It was so real. My father told me to go to my room and rest, that he would take care of the rest. But lying in bed, I couldn't sleep. The ointment the doctor prescribed soothed the pain in my cheek, but the fire in my heart burned brighter.

I opened my phone and went on Instagram, a social media site I had neglected, where I only had a few relatives and Caleb. I hadn't looked at it before so as not to compare the luxurious lives of others with my own sad reality. But now, I scrolled through it with a completely new mentality. Indeed, I quickly found a post that Caleb's mother, my former mother-in-law, had posted an hour ago.

It was a few photos. In them, Briana was smiling, hugging Caleb with a banquet in front of them. The text read, "Briana is the best. She came to cook dinner for us.

We're old now. It's been a long time since the house was this lively and cheerful." Below were comments from mutual acquaintances.

"What happiness, Mrs. Helen." Caleb knows how to choose. "What a beautiful couple." Simply ridiculous.

I noticed that the bracelet Briana was wearing was the family emerald heirloom. The one my mother-in-law said her daughter-in-law would inherit. I had once asked to see it, but she refused, saying it was an antique and that I was so clumsy I might damage it. And now it adorned Briana's wrist.

As if it were nothing, I felt a pang of pain, not from jealousy, but from disgust. The shamelessness of this family knew no bounds. Did they really think that by throwing me out, they could live happily with that mistress? Just then, I noticed that in the background of one of the photos, the screen of Caleb's phone was on.

It looked like he had several missed calls. In that moment, I could only think of the irony of the situation. Meanwhile, in the small Prescott apartment, the atmosphere was not as festive as the post showed. Caleb's phone wouldn't stop ringing.

The first call was from the construction site manager. His voice was on the verge of tears. Mr. Prescott, we have a huge problem. People from the Sterling Group came.

They say they found serious defects in our materials and are going to return everything. The project is halted indefinitely and they've ordered all workers to withdraw. Caleb, who is about to give Briana a piece of food, almost dropped his utensils. Quality problems?

That's impossible. All our materials passed inspections. I'll talk to the CEO of Sterling myself. He's not answering.

His secretary says it's a decision from the group's board and there's nothing they can do. He had barely hung up when a second call came. It was the CFO, his voice trembling. Mr. Prescott, it's a catastrophe.

Several banks called at once. Chase, Bank of America. They say there's a serious problem with our company's credit rating and are demanding payment of all interest for the quarter by tomorrow morning, as well as early repayment of all loans. Where are we suddenly going to get that much money?

Caleb's face turned as white as paper. Impossible. We've always had a good relationship with them. Why?

Suddenly, they only say we offended someone we shouldn't have offended. After that, the calls kept coming like messengers of death. The director of their main steel supplier. Caleb, I'm very sorry, but we're having money problems.

Could you settle last month's invoice? Today, the owner of the design firm they had worked with for years. Caleb, there are rumors that your project has been stopped. We'll have to withdraw our staff.

And what about payment for what we've already done? Caleb's father, Russell, also received several calls from old friends. They all beat around the bush, asking if they had gotten into trouble with someone important. The dinner was ruined.

Briana, seeing the faces of Caleb and his parents, no longer dared to be affectionate. Russell slammed his fist on the table so angry his mustache trembled. "What the hell is going on? Everything was fine this morning.

Why did everything suddenly go wrong? Caleb, did you do something?" Caleb was also bewildered. Dad, I swear I didn't do anything. I've only been going from the construction site to the office lately.

His mother clutched her chest and cried out, "Maybe, maybe it's because of that Savannah. That woman brings bad luck." As soon as she left, all this started. She probably put a curse on us. Mom, are you still blaming Savannah?

What power could she possibly have? Caleb ruffled his hair in desperation. At that moment, the landline rang with a sharp, piercing sound in the tense silence of the living room. Caleb ran to answer it.

"Hello, who is this?" They said something on the other side because Caleb's face lost all its color. His lips trembled, and he was speechless.

"Who was it?" "What happened now?" Russell asked, concerned. Caleb slowly put the receiver down and muttered as if in a trance.

"It was It was the IRS. They say they're coming next week to conduct a tax audit of the company." a tax audit. Russell felt dizzy and almost fainted. What entrepreneur doesn't have some irregularities in their accounting?

Suddenly, a deep fear gripped the Prescott family. The former arrogance and joy disappeared, leaving only terror at the impending disaster. They felt as if they had been pushed off a cliff without even knowing who did it. Briana, seeing the situation, started to think.

She discreetly pulled her purse closer and I, in the comfort of the villa in Lake Forest, was reading my former mother-in-law's Instagram post with a cold smile. The project halted, the loan demands, the tax audit. My father's actions were swift, precise, and merciless. Chaos reigned in the Prescott household.

The ringing of the phone and the shouting never ceased. Caleb and his father, Russell, kept calling all their contacts. Their voices went from pleading to anger and from anger back to pleading, and their expressions changed every second. Caleb's mother collapsed on the sofa, crying and hitting her legs.

It's over. We're finished. We've offended someone very powerful. What are we going to do now?