“Sis-in-law, just wait. Soon, you’ll be living in the villa,” my brother-in-law had said earlier that day, full of excitement.

But by nightfall, he returned with his wife and my mother-in-law, pounding on the door with loud, angry fists.

“Audrey!” they shouted, their voices shrill. “What’s the meaning of this? Only two thousand dollars? Who are you trying to fool?”

“I see it now. You must’ve kept the house money for yourself!”

“Open the door! Mom’s here too!”

I had already anticipated this would happen. Without a word, I walked over and opened the door.

My brother-in-law stormed inside, his face twisted in disbelief. “Audrey, what the hell is this? We agreed to split the villa cost. Why did you only give me two thousand?”

His wife immediately added fuel to the fire. “Sis-in-law, we trusted you. This is how you repay us?”

I frowned. “What do you mean? That’s the full amount from the sale.”

“You’re unbelievable! Lying through your teeth like that, aren’t you afraid of karma?”

He shoved the bank card toward Marlon. “Bro, are you seriously okay with this?”

Marlon knew I had sold the house, but he hadn’t been involved in any part of the process.

After all, the property had been in my name from the beginning.

At first, Marlon assumed his brother was just stirring trouble, so he turned to their mother and asked calmly, “Mom, how much money was actually in the card?”

I also looked at her, wanting to see where she truly stood.

“Mom, you went with me to the bank. You know exactly how much was deposited,” my brother-in-law said sharply.

My mother-in-law’s gaze flicked toward Marlon, her expression tangled with hesitation. After a beat, she finally nodded and admitted, “That’s right. There really was only two thousand in the card.”

Marlon stared at me, clearly unable to comprehend what I was doing. “Where’s the rest of the house money?” he asked.

I shrugged lightly. “That’s all there was. There’s nothing more.”

“Impossible!”

Marlon suddenly exploded. “That house was worth a million! And you’re telling me you sold it for just two thousand?”

He glared at me like he didn’t recognize the person in front of him. “Are you stupid? Or do you think I am? Or are you just treating this whole family like a bunch of fools?”

It was the first time since we got married that Marlon raised his voice at me, and he did it right in front of everyone.

Rihanna sneered from the side, her voice full of mockery.

“Sis-in-law, I used to think you were gentle and kind. Turns out you were just putting on a show.”

“Well, hats off to your acting skills. They’re impeccable.”

I smiled faintly. “Gentle and kind? Me?”

Maybe that’s how I came across before.

But what they never understood was that being quiet didn’t mean I was weak.

It only meant I had been tolerant until now.

The moment I found out my mother-in-law had secretly agreed to sell the house behind my back, the last thread of my patience snapped.

“This house was originally mine. Whether to sell it or not should’ve been my decision. Now that I’ve sold it, you expect me to squeeze into a villa with all of you. What else do you want?”

The room fell silent.

They looked at me as if I were speaking a foreign language as if I had lost my mind.

After all, everyone knew the house had been bought three years ago with money from the Dean family.

Back then, the old woman had told everyone the deed would be in my name, and it was.

And now, I claimed there were only two thousand left from the sale?

“What, are we wronging you by letting you live in a villa? What a joke. Hand over the million right now!”

As her daughter-in-law lashed out at me, my mother-in-law tried to play peacemaker.

“Alright, alright. That’s enough.”

“Mom, this isn’t my fault, it’s hers!”

Rihanna acted like she’d been gravely wronged, her voice shrill with self-pity.

My brother-in-law couldn’t take it anymore. He turned his fire on the old lady, saying she was being unfair.

He accused me of hiding the house money, insisting that if I didn’t hand it over, no one would be able to move into the villa, and the elderly couple would be stuck climbing stairs every day.

I turned to face my mother-in-law directly.

“Mom, tell me honestly, do you really think that money should come from me?”

She snapped, voice full of indignation, “You’ve got the nerve to ask that? After living with the Dean family all these years, haven’t we spoiled you enough?”

My brother-in-law finally lost it and pointed straight at my face, hurling curses like knives.

The entire house erupted into chaos, shouting, finger-pointing, accusations flying in every direction.

I pretended not to hear a thing and calmly asked my mother-in-law again, “You know better than anyone the situation with this house, don’t you?”

Marlon’s expression darkened the moment I questioned his mother.

He dragged me aside, voice low but cold, “Where’s the house money? Did you even sell it? Or are you just refusing to move into the villa?”

I looked him in the eye. “I sold it. That’s all there was. If you want to know more, ask your mom.”

“Enough with the lies. You just don’t want to give us the money!”

Suddenly, my brother-in-law flung the bank card at me.

The edge sliced across my right cheek, and warm blood began to drip down my face.

My mother-in-law panicked. She hurried over with a bandage, pushing her son aside and scolding him, “She’s your sister-in-law! How could you treat her like that?!”

“Mom, after everything she’s done to this family, and you’re still on her side?!”

My brother-in-law stared at his mother in disbelief.

So did his wife. Even Marlon couldn’t understand her sudden change.

He turned to me with suspicion in his eyes.

“What kind of spell did you cast on Mom? Why is she suddenly protecting you?”

I pressed a tissue against the wound on my cheek, blood still trailing down.

And yet, Marlon, my husband, didn’t even flinch.

Not a word of concern. Not a glance at the injury.

Instead, he turned to accuse me.

Three years of marriage, and this was what it came to.

Clearly, I had misjudged from the very beginning.

Seeing I didn’t respond, Marlon stepped closer, his tone colder.

“Did you threaten my mom with something?”

“You’d better not have, or there’ll be consequences.”

I looked at him quietly and asked, “What consequences?”

Oddly enough, I felt nothing.

Not even anger.

Maybe I had already given up on him a long time ago. This was just the final nail in the coffin.

Marlon glared at me, fury rising in his eyes like he was ready to rip me apart.

Maybe I had embarrassed him. Marlon pointed at me and snapped, “I’ve been too tolerant with you, haven’t I?”

“I used to stay out of your business, let you do whatever you wanted, and now look at you, completely out of line!”

I stared at him, this man with fury twisting his face.

Was this really my husband?

So it was true, people did change after marriage.

His mother cut in, voice sharp, “How can you speak to your wife like that? You’re the one who’s out of line!”

She handed me a bandage and tried to help, but I took it calmly and said, “Thanks.”

She didn’t press.

But Marlon snatched the bandage out of my hand, barking, “Who do you think you’re talking to? That’s my mom, your mom too!”

“Enough, Marlon. Audrey’s just upset right now. It’s understandable.”

“You understand her, but does she understand you? She just thinks you’re easy to manipulate.”

In his mind, I had already turned his mother against him.

That’s why I dared to act this boldly.

I gave a bitter smile and looked at her. “Mom, be honest. Have I ever mistreated you?”

I expected her to deny it without hesitation.

But to my surprise, she said nothing. Her head lowered, lips sealed.

My chest tightened. Just as I was about to speak again, Marlon cut in sharply, “Mom’s silence says it all. What more do you want?”

His sister chimed in with a sneer, “See? Everyone saw that. Sis-in-law’s been forcing Mom all along!”

“Mom, why aren’t you saying anything?”

Still, she remained silent.

I let out a soft, bitter laugh, one, then two.

That was the moment I finally saw them all for who they truly were.

From the very beginning, they had never truly seen me as family.

Maybe it was because I had lowered myself to marry into their home.

Call it self-pity, the worst mistake of my life.

“Fine. If you don’t say it, then I will.”

All these years, only my mother-in-law knew the truth about that house.

Three years ago, she promised the deed would bear my name, that I would have the final say in this home.

Even then, I knew it wouldn’t be that simple.

Still, she treated me well.

She did the laundry, ran errands, cooked for us.

She never meddled in our private lives.

Because of that, I chose to keep the truth about the house buried.

My brother-in-law scoffed, “Say what you want. You’re just being stubborn.”

“Exactly. Hand over the money, and we’re good. If not, prepare to go down to the station!”

“I don’t mind. Let’s go.”

The bigger the scene, the better. I had nothing to hide.

My mother-in-law panicked and quickly tried to comfort me.

“Audrey, don’t listen to them. I’m on your side.”

I smiled coldly. “Anyone can make promises with words, just like the one you gave me back then, remember?”

At that, her face stiffened with embarrassment.

After a moment’s pause, she finally turned to me.

“How about this: you just pay 800,000 for the house, alright?”

“Mom, are you serious?”

My brother-in-law immediately grew upset. “We agreed you’d cover 1 million, and we’d take care of the rest. Now you’re making us pay another 200,000? Who can afford that?”

My mother-in-law quickly explained, “You can’t look at it that way!”

“This time, the villa’s deed will be under your name. What’s wrong with paying a little more?”

“You really think you can get everything and still complain?”

Her words finally quieted them down.

My brother-in-law sulked but didn’t argue further.

His wife, too, kept her mouth shut.

I narrowed my eyes at her and asked, “Why would the property deed be under his name?”

She stammered, “Well, their side is paying more than yours. Isn’t it fair for the deed to go under their name?”

“I see. So that’s how you really think.”

Everything made perfect sense now.

From the moment she promised me that house three years ago when she said the deed would be in my name, I should’ve known it was all part of a long con.

And clearly, that performance has continued until today.

“So even if I fork over the full one million, the deed still belongs to him, right?”

“This…”

My mother-in-law faltered, unable to come up with a decent excuse.

Even she probably realized how shameless it sounded.

Then came that familiar voice. “What are you trying to say now? You won’t even put in 800,000, yet you still expect the deed to be in your name?”

She clicked her tongue. “Here’s some advice: be kind and learn to appreciate what you have!”

I couldn’t hold back a laugh.

Be content? The nerve of her to say that.

“Enough, enough. Buying a house isn’t that urgent,” my mother-in-law chimed in, trying to de-escalate.

“We’re all one family here. Let’s just sit down and talk things through calmly.”

I knew deep down she only stopped them because she didn’t want me to expose the truth behind everything.

“This is my bottom line. I hope you all remember that.”

Just as I was about to close the door, my brother-in-law yelled, “What’s that supposed to mean?!”

But before he could barge back in, my mother-in-law yanked his arm and forcefully dragged the couple away.

Marlon sat stiffly on the couch, face cold and unreadable, not saying a word.

I stood in front of him and asked, for the first time in our entire relationship, “Do you believe me or your mother?”

His reply came without hesitation, cold and indifferent. “What do you think?”

“If I told you I didn’t take a single cent from that house, would you believe me?”

Marlon shook his head. “No.”

“Alright. I get it now.”

I turned around and went back into the bedroom to start packing my things. While folding my clothes, I said calmly, “Let’s get a divorce. I can’t stay in this house for another second.”

Marlon rushed over and grabbed the suitcase, trying to stop me.

For a moment, I thought maybe it was because he still cared. Maybe our years together meant something.

But then he snapped coldly, “You can leave, but not until you hand over the house money.”