Olivia entered the apartment in surprisingly high spirits. She had a purpose. Honestly, she should have told Mark and his mother where to go a long time ago. Why had she tolerated their abuse for so long?
«Well, look at her!» Carol hissed, stepping into the hallway. «Finally decided to show up.»
«Good evening to you, too!» Olivia smiled sweetly. She had decided to no longer let the older woman’s barbs affect her.
«Where have you been?» Carol pressed.
«At work?» Olivia replied cheerfully.
«At work, you say?» At that moment, Mark wheeled himself into the hallway, his face a familiar mask of displeasure. «Did you get my steak?» he grumbled.
«No,» Olivia shook her head. In her conversation with Ben, she had completely forgotten about it.
«You little…» Carol snapped at her daughter-in-law. «The one time your husband asks you for something.»
«And?» Olivia raised an eyebrow, trying to remain calm. She had to find that dashcam. «I didn’t buy it. Maybe it’s because I don’t have any extra money? Did you ever consider that?»
«You had a tutoring session yesterday,» Mark reminded her. «You should have some cash.»
«So?» Olivia shrugged. «That money went to pay for the internet service that you use all day.»
«Now you’re blaming me for that?» Mark fumed. «If it weren’t for you…»
«Oh, I know,» Olivia cut him off sharply. «If it weren’t for me, you’d be healthy. Let me just remind you, I wasn’t the one behind the wheel—you were. You are the one responsible for what happened.»
«And who asked you to drive out in a blizzard to pick her up?» Carol wouldn’t back down.
«I did,» Olivia smiled. «But only because I’d bought all the ingredients for a special holiday dinner.»
«No need for that. We were going to go shopping together that weekend anyway.» They say that no good deed goes unpunished.
«So that’s how you’re going to talk now,» Carol hissed. «Why so bold all of a sudden?»
«I saw her with some guy near the academy tonight,» Ryan said, emerging from his room. «She was chatting him up, looking real cozy.»
«You know who it was?» Mark asked, his eyes narrowing as he studied his wife. He thought he saw a flicker of fear in her eyes, but it was gone as quickly as it appeared. He must have imagined it.
«No,» Ryan shook his head. «I only saw him from behind.»
«You little tramp,» Carol pointed a finger at Olivia’s chest.
«I would advise you not to do that again,» Olivia warned, her voice low and steady.
«Are you threatening me? In my own home?» Carol was stunned by her audacity. «You put my son in a wheelchair, and now you’re running around with a lover, and you dare to talk back to me?»
«I will,» Olivia said calmly. «First of all, your son put himself in that situation with his reckless driving. And second, that man was the father of one of my students, asking about his son’s progress. Are there any more questions?»
«Not at the moment,» Carol shook her head, thrown off by Olivia’s uncharacteristic behavior.
«If there aren’t any, I’m going to take a shower and get some rest.» Olivia was amazed at her own boldness. She headed for the bathroom, leaving the stunned family in her wake. «And one more thing,» she said, turning back. «If I hear one more word of reproach from any of you, I am leaving this apartment for good, and I’ll be taking my financial support with me. Understood?»
«Yes,» Mark nodded meekly.
Pleased with herself, Olivia locked the bathroom door. She began searching the shelves and cabinets for the dashcam or a memory card, but found nothing. «You didn’t really think it would be that easy, did you?» she said to her reflection. «Fine. We’ll keep looking.»
After her shower, she stepped out of the bathroom.
«You need to get her under control,» she heard Carol whisper to Mark, «or we’re going to have a serious problem.»
«Mom, what do you want me to do?» Mark threw up his hands. «If I push her too hard, she’ll just pack her bags and leave.»
«Then what are we supposed to live on? Don’t look at me,» Ryan warned. «I’m not supporting you guys.»
«See?» Carol sighed. «Mark, we have to do something.»
«Calm down,» Mark snapped at his mother. «Olivia will cool off, and everything will go back to the way it was.»
«What if she finds out the truth?» Carol whispered, horrified.
«Quiet,» Mark hushed her. «Even if she doesn’t know, hearing you will make her suspect we’re hiding something.»
Olivia pressed her back against the wall, holding her breath to avoid being discovered. She strained to hear what they would say next.
«By the way, Mom, did you hide that thing I gave you?» Mark asked.
«You’ve already asked me that,» Carol replied irritably. «I told you I did. Stop asking.»
«And Olivia won’t stumble upon it?» Mark pressed.
«What would she be doing in my room?» Carol asked, surprised. «And even if she did look, she’d never find it.»
«Good,» Mark relaxed, then sighed heavily. «Man, I’m starving!»
«Your wife will be out of the shower soon; tell her,» Ryan smirked. «She lives here for free and still acts like a princess.»
«Stay out of my marriage,» Mark advised. «Get married first, then you can boss your own wife around.»
«Mark’s right,» Carol sided with her younger son. «If Olivia leaves, what will we live on?»
«You’ve got your pension,» Ryan scoffed. «And Mark can apply for disability benefits.»
«Stop being a jerk,» Mark snapped. «You know I can’t get benefits.»
«Why is that?» Olivia wondered to herself. «This gets more and more interesting.»
«I can’t spend my pension right now,» Carol argued. «You know I’m saving up for a trip to Europe.»
«Unbelievable!» Olivia thought, outraged. «Here I am, dragging Mark and his dysfunctional family on my back out of a sense of guilt, and this is what’s really going on.» Her husband couldn’t get disability for some unknown reason, Carol was hoarding her pension for a vacation, and Ryan refused to contribute a single dime. «What a fool I’ve been!»
She walked to the bathroom door, opened it, and then slammed it shut, pretending she had just finished her shower. As she passed Carol’s room, she glanced at the family huddled together. «I’m going to bed. I have work tomorrow, plus two private lessons,» she announced. «So, I hope it will be quiet around here for once.»
«Of course, dear!» Carol agreed quickly.
Olivia entered the room she shared with Mark. She desperately wanted to lock the door and keep him out, but she couldn’t—not yet. Once she found what Mark was hiding, then she would say and do everything she’d been holding back for months. Alone in the room, Olivia tried to figure out how she could get the apartment to herself long enough to search Carol’s room. She prayed that the «thing» they were talking about was the dashcam. She couldn’t sleep, her mind racing. Why couldn’t Mark get disability benefits? Why hadn’t she thought to ask that sooner? What was wrong with her?
Waking early the next morning, Olivia showered quickly and left for work without eating breakfast, eager to avoid any interaction with Mark or his family. To free herself from the clutches of the Thompson family, she had to find that dashcam or its memory card. She could just file for divorce and ignore Ben’s request, but that would mean losing her only chance to find evidence against Mark. She couldn’t let that happen. She needed to know the truth.
At the academy, Olivia went straight to the studio of Chloe, the violin instructor and her closest friend for over thirteen years.
«Hey, you,» Olivia smiled as she entered. Chloe was her lifeline. She always listened, offered advice, and supported her unconditionally.
«Hi!» Chloe beamed back. «Coffee?»
«Please,» Olivia nodded. She desperately needed a cup of strong, hot coffee. Having skipped breakfast, she had stopped at a bakery on her way in to pick up their favorite pastries.
«Liv, are you okay?» Chloe asked, her brow furrowed with concern as she filled the electric kettle.
«Not really,» Olivia sighed. She needed to tell her friend everything that had happened, but she was afraid of being judged for her weakness. Chloe had always scolded her for letting Mark and his family walk all over her.
«Don’t you see they’re using you?» Chloe would fume. «It’s so blatant and shameless.»
«I know,» Olivia would say defensively. «I just feel so guilty about what happened to Mark. This is my penance.»
«I’m sorry, but I just don’t get it,» Chloe would say, ending the conversation, knowing she couldn’t change her friend’s mind. «One day, she’ll see how wrong she was to blame herself.»
