CHAPTER 1

Gemma arrived home at midnight, and she was just about to make her way into her room when the living room lights turned on. A smile slowly settled on her face. Of course, some idle creature had found out about her absence and had the audacity to wait for her return, and was probably preparing to interrogate her. 

She turned on her heel to face the man who was sitting on the white couch, a newspaper in his hand which made her wonder whether he could read in the dark. It was Noah, her brother-in-law—or rather, her former brother-in-law. He lifted his head to frown at her with a pair of black, angry eyes. "Where were you?" 

She paused for a heartbeat before she burst into peals of laughter. She shifted her bag to her left hand and closed in on him, her high heels clanking softly against the marble floor with her every move. "Since when do I answer to you, Mr. Black? This is my house and I can come and go whenever I feel like. Else, are you going to tell me what to do in my own house?" 

Noah stood up in anger. He raised his hand in an attempt to slap her but a glare from her golden eyes made him subconsciously stop. He retracted a few steps but recovered his wits almost immediately. 

"Your husband died two days ago. How dare you start leaving the house to wander around and return so late at night  instead of mourning his death?" He asked angrily, looking as though he was advocating for the justice of his late brother, whose widow must have started 'going astray and cheating on him'. 

"I am mourning. Don't you see the black dress?" She stretched out her arms and twirled before him, letting him see the short, black dress she was wearing, which had a deep V-neck and hugged her curves closely. It looked like nothing he imagined a widow would wear soon after her husband's death or ever. 

He seethed in fury looking at her. "You…!" 

She interrupted him before he could call her a bitch, which he had done enough times in the past. "What about me? Am I supposed to ditch my work to pretend to mourn over the death of a man I hated? Don't make me break my ribs laughing!" 

Her words made his face contort with realization. He pointed a shaky finger at her. "I knew it! It was you who killed him!" 

She elegantly eased herself onto the couch opposite him with her legs crossed, resting her chin on the back of her hand as she looked at the lunatic before her. "You don't say such things without evidence. I could sue you for slander, you know." 

"Such disrespect. Aren't you ashamed of yourself?" His voice held more anger than disbelief as he stared at the woman on the couch and wondered whether she was an impostor. Just a week ago, Gemma was still the obedient sister-in-law she had always been. Where did this rebellious bitch come from? The change was so sudden that no one had time to get used to it. 

Gemma knew what she was thinking, and she scolded her past self. How could she let this shameless family take advantage of her for so long? She smiled at his words sinisterly. "It doesn't matter, does it? Shame or no shame, we both know who should be ashamed of themselves. Which reminds me, I have a few things to talk to you about. We could take advantage of this cold night. 'You' means the entire family, of course." 

"Right now." She added, baffling him even further. 

He hovered over her in disbelief. "Do you expect me to wake my mother and sister up from their sleep just for them to have a word with you?" 

She raised an eyebrow listlessly. "Unless you expect me to slip into their dreams like the witch you have always called me." 

Her sarcasm irked him the most and he would have ripped her into pieces if she wasn't his brother's widow. "You have no right to order us around." he tried to sound calm while passing across his stern warning. 

She crossed her arms scornfully. "Well, I do. This is my house after all. Of course, if you would like to move out instead, I will be  willing to fulfill your wish." 

As expected, the mention of him moving out had him return to his senses for a few seconds and he brought his family downstairs. 

She gazed up at them and although a smile remained on her face, her emotions were in a turmoil. These two women, who had just exited their rooms, had made her go through hell. 

The older one, Olivia was the cause of all her troubles while her daughter, Sofia, was a demoness disguised as an angel. 

She smiled her pain away and looked at them as Olivia yawned and Sofia rubbed her eyes sleepily. "Why did you call us? What's the urgent news?" 

"I see you are all here." She was ready to enjoy the show. She even wondered whether she should get the kitchen to make her a cup of tea to drink as she watched it. 

Sofia was about to slump onto the couch to continue sleeping when Gemma dragged her up. "You are not allowed to sit until I say so. You too, Olivia." She added sternly, to the middle-aged woman who was about to sit. 

"How dare you! I'm your mother!" Olivia exploded. 

"Mother-in-law. And that was until two days ago. As for now, you are nothing." Gemma corrected her expressionlessly as she sat back down to make herself comfortable. 

"I wonder how audacious you are that you would continue living in my house even while knowing that we are no longer related. My biological mother did not get this opportunity so what right do you have?" her sharp words had Olivia stop in her tracks, to look at the woman who was suddenly speaking in a tone she had never used before. Was it because she was depressed about her husband's demise? She would have thought so, until she remembered just how much the woman had changed within a week. 

"You ungrateful witch!" She yelled, making Gemma want to pick her ears. 

She had heard that word for so long that it was no longer an insult, but just a random word to her. 

"Of course not." She drawled with a chuckle. "I'm grateful for everything you did for me." They had taken everything for granted and made her give up on everything she valued for their son. They had ruined her very life. There was a lot to be grateful for. "Don't worry. I'm going to show my gratitude right away." 

"The household is getting bigger. We will need another maidservant, don't you think?" She focused her gaze on Sofia, who was about to fall asleep while standing. 

She sobered up with a start, pleasantly surprised. She had always wanted to have her personal handmaidens like Gemma did, but her late brother had never given in to her requests. Who would have thought that Gemma would offer it herself? 

She was about to rush to Gemma and thank her for the late-night surprise when she heard Gemma's stern voice. "Sofia, you will fill that slot." 

"What? What do you mean?" She was confused. 

"You can start working right away." Gemma added. "Get me a glass of water." 

"How dare you!" Olivia finally reacted, pointing at the woman with her chest full of anger. 

"What's wrong with that? I work hard to provide all the money for the household. Everyone has to have a role, right?" She crossed her legs as she looked at Sofia, signalling that she was waiting for the water. Sofia wanted to protest but received a gaze from her mother, which made her grudgingly go and bring the water. 

She took the glass and before it could properly settle in her hand, Sofia let go of it. The glass shattered into smithereens, some of the water splashing onto her legs. 

"Sorry," Sofia said softly. 

Gemma glared up at the girl, who didn't look sorry in the slightest. She stood up and with a swing of her right hand, a loud slap resounded in the living room. 

Sofia held her face in disbelief and was about to curse when a pair of golden eyes shut her up. 

Gemma smiled when she got the rebel in control and had her wipe the floor after bringing another glass of water. "Noah, you can help the gardener out." 

"I am the finance manager of…" 

"My company. Which by the way, you are unqualified for." She crossed her arms at the audacity of the man. Did he think it was something worth bragging about when he got the job as a result of Gemma being emotionally blackmailed by her late husband? 

She despised him the most.  "What's wrong with being a gardener? He can feed his family and give them a stable life. Could it be that you look down  on this job?" 

"Why don't you be one yourself?" he threw the bomb right back at her, believing that she would never agree to it. She was a CEO after all. Olivia secretly gave her son a thumbs-up. 

"I would, but I have a company and hundreds of families to take care of. 

Enough chatter. Go to sleep and prepare to start working tomorrow." She stood to head to her room, making the three sigh in relief until she turned to see them following her. "Where are you going?" 

"To sleep." Noah shrugged matter-of-factly. Didn't she instruct them to sleep? 

She pointed towards the west wing of the mansion. "To the servants quarters." 

Before they could protest, she added coldly, "If you prefer to stay up all night, I don't mind. If not, you can decide to move out as well." She went up the stairs, and the family of three waited for a while before they started discussing. 

"What happened to her?!" Sofia asked with a whisper. 

"Shouldn't you be asking what will happen to us? Are we supposed to sleep in the servants quarters?" Olivia huffed, not wanting to think about how she was being reduced to a servant. 

"She went to sleep. We can just go back to our rooms secretly." Sofia suggested. 

"You're a genius!" Noah praised, and they went back to the first floor only to return cursing. "That bitch! She locked the doors!" 

"I guess we have no choice." Olivia sighed. They couldn't stand all night, so they reluctantly went to the west wing. Gemma treated all her servants kindly, so the servants' rooms were all spacious and really furnished. Even so, Olivia and her children couldn't stand the humiliation. 

Watching them from the mezzanine, Gemma smiled evilly. This was only the beginning.