Chapter 3: Mother-in-Law

Miranda’s P.O.V

As soon as we got home, Michael rushed upstairs to our bedroom and left me with the jovial task of carrying his mother’s bags and showing her to one of the guestrooms, which was ridiculous since I was in no position to be lugging such heavy things. It seemed she had packed her entire closet, given she had brought more than five suitcases!

After pushing the last one through the door, I released a gasp and wiped away the stream of sweat that had formed on my brow. “Aw, sweety, you didn’t have to carry those. You should have let the butler do it,” she laughed in a derisive way. I rolled my eyes. “Oh, I forgot that you don’t have any help around here. Such a pity, you should look into that.”

I’m not a money spending machine like you, Roxanne! I pressed my lips in displeasure as I pivoted and made my way towards my room. Upon entering, I found Michael hurriedly slipping on a fresh linen purple shirt. I would have drooled at his chiselled form and unbelievable abs, but nowadays, I just find him plain revolting. “Did your mother have to be here?” I questioned, as I shut the door behind me.

He spared me a brief glance. “You should be thankful that she’s taking time out of her busy schedule to come and help you, Miranda. Don’t be so cruel,” he huffed in annoyance and I found myself rolling my eyes again for the umpteenth time. By busy schedule, he meant her going on shopping sprees with the money she didn’t work for as well as rolling around in the hay with different men every other week.

I guess he got his whorish ways from his mother too.

He went back into the closet and emerged with a burgundy suit jacket to compliment his similar coloured slacks. “I’ll probably be back late, so don’t wait up for me.”

“I guess you’ll be going at it with Camille,” I muttered bitterly.

Michael exhaled and came to stand in front of me. When he reached his hands out to cup my face, I flinched back at his touch. It was familiar yet it felt so strange. “She means nothing to me, okay? What I’m doing is to secure my future at the company. I’m doing it for us-,”

I shoved his hands away and unwittingly clenched my jaw at his stupid remark, before regretting it instantly. “What do you mean it’s for us? You sleeping with another woman is for us? Do you even hear yourself right now?” I breathed in sheer disbelief. I had no idea I had married a narcissistic douchebag.

His face contorted in rage as he once again stepped closer to me and wound his large hand against my throat. The action was so quick, that it took me by surprise and made my eyes bulge at the intensity of his grip. “Don’t you dare question my actions, you hear me? I am the breadwinner of this house and as such, you will respect my efforts to make a name for myself. Not all of us can rely on some massive inheritance so I’d advise you to keep your mouth shut before you suffer the consequences. Do you understand me?” he bellowed lividly; his blue irises having darkened significantly. Right now, he looked like the devil.

I had no choice but to nod my head weakly. My trachea felt so constricted that I was moments away from passing out. After uttering those words, he smashed his lips onto mine aggressively, removed his hand from my neck and bit on my lower lip, hard. I winced at the pain and pulled away, holding my now bleeding lip with my fingers.

“I love you,” he said with a wintry smile and then gathered his things, and went out of the room like he hadn’t just threatened me not even two minutes ago.

My legs gave away from beneath me and I fell to the floor on my knees. My heart hammered against my ribcage and I felt like the room was spinning. How had I not realised earlier that I’d married a psychopath? But until now, I had never felt this afraid and powerless at the same time. How was I going to get out of this prison of a marriage?

The door opened and Roxanne walked in and found my kneeling on the floor. Her eyes widened in alarm as she saw my lip bleeding. “Miranda, what happened to your mouth? Did you injure yourself again?” she asked as she came over to me and helped me off the floor. She then proceeded to examine my face. “But it’s only your lip that’s bleeding,” she said with a frown.

“Your son did this to me,” I told her and she paused before bursting into a fit of laughter. I looked at her in puzzlement, like she had grown two heads. Is what I had said funny?

She shook her head, still laughing slightly. “There is no way my son did this. He is too much of a saint,” she spoke in a gentle voice, her eyes lashing with adoration for her bastard of a son.

“But he did do it. And you son is not a saint, he is Satan,” I spat caustically, making her eyes narrow into slits.

She clucked her tongue and grabbed my wrist harshly. “Don’t say that about him. He loves you, and he wouldn’t do anything to hurt you.”

“You say that but just last night I saw him with another woman at the charity event we attended. He was even doing it with the wife of his boss. Is that what somebody who loves someone does?” I demanded from her, heat of anger rushing to my face.

Roxanne smirked. Like, actually bloody smirked at me like a moron. “I’m sure he has his reasons. It simply suggests that you are inadequate when it comes to your conjugal duties,” she aired haughtily and I yanked my hand out of her grasp.

“That is not excuse to be unfaithful and mop the floor with my dignity just because of that. I don’t know what I was thinking when I married Michael. I thought I loved him, but I’m only just realising how superbly detestable he is. It was a mistake!” I conceded, and she inched back at the sharpness of my tone.

She sighed before cupping my shoulders. “Darling, most people go through these types of issues, but that is no reason to give up on your marriage. I’m sure all you’re having are some communication issues, nothing more. I can help you with that,” she tried to console me but I shrugged her off.

I shook my head vehemently. “You don’t understand, I am afraid for my life! I think he might hurt me very badly one day,” I told her pleadingly but she rolled her eyes at me.

“I think you should take a shower and when you come out, I’ll prepare some soup for you. Your doctor said soft foods, right?” she ignored my previous statement, and began to push me towards the bathroom.

But why had I expected her to care at all? She was more of an enemy than an ally, and she only had her eye on what benefited her…which in this case is my inheritance. It seems I had nobody else to turn to. Stepping in the bathroom, I took off my clothes one by one. When I unclipped my bra, the letter I had stuffed in it fell onto the cold marble floor. I bent down to pick it up, and then opened it up to read it once more.

Can I really rely on someone I barely know? What if he only wants to hurt me as well?

I shook my head in despair. Only if my parents hadn’t died so abruptly, then maybe I wouldn’t be in this predicament. One thing was for sure, I don’t want to be with Michael anymore. I cannot put up with his abusive tendencies anymore, much less the cheating. And the way his parents treat me like their personal ATM is unacceptable. I looked at the letter and committed the phone number to memory. I then ripped the paper into shreds and threw them into trash bin. After that, I went over to the sink and slowly removed the bandage wrapped around my cranium and mandible, before putting it on the counter.

My reflection looked haggard, with a jaw that was swollen and discoloured. Beneath, my neck was sporting red marks from when Michael had manhandled me earlier. And on my wrist, they were also some crimson marks from Roxanne’s mighty grip. Before I knew it, big hot tears pooled in my eyes and spilled out of my eyes.

I cried in silence, like I had been doing for the past three years. I cried so hard that my sobs echoed off the walls, forsaking my birth. I didn’t deserve this much misfortune. I just wish I would wake up one day and find out that it had all been just a dream.

No such luck, this is my reality and things can only get worse from now.