Chapter 4

I immediately had my suspicions, but I needed evidence. So I opened the car door, got in, and checked the dashcam footage.

Sure enough, it was Gavin and Linda.

When no one was watching, Linda told Gavin to grab a nail and a hammer, and then he started hammering the nail into my tires.

One hole wasn't enough for them. They kept pulling the nail out and driving it in again, repeating the process until the tire was totally deflated.

Once they were done with the left front tire, they started on the right. But just as they were making the first hole, someone came out of the house.

Worried they'd get caught, they didn't even have time to pull out the nail before bolting.

I didn't have a spare tire, and with only a handful of cars in the village, there was nowhere nearby to get it fixed.

My temples were pounding with rage as I had no choice but to call for a tow truck. But the operator told me this place was so remote that the soonest they could get someone out here was tomorrow afternoon.

After hanging up, I stormed into the house, ready to settle the score with them.

Linda was chatting with others, and Gavin was nowhere to be seen. He was probably in the backyard, knocking back drinks with the guys.

I grabbed Linda by the collar, ignoring her protests, and dragged her out to the car. Pointing at the flat tire, I yelled, "What the hell is your problem?

"I let your son off out of respect for Grandma, and now you're crossing the line!"

A few relatives followed behind, whispering, "What's up with Helen's daughter? She's acting like some wild woman."

"Yeah, she's such a tigress. No way I'd ever let my son marry someone like her."

Linda broke free, fixed her collar, and snapped back, "Looks like your tires got punctured on the way here. What's that got to do with me? You're acting like some mad woman, snapping at people for no reason."

I gave a cold laugh, pulled up the dashcam footage, and hit play.

The evidence was undeniable, and the onlookers broke into hushed whispers.

Linda's face went pale. After a moment, she slapped my hand away. "This is doctored! You city people are always up to these tricks. Don't think you can push me around just because I didn't go to school.

"You just want to squeeze money out of me, but I'm not giving you a dime!"

I shot back, "There are your fingerprints on the nails. Let the police dust them for prints and we'll see who's lying."

Linda dove for the tire, yanked up her skirt, and frantically wiped the nail. "Fingerprints? What fingerprints? I don't see any. Go ahead and call the cops if you can. You think I'm scared of you?"

Just as things were getting heated, one of the relatives suddenly burst through the gate. "Linda, bad news! Tommy just fell out of a tree!"

Linda was in shock. "What? Tommy? Tommy!"

Then, as if a thought suddenly struck her, Linda spun around and shoved me hard. "You bitch, did you do this to my son?"

I let out a sarcastic laugh. "Seriously? I've been standing right here in front of you the whole time. How could I possibly have pushed your son?"

Linda snorted, jabbing a finger at my nose. "Just you wait. If this has anything to do with you, I'll make you pay!"

With that, she started screaming, "Tommy, I'm coming to save you!" Then she dashed out of the yard after the relative who'd brought the news. The other relatives quickly followed her.

I trailed behind the crowd, taking my time.

I wasn't trying to meddle. I just wanted to witness that little brat finally face some consequences.

We all made our way to the square.

It wasn't really a square. It was just a bare stretch of dirt, with firecracker and firework debris scattered everywhere.

By the time we got there, a crowd of locals had already gathered. Tommy was sitting in the middle, bawling his eyes out. His wails were so loud that we could hear them from a mile away.

His knees and calves were bent at an unnatural angle—clearly broken.

Linda went wild, pushing through the crowd and knocking people over as she rushed to Tommy. She grabbed him and wailed, "Tommy, what happened? Who did this to you? Was it that bitch? Tell me, and I'll break her leg to avenge you!"

Once again, I was taking the fall for something I had nothing to do with. I rolled my eyes speechlessly.

One of the locals finally had enough and said, "Who else are you gonna blame? Your kid fell because he climbed the tree himself."

Linda snapped back, "That's ridiculous! Tommy's so clever. He's perfectly fine climbing trees. There's no way he'd fall like that."

"Well, you'd better ask your son about that," another local sneered. "He was running around the square, tossing firecrackers everywhere. He even threw one under a girl's dress.

"The girl's leg got burned, blood running down her calf, and your son just kept throwing more.

"Her boyfriend tried to step in and stop him, but your son climbed up a tree, pulled faces at them, and started hurling rocks. Then he fell."

Honestly, these locals were actually pretty good. They were way better than my crazy relatives.