Chapter 4

The next morning I drove home, pushed open the door, and what I saw made me grind my teeth so hard they ached.

There was Nat, stick in hand, swinging and smashing around the living room like a monkey doing tricks.

The walls were gouged bare of paint, the ceiling fixture knocked down, the kitchen's glass door shattered, shards scattered all across the floor.

Paulette stood off to the side, clapping and cheering.

"Yes, just like that, keep it up, my boy's amazing!"

"Play, play all you want. Break it and we'll make that little slut buy us new ones."

"Son, smash this one."

Paulette pointed at the vase sitting in the TV cabinet.

Nat raised the stick high and brought it down hard.

Bang! Crash!

Glass and vase shards rained across the floor.

"Haha! "

Paulette clapped and roared with laughter.

"Good, that's the way to do it. Son, there's another one over here."

Nat lifted the stick again, and the blood shot straight to my head. I flew across the room like a madwoman and grabbed for the stick in his hands.

Nat might be simple, but he was freakishly strong, and I couldn't wrench it away.

"Make him stop!"

I screamed it at Paulette.

She gave a scornful little laugh.

"Who do you think you are, giving me orders."

"You bitch!"

Rage boiled over. I lunged and slapped Paulette across the face, hard.

The blow left her dazed. When it registered, she let out a shrill scream.

"Ah! You dare hit me!"

She came at me like a fishwife, latched on and held tight, shrieking at Nat.

"Son, hit her, beat her to death, it's not even a crime for you!"

I struggled with everything I had, but Paulette clung on.

Nat was already raising the stick to bring it down on my head when Iris, Bernard, and his parents appeared in the doorway.

They didn't move to stop Nat. Instead, one after another, they turned on me.

"Ina, have you lost your mind? They stayed in your house a little while and now you're beating and threatening to kill them?"

"Miss Fox, I'm warning you in an official capacity as property management. You may have bought this house, but that doesn't give you the right to throw your weight around in it, and it certainly doesn't give you the right to break the law."

"Ina, this is too much. They were your mother-in-law and your brother-in-law once, after all."

"Ina, look how old your mother-in-law is, and look at your simple-minded brother-in-law. How can you have the heart to bully them? Get down on your knees and apologize, right now."

Listening to them, I could have burst. From somewhere I found the strength to tear myself free of Paulette.

She smiled at me, cold and sly.

"Kneel and apologize? Too late. Nathaniel's almost here, and starting today this house isn't yours anymore."

"And I'm going to sue you too, for abusing an elderly woman and a disabled person. I'll ruin your name."

I looked at that insufferable, self-satisfied face of hers, and the cold in my eyes was nearly frozen solid.

The next moment I took out my phone and called my best friend.

"I need you to come over. And call the police while you're at it."