Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Mona straightened her spine, lifting her chin. “Don’t worry about me,” she said, her voice steady despite the tremor in her hands. “I’m not the one who has to prove my worth to this family.”

The room fell silent, the laughter dying in their throats.

Lora’s smile faltered, her eyes narrowing. “Oh, Mona,” she said, her tone mocking. “You’re so dramatic. No one cares about your opinion anymore.”

Mona met her gaze, unflinching. “You’ll find that my opinion matters more than you think.”

For a moment, there was a flicker of doubt in Lora’s eyes. It was small, almost imperceptible, but it was there.

Emily stepped forward, her face hardening. “Stop pretending, Mona,” she said, her voice sharp. “You’re nothing. Just a simple woman clinging to a life that doesn’t belong to you.”

Mona didn’t respond. She turned away, no longer willing to engage..

“Attention, everyone!” Emily’s voice rang out, silencing the chatter. She stood near the grand staircase, her regal presence commanding the room. “Thank you all for coming tonight to celebrate my special day. Before we proceed, there’s something important we need to address.”

Mona’s heart sank.

Emily motioned for Samuel to step forward. He did, with Lora right beside him. The guests murmured, curiosity flickering across their faces.

“My family has always valued honesty and integrity,” Samuel began, his voice calm but laced with something sharp. His brown eyes landed on Mona, and her stomach churned. “But recently, something unforgivable has come to our attention.”

Mona felt the room shift, all eyes turning to her.

“Samuel, what are you doing?” Mona asked, her voice trembling.

“Don’t play innocent,” Lora sneered, stepping closer. “You’ve been caught red-handed, Mona.”

Mona’s confusion deepened. “Caught? Caught doing what?”

Emily folded her arms, her lips curling into a disdainful smirk. “Stealing from the Caldwell family. We trusted you, Mona, and you betrayed us.”

The words hit Mona like a slap. “Stealing? That’s ridiculous! I would never...”

“Save your lies,” Samuel interrupted, his voice cold and cutting. “We found evidence missing jewelry from my mother’s collection, money withdrawn from the family accounts, all pointing back to you.”

Mona’s breath caught in her throat. “I didn’t do it! I’ve never touched anything that doesn’t belong to me!”

Lora laughed, a high-pitched, mocking sound that made the guests whisper among themselves. “Of course you’d deny it. You’re pathetic, Mona. Always hiding behind your ‘innocent’ act.”

The crowd murmured louder now, their gazes piercing and judgmental. Mona’s cheeks burned with humiliation.

“Please,” she said, turning to Samuel. “You know me. I would never....”

“Enough!” Samuel barked, his voice echoing through the room. “We gave you everything, Mona. A place in this family, a home, and this is how you repay us?”

Tears welled up in Mona’s eyes. “I don’t know who’s behind this, but it isn’t me. I swear!”

Emily’s voice dripped with venom. “You're a disgrace. You’ve tarnished our name, and now you have the audacity to deny it?”

Mona shook her head, her voice breaking. “I didn’t do it…”

Lora stepped forward, her eyes gleaming with malice. “You’ve always been an outsider, Mona. A nobody. And now the truth is out for everyone to see.”

“Please…” Mona whispered, her voice barely audible.

Samuel didn’t even look at her. “Get out of my sight, Mona. You’re not welcome here anymore.”

Mona’s vision blurred with tears. The room spun around her as the crowd stared, their faces twisted in contempt. She wanted to scream, to defend herself, but no words came.

Lora smirked, picking up a glass of wine from a nearby table. “Oh, Mona,” she said, her tone dripping with false pity. “You’ve really made a mess of things this time.”

Before Mona could react, Lora raised the glass and dumped the crimson liquid over Mona’s head.

The room erupted in gasps and whispers, but Mona didn’t move. The wine dripped down her hair and onto her dress, staining it in dark streaks.

Silence hung heavy for a moment, and then the crowd burst into murmurs again, their judgmental stares burning into her soul.

Mona stood there, frozen, humiliated beyond words, as the wine soaked through her dress and onto the pristine floor.

Her heart ached with a mixture of rage and sorrow, but she said nothing. She couldn’t. The world seemed to crumble around her as she stood alone in the sea of cruelty.

The room seemed to close in on Mona as the wine trickled down her face, sticky and cold. The glass in Lora’s hand clinked softly as she placed it back on the table with a triumphant smirk. For a moment, there was complete silence until it shattered like fragile glass.

Whispers began rippling through the crowd like an unstoppable wave.

“I always knew she didn’t belong here,” one man murmured, his voice filled with disdain.

“She’s a gold digger,” another woman sneered, her diamond necklace glinting as she leaned closer to gossip with her companion.

“What a disgrace,” a younger guest muttered under his breath, throwing Mona a look filled with contempt.

Mona’s heart pounded painfully in her chest. Their words stabbed at her, each one a dagger laced with poison. Her hands trembled as she tried to wipe the wine from her face, but the deep red stain only spread further. She could feel their eyes piercing her, their gazes like knives cutting into her soul.

“She had us all fooled,” someone else said, his voice loud enough for Mona to hear. “I mean, look at her. She’s always been so plain. Why would Samuel even marry someone like that if it wasn’t for some ulterior motive?”

“She probably married him just for the money,” a woman chimed in, her lips curling with scorn. “And now, she’s stealing it. Typical.”

Mona’s throat burned as she swallowed back her tears. The humiliation was suffocating. Her vision blurred, but she forced herself not to cry. Crying would only give them more ammunition, more reason to laugh at her misery.

“I can’t believe Samuel put up with her for this long,” another man scoffed. “He should’ve dumped her years ago.”

“Maybe he kept her around for pity,” a woman whispered, loud enough for Mona to hear. “She’s so pathetic.”

Mona felt her knees weaken. Every word was a lash across her already battered spirit. She dared to look up, and her gaze locked with Stefan’s. For a fleeting moment, she hoped to find some semblance of sympathy in his eyes, some memory of the vows they had shared. But his expression was cold, almost indifferent.

He didn’t care.

Her chest tightened, a knot of anger and heartbreak forming deep inside her. She had spent years in this family, enduring their cold shoulders and sharp words. She had tried to be the perfect wife, the dutiful daughter-in-law, all for a man who now stood silent as the world tore her apart.

Lora, standing beside Samuel, leaned in close to him and whispered something that made him smirk. Her eyes flicked to Mona, alight with triumph.

“She deserves this,” Lora said loudly, her voice dripping with malice. “No one likes a thief, especially not one who pretends to be innocent.”

A sharp laugh erupted from the crowd, and Mona felt her stomach twist.

“Maybe we should call the police,” someone suggested, their voice tinged with mockery. “A night in jail might teach her a lesson.”

The suggestion made the crowd chuckle darkly, their amusement cruel and biting.

Mona’s fists clenched at her sides, her nails digging into her palms as she tried to steady herself. Anger bubbled beneath her humiliation, threatening to boil over. How could they all believe such lies? How could they stand there, reveling in her pain?

“Say something, Mona!” someone shouted from the back. “Or are you just going to stand there like the thief you are?”

Her lips parted, but no words came. What was there to say? No matter what she said, they had already made up their minds. In their eyes, she was guilty.

“Nothing to say?” Lora sneered, stepping closer. “That’s because you know it’s true. You’re nothing, Mona. You’ve always been nothing. A stray dog we allowed into our family out of pity.”

The crowd erupted into murmurs of agreement, their hateful words swirling around Mona like a suffocating fog.

Her vision blurred as the humiliation weighed on her shoulders, heavier than ever.

For years, she had endured this. For years, she had swallowed their insults and smiled through their cruelty.

Lora smirked and grabbed another glass of wine, holding it up mockingly.

“Happy birthday, Mrs. Caldwell,” she said, raising her glass toward Emily. Then, with a flourish, she dumped it over Mona’s head.

The crowd gasped, but no one moved to stop her. The wine soaked through Mona’s hair, trickling down her face and onto her already ruined dress.

The wine dripped down Mona's face as Emily clapped her hands. The crowd went quiet. Emily walked to the piano where her assistant held a black folder. Her high heels made loud clicks on the floor with each step.

"We're not done with you yet," Emily said with a mean smile. "There's more."

Mona could barely stand. Her legs felt like jelly. Around her, people pulled out their phones to record everything. Some were already posting videos online. Their whispers grew louder and crueler.

"What a disgrace."

"Look how pathetic she looks."

"I bet she's going to cry."

"Please," Mona said softly. "Stop this."

But no one listened. Instead, more of the Caldwell family members stepped forward, eager to join in.

"Remember when she tried to sit at the main table last Christmas?" one of Samuel's aunts said loudly. "As if she belonged there!"

"Oh, and that time she wore those fake designer shoes to the charity ball?" another relative added. "Everyone could tell they were cheap copies."

Someone threw a bread roll at her. It hit her shoulder and fell to the floor. People laughed.

"Nice shot!" someone yelled.

"I heard she used to work as a waitress before she trapped Samuel," one of Emily's friends announced. "Once a servant, always a servant!"

More food started flying at her - bits of cake, chocolate-covered strawberries, fancy appetizers. Mona tried to shield herself, but it was useless. The expensive food stained her dress, mixed with the wine.

"Look, she's trying to dodge the food," Lora laughed. "Maybe she's saving it to steal later!"

The crowd roared with laughter. Someone dumped a plate of shrimp cocktail over Mona's head. The sauce ran down her back, cold and sticky.

"That's a good look for you," a young woman sneered. "Matches your trashy personality!"

Emily came back with the folder. "These are divorce papers," she announced, waving them in Mona's face. "Samuel wants you gone."

Mona's hands shook. "No... please..."

"Did you think you'd get away with stealing from us?" Emily grabbed Mona's wrist hard. "Sign them. Now."

"But my things... my clothes..."

"Your things?" Lora walked up and grabbed Mona's pearl earrings, yanking them out roughly. Mona cried out in pain. "You mean the things you bought with stolen money?"

Blood trickled from Mona's ear where Lora had torn the earring out. People pointed and laughed.

"Look, even her blood is cheap!" someone shouted.

More relatives joined in the torture. They grabbed at her jewelry, pulling rings off her fingers, tearing at her bracelet until it broke and scattered pearls across the floor.

"Stop!" Mona begged. "Those were gifts!"

"Gifts?" Samuel finally spoke. His voice was cold. "You mean the things you manipulated me into buying? Just like you manipulated your way into this family?"

Lora hung on his arm, smirking. She reached up and kissed his cheek, making sure Mona saw.

"Samuel loves me now," she said. "He never loved you. We've been together for months. Every time you thought he was working late? He was with me."

The words hit Mona like a slap. The crowd oohed and ahhed, enjoying the drama.

"Is that why she started stealing?" someone asked loudly. "Because she knew Samuel was cheating?"

"No!" Mona tried to explain. "I never stole anything!"

Emily slammed the divorce papers onto a table. "Sign these or we'll call the police. I'm sure they'd love to hear about all the jewelry you've taken."

Mona's vision blurred with tears as she picked up the pen. Her hand shook so bad she could barely write.

"Hurry up!" Lora snapped. "Some of us have a wedding to plan!"

More laughter. More cruel comments. Someone started throwing champagne at her. The expensive drink soaked her hair, her dress, pooled at her feet.

"Look at her cry!"

"Such an actress!"

"Bet those tears are fake like everything else about her!"

When Mona finished signing, Emily snatched the papers away. She nodded to two security guards.

"Get this trash out of my house," she ordered.

The guards grabbed Mona's arms rough enough to leave bruises. They started dragging her toward the door.

"Wait!" Mona struggled. "Please! Let me at least get my clothes!"

"Clothes?" Emily laughed. "Everything in this house belongs to us. You'll leave with nothing, just like you came with nothing!"

As the guards pulled her through the crowd, people spat at her. Someone poured a whole bottle of wine over her head. Others threw more food, glasses, whatever they could grab.

"Back to the gutter!"

"Hope you freeze outside!"

"Should have stayed in your place, servant girl!"

The guards threw her out onto the driveway. Mona fell hard on the concrete, scraping her hands and knees. Her dress now torn, stained, and soaking wet clung to her skin.

Behind her, the party started up again. Music played. People laughed. She could hear Lora's voice above the rest, probably already planning her wedding to Samuel.

Rain started falling. Cold drops mixed with the wine and food in her hair, running down her face along with her tears. Her mascara left black streaks on her cheeks.

She had nothing. No phone. No money. No clothes except the ruined dress she wore. Five years of marriage ended with her being thrown out like garbage.