Chapter 7
“These requests aren’t unreasonable.”
The moment the words left my mouth, my son beamed with joy.
“Mom, I knew you were the best!”
My mother-in-law also broke into a wide smile.
“Camila, you’re so capable. Truly the backbone of this family.”
My husband looked at me with pride and satisfaction.
“Being able to marry such a thoughtful and generous wife is the greatest blessing of
my life.”
Their praise came rushing in, warm and overflowing, as if I had just agreed to sell myself again.
I glanced at the full table, then slowly lifted my gaze to them and said gently, “Do you know why I called you all here today? Why I got up early to prepare this meal?”
My son responded without hesitation, as if it were obvious, “Because you realized your mistake and wanted to apologize to Chloe.”
I shook my head and gave a soft, almost sorrowful smile.
‘You’re wrong.”
‘I wanted us to have one last meal together.”
Then, without another word, I pulled out the divorce agreement I had prepared in advance and handed it to my husband, Carlos.
‘Let’s get a divorce.”
‘Take your mother and your son and get out of my house.”
The words dropped like a stone into the room.
The smiles froze. The air stiffened.
They all stared at me in stunned disbelief, as if I had suddenly become someone they didn’ ecognize.
Carlos was the first to speak, his voice sharp and incredulous.
‘Are you out of your mind?”
‘Why are you suddenly talking about divorce out of nowhere?”
My mother-in-law clutched her chest, her face twisted in disbelief.
‘Camila! What did we ever do to deserve this?”
“You… you dare kick us out?”
I looked at her, my voice calm but cold.
“Why shouldn’t I?”
“This house is mine. Every penny spent here came from my dowry.”
“Without me, do you really think your son’s salary could support the entire family?”
“You’ve been living comfortably off my money all these years and now you have the audacity to call me stingy?”
7:53 pm
Seeing the situation spiral, Chloe, never one to miss a spotlight, quickly pulled out her phone and started live-streaming.
“Everyone, take a look at this!” she said dramatically, angling the camera for effect.
“My boyfriend and I came here today with sincerity, bringing loads of gifts to discuss our wedding plans…”
“But what did I get in return? Her mother flat-out refused the dowry and is now throwing us out of the house!”
“What kind of mother does that?” she cried with crocodile tears in her eyes.
“Her own son is about to get married and she’s pinching every penny like it’s life or death.”
“She told her son, her husband and even her elderly mother-in-law to get out, just to avoid spending money. Can you believe that?”
“I didn’t want to make this public, but she forced my hand. I had to go live so the world could se what kind of person she really is!”
Chloe had always fancied herself a small influencer, dabbling in dramatics for attention.
But nothing had ever taken off, until now.
This time, she knew she had a perfect storm.
She teared up on cue, spun her story with practiced flair and painted herself as the innocen mistreated bride-to-be.
In minutes, the live stream exploded in popularity.
The chat box lit up with messages:
OMG! My favorite streamer is being bullied by her evil MIL!]
This old woman is crazy! Chloe’s doing her a favor by marrying into that family!]
She’s choosing money over family? Disgusting.]
Protect Chloe at all costs!]
Encouraged by the flood of support, Chloe’s tone grew more animated, more venomous.
She began inventing stories, accusing me of all kinds of cruel behavior I had never committed.
It was clear what she was doing.
She wasn’t just trying to “tell her side.”
She was using this moment to utterly destroy me in front of the world and crown herself the tragic, misunderstood heroine of it all.
