Yvonne gave me a stern look.

"You idiot! Why don't you understand what I'm saying?" she snapped.

"We are family now. This is my mother-in-law. From now on, we will be sisters-in-law. What matters is my family, not yours."

"Michael is not here yet. But I’m sure you will like him when you meet him later."

I did not want to waste any more words on someone so thoughtless, so I just pointed toward the door and shouted, "Leave now! Or I will call the police!"

Yvonne opened her mouth to answer, but Mrs. Eden raised a hand to stop her.

"Call them! Let her call! This new, soon-to-be daughter-in-law dares to speak to me like this before she even comes in. I will teach her a lesson today!"

"I want to see whether the police in our city will really take sides in family matters."

After hearing that, I said nothing further. I took my phone out and dialed.

"Hello, this is Unit 8, Room 1209, Angel Gardens. Someone is trespassing. I am afraid they are threatening my safety. Please-"

Before I could finish, a hand grabbed my phone while I was distracted.

Bang!

In the next instant, my phone struck the floor and broke into pieces.

"You little bitch! How dare you call the police!" they shouted.

I turned to see that Marcus had smashed my phone. When Marcus acted, Yvonne and Mrs. Eden woman did not stop him. Instead, they cheered.

"Good job! Marcus, you’re doing a great job! He is going to teach her a lesson!"

Bella felt threatened. She bared her small teeth and started barking at the intruders. Before I could pick her up, Marcus's son kicked her hard.

"You little bastard! If you scream again, I will beat you to death today!"

Bella was a Maltese and very light. The kick made her let out a sharp, high cry. I could not hold back any longer. I shoved the little boy away.

"What do you think you are doing?" he demanded, then began to cry loudly.

Seeing the child cry, Yvonne rushed forward and grabbed my hair. I was taken by surprise and thrown roughly to the ground. But she did not stop. Instead, she rolled on top of me and began slapping my face wildly.

"You fucking bitch, how dare you touch my son? I will make you pay with your life!"

"Back where I grew up, I could beat anyone! But even now, I can still handle you. Prepare for that, you fucking bitch!"

"You hit my son? I will kill you!"

The older woman spat at me and sneered harshly.

"Jeez! A bitch like you is not fit for my Michael!"

"You should be grateful the Eden family even notices you. Look at you, you tramp!"

The little boy grabbed a blue-and-white porcelain vase from the entry and smashed it at me.

"I will smash you to death, you fucking idiot! How dare you push me!"

As the vase broke, the older woman cheered and gave her grandson a thumbs-up. Their cruelty shocked me. My pulse suddenly raced with anger.

"My Dane is brave!"

"That is how it should be. If someone bullies you, fight back!"

Yvonne stood up and glared down at me with a proud, scornful look.

"Now you see you are wrong. I will teach you a lesson for breaking the rules and striking my son."

I rose slowly from the floor and looked at them all.

My voice stayed calm and steady as I told him, "This is breaking into private property, intentional injury and deliberate damage to property."

"You'd better think carefully about the way you will explain this when the police arrive."

When I named the crimes, Marcus, who had been silent until then, suddenly spoke.

“I really gave you a lot of face, but it looks like you still haven’t learned your place,” he said, voice low and threatening.

Mrs. Eden stepped forward and lifted her hand toward me.

“You little bitch, you really don’t know when to stop!” she shouted.

“I heard you and Marcus are from the same company. You’re so young and living in such a big house. What are you up to behind closed doors?”

“Someone must be keeping you. Didn’t some older man buy you this house?”

I grabbed her wrist and swung it hard. Just then, Yvonne had been pulling me. I didn’t want any of them to touch me again. Marcus’ mother immediately staggered and nearly fell from the force of my throw.

Her face went red with fury.

“You fucking bitch! I knew it! She dared to attack me!” she screamed.

“Tear it down! Tear it down right now! I wouldn’t live in this cursed house even if you gave it to me!”

She grabbed the ashtray from the coffee table and slammed it to the floor. The little boy shrieked with excitement, grabbed a small stool and began smashing things around him. Marcus climbed onto the sofa and ripped a framed antique painting off the wall.

I spoke in a cold voice, “That painting is Pablo Picasso’s original. It was sold at auction two years ago. It’s worth thirty million. You should be very careful.”

Marcus froze with the painting in his hands. However, his mother only laughed louder.

“Ha! Who are you trying to fool? Thirty million? That’s phantom money!” she shouted.

“You don’t even know what thirty million is, yet you’re bragging!”

Marcus’s face showed he believed her. With a final shove, the prized painting fell as its frame broke. The little boy jumped on the canvas, stomping it into pieces. Within minutes, the painting was destroyed.

Yvonne did not join the smashing. Instead, she slipped into my parents’ bedroom while everyone else was distracted. When she came back out, her hands were full of my mother’s jewelry. Her eyes were wet with greedy excitement.

I was about to rush at her when a firm voice came from the doorway and several police officers hurried in.

“Who called the police?” one of them demanded.