Just because I called my dad "baby", my future stepmother Mariyah Bowen saw me as her rival, labeling me a whore.

She and her group of friends started a live stream titled "Rich Housewives Expose the Whores", creating chaos on the anniversary of my mom's death.

"You think you can seduce men to take shortcuts? I'll break your legs!

"Think you can go from being a maid to a secretary just by sleeping with a man? Our group of wives won't stand for that!"

Ignoring my attempts to stop her, Mariyah smashed the jewelry and piano my mom had cherished.

To vent her rage, she stripped me and let vicious dogs attack me.

Through the excruciating pain, I forced a smirk and called my dad, mocking him, "Dad, you're just a fool to be interested in such a woman!"

***

On the anniversary of my mom's death, as usual, I was in charge of the arrangements.

While waiting for the cake, I filmed a video in memory of my mother, only to accidentally come across a live stream titled "Rich Housewives Expose the Whores".

In the live stream, a few gaudily dressed, supposedly elegant ladies were sitting in a luxurious hotel, passionately ranting.

"Nowadays, these whores will stop at nothing for money. They'll even throw away their dignity to seduce rich old men for a shortcut.

"We, their legitimate wives, absolutely won't allow this to happen!

"As rich wives, we must stand united. Today, we're going to deal with the whores! We'll show them that not just anyone can break into our circle!"

I couldn't help but chuckle, wondering how many wealthy wives actually behave like that.

My mom definitely wouldn't.

The live stream's comment section was flooded with agreement.

[Young girls nowadays have no shame! My husband's just a small business owner, and he still can't resist them throwing themselves at him.]

[Everyone, keep sending gifts to help these rich wives take down the whores! We need to defend the dignity of wives!]

I couldn't stop myself from rolling my eyes.

The internet these days was full of this kind of toxic behavior. These women would go to extreme lengths to maintain their image as wealthy wives.

Judging by the decor, I knew they were broadcasting from the hotel right below me, the most expensive one in the city.

Once the cake for my mom was ready, I put on an apron and was about to turn off my phone when I saw my dad's girlfriend, Mariyah, appear in the livestream.

I'd never met Mariyah before, but I had seen pictures of her.

My dad was serious this time.

He said that before they could marry, he needed my approval, so he introduced Mariyah to me.

To ease my concerns, he even transferred all of his assets into my name ahead of time.

My dad was very satisfied with Mariyah. He said she had depth, was elegant and gentle, and at first, she didn't even know he was the richest man in town. She had a pure heart.

Seeing how well she took care of him, I agreed to let my dad marry her.

But who would've thought, here Mariyah was, on camera, speaking tearfully.

"Ladies, I must admit that I've experienced something like this recently.

"My wedding to Mr. Sparks is already being planned, but I never expected that the maid in our house would take advantage of the situation and sleep with him.

"She's even faking a pregnancy, threatening Mr. Sparks for a huge breakup fee. If we don't pay, she'll cause a scene at my wedding. I had no other choice but to ask you for help..."

Tears welled up in Mariyah's eyes as she spoke, her voice trembling with emotion.

A whore was even more despicable than a mistress.

They didn't care about love but money.

The livestream viewers were immediately filled with sympathy for her, aligning themselves with her, eager to defend her.

I was just as surprised by what was happening to my future stepmother.

Could my dad really have done something like that?

I thought carefully about the maids in our house. They had all worked with us for many years and didn't seem like the type to pull such a stunt.

Just as I was puzzling over the situation, my dad called.

"Sweetheart, I'll be a bit late. The flowers from the villa aren't looking good, so I'm heading to the east side of town to get some better ones for your mom."

My mom loved peonies, so my dad had bought a plot of land on the mountain to grow them himself. Every year, on the anniversary of her death, he would personally pick them for the occasion.

I replied and then got straight to the point, "Dad, have you been messing around behind your fiancee's back?"

My dad's voice grew agitated, "How could I? I even gave her access to my secondary credit card! Do you think I have that much free time?"

I was skeptical. "It better be like that. Otherwise, I'll be the first one to stick up for my future stepmom. After all, we're both women. Women support women, you know?"

My dad gave me a string of reassurances before hanging up.

Just then, I heard a commotion outside. I quickly grabbed the cake and rushed out.

As soon as I stepped out, a force shoved me headfirst into the cake.

"Ladies, this is the maid who's after money!"

"A lowly maid, throwing such a big party like this? Don't go anywhere! Today, you're all going to see how we deal with a whore!"

I struggled to lift my head out of the cake, only to see several women from the livestream standing right in front of me.

What was going on?

I wiped my face, holding back my anger, and tried to explain, "You must have the wrong person. This is my mom's..."

Before I could finish, a heavy slap landed across my face.

It was Mariyah who hit me.

She spat venomously, "Shameless whore! Do you still dare to deny it? Who else but you would wear a maid's uniform and flaunt yourself like this? Filthy woman! I recognized you at once!"

So now having a good figure was my fault?

Looking up, I saw Mariyah and the group of "wealthy wives", dressed in expensive luxury designer outfits, glaring at me, though I could tell some of their clothes were fake.

I had studied abroad years ago, and many of the guests here didn't recognize me.

Wiping my face clean, I looked straight into Mariyah's furious eyes.

"You're Mariyah, right? You've made a mistake. I'm not the maid, and you'd better apologize to me immediately."

Thinking it over, I left some room for compromise, assuming my dad had done something wrong.

After all, raising me hadn't been easy for him, and now that he had given me a huge fortune, I didn't want to ruin the rest of his life.

But Mariyah just scoffed and spat out venomous words.

"I've seen plenty of whores like you. Liars, every one of you!"

She yanked on the apron I was wearing, her tone aggressive.

"I'll teach you a good lesson today. I saw you on the security cameras, and you were shaking Jaime's arm and calling him baby!

"How shameful! He's old enough to be your father!"

She showed me a video clip.

I couldn't help but laugh.

That day, my dad and I were discussing how to organize my mom's death anniversary, and I joked that if my mom were still alive, Dad would still be her baby.

A little playful teasing between father and daughter had now become material for Mariyah to twist into something else entirely.

What a joke.

"What are you laughing at?" Mariyah demanded.

I shook my head. "Nothing. Mariyah, why don't you ask Jaime yourself who I am and what my relationship with him is?"

"I don't need to ask! Fiona Zamora, I've already investigated it. I know where you're from and how many men you've tricked. You're nothing but trash, trying to make men pity you!"

I was speechless. I'd taken my mom's last name, and all Mariyah could do after all her "investigation" was slander me?

Her behavior was worlds apart from the gentleness my dad had described.

"Nothing to say now, right? Kneel and apologize in the live stream!" Mariyah taunted, growing bolder.

The other wealthy wives took the chance to vent as well.

"Do you think Jaime's going to protect you? Dream on, he's just playing with you."

"You're young. Why not get a decent job?"

"Girls like her? She's good at selling herself. She's fishing for a big catch. Ladies, we've got to keep a close watch on our husbands!"

Mariyah publicly humiliated me in the livestream, egged on by the crowd of onlookers.

"Thank goodness we have these wives standing up for justice! Let's send gifts to make sure no more whores dare to try this again!" cheered the viewers.

It was clear to me now. Mariyah thought of herself as some kind of righteous avenger.

"If you won't ask, I'll let Jaime come here and explain himself."

I pulled out my phone and was about to call my dad.

But Mariyah, emboldened by the soaring viewer count, slapped my phone out of my hand.

"You whore! Trying to play the victim and flip the story on me?

"Restrain her!"

She tossed out a dog leash, and her friends immediately tied it around my neck, binding my hands as well.

That was when I noticed they had brought along several huskies and slobbering guard dogs.

"Mariyah! What are you doing? What right do you have to tie me up?"

I struggled, but there were too many of them, and I was quickly forced to the ground.

Mariyah held the leash, looking down at me from above.

The other guests, hearing her accusations, assumed I was the whore and didn't dare step forward.

One of the wealthy wives, laughing with delight, held up her phone and started recording close-ups of me.

"Ladies, don't hold back! Whatever you want me to do to this whore, type it in the comments!"

The crowd of viewers grew frenzied.

[Make her crawl like a dog!]

[Slap her face until it's swollen! See if she'll still be able to seduce men again!]

...

The comments were getting more and more vicious, and a cold sweat broke out across my back.

"Mariyah, have you lost your mind? This is the memorial I organized for my mom. It has nothing to do with your so-called whore! What you're doing is illegal!"

But Mariyah just threw her head back, laughing, and declared to the live stream.

"You're still trying to deny it, you whore? Memorial? A filthy maid can't even afford to hold a memorial for her dead mom. What's the point of you even being alive?

"Didn't you just scam all these things out of Jaime? Why isn't he here? Because he thinks you aren't worth it!

"Let me tell you something. I'm about to become the richest wife in town, and I can do whatever I want! You, a whore, are in no position to lecture me!"

The comments in the livestream multiplied, and the wealthy wives were gearing up for action.

At Mariyah's command, they unleashed the huskies to tear the place apart, scaring the guests into running for cover.

The wives smashed the jewelry, paintings, and decorations on display.

These were all treasures my mom had loved while she was alive.

Before long, the entire memorial for my mother had been destroyed.

"Smash it all! I want everything ruined! Jaime's money is also mine! I'm the richest wife in town, and I'll break everything if I want to!"

This group of people was truly insane!

Exhausted from the smashing, Mariyah sat down on a chair to rest, panting as she interacted with her livestream audience.

"Ladies, all this jewelry and artwork was stolen by that whore. They were originally mine, but they're filthy, so I don't want them! As the richest wife, I can smash my things if I want!

"Still, we real wives need to be magnanimous! After all, she did serve my man at one point..."

As she spoke, she picked up a shattered gemstone necklace from the floor and draped it around my neck indifferently.

The broken gems cut into my skin like blades.

It was bleeding.

But Mariyah, acting as if she were being generous, arrogantly declared, "Consider this a gift! Just accept it! Think of it as my breakup payment to you!"

I gritted my teeth in pain and said.

"Mariyah, as long as I'm here, you'll never step foot into the Sparks family! The richest wife? Dream on it!"

Hearing this, Mariyah flew into a rage, calling me a despicable woman.

Unable to vent her anger, she grabbed a spray can and vandalized my mother's portrait with the words "Cheap Woman" scrawled across it.

She then viciously insulted me.

"I bet your mother was a cheap woman too, to have given birth to a lowlife like you!"

The other wealthy wives became even more frenzied.

One projected the image of a hooker behind me, insulting me maliciously.

Another started editing a death portrait for me right on the spot, laughing, "Didn't you say this was a memorial? I'll make your photo ahead of time!"

I couldn't hold back any longer. Kneeling, I shifted to the side, trying to press the pager to call security.

But Mariyah noticed and stopped me instantly.

To prevent me from making any more moves, she tied my hands behind my back to a chair.

She gripped my chin and sneered.

"Who do you think you are? Trying to go up against us?

"I'm warning you. You're nothing but a humble whore. All you can do now is beg for mercy!"

I shouted again to stop her.

"Mariyah, have you lost your mind? Do you even realize what you're doing?!"

But Mariyah thought I was scared. She snorted coldly and said to me.

"Scared? It's too late for that!

"This is the price of your greed."

I stopped arguing with her. Whatever, my dad would be here soon.

Losing some money to make him see this woman's true colors would be worth it.

I watched numbly as Mariyah led the guard dogs and continued to smash everything.

She tore apart the dress and shawls my mom used to wear.

Seeing that I did not react, Mariyah flew into a frenzy.

She scanned the room and spotted my mother's portrait on a grand piano, with sheet music placed on top.

It was an intentional setup.

She immediately rallied the wives to grab tools and surround the piano.

"This piano was a gift from Jaime, wasn't it? But a maid like you doesn't deserve to play the piano!"

I panicked and warned them hurriedly, "Take your filthy hands off it!"

"Mariyah, don't go too far! If you destroy that piano today, you will regret it!"

But my words seemed to excite Mariyah even more.