!" the host's voice boomed from the speakers. "Let's welcome our lead designer to the stage!"The crowd broke into applause.I straightened my black Chanel suit and walked gracefully onto the stage.In the past year, I had sold the Beverly Hills mansion, which held too many painful memories.I got rid of it all, along with the wreckage of the crystal piano.With the money, I established the "Sterling Pianist Foundation," named after my mother and father.It was dedicated to giving talented young musicians the chance my parents gave me."Thank you all for your support," I said into the microphone, my voice clear and strong. "Art should not be chained by money. Every child with a dream deserves to be seen."The crowd applauded again.I saw Chloe in the audience, a p

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