Chapter 4
Dinnertime had come.
Mary couldn't cook, and David was only good at boiling instant noodles.
Back when I was still here, I'd come home from work and fill the table with steaming, homemade dishes.
Now, the stove was cold, and the kitchen felt lifeless.
The three of them sat there, stomachs rumbling with hunger.
In the end, David ordered takeout.
The takeout was greasy and already a little cold when it showed up.
Anna took a bite and spit it right out.
"This tastes awful. I don't want it!" Anna yelled. "I want steak. The one Flora used to make for me!"
She threw a fit, knocking the takeout boxes onto the floor.
Soup and food spilled everywhere.
David's face fell, his expression souring.
Mary, feeling for Anna, immediately lashed out at David.
"Look at you. You can't even take care of Anna," she snapped. "Go get her steak, now!"
David swallowed his anger, grabbed his car keys, and walked out.
Mary crouched down, grumbling as she cleaned up the mess on the floor.
"That Flora is a real curse!" she complained. "She up and left, and now our whole family is falling apart because of her."
Anna lay in bed, listening to Mary's ranting, her eyes filled with even deeper resentment.
It was all Flora's fault.
If she hadn't left, I wouldn't have to deal with any of this mess.
Anna fumbled for her phone by the pillow, her hands trembling as she pulled up my account.
Then she fired off a voice message.
Her voice was shrill and sharp, dripping with venom.
"Flora, you bitch. You'll die a miserable death!" Anna screamed. "Even if I die and become a ghost, I'll haunt you forever."
I listened to the voice message, expressionless, arching an eyebrow.
Then I slowly typed out a reply: [Sorry, but with the way you look right now—half-dead and miserable—even ghosts would steer clear of you.
[Oh, and by the way, the bed you're lying on? That was my purchase.
[Sleeping well, my sweet Anna?]
After hitting send, I blocked Anna.
I could imagine the look on her face when she saw my message—completely furious and freaking out.
I couldn't help but feel thrilled.
I turned off the surveillance feed and set my phone aside.
It was time for a nice, relaxing hot bath.
As for the Brooks family's mess?
Let them sort it out themselves.
*****
The next morning, David was woken up by a phone call.
He crashed on the couch last night, and his body was sore all over.
The king-sized bed at home was now Anna and Mary's exclusive domain.
He was a grown man, and he had been banished to the couch.
The call was from his boss, Eric Wallace.
Eric sounded pissed.
"David! Do you even want this job?" he shouted. "Where the hell are you? Everyone's waiting on you for this big project meeting."
David shot up, wide awake in an instant.
That was when it hit him; today was the big quarterly company meeting.
He had been running around like crazy yesterday and somehow managed to forget something this important.
"Sorry, Mr. Wallace. There's been some trouble at home..." David stammered.
"I don't care about your home life!" Eric barked. "Keep your personal crap out of the office. You have thirty minutes; get over here, now."
The call ended with a harsh click.
David stared at his phone, feeling a chill run down his spine.
He scrambled into the bathroom and frantically washed his face.
Mary was woken up by the noise and came out of the bedroom.
"Why are you making such a racket this early?" she asked.
"Mom, I have to get to the office. I'm already running late," David said.
"What about Anna?" Mary complained. "She hasn't eaten yet, and she still needs someone to help her wash up and go to the bathroom.
Mary spread her hands, insisting she was in the right. "I can't handle all this alone. I'm too old for this kind of hassle."
David was about to lose it. "So what am I supposed to do, Mom?"
"I don't care. You're not going anywhere today. If you leave, what are Anna and I supposed to do?" Mary fired back.
David and Mary were shouting at each other in the living room.
Anna, jolted awake by all the noise, started bawling and yelling from the bedroom.
"David, Mom! Stop fighting already.
"My legs are so numb. Hurry up and come massage them for me!"
The whole house felt like a pressure cooker ready to blow.
In the end, David finally caved.
He called Eric and made up a story about getting into a car accident, asking for three days off.
Eric gave a cold chuckle and hung up without another word.
David knew his job was hanging by a thread.
But right now, he had no time to worry about that.
Just dealing with the mess at home was already more than he could handle.
David had to wait on Anna hand and foot—feeding her breakfast, turning her over in bed, and even giving her a sponge bath.
For a guy who had never done a single chore in his life, this was absolute hell, especially when it came to cleaning up after she went to the bathroom.
When David walked out of the bedroom carrying a bedpan brimming with mess, he nearly gagged.
He finally got how foolish and unrealistic that promise to me at the hospital really was.
Handled all her needs—meals, drinks, bathroom stuff?
He couldn't even survive the first day.