To stay in character as the wicked stepmother, I had a new daily routine. I’d order my eldest son to peel shrimp, my second son to brew my tea, and my youngest daughter to massage my shoulders. This went on for half a month, right up until the man of the house returned. I had my bags packed, ready to be thrown out onto the street. But instead, my eldest son said: “Dad, don’t just stand there. Go make Mom’s bed.” Me: …? 1 “Host, all you have to do is maintain your persona and torment them every day!” the System buzzed in my head. “Once the male lead comes back and kicks you out, your mission will be a success!” “The reward is ten million dollars, you know~” I puffed out my chest and promised, “Don’t you worry. When it comes to being wicked, if I’m number two, no one dares claim to be number one.” The System, reassured, vanished. A new boss has to make her presence known. I gazed at the three little pipsqueaks standing before me, lined up from tallest to shortest like Wi-Fi bars. I decided to make an example of one of them to show the other two I meant business. It was time for them to taste my wrath. 2 “You. Come here and rub my legs.” I pointed a perfectly manicured finger at the eldest, Leo. In the future, he was destined to be a brooding, manipulative man who cared for no one but his younger siblings. Too bad for him, right now he was just a little pawn I could move around my chessboard. He knelt by my feet, his small body radiating humiliation. “Harder! Are you made of fluff? Put some muscle into it!” The moment the words left my mouth, a sharp pain shot up my leg. I… “Leo, was it? Excellent work,” I said through gritted teeth. “As a reward, from now on, you all get to eat at the table with me.” Because of the neglect they’d suffered, the three kids were chronically underfed, as skinny as little monkeys. Leo’s head snapped up, his eyes wide with disbelief, as if asking why I was suddenly being so kind. But kind? Not a chance. Kindness wasn't in my job description. I added slowly, savoring the moment, “But you will also drink a full glass of milk every morning and every evening. And I’ll be watching to make sure you finish every last drop.” As soon as I said it, three identical expressions of horror washed over their faces. I could have laughed out loud. I knew it. Milk. The universal enemy of all children. I studied Leo, a wicked smile playing on my lips. “Tell you what. Call me ‘Mom’ just once, beg me a little, and maybe I’ll let you off the hook with the milk. What do you say?” Leo scoffed, turning his head away in disgust. He’s got backbone. I like that. 3 On my second day as the wicked stepmother, I decided that Leo, who refused to acknowledge me as his mother, needed a new name. Something fitting. Something… classic. “From now on, your name is Jedediah,” I announced. Jedediah stared at me, his eyes wide with disbelief, but he didn't dare say a word. Pleased, I turned my gaze to the second son, who was trying to make himself invisible. “And you,” I declared, “will be Hezekiah.” Then, I looked at the little girl, who was blinking at me with innocent eyes, and whispered like the devil on her shoulder, “You, my dear, are Petunia.” Seeing the three of them, seething but silent, I let out a cackle. Ah, being the wicked stepmother? It was a blast. 4 Even a wicked stepmother has her troubles, though. With my husband away, any trouble the pipsqueaks got into at school meant I was the first person the school called. My phone rang bright and early, jolting me from a dead sleep. “Is this Noah’s guardian?” “Noah was caught stealing money from a classmate. We need you to come to the school immediately.” Noah? A thief? I dragged myself out of bed, and by the time I reached the principal’s office, I could hear a shrill voice screaming from inside. “You trashy little thief! You’re nothing but gutter scum! Learning to steal at your age!” “I bet your mother stole the money for your tuition, too! You reek of poverty!” “You little animal, you’re a disgrace! Today, I’m going to teach you the lesson your mother clearly never did!” I took a deep breath and shoved the door open. There was tiny Noah, not even as tall as the desk leg, with a bright red handprint blooming on his pale cheek. Tears welled in his eyes, but he refused to let them fall. When he saw me, his head dropped in panic. The teacher stood up awkwardly. “Mrs. Blackwood, hello…” I pushed past her and faced the sharp-tongued woman across the room. Without a word, I swung my designer handbag—worth a small fortune—and slammed it right into her face. “Who the hell do you think you are?!” 5 I didn't stop there. I slapped her, I pulled her hair—I gave her the full treatment. The woman shrieked in pain. “You dare hit me! You bitch!” “I’m calling the police! I’m calling the police!” “I’ll have you and your thieving son thrown in jail!” I gave her another backhand for good measure. “Go on! Call them!” I taunted. “Let’s see who ends up behind bars!” I was the wicked stepmother, what did I have to fear? As long as the male lead wasn’t back, I couldn't be written out of the story. Once I’d vented my anger, I slapped the tablet with the security footage onto the desk. “Open your damn eyes and take a good look! See who the real thief is!” Noah hadn't left his seat all day. The teacher blinked. “How is that possible? The camera in that classroom has been broken for weeks. We haven’t had it repaired yet.” The woman sneered, “You faked the footage!” I just laughed. For a wicked stepmother with a System, getting my hands on a little security footage was a piece of cake. I turned and made a fist, looming menacingly over the chubby little boy hiding behind his mother’s legs. “You. Little man. Tell me the truth,” I growled. “Did Noah really steal your money?” The memory of me beating his mother was still fresh in his mind. The slightest bit of pressure was all it took. He burst into tears. “No… no!” he wailed. “Mommy… I spent all the money myself… Please don’t hit me, wahhh…” The woman’s face turned green. Under my intimidating glare, the boy sobbed out the whole story. He’d overspent his allowance and, terrified of being punished, had blamed it on Noah. It was an easy lie; no one ever came to pick Noah up from school, so all the kids just assumed he was an orphan. They figured no one would stand up for him if he got bullied. The woman who had just been screaming about calling the police now looked like her face was cycling through a rainbow of shame and fury. She grabbed her son and tried to leave. I blocked her path and pointed a finger at Noah. “Apologize to him.” “Or I’ll make sure everyone in this school knows your son is a lying little punk.” 6 On the way home, Noah kept sneaking glances at me, his eyes full of tiny, sparkling stars. It was starting to get on my nerves. I glared at him. “Keep looking at me like that and I’ll gouge your eyes out.” He immediately clamped his little hands over his eyes, but after a moment, he peeked through his fingers. “You’re… you’re not going to hit me?” Given that the ‘me’ he was used to tormented him daily, it was a fair question. An incident this big without a beating was a little out of character. So, I reached out and gave his cheek a wicked pinch. “Your punishment is an extra glass of milk tonight!” I declared. “And begging won’t do you any good!” Hmph. After all, milk was the most disgusting thing in the world. A look of pure agony crossed Noah’s face. Mission accomplished. 7 We walked into the house hand-in-hand, just in time to see Leo returning from his after-school tutoring. His eyes immediately locked onto the handprint on Noah’s face. His expression darkened, and he pulled his little brother behind him protectively. “She hit you again?” he demanded. I raised an eyebrow. “What if I did? You want some too?” With that, I turned on my heel and sashayed away, leaving Noah to frantically explain the situation to a very skeptical Leo. I overheard Leo’s cool analysis as I walked away: “Don’t trust her. This is just a new trick to mess with our heads.” I couldn’t help but nod in agreement. Looks like another successful day in the life of a wicked stepmother. 8 I was ready to strike while the iron was hot, to cook up some new mischief to really cement Leo’s hatred of me. But before I could even start scheming, the butler rushed in, his face pale with panic. “Madam, it’s terrible!” “Master Leo got into a fight and has been taken into police custody! The station just called and asked you to come down!” Jedediah, detained? A grin spread across my face. Opportunity was knocking! When I arrived, a police officer was patiently trying to get a reason for the fight out of Leo. Across from him sat three teenagers, their faces bruised and swollen. As expected of the future brooding anti-hero. One against three, and he still came out on top. I asked the officer for a few minutes alone with the boys. As soon as he left the room, I spun around and gave Leo a firm slap on the backside. “Getting a little bold, are we?” I hissed. “Starting fights now? You can just wait to be thrown out of this house!” He stared at me, his body trembling with rage. I glared back, even more fiercely. “You dare look at me like that?” I scoffed and turned away from the seething boy, pasting a friendly smile on my face as I approached the three dumbfounded teenagers. “Hello, boys. I’m Leo’s stepmother. To be honest, I can’t stand him either.” “Could you tell me what the fight was about? I’d love to have something to report to his father so we can finally kick him out.” The three of them exchanged glances, remaining silent. My smile widened. “How about this? You tell me what happened, and I’ll give each of you five thousand dollars.” The lure of money was too much. One of them cracked. “He’s a damn busybody, that’s what.” “We were just having some fun with a girl, took a few pictures, and he came at us like a psycho.” I kept my expression neutral. “What kind of pictures? Can I see?” One of the boys hesitated, but the other two, their eyes already glazed over with greed, pulled out their phones. “Here, ma’am. See?” “We just took a few pictures, that’s all.” “If you ask me, don't just kick him out. You should have him committed.” I looked at the photos on their phones—upskirt shots, pictures of them bullying other students. I nodded thoughtfully. Then I opened the door and handed the evidence to the waiting police officer. “Officer, you heard them. My son was simply defending someone. As for these little degenerates, I suggest you send them to a juvenile detention center for some serious rehabilitation.” 9 As we walked out of the police station, Leo’s eyes were filled with a complicated mix of emotions. “Leo!” A soft voice called out. He turned to see a girl standing there, his brow furrowing slightly. “What are you doing here?” The girl clutched the straps of her backpack, her voice barely a whisper. “I… thank you for helping me!” Leo just shrugged. “I only beat them up because they were annoying. It had nothing to do with you.” The girl was speechless. I rolled my eyes. “Such a poser.” Leo gritted his teeth. The girl let out a small giggle, then bowed to me as well. “Thank you too, ma’am!” As she ran off, Leo’s cool facade finally broke. “Why did she thank you? When did you two even meet?” I shot him a look. “None of your business.” Leo: “…” A moment later, his awkward voice piped up again. “Don’t think I’m going to thank you just because you helped me.” I snorted. “Who needs your thanks? Just wait until we get home. You and I have a score to settle.” 10 Three hundred and eight shrimp later, Leo finally broke. “This is your idea of settling the score?” he asked, his fingers aching. “What else would it be?” I replied, popping another freshly peeled shrimp into my mouth. “Peel faster. You can’t even keep up with me. What kind of brooding anti-hero are you?” Jedediah said nothing, simply picking up his pace. Hezekiah brought over a cup of freshly brewed tea, placing it carefully by my hand. I glanced over at the adorable, innocent-looking Petunia. “You. Come here and massage my back.” Being a wicked stepmother was a piece of cake. 11 After the Great Shrimp Peeling Incident, Leo's hatred for me only deepened. Noah, too, was now completely under my thumb. That just left one of them: Lily. I was lying on my bed with a face mask on, pondering how best to torment the little girl, when there was a soft knock on my door. I opened it to find Lily standing there, clutching a doll that was almost bigger than she was and looking up at me with wide eyes. …She was kind of cute. Focus. Must remain wicked. “What is it?” I asked, making my voice as cold as possible. Lily flinched, her voice as small as a mosquito’s buzz. “I… I’m scared to sleep alone…” I glanced outside at the thunderstorm raging, lightning flashing across the sky. I was about to mock her for being a coward, but then an idea sparked in my mind. I stepped aside and let her in. The little girl’s eyes lit up. Poor, sweet Petunia. She had no idea she’d just walked straight into my trap. Once she was tucked obediently into bed, I pulled out a book of gruesome fairy tales and began to read aloud in my most menacing voice. Five minutes later, the little girl was a sobbing wreck. Feeling refreshed, I poked the little bundle of blankets she’d become. “Hey, kid. Don't get tears on my expensive sheets, or I’ll have to punish you.” After sufficiently terrorizing her, I stood up to go wash my face. But she grabbed onto my leg, her voice thick with tears. “Can I come with you…? I’m scared…” Me: … Fine. I magnanimously agreed. But as I helped the little girl out of her pajamas, I saw them. Her small body was covered in red welts and dark bruises. My brow furrowed. I hadn’t laid a finger on her. What was this? “Hey, kid. What happened? Where did you get these bruises?” I asked, my tone sharp. “Were you fighting at school behind my back?” Lily hugged herself shyly and shook her head. “They’re rewards. From Mr. Peterson.” “He said only the pretty and obedient girls in class get them.” Me: … I looked at her innocent little face and felt my teeth grind together. Damn it. This family was a magnet for trouble.
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