"Aunt Susan and I are happily married now. As my daughter and son-in-law, you two need to show some respect and contribute." As soon as I walked through the door, I heard my dad making demands of my husband, Liam. "I want a $100,000 cash gift, another house bought in this same gated community, and when the baby is born, Maya, as the older sister, can help raise him." I walked in with a dark expression, and the room instantly went dead silent. My dad was paralyzed from the waist down, sitting in a wheelchair. Aunt Susan, the caregiver, instinctively stood up when she saw me. I ignored her and fired straight at my husband: "Liam, my dad has dementia and is getting scammed into a marriage. Why didn't you just call the cops? What's with all the arguing?" Liam shot me a look of grievance and quickly jogged over. "I was waiting for you to get here!" I glared at him, but he didn't care, just grinning as he stood behind me like a bodyguard. My dad turned his head away, speechless. I looked at the caregiver, who seemed nervous but carried a hint of smugness. I said coldly, "Susan, you've been working here for almost three months. Have I ever been late paying your $3,000 a month salary? All you had to do was cook three meals a day and clean the house. I even hired someone else to bathe him and change his clothes. He's paralyzed in a wheelchair—what kind of happiness can he possibly give you?" She looked helplessly at my dad. "A woman needs a home of her own, to be her own master. Being a caregiver is just being a servant to someone else." I sneered. "Then you really are destined to be a servant. I never treated you like one, yet you knelt down of your own accord." My dad frowned, clearly displeased. "Watch your tone! I am informing you, not negotiating! I'm at this age, can't I make my own decisions?" An old creep who still can't control his lower half at his age. I mocked him, "You're paralyzed in a wheelchair. Do you really have no idea why someone would be interested in you? You want to make your own decisions, yet you expect me to fork over the cash to buy you a wife. Talk is cheap." Still angry, I added, "Damn it, I hate pretentious people the most." My dad clutched his chest, looking at me in disbelief. "You... you ungrateful daughter!" Then he sighed, softening his tone. "Susan is pregnant. She secretly got it checked—it's a boy. You know my situation. I lived off your mother's family's wealth, and you didn't even take my last name. I don't have grand ambitions, I just hope to face my ancestors with pride when I die. God has been good to me, finally sending me a son right as I have one foot in the grave." He was so sincere, even wiping a tear from the corner of his eye. "Maya, I haven't asked you for much in this life. Consider this a plea from your father." I watched his performance with cold detachment, casually picking up an apple Liam had brought over and taking a bite. "I don't have money... Liam and I work normal jobs. We aren't destined for sudden wealth." He panicked. "Didn't your grandfather leave you an inheritance?! You can definitely afford this $100,000 cash gift." My eyes instantly turned sharp. My grandfather had only one daughter—my mother—who grew up terribly spoiled. In college, my mom fell in love with Richard, a guy from a poor, rural background. He had seven or eight siblings, no money to his name, just a decent-looking face. Knowing my grandfather didn't like him, he seduced my mom into getting pregnant out of wedlock, using his own life and the baby in her belly to threaten my grandfather. My grandfather, who had been a dominant force his entire life, finally compromised. His only condition was that both of them had to forfeit their right to inherit his estate. My mom agreed. She thought it was just my grandfather's prejudice against a poor country boy. They were both college-educated; she believed they could build a good life through their own hard work, and that time would eventually prove Richard's worth to my grandfather. Richard thought the same. The old man only had one daughter. If he didn't leave his fortune to her, what was he going to do? Donate it all? But my grandfather was a man of his word. He didn't give them a single penny, only buying appliances and furniture as a dowry. Life was stable after that, until I was ten years old. My grandfather fell severely ill, and Richard finally revealed his true colors. He abused my mother, started messing around with other women, and openly bragged that once the old man died, he'd be a millionaire. When my grandfather heard the rumors, he clung to life. Diagnosed with only three months to live, he forced himself to hold on for six. He knew my love-struck mother was unreliable, so he took all his cash, partnered with a local community trust, and developed a commercial business park. He set up a strict will: I could only access the inheritance in installments when I turned eighteen, twenty-five, and thirty-five. With the local trust's intervention and the loyalty of the community my grandfather had supported, most people saw right through Richard and despised his gold-digging ways. After my grandfather died, Richard brought a different woman home every day. My mother fell severely ill and became bedridden, wallowing in self-pity every day, blaming herself for causing her father's death. She couldn't understand why Richard had changed so drastically. Eventually, suffering from severe depression, she took one of his mistresses with her and drowned herself in a lake. Snapping back to the present, I sneered at him. "So that was your goal all along." Knowing he was entirely cut out of the old man's will, he actually came up with this twisted scheme to try and scam me out of my money. I looked at Susan's completely flat stomach and fell deep into thought. Susan rubbed her belly, attempting to play the emotional card. "Maya, I know this looks bad. At first, I refused him, but he kept insisting. He took all the pressure for me. His kindness and perseverance touched me." "To me, he's just a pure, kind-hearted older boy. Now that I'm pregnant—and it might be a boy—I know your mother couldn't give him one her entire life. I've heard the love story between your parents. Since she loved your dad so much, she must be heartbroken in the afterlife that she couldn't leave him a male heir." "You're a woman, you must understand how that feels." The more I listened, the angrier I got. "Shut up! What gives you the right to talk about my mother?!" I grabbed the glass of water in my hand and hurled it straight at her. Richard pushed himself up on his wheelchair and threw his body in front of her, taking the hit. He shrieked as the heavy glass struck his head. I sneered. "Your stench of patriarchal entitlement is way too strong, Susan." "Richard lived off my family's wealth. And he wants to pass down his lineage using the Miller family's resources? Isn't that biting the hand that feeds you?" "Neither my grandfather nor my mother ever said a daughter couldn't carry on a legacy. You, a mere caregiver who schemed her way up, are suddenly worried about my family's lineage?" "Let me put it bluntly. Even if this kid is born, I could make him take my last name, Miller. Try me." Hitting a nerve, my father's face flushed crimson, his age spots trembling. He tried to stand up, but only managed to stumble and crash back into his seat. "Maya! Your mother has been dead for twenty years! Do you expect me to stay celibate for her forever?!" "You miserable bastard, what gives you the right to mention my mother?!" I snapped. He sounded indignant. "I admit I wronged your mother, but she's gone! What can I do to make up for it now?" "I don't have many good days left. Susan is my last woman. I can't bear to see her working as a caregiver for other people. Can't she just stay by my side?" He wanted to play the emotional card, but unfortunately, I had no emotions left for him. I mocked him, "When did our family ever stop you from leaving?" "Did my grandfather not give you the chance?" "It was you who couldn't bear to leave the house and the money." "If you had any backbone, you would've stood up, made your own money, and never leached off my mother's family." My words left him red-faced and speechless. "Stop talking," he finally muttered, glancing nervously at the caregiver beside the bed. I knew what he was thinking—he didn't want to look weak in front of his 'true love'. But in this world, you can't have your cake and eat it too. "Every day you are alive, you should be repenting for what you did to my mother and my grandfather." Back when Richard brought women home, my mother had screamed like a madwoman. But he just mocked her from his high horse: "If you hadn't failed to give me a son, I wouldn't have to look for other women." Even my mother, an only daughter who grew up showered in love, began to believe it was her fault. She would grab me like a maniac, her eyes bloodshot, screaming and asking why I wasn't a boy, convinced that if I had been, Richard wouldn't have cheated. People like him are cowards who prey on the weak. A leopard never changes its spots. Right in front of them, I called the domestic staffing agency. "I remember the contract I signed with your agency. It stated that if any of your caregivers engage in an inappropriate relationship with their client, your agency will pay a penalty fee, correct?" Susan's eyes widened in terror. She lunged forward to stop me, but Liam blocked her easily. I continued talking to the person on the line. "Ms. Miller, you can't just say things like that. Our caregivers undergo professional training, they wouldn't just... We need evidence for these kinds of claims... Please apologize to our employee." "Does a marriage license count as evidence?" The line went dead silent for a second. "It counts..." There was a specific reason I chose this agency: their strict insurance policies. I knew Richard's true nature better than anyone. As long as the person was female, he'd go into heat. That was why I always hired male nurses for him. The caregiver's only job was to maintain the house and do light cleaning; she was never supposed to interact directly with him. I never expected him to still find an opening. It didn't matter. I didn't even need to lift a finger—someone else was about to be much more desperate than me. The insurance company would have to pay me the penalty, and where would they get that money from? They certainly wouldn't let Susan and Richard off the hook. Paralyzed in his wheelchair, my dad spun around in a panic. "What are you doing?! What are you doing?! You monster! How did I end up with a daughter like you?!" I smirked, speaking with feigned innocence. "Look at it this way. If I get the settlement money, I'll have the cash to pay for your wedding gift." He went silent for a moment before bursting into a tirade. "You have a black heart! No matter what, I am your father! I gave you life and raised you, and this is how you treat me?!" I purposefully egged him on. "Well, what am I supposed to do? If I put the pressure on, they'll actually pay me $100,000. All you do is demand $100,000 from me." Beside him, Aunt Susan was panicking. "Richard, you can't let them make me pay! Where am I supposed to find that kind of money?!" My dad patted her hand to comfort her. "No, no, don't worry. I'll figure something out." He turned back to me, his face sagging into a pleading look. "Maya, Susan is having a high-risk geriatric pregnancy. Her health is poor, and she's at risk of a miscarriage. Can't you just consider this $100,000 a loan from your father?" I smiled sweetly. "Nope! But I can introduce you to a reliable loan agency... Though... what exactly do you have to put up as collateral?" Susan looked at him with desperate hope, but Richard turned his head away and remained dead silent. Heh... Men. They'll preach about true love until their lungs give out, but the second it threatens their own wallet, their lips are glued shut. The room fell completely silent. Just as I kept a straight face and turned to leave, a heavy sigh came from behind me. "Didn't your grandfather... leave you a sum of money?!" I turned around, examining this man. His face was etched with fine lines, a few age spots dotting his jawline. He looked refined and cultured, but underneath, he was nothing but a demon reincarnate. There was never a moment I didn't want to send him straight to hell. Suppressing the sheer hatred in my heart, I stared directly into his eyes and spoke slowly, deliberately: "Where are my mother's ashes?" That day, years ago, my mom had just gotten back from picking up her medication at the psychiatric ward when she caught Richard tangled up with another woman. The mistress, believing she was carrying a golden male heir, acted like she already owned the place. Her deliberate mockery triggered my mother's illness, leaving her howling in agony on the floor. Furious, I grabbed a knife, charged at the woman, pinned her down, and pressed the blade to her neck. When she saw Richard running in, she panicked and thrashed wildly, accidentally driving her own neck into the blade. I hadn't expected her to hit an artery. Warm blood sprayed across the room, pasting my eyelashes shut with a sticky crimson film. Terrified, I slumped on the floor, paralyzed, too afraid to look at the woman bleeding out. I couldn't even tell... was she alive... or dead? In that moment, my mentally ill mother snapped back to a chilling clarity. She gave me one last, devastating look of absolute despair, then grabbed the bleeding woman and threw them both into the decorative pond outside. My dad knew he had caused a fatal incident and that things had blown completely out of control. On one hand, he had to pay a massive settlement to the dead woman's family. On the other, he was terrified to come home, genuinely afraid his "psychotic" daughter would slit his throat in his sleep. In the end, he stole my mother's ashes to use as leverage against me. Because he knew that I really was crazy. Susan came to my house alone, standing awkwardly by the coffee table, too afraid to sit. She had entirely lost the aggressive, entitled pregnant-woman attitude from a few days ago. "Maya, I know I've wronged you, but he's still your biological father. There shouldn't be permanent grudges between father and daughter. Just go apologize and give him some face." She looked deeply conflicted. "I know you don't like me, but the baby in my belly is your little brother." "You expect me to act like a mother to a brother who's over thirty years younger than me?" I asked coldly. Her face went pale, and she stammered, "I'm only 45... I can raise him myself." I scoffed. "Is the old man going to change his diapers with his shaking, Parkinson's-ridden hands from a wheelchair?" She suddenly dropped to her knees, hugging my legs, sobbing. "I know we messed up, but the baby is innocent! Please, I'm begging you, give him a chance to live." I pried her fingers off my legs. "Get out." She stumbled to her feet, throwing out a venomous parting shot. "You are so heartless!" My dad called to curse me out. "What did you do to Susan?! If anything happens to her, I will end you." I sneered back. "Oh no, I'm so scared. Hurry up and jump out of your wheelchair to come beat me up." "You..." "Give me my mother's ashes back, and we cut all ties. I don't care if you have ten sons after that." Yeah, right! My mother loved him so much. She suffered through ten months of severe morning sickness and endured ten hours of grueling labor just to have me. If I let you have another child, my grandfather would literally roll over in his grave from sheer rage! He said, "Two million dollars, and I'll tell you exactly where they are." I flat-out refused. "Then I guess I'll just wait and see how you plan on 'ending' me." The very next day, the video of a haggard Susan crying and kneeling to beg me was uploaded to TikTok. A mob of outraged netizens started harassing me, throwing rotten eggs at me in public, calling me an overbearing, controlling bitch. Some misogynistic older women even started insulting my mother online. "He needs a son so your mother can hold her head high in the underworld! Otherwise, she's probably suffering in the eighteenth level of hell right now!" Insult me all you want, but insult my mother? Absolutely not. I charged straight into the crowd and started throwing punches. Liam took a few slaps to the face before he managed to drag me out of the mob. Then, local news reporters interviewed my dad. "Susan and I are true love. At my age, finding a woman who understands me, cares for me, and doesn't mind my disability is incredibly rare." [I know what my daughter is upset about, but she can take it out on me. Why is she bullying Susan? Susan is innocent, and the child in her belly is innocent.] [She was raised by her grandfather. She always looked down on me because I lived off her family's wealth. She despises me.] [Honestly, one of the reasons I wanted a son was for Maya's mother. She passed away early, and there was no son to carry her casket. Her ashes are still unburied because of it.] Hearing that made my blood boil. I wanted to reach through the screen and strangle that absolute beast. I really should have killed him back then. It was entirely his fault, yet he was twisting the narrative, playing the victim, and framing me. Liam tried to calm me down. "Hold on, Maya. Your plan is almost complete!" I took a deep breath, forcing myself to cool down. The internet rumors spiraled out of control. In his latest video, Richard announced he was taking me to court for failing to fulfill my legal obligation to support and care for him. Liam handed me his phone. "A text from Aunt Susan." [$50,000, plus $5,000 a month for his pension, and I can talk your dad out of this.] I picked up the phone, pressed the voice memo button, and replied: "He is not worth that price."
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