Chapter 2
That night, Rachel's video was uploaded online.
The headline went viral in the city overnight.
[Wealthy Mother-in-law Humiliates Female Employee in Public, Wife Stands By Coldly]
In the video, Rachel got drenched in orange juice, David took a slap, and I sat at the kids' table, totally expressionless.
The whole backstory was cut out.
The comments were brutal.
Some people said I was picking on employees, hiding behind my mother-in-law.
Others claimed Stone & Partners Ltd. was squeezing its workers, and the boss's wife was just putting on airs.
Some even exposed Rachel's employee badge, saying she graduated from a prestigious university, was gorgeous, and landed a top assistant job at a young age, only to get humiliated by the wife.
David didn't come home that night.
When he finally showed up the next morning, he reeked of booze.
I was making Andrew some eggs.
He slammed his phone down on the table.
"Emily, are you happy now?" David demanded.
I didn't even look up.
"I didn't post the video," I said flatly.
"But your mom started all this!" David snapped.
"She's your mom," I shot back.
David was stunned into silence.
My mother-in-law came out of the guest room, holding her reading glasses.
She stayed the night, worried I'd feel bad being alone.
She gave David a cold look.
"You really have the guts to come back?" my mother-in-law asked coldly.
David rubbed his temples.
"Reporters are camped outside the office, and clients won't stop blowing up our phones. Mom, you need to apologize and take the heat off us," David said.
My mother-in-law let out a sarcastic laugh.
"Me? Apologize?" my mother-in-law scoffed.
"Rachel's just a young woman, and you did throw juice at her," David said.
Just as my mother-in-law was about to speak, I turned off the stove.
"David," I called out.
He looked at me.
I put the eggs on a plate.
"If you want to apologize, that's your call," I said.
David looked relieved.
"Finally, you're acting like an adult," he said.
I wiped my hands, then grabbed my phone.
"Watch the full video first," I said.
I opened the file.
The surveillance footage from the private room showed up perfectly on the screen.
When Rachel walked in, she went straight to the head of the table.
She called me over to sit in the corner.
She told everyone she'd be taking care of the boss today.
She raised an eyebrow and said I was pretty tactful.
Then my mother-in-law threw the orange juice.
David's expression shifted, bit by bit.
My mother-in-law stared at him.
"Got it now?" she asked.
David said nothing.
I sent him the video.
"You have ten minutes," I said.
"What do you mean?" David asked.
"Post the full video on the company's official account and apologize to me and your mom. Or I'll post it myself," I said.
David jerked his head up.
"Emily, don't go overboard," he said.
I stared right back at him.
"Who's really crossing the line here?" I shot back.
David gritted his teeth.
"Do you even realize how bad things are for the company right now? If that video gets out, Rachel's finished!" he snapped.
I nodded. "Did she ever stop to think if me and your mom would get wrecked too when she put out that edited video?"
David stayed silent.
Just then, his phone rang.
He answered and put it on speaker.
Rachel's voice came through, trembling, like she was on the verge of tears.
"Mr. Stone, the reporters are downstairs at my place. I'm really scared. Maybe I should just resign, I don't want to cause you any trouble," Rachel said, her voice trembling.
David instantly softened, his voice gentle.
"Don't worry. I'll handle it," he said.
I listened, then handed Andrew his fork.
My mother-in-law shot David a cold, hard look.
On the other end, Rachel's voice trembled. "But Emily doesn't seem to like me. Is she going to make you fire me?"
David shot me a look.
"No one can make me do anything," he said.
I just laughed.
My mother-in-law reached over and took David's phone.
"Miss Quinn," she said.
There was a brief silence on the other end.
"Relax, my son couldn't bear to fire you," my mother-in-law said.
David was stunned.
Rachel didn't say a word.
My mother-in-law went on, "So I'll be calling a board meeting."
David's face fell.
"Mom!" he blurted out.
My mother-in-law hung up. She tossed the phone back onto the table.
"Emily, let legal get the full video out there. And tell finance to look into all the reimbursements Rachel Quinn has filed since she joined," my mother-in-law said.
David froze. "Mom, are you out of your mind?" he blurted out.
My mother-in-law shot him a cold look.
"I'm not crazy," she said.
She paused.
"I just remembered, this company isn't yours alone," she said.