My mother-in-law, Martha Evans, was worried sick about how worn out I looked after giving birth.
For Thanksgiving, she took me to this aesthetic clinic my husband, Liam Evans, had invested in, hoping to help me feel like myself again.
But just before the injection, I happened to glance at the vial. The expiration date was six months ago!
I froze, my blood turning to ice, and immediately screamed for them to stop.
Martha was furious and confronted the clinic’s director, Dr. Evelyn Reed, on the spot.
But Dr. Reed just shrugged, completely unconcerned.
“What’s the big deal if it’s expired by six months? Just pump up the dosage, the effect will be just as good! What makes a hag like her think she deserves top-tier products anyway?”
I was absolutely outraged, pointing to the door.
“Your ads promise all products are the latest EU imports, yet you’re giving clients expired drugs! Aren’t you afraid your boss will find out?”
She just laughed as if I’d said the funniest thing.
“I *am* the owner’s wife! My husband bought me this place as a little trinket, a plaything! And let me tell you, even if you two dropped dead on the operating table today, my husband would smooth everything over for me. Now, pay up, or you’ll regret it!”
I glanced at the price. Sixty-eight thousand for an expired injection?
My mind raced, not just about the outrageous cost, but simmering with anger that Liam would dare to mess around behind my back like this!
Before I could even think about confronting him, she was already on the phone, her voice dripping with sickly sweetness.
“Oh, hubby, someone’s bullying me here at the clinic! If you don’t come soon, your little baby is going to be bullied to death!”
1
“You two just wait! My husband is on his way to deal with you two freeloading nobodies trying to skip out on the bill!”
Hearing her absurd accusations, my entire body trembled with rage.
“What are you talking about? We never said we couldn’t pay! We’re questioning you for using expired medicine to harm people!”
She gave me a cold, dismissive glance.
“You? You think you’re in any position to question us? Look at you, all bloated and ugly after childbirth, saggy skin, stretch marks all over your belly. You can’t even afford basic care, and you dare to come to a high-end establishment like ours?”
Martha saw my face drain of color from her insults and immediately stepped in front of me.
“How dare you speak to my daughter-in-law like that? She became this way because she gave birth! What right do you have to mock her? Besides, this is *my son’s clinic*! Even if it were just a regular place, you’re using expired medicine, and we have every right to question it!”
Hearing Martha’s words, her face instantly darkened.
“You old hag, who do you think you are? Your son’s clinic? This place was opened for *me* by *my husband*! Look at the rags you’re wearing! Who do you think your son is to even *compare* to my husband? I’m telling you, whether you get the injection or not, if you don’t pay me that sixty-eight thousand today, you’re not walking out that door!”
Martha was always modest, used to wearing custom-made clothes that most people wouldn’t recognize the value of.
I never imagined she’d be underestimated because of it.
But Sera wasn’t done. Still seething, she shoved Martha hard.
Martha was older, and the push sent her sprawling to the ground.
“Mom!”
I rushed to her side, helping her up.
Martha’s face turned ashen, and she clutched her chest, gasping for air.
“Mom, what’s wrong? Is your asthma acting up again?”
Martha’s asthma was a chronic condition, easily triggered by excitement or stress.
As I asked, I frantically pulled her inhaler from my bag, just as Dr. Reed snatched it away.
“What an act, truly well-prepared!”
“Call… call 911…” Martha stammered, barely coherent.
Seeing Martha’s worsening condition, I had no time to deal with Dr. Reed. I quickly pulled out my phone to dial for emergency services.
But Sera was lightning-fast. She lunged, grabbed my phone, and smashed it violently to the ground.
*CRACK!*
The screen instantly shattered into a spiderweb of cracks.
“What a performance! When the expired meds didn’t work, you decided to fake an injury and call an ambulance, hoping to scam me out of money!” she sneered. “I’ve seen countless poor people like you! First, you nitpick and refuse to pay, then you fake illness, then you pretend to call an ambulance – it’s all just a ploy to extort money from me! Let me tell you, I, Seraphina Thorne, wasn’t born yesterday! I’ve seen through all these tricks before!”
2
I stared at the broken shards of my phone on the floor, then at Martha, who was struggling more and more. Tears streamed down my face, unstoppable.
“Do you even know who she is? She’s your husband’s mother!” I screamed, completely breaking down.
But instead of believing me, Sera just got even worse.
“Oh, really, you pathetic hussy? I haven’t even said who my husband is, and you’re already trying to impersonate his family here? And you call her ‘Mom’? Clearly trying to be the mistress! You filthy slut, I’m not going to let either of you get away with this! Security! Get over here and hold this tramp down!”
The words were barely out of her mouth before four burly men rushed over and pinned my arms and legs. Struggling was useless.
I screamed at the top of my lungs.
“Liam Evans! Liam Evans! Is your husband Liam Evans?! She really is Liam Evans’ mother! Please, I’m begging you! My mom truly has asthma, she’s in danger right now! Please, just let us call an ambulance!”
Sera stood with her arms crossed, her eyes blazing with malice.
“You actually know my husband, huh? Ha! I knew you wanted to be the mistress! No problem, I’ll make sure you never dare to covet someone else’s property again.”
The moment she admitted she was with Liam, I heard my heart shatter.
The last sliver of hope I clung to vanished. The man who’d promised to love and protect me for a lifetime had taken a mistress right after I’d given birth.
And by the looks of it, it hadn’t been a short affair.
“You four, have you ever slept with a woman?” Sera’s voice slithered in my ear, chilling me to the bone. “You’re in for a treat today. This woman likes to steal other women’s men. She’s all yours to ‘discipline.'”
Before I could even process the fresh heartbreak, their disgusting laughter filled the room. I fought back with all my might.
“Stop it! No! If you dare touch me, Liam Evans will never let you get away with it!”
Sera laughed, a triumphant, mocking sound as she covered her mouth.
“Liam Evans? He’s *my* husband! Why would he protect *you*? You guys, hurry it up!”
With her command, I watched in horror as those repulsive faces loomed closer.
Rough hands tore at my body, still weak and vulnerable from childbirth.
The ripping sound of my clothes, interwoven with the men’s crude gasps, became the most terrifying symphony in my ears.
“Stop! You beasts! Let my daughter-in-law go!”
Martha was screaming beside me, struggling to get up from the floor, but her asthma attack made every breath a torturous battle.
Sera slowly walked over to Martha, her face etched with utter disdain.
“You old hag, you think you can play hero in your state? You’d better worry about yourself first!”
*SMACK!*
A loud, stinging slap echoed through the room, landing squarely on Martha’s aged face.
“MOM!”
My eyes widened in terror, and I let out a gut-wrenching scream.
My heart, in that single deafening slap, completely shattered into a million pieces.
I struggled with all my might, but I was held down firmly on the cold ground.
Despair, like a tidal wave, completely engulfed me.
I don’t know how long it lasted. Finally, the men stood up, satisfied.
They adjusted their clothes, muttering insulting words about me, and then moved to stand behind Sera.
3
Time seemed to freeze. I lay there like a broken rag doll, my clothes torn, every inch of my body screaming in pain.
But the deepest agony was in my heart, already riddled with a thousand holes. Still, I couldn’t give up.
I mustered every last ounce of strength, scrambling on my hands and knees towards Martha.
Her face was already turning purplish-blue, her breath so faint I could barely detect it.
“Mom… Mom…”
My trembling hand reached for hers; it was terrifyingly cold. No, Martha couldn’t die.
She’d always treated me like her own daughter. I couldn’t let anything happen to her.
I whipped my head around, glaring at Sera, who looked like a demon.
I fell to my knees, humiliatingly crawling towards her feet, and clutched at the hem of her pants.
“Please…” My voice was raw, like sandpaper. “Please… save my mom, she’s really dying…”
Sera looked at my pathetic state, a triumphant smirk spreading across her face.
“You want me to save this old hag?” She crouched down, her finger lifting my chin. ”
It’s not impossible. But first, you have to agree to one condition.”
A flicker of hope ignited in my eyes.
“What condition? Tell me! Anything! As long as you save my mom, I’ll agree to anything!”
Sera pointed to the expired syringe resting on the counter.
“It’s simple. You inject that expired medicine into yourself, and I’ll *consider* calling an ambulance.”
I froze. That was medicine expired by six months! God only knew what side effects it would have; it could easily kill me!
“I… I…”
I looked at the syringe, then at Martha, who was on the verge of dying. A fierce battle raged within me.
Seeing my hesitation, Sera sneered.
“How pathetic? Didn’t you just say you’d agree to *any* condition? Changing your mind already? Let me tell you, this is your *only* chance. Miss it, and you can start preparing the funeral for this old woman!”
I looked at Martha’s increasingly faint breathing, tears streaming down my face.
“Fine, I agree,” I bit out. “But you have to promise that as soon as I’m injected, you’ll call an ambulance immediately!”
Sera’s smile widened even further.
“Of course, I always keep my word.”
She motioned, and a woman dressed like a nurse approached, holding a syringe and the expired vial.
“Come on, arm out,” Nurse Davis said, her face devoid of emotion.
My arm trembled as I extended it.
The needle pierced my skin, and I felt a sharp sting as the cold liquid was pushed into my vein.
I had no idea what effects these expired chemicals would have on my body, or if my life was even in danger.
But as long as it saved Martha, none of that mattered.
As soon as the injection was done, I looked at Sera.
“There, I’ve done what you asked. Now will you call an ambulance?”
But Sera just smiled and shook her head.
“I said I’d *consider* calling an ambulance, not that I definitely would. And now that I’ve considered it, I’ve decided not to.”
I stared at her, utterly incredulous.
“You! You’re breaking your word? You explicitly said that if I got the injection, you would call an ambulance!”
Sera crossed her arms, completely nonchalant.
“So what? This is my place, I make the rules. I call the shots. I told you that even if you two died here today, my husband would sort it out for me!”
I had believed I’d grasped the last straw of hope, only to find myself drowning in even deeper despair.
4
“You can’t do this!” I shrieked, my voice hoarse. “You promised! I’ve already injected the expired medicine as you demanded, now you have to uphold your end of the bargain!”
Sera looked at me coldly.
“And what if I don’t? What are you going to do? Sue me? Do you have any proof? All the surveillance cameras here are under my control. Everything that happened today, I can easily frame as an accident. You two barged in, caused a scene, and the old lady’s asthma flared up from over-excitement. What does any of that have to do with me?”
Seeing my desperate face, Sera’s eyes suddenly lit up, as if she’d thought of some amusing game.
“However…” she deliberately drew out her words. “I’ve actually thought of an even more interesting idea.” “If you’re willing to cooperate and play a little game with me, I might reconsider.”
Hearing her, a glimmer of hope sparked within me again.
Whatever the game, as long as it could save Martha, I was willing to cooperate.
“What game? Tell me!” I asked urgently.
Sera walked to the reception desk, scrawled a few large words on a piece of paper, and then waved it in front of me.
“See this?”
I squinted. The paper read: “I am a shameless home-wrecker.”
“The game is simple,” Sera grinned triumphantly. “You hang this sign around your neck and crawl around the entire clinic. As you crawl, you have to shout loudly: ‘I’m a slut who seduces other women’s husbands, I deserve to die, I’m guilty!’ If you can complete this game, I’ll truly call an ambulance.”
As she spoke, she pulled a string from a drawer, preparing to make the sign wearable.
I looked around. There were quite a few other clients and staff in the clinic.
If I actually did that, the video would definitely be uploaded online, and I’d never be able to show my face again in this lifetime.
But then I looked at Martha’s purplish face, at her increasingly weak breaths.
My heart ached so much I could barely breathe.
“Okay…” I gritted my teeth. “I agree. But you *must* promise that after I’m done, you’ll call an ambulance immediately!”
Sera’s smile was even brighter now. “Of course, this time I absolutely mean it.”
She handed me the finished sign. “Here, put it on.”
My hands trembled as I took the sign and hung it around my neck.
I began to crawl, my voice barely a whisper. “I’m… I’m a slut who seduces other women’s husbands…”
“Louder!” Sera yelled, dissatisfied. “Who can hear you with a voice that small?”
I took a deep breath, and with all my might, I screamed, “I’M A SLUT WHO SEDUCES OTHER WOMEN’S HUSBANDS! I DESERVE TO DIE! I’M GUILTY!”
My voice echoed through the entire clinic, drawing laughter from everyone.
“Hahahaha, look at this woman, she’ll do anything for money!”
“Shameless! She’s actually admitting she’s the other woman!”
“This is going to be good! Record it and post it on Ins!”
Amidst the mocking laughter, I crawled step by painful step through the entire clinic. Each step felt like walking on knives, each shout like tearing open my own heart.
“I’ve done what you asked. Now will you call an ambulance?”
Sera looked at my humiliated state and clapped her hands.
“Bravo, absolutely brilliant!”
At that moment, complete despair washed over me. She had never intended to save Martha from the start.
Just then, hurried footsteps echoed from outside the door.
“What’s going on here?”
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