Chapter 3
I said calmly, "Wow, you pulled out all the stops to dodge taxes.
"But that's not my problem anymore. My lawyer's already on it. Pretty soon, you'll be getting calls from the bank and the IRS.
"And about that cash flow you mentioned? Too bad. It's officially my pre-marital property now."
All I could hear on the other end was his ragged, heavy breathing.
He sounded hopeless, like there was nothing he could do.
"Oh, and a heads-up," I added.
I was about to twist the knife one last time.
I said, "That 150-thousand-dollar bag your mom ordered at the luxury store last week, and the sports car your sister's paying off in installments.
"Their secondary cards? Yeah, those are canceled, too.
"Make sure you pay off the rest yourself."
With that, I hung up.
Finally, I had some peace.
Less than a minute later, my phone rang again.
This time, the caller ID showed "Rosa Taylor."
She was my ex-mother-in-law, who was always ordering me around.
It seemed she had heard the news too.
I picked up the call from Rosa.
I kept it on speaker, like before.
She yelled, "Christina, you ungrateful brat! What the hell are you trying to pull?"
The moment the call connected, her shrill scream blasted through the speaker, almost making my ears bleed.
I held the phone away from my ear.
Rosa went on, "Why the hell did you cancel my card? I was at the store, and they told me my card was declined. Do you know how embarrassing that was for me?
"I already paid the deposit for that 150-thousand-dollar bag. Now what am I supposed to do?"
I said nothing and listened to her losing it.
Rosa kept yelling, "And Paulina has to pay 15 thousand a month for that car. Now you've cut off her card. Are you trying to ruin us?
"You walking disaster! Letting you into the Taylor family was the worst mistake we ever made.
"Did you forget that without Steven, you wouldn't have any of this? You wouldn't be living this good life.
"Now that you've got some nerve, you think you can turn your back on us?"
She was spitting venom, throwing every nasty word in the book at me.
I took a sip of red wine and waited until she finally ran out of steam.
I then spoke with icy calm, "Are you done?"
She paused, caught off guard.
"Mrs. Rosa Taylor," I said, making sure she heard every word.
I used her full name, clear and cold.
I said, "First, we're not family anymore. So watch your mouth.
"Second, every single penny of that 'good life' you keep bragging about came from my account. Every dollar you spent was mine, not Steven's.
"Third, I can freeze that card whenever I feel like it. I don't need a reason, and I don't owe you any explanation.
"And about that bag you mentioned, and Paulina's car payments..."
I paused, letting the chill seep into my voice. "That's your mess. You deal with it.
"You're the ones who should be paying for all that.
"It had nothing to do with me."
"You! You..." She was so furious that she couldn't get the words out.
She cursed, "Christina, don't get too cocky. Steven won't let you off. The Taylor family..."
"The Taylor family?" I cut her off with a cold laugh.
I sneered, "Do you seriously believe there's still a so-called Taylor family?
"Rosa, who do you think has been paying for the house you and your daughter have been living in all these years?
"The utilities, the gas, the electricity, the property fees, who do you think foots the bill?
"Everything you wear and everything you carry was swiped on my card.
"Without my card, how long do you think your so-called 'fancy lifestyle' would last?"
There was nothing but silence on the other end.
I didn't give her a chance to say another word.
"That's it," I said, my voice cold and final. "Don't call me again. We're not close."
I hung up. Without a second thought, I blocked both her and Paulina's numbers.
My phone finally went quiet.
But it wasn't long before the doorbell rang.
The doorbell was being slammed over and over, wild and desperate, like someone was about to lose it.
I peeked through the peephole.
It was Steven.
And behind him was Amanda.
Both of them looked like they'd survived a disaster.
Steven's eyes were bloodshot, red, and wild, locked on my door like he was ready to tear it down.
He started pounding on the door, his fists slamming against the wood.
He shouted desperately, "Christina, open the door. Get out here.
"I know you're in there. Open up.
"Let's talk!"
I didn't move.
I went back to the couch and kept sipping my wine.
The pounding on the door and all the yelling just blended, like it was coming from another world.
"Christina, you bitch," Amanda screamed.
Her tone was sharp and desperate. "You ruined our wedding. Are you trying to ruin our whole lives too?
"Give back what's not yours."
I scoffed inwardly, a cold laugh rising in my chest.
I walked over to the door and hit the intercom.
"Steven." My voice came through the intercom, clear and calm. "Trespassing is a crime.
"I can call the cops. Keep banging on my door, and you'll see what happens.
The banging outside suddenly stopped.
After a few seconds, Steven's voice came through, barely holding back his anger.
He said, "Christina, let's talk. Open the door."
"There's nothing to talk about," I replied, my tone icy.
"The house! At least this house is mine, isn't it?" he shouted, like he was clutching at his last lifeline.
He shouted, "We were married for eight years. This is marital property. Don't think about keeping it all to yourself."
I gave a cold laugh. "Steven, did you forget?
"My parents bought this place for me, paid every dollar up front, before we got married.
"The deed? It's got my name on it, nobody else's.
"This is my pre-marital property. It has always been and always will be."