Chapter 3

The table was full now, and the room filled up again with their voices, as if nothing had happened.

I carried out the dishes I had spent the entire afternoon cooking. I just wanted to sit down for a minute and catch my breath.

But Cedric spoke up right away. "Go get everyone's plates."

Vince and Helen followed without missing a beat. "Go get the medicine cabinet."

Nicole pushed a crab toward me. "Mom, peel it for me first."

In that moment, I understood something clearly. My life was both a joke and a tragedy.

I sat down and did not move.

"Get your own food," I said calmly. "The medicine is right there. Go get it yourself."

I pushed the crab back onto Nicole's plate. "Your useless mom doesn't know how to peel shells."

The room fell silent again.

I ignored all of them and picked up my fork. I started eating my own food.

After working all day, this was the first moment I felt like I could breathe.

Vince's face darkened, and he looked ready to explode.

Before he could say anything, Alina quickly stood up. She moved fast, grabbing the medicine, serving the dishes, and even peeling the crab carefully for Nicole.

Cedric shot me a look full of disgust. "So you're just going to sit there and let Alina do everything, huh?"

His voice turned cold. "I give you 1,200 dollars a month, and you can't even do your job?"

Nicole nodded right away. "Exactly. Mom, you don't even earn money. Why are you acting like this?"

For a moment, I wondered if they had all lost their minds.

He gave me 1,200 dollars a month. Nicole's after-school classes alone cost 500 dollars.

The rest had to cover building fees, electricity, water, holiday gifts, and the medicine Vince and Helen needed.

We ate three meals a day. Helen insisted on expensive beef, lamb, and seafood every few days.

Alina came over several times a month to eat, and every time she left, she took bags of the groceries I had bought.

If I had not been using my own savings and investment money to fill the gaps, this household would have fallen apart a long time ago.

I said nothing. Helen reached out and poked my arm. "Patricia, go ask around. What other wife has it this good?

"Cedric gives you 1,200 dollars every month to spend however you want. You should be grateful."

I let out a short, cold laugh.

I could not hold it in anymore. I slammed my fork down on the table.

"Grateful? You want me to be grateful?" My voice shook, but I did not stop. "I wake up before sunrise to cook. I take care of everyone in this house.

"I take you to the hospital three or four times a month and stay there with you the whole time.

"When has any of you ever been grateful to me?"

Helen's face went pale.

Cedric slammed his hand on the table and stood up. "That is your job! That is what you are supposed to do!"

His voice rose. "Do I not give you enough money? Don't forget who is supporting you. You should be paying your share of the household expenses. If you keep this up, I will cut your allowance in half."

It sounded completely ridiculous.

Alina stood up to steady Helen, then turned to me with a soft, gentle expression that did not reach her eyes. "Patricia, you're younger. You should not speak to your elders like that.

"Taking care of parents is our responsibility. It is your duty as a wife and a daughter-in-law."

She spoke as if she had nothing to do with this family, as if she were not also a daughter-in-law here.

Luke was gone, but she still took everything from this house. And now she stood there judging me.

"Then why don't you start contributing?" I asked, my voice steady. "Instead of coming here to eat, taking things, and then standing there acting like you are better than me."

As soon as I finished, Nicole looked up. Her eyes lit up.

"Mom, are you saying that because you want to divorce Dad?" she asked. Her voice sounded light, almost excited. "When are you going to do it?"

Something inside me finally snapped.

Nicole was only eight. For her to say something like that, someone must have been putting those words in her head for a long time.

I slowly scanned the room.

Cedric and Alina exchanged a quick look as if waiting for my reaction.

Vince and Helen stayed quiet, their eyes shifting back and forth.

Only Nicole stared at me, waiting, as if this were completely normal.

I forced a small smile. "Do you really want me to divorce your dad?"

Nicole replied without hesitation, "I just want Aunt Alina to be my mom."

Those words cut straight through me.