To Frame Her

The Maybach was zooming down the road. Jackie would take a glance at me through the rear-view mirror, though there was only scorn for me in his eyes. All the love and care he showed me was an act.

It was all so I would give him my family's wealth and catapult him from a nobody to a business owner. I must've been blind to buy into his so-called 'true love' story.

My phone buzzed. An unknown number texted me. 'I heard you found out, Wisteria. When Jackie heard I was scared, he promised he'd come back to my place tonight. I hope your empty house isn't too icy for your taste.'

I was going to text back, but Jackie saw the messages, and he slammed the brakes. "You're going that far for a show?" He tried to take my phone away again. "You have way too much time on your hands if you keep coming up with these!"

I kept my hand around my phone tightly, and then he slapped me across the face. "Are you mad, Jackie?"

Jackie sneered and tossed the phone out the window. "No, you're mad, you ungrateful bitch!"

The doctor was already there when we got home.

Jackie approached him, his eyes red and tearful. "Doctor, you made it. My wife's been having crazy episodes, and she won't leave me alone! She even came up with my 'first love'! She's delusional! I think her infertility messed with her head!"

Though my heart was already cold and dead, the fact he told someone else I was infertile like it was a grocery list item shredded my heart into pieces.

I was the one who insisted on marrying him. My father said he was rotten inside, and he refused to let me marry. I stormed off in a huff and made a bet with him. "You'll have to recognize him if he stays loyal for ten years!"

A car crashed right into me after I left my house.

My womb was taken away, and pregnancy became an impossibility. He was right beside my bed, crying until his eyes were puffy. He said, "Even if we never have kids, you're still the only one I love!"

I bought into that story, so I became the woman who had his back.

I worked long weeks just to snag deals for him, and I pushed through all objections to make him chairman of the company.

Even though he had no idea how financial reports worked, I was still happy with him, all so his ego would not get scarred. The memories now made my stomach churn.

"If you call that a delusion, how are you explaining the photo and transaction history?"

Jackie stepped forth again, his eyes really red now. "See? She keeps coming up with really confusing stuff lately."

The doctor frowned. He was looking at me with pity. "Madam Oliviero, I know you've been under a lot of pressure lately. Your infertility must've started making you hallucinate. I suggest you stay in the hospital for further observation. You need medication if you want to heal up."

I wanted to argue, but Jackie cut in, "It's for your own good, Wisteria! It's for the family! Stop throwing a tantrum!"

His phone buzzed. Yvonne's photo popped onto the screen. He fumbled to turn his phone into silent mode, then the man turned back to us and shot me a glare.

"This is your fault! Yvonne can't even rest in peace now! You should've stayed in your lane, then none of this would've happened!"

I watched him act out, and I laughed, yet my tears flowed. "Why'd you hang up, then? She's already dead. Should've told her to show up and face me. We'll see who's the real guilty soul here!"

Jackie sneered, but when he turned, he faked a sigh. "See? She's starting again with her nonsense. Yvonne would never have let herself get insulted, but she died early, and no one can defend her."

The doctor sighed. He looked at me with pity again. "Mr. Kissinger, your wife isn't looking too good. I suggest you send her to a hospital even if you have to use force. The sooner we can intervene, the better."

Jackie nodded immediately. When he sent the doctor off, he whispered, "Get her a spot as soon as you can."

The door swung shut. His warmth disappeared right away. Before I could do anything, he was already pulling my hair and dragging me to the bedroom.

"You've been under too much pressure, Wisteria. Stay at home for a bit to cool down." He threw me into the bedroom and slammed the door shut.

Through the door, he said icily, "If you bring up Yvonne or the divorce, I will throw you into an asylum! Consider yourself warned."

I was leaning against the freezing door, my whole body shivering. For ten years, I gave him my love like a fool. In the end, he decided to repay me with a stint in the mental asylum.

How dare he!

I took out my spare phone from the drawer and texted my father. 'I take back everything, Dad! Please, I want Jackie to lose everything in a week!'

Her Father's Text

I was going to go to bed, but that number texted me again. She sent me a dozen videos. I played the first one, and the content froze my blood.

Yvonne was in my silk pajamas, lying on the bed in the main bedroom. Softly, she asked, "It's your wife's birthday. Maybe you should be with her."

The camera turned to Jackie. He was coming out of the bathroom.

He approached the bed and bent over to kiss Yvonne's forehead. Lovingly, he said, "Let's not talk about her. It's your 'deathday' today. Of course I'm staying with you."

Jackie told me he'd take me to the mountain and have a fireworks show during my last birthday. I waited for him the whole night and nearly fainted from the freezing cold. He never showed up.

He told me he had an urgent meeting to handle. That urgent meeting was about a dead woman, of course.

'Do you like the videos, Wisteria? He told me he'd never have married you if it weren't for your family's resources. Oh right, that car crash? It was no accident. The truck driver was Jackie's distant relative.'

My heart sank. And I thought that accident was, well, an accident. I never thought it was my husband's conspiracy to destroy my chances at having any children for life.

I banged the bedroom door and roared, "Get out here, Jackie! I saw the videos! You two were behind the car crash, weren't you?"

Jackie came in a moment later.

He was indifferent and tried to take my phone away again. "You're persistent, Wisteria. A spare phone? Where'd you hide it?"

I held on to it like a lifeline, but he kicked me down instead. "Stay in your lane, and maybe I'll spare you for old times' sake, or else…"

He took the phone and pulled out the SIM card. Then, he snapped in half. "You're staying right here. No one is going to save you, you crazy bitch!"

The very moment he took the battery out, I saw the text that flashed on the screen. It was my father.

'Wait for me, sweetheart! I'm coming!'

Jackie stopped checking in on me for days after that. The housekeeper gave me my food when it was mealtime, but she did not have the courage to even talk to me.

A week went by.

…

Jackie's assistant came bearing a gown. "Tonight's dinner is very important for Mr. Kissinger. Do please be on your best behavior."

I looked at the gown and laughed. Jackie was probably worried I might pull something during the dinner and embarrass him.

Very well, I'd like to see what he was up to this time.

…

His assistant led me into the venue, and the moment I did, a commotion broke out. I checked out what caught everyone's attention.

Yvonne was in an extravagant gown, and she came in slowly, her arm looped around Jackie's. The crowd broke into a discussion.

"That must be Mr. Kissinger's wife. They're perfect for each other."

"I'm jealous of Mrs. Kissinger. Her husband got her that gown in an auction."

Jackie did not deny the stories. Instead, he lovingly tidied up Yvonne's hair. I was right behind him, and the scene was so ridiculous, I let out a chuckle.

"I had no idea Mr. Kissinger has two wives."

The city of Imperia knew I was the one who made Jackie who he was. He would pay for his betrayal.

Silence grasped the hall, and all eyes were on me.

Yvonne acted like she had just seen me, and she let out a frustrated sigh. "You're wearing my gown? You're just my housekeeper."

She apologized to everyone like I was an embarrassment. "My housekeeper's gone mad recently. She keeps thinking she's my husband's wife. Can't do anything about it, I'm afraid."

Shock rippled across the hall.

"A housekeeper wearing her employer's gown and spewing nonsense? This is wild! Is she untrained?"

"I knew it. Mr. Kissinger wouldn't fall for someone like that. Only women as elegant as Ms. Willson can be a match!"

"So that's why she called herself Mr. Kissinger's wife. She's gone mad!" Someone laughed.

Jackie frowned at me. Impatiently, he said, "You rifled the closet? How dare you, Wisteria! I told you, Yvonne's stuff is off-limits! Change out of that gown and get back in the kitchen! You're an eyesore!"

I scanned the fence-sitters. The ones who spewed nonsense. Then, I stared at Jackie. So I wasn't even worth being recognized by him. I was nothing but a mad housekeeper he could insult at his fancy.

One of his old projects caught on fire and killed dozens of people. The army of the bereaved surrounded his company 24/7, demanding blood for blood. I used my family's power to keep the crisis at bay and even suffered a knife wound that was meant for him.

"I owe you my life!" he said. "I'll spend the rest of my life repaying that!" he promised, right beside my bed. He promised forever.

Now I knew that was also an act.

I took a deep breath and grabbed a glass of red wine. Before anyone could react, I splashed it right in Jackie's face. He flew into a rage.

My eyes were on him as I enunciated, "I've been blind all this time, Jackie, but that won't happen again."

A pregnant pause seized the hall.

Jackie was black as thunder, and if looks could kill, I'd have dropped dead. He clenched his fists and roared at the nearby bodyguards. "Don't just stand there! Toss this crazy bitch out!"

Dragged Out

A pair of bodyguards grabbed me by my arms and dragged me out, but I thrashed and squirmed and struggled. "Let me go! Do you have any idea who I am?"

A bodyguard slapped my face, and the impact made me bleed from my mouth.

"Yeah, a mad housekeeper who stole her boss' clothes! You're nothing! Mr. Kissinger's orders. Try anything funny, and we break your legs! Don't get in the way if you know what's good for you! Now scram!"

The bodyguard grabbed my hair and tossed me onto the asphalt outside the backdoor. For some reason, the chill of the ground sobered up my chaotic mind.

I was the heiress of Oliviero International, not some poor woman any bastard could push around. I would make them pay right now. I didn't even want to wait for my dad.

I leaned on the wall as I slowly got back up, then I went to the manager's office right beside the lobby. The manager noticed my disheveled look, and he frowned. "Who the hell are you, woman? This isn't a place for asylum inmates," he said impatiently.

I didn't want to argue, so I tossed a black-gold card over to him.

There were only two of its kind in Imperia.

He would recognize it.

The moment he saw my name on the card, his legs buckled, and he nearly fell from his seat. "M-Ms. Oliviero? But…"

I cut him off coldly, "Get me the top floor suite's surveillance footage. Tonight's. Right now. And tell IT to connect the banquet hall's projector set to the surveillance system. I want a live feed."

Oliviero International could wipe out small businesses like this with a snap of the fingers, so the manager didn't dare delay at all. He wiped the sweat off his forehead as he nodded. "Right away, Ms. Oliviero. Just a moment."

The surveillance screens showed the top floor's corridor clearly. Night fell, and Jackie took Yvonne into a room.

…

Half an hour later, they came out looking flushed and disheveled.

As I stared at the screen, I sneered and called my father. "Alright, you can do it now, Dad. He'll lose everything he has after tonight."

My dad said calmly, "Of course, Wisteria. It's all ready to go. I was just waiting for your call."

Back in the hall, Jackie was standing on the stage like a successful man. "I have good news, guests! Oliviero International has decided to invest 750 million in my company. We will—"

I pressed a remote button before he could finish. The big screen flashed. What appeared as 'Kissinger Corp and Oliviero International Strategic Partnership' changed to the top floor surveillance footage.

It was showing Jackie and Yvonne sharing a deep kiss.

Jackie's smile froze right away, then he roared at the waiter like a madman, "Turn the screen off right now! Why are you showing this?"

The waiter scrambled and pressed the off switch, but nothing happened. The crowd was flabbergasted. They had no idea what was happening.

Then, my icy voice echoed through the surround sound system. "Do you really think you can take my family's investment money that easily, Jackie? I gave you everything! From the moment you betrayed me, you should know I can take everything away from you!"

At the same time, Jackie got a call from his assistant.

He took the call with a trembling hand. His assistant cried, "Sir, this is bad! Our share prices are plummeting, and all our partners want to cancel their deals. The bank's telling us to pay off our debts right away! We're going to go bankrupt!"