Chapter 4 · The Wife Strikes Back

The next day, Helen stayed over.

She started bossing me around first thing in the morning. "Why isn't there any steak in the fridge? Don't you know Ethan loves steak?"

I said, "I just made pan-seared steak yesterday. I thought I'd make something different today."

"Do you even care what he likes? You always just make whatever you want."

I bit my tongue.

At lunch, I made four dishes and a soup. Helen took a bite.

"You put too much salt in," she said.

It tasted just like it always does.

I didn't argue.

When Mia got home from kindergarten that afternoon, she ran straight into my arms.

"Mommy, Mommy!" she called out.

Helen watched, her brow furrowing.

"Mia, greet Grandma," I said.

"Hi, Grandma," Mia said politely, then snuggled back into my arms.

Helen looked displeased. "See how you've spoiled her? She only clings to you and won't even acknowledge anyone else. Imagine what she'll be like when she's older."

I kept quiet.

After I put Mia to bed that night, I heard voices coming from the living room.

It was Helen and Ethan.

"Ethan, be honest with me. How are things really going with Claire?" Helen asked.

"Everything's good," Ethan replied.

"Don't play games with me. That colleague of yours, Sophie, right? Your dad said he saw a picture of you two together on his social media."

There was a brief silence.

"Mom, it was just a work photo," Ethan replied.

"I don't care if it's a work photo or not. If you're really into her, I'm not going to stand in your way. But you need to sort things out with Claire first," Helen said.

I froze.

Helen knew.

Not only did she know, she was totally fine with it.

"Claire's been cooped up at home for years, totally out of touch with the world. And look at her family, her dad's retired, her mom's just a country woman. What can they possibly do for you?" Helen said.

"Come on, Mom, that's a bit much, " Ethan replied.

"I'm just telling it like it is. If you hadn't felt obligated because she gave you a daughter, you would've kicked her out long ago. Forget it, I won't say more. Just think about it."

I stood at the corner of the stairs, catching every single word.

So that was how it was.

So this was what six years had earned me.

Out of touch. A useless family. Just gave him a daughter.

Julia was right.

I've just been letting things happen to me.

If I don't take action now, it'll really be too late.

The next morning, I slipped out while Ethan was at work and Helen was napping.

I deliberately went to the bank farthest from home and opened a new account using my own ID.

Then I transferred about 27,000 dollars from my old account to the new one.

No one knew about this account.

On my way home, I got a call from an unknown number.

"Hello, is this Ms. Star?" a voice asked.

I stopped in my tracks.

Star was the name I used on the design platform.

"Yes, that's me," I replied.

"Hi, Ms. Star, I'm an editor from HomeStyle Network. The old apartment renovation project you uploaded to our platform is doing well. It's already been featured on our homepage. We'd love to invite you to our designer salon next month. Would you be interested?"

I thought, 'The homepage?'

I hung up and checked the app right away.

470,000 views, 23,000 saves, and over a thousand comments.

I had designed that whole project using Mia's room as my inspiration.

470,000 people had seen my design.

But in this house, nobody ever saw any value in me.

I couldn't take my eyes off that number.

Then I texted the editor back: [Yes, I'll be there.]

That evening, I met up with Julia at her place.

"Is this enough evidence now?" I asked.

Julia flipped through the folder I'd put together.

Over a hundred screenshots of their conversations.

Hotel bills.

Receipts for the silk scarves.

Bank records of the asset transfers.

And a recording of Helen and Ethan's conversation from last night, which I secretly recorded on my phone while hiding by the stairs.

"This is pretty solid," Julia said. "But there's still one key piece of evidence missing."

"What is it?" I asked.

"Concrete proof of the affair," Julia said. "What you have shows there's something going on and that he's moving money around, but if you want to prove adultery in court, you need real photos of him checking into a hotel or some intimate photos."

"You mean..."

"Follow him and take pictures."

"Me?"

"You can't do it alone, it's too easy to get caught. I know someone who does private investigations. He's trustworthy. Do you want to meet him?"

I paused to think. "How much will it cost?"

"At least 3,300 dollars."

I gave a firm nod.

"I'll cover it," I said.

Julia looked at me. "Claire, you're not the same person you used to be."

"I'm still me. I just finally woke up," I replied.

Chapter 4

The next day, Helen stayed over.

She started bossing me around first thing in the morning. "Why isn't there any steak in the fridge? Don't you know Ethan loves steak?"

I said, "I just made pan-seared steak yesterday. I thought I'd make something different today."

"Do you even care what he likes? You always just make whatever you want."

I bit my tongue.

At lunch, I made four dishes and a soup. Helen took a bite.

"You put too much salt in," she said.

It tasted just like it always does.

I didn't argue.

When Mia got home from kindergarten that afternoon, she ran straight into my arms.

"Mommy, Mommy!" she called out.

Helen watched, her brow furrowing.

"Mia, greet Grandma," I said.

"Hi, Grandma," Mia said politely, then snuggled back into my arms.

Helen looked displeased. "See how you've spoiled her? She only clings to you and won't even acknowledge anyone else. Imagine what she'll be like when she's older."

I kept quiet.

After I put Mia to bed that night, I heard voices coming from the living room.

It was Helen and Ethan.

"Ethan, be honest with me. How are things really going with Claire?" Helen asked.

"Everything's good," Ethan replied.

"Don't play games with me. That colleague of yours, Sophie, right? Your dad said he saw a picture of you two together on his social media."

There was a brief silence.

"Mom, it was just a work photo," Ethan replied.

"I don't care if it's a work photo or not. If you're really into her, I'm not going to stand in your way. But you need to sort things out with Claire first," Helen said.

I froze.

Helen knew.

Not only did she know, she was totally fine with it.

"Come on, Mom, that's a bit much, " Ethan replied.

"I'm just telling it like it is. If you hadn't felt obligated because she gave you a daughter, you would've kicked her out long ago. Forget it, I won't say more. Just think about it."

I stood at the corner of the stairs, catching every single word.

So that was how it was.

So this was what six years had earned me.

Out of touch. A useless family. Just gave him a daughter.

Julia was right.

I've just been letting things happen to me.

If I don't take action now, it'll really be too late.

The next morning, I slipped out while Ethan was at work and Helen was napping.

I deliberately went to the bank farthest from home and opened a new account using my own ID.

Then I transferred about 27,000 dollars from my old account to the new one.

No one knew about this account.

On my way home, I got a call from an unknown number.

"Hello, is this Ms. Star?" a voice asked.

I stopped in my tracks.

Star was the name I used on the design platform.

"Yes, that's me," I replied.

I thought, 'The homepage?'

I hung up and checked the app right away.

470,000 views, 23,000 saves, and over a thousand comments.

I had designed that whole project using Mia's room as my inspiration.

470,000 people had seen my design.

But in this house, nobody ever saw any value in me.

I couldn't take my eyes off that number.

Then I texted the editor back: [Yes, I'll be there.]

That evening, I met up with Julia at her place.

"Is this enough evidence now?" I asked.

Julia flipped through the folder I'd put together.

Over a hundred screenshots of their conversations.

Hotel bills.

Receipts for the silk scarves.

Bank records of the asset transfers.

And a recording of Helen and Ethan's conversation from last night, which I secretly recorded on my phone while hiding by the stairs.

"This is pretty solid," Julia said. "But there's still one key piece of evidence missing."

"What is it?" I asked.

"You mean..."

"Follow him and take pictures."

"Me?"

"You can't do it alone, it's too easy to get caught. I know someone who does private investigations. He's trustworthy. Do you want to meet him?"

I paused to think. "How much will it cost?"

"At least 3,300 dollars."

I gave a firm nod.

"I'll cover it," I said.

Julia looked at me. "Claire, you're not the same person you used to be."

"I'm still me. I just finally woke up," I replied.