Chapter 5
I hit the ground hard, my head ringing and blood trickling from the corner of my mouth.
Hitting someone right in front of the cops-damn, he really had some balls.
If I wasn’t saving the best revenge for last, I would’ve had him thrown in jail right then and there.
Priya started crying again.
“Maya, fine, bully me all you want, but how can you go after my mom like this? She’s an elderly woman-how can you be so heartless and make up lies
about her?”
I ignored her completely and pulled up my phone, showing the officers the digital receipt.
“Guess some people really won’t give up until they’re dead and buried.”
“Officers, I’d appreciate it if you could investigate this thoroughly-I’ve had a lot of things go missing from my house recently, and I suspect it’s all connected to her.”
Carmen nearly collapsed to the floor. Good thing Priya was there to catch her.
The officer nodded. Given the dollar amounts involved, they couldn’t afford to take this lightly.
And just like that, Carmen got herself a nice pair of silver bracelets-the kind that click shut.
Both the dress and the jewelry were confiscated as evidence.
Leonard couldn’t believe everything I’d said was actually true.
He’d seen me put both items in the closet before.
I’d even told him at the time that they were birthday gifts for my mother.
He just never imagined they were worth over ten million dollars!
“Maya, you’re so materialistic and vain! Do you have any idea how hard I work for money? How could you spend this much?”
I shot him a look and said mockingly, “You don’t even have that kind of money. I spent my own cash. You? Please.”
Leonard was so pissed he couldn’t even speak.
The police needed to take me to the hospital to document my injuries, then to the station for my statement.
But they gave me ten minutes first to settle our private affairs.
Priya watched her mother get led away in handcuffs and threw herself into Leonard’s arms, sobbing.
“Leo, you have to think of something to save my mom! Maya’s being so cruel! Leo, please talk to her for me.”
“My mom has worked so hard for this family-she doesn’t get credit, but she deserves some recognition. She’s cleaned every inch of this huge mansion by herself.”
“It’s just one dress! She could wash it and give it back.”
”
Did Maya really have to have my mom arrested? She’s an elderly woman and technically your elder too. How can Maya treat her like this? Does she have any respect for you at all? You’re supposed to be the man of this house!”
That last line made me burst out laughing.
Priya’s tears literally froze in her eyes, not falling.
“What are you laughing at?”
“First of all, your mom is the housekeeper. She gets paid to clean-it’s literally her job. As for why she’s cleaning this whole mansion by herself, it’s because this cheapskate next to you won’t hire another person.”
“He pays peanuts and works your mom like a dog, but you and your mom are totally fine with that arrangement, aren’t you?”
“Second, when you do something wrong, you face the consequences. Whether it’s a million dollar dress or a two dollar pair of socks, taking something without permission is stealing, and I have every right to call the police.”
“What’s wrong? Were you too busy learning how to seduce married men in college to pay attention in your ethics classes?”
“Third, I don’t have some weird fetish for treating my husband’s mistress’s mother like family.”
I glanced at Leonard, then looked back at Priya and said slowly, “Fourth, are you sure this house even belongs to him?”
When Leonard and I got married, he was in the middle of starting his business. Forget owning a house-the guy could barely afford to eat.
This house was in my name.
Back then, I didn’t want to hurt his ego, so I told him a friend was selling it cheap and I’d borrowed money from my parents to buy it.
When I finished talking, Leonard went absolutely ballistic, pointing at me and screaming.
“Maya, I’ve put up with your shit for way too long! I always knew you never respected me. Everything that happened today is what your family gets for looking down on me!”
He pulled Priya tighter against him.
“Since you’ve seen everything, I’m not hiding it anymore. I love Priya. She’s the only one who truly understands and loves me.”
I’d never been yelled at or hit in my entire life before today.
All the humiliation I’d suffered came from this man standing in front of me.
My laugh came out bitter and hollow: “Fine. You want a divorce? Great. I agree.”
