Falsely Accused of Kickbacks, My Family Ruined Me Completely

The day I got fired from my own family's building-materials company, the whole company was calling me a kickback thief.

So I used my savings to open a hardware store.

I'd just landed a big construction-site order when several batches of substandard wiring turned up in the testing.

There was an accident on the site, and the only way to cover the damages was to sell the store.

On my way home I passed the hardware store, and the lights were still on.

I figured it was the new owner taking inventory.

But when I got closer, I saw it was my wife and her best friend, straightening the shelves.

"Seriously? The kickbacks, planting the substandard wiringthat was all his brother?"

"To be exact, the one behind it was my mother-in-law."

"Aren't they both her sons?"

"Sure, but Nat was born from her lover, so he's like an outsider at home."

"We never had kidsthat was my mother-in-law's folk remedy too."

"If Thomas is infertile, then I can be the one to have Nat's baby."

"This store was a gift from my mother-in-law."

I stood against the wall, staring blankly into the shop.

Three days ago I was in there taking inventory myself.

Now I was standing outside like a stranger.

Violet grumbled under her breath.

"Nothing I can do about it. I'll have to keep playing along with him a while longer."

Her friend set down the ledger in her hand and teased her.

"Hearing you say all this, I suddenly feel kind of sorry for Thomas."

Violet let out a scoff.

"Sorry for him? What's there to feel sorry about?"

"His whole life, every good thing in that family went to him."

"Good at school, quick-minded."

"My father-in-law always meant to hand the whole company over to him someday."

"Nat spent all this time living in his shadow."

"Now we've finally gotten him out of the company."

"He ought to get a real taste of what Nat's been through all these years."

She said it in a breezy tone.

Like she was talking about someone who had nothing to do with her.

But I was her husband.

We'd registered our marriage, slept in the same bed for three whole years!

I clenched my fists.

But my heart was stabbing with pain.

Her friend spoke up again. "So what method did your mother-in-law actually use?"

"How'd she keep Thomas from having a kid for three whole years?"

There was a note of smugness in Violet's voice.

"A Western drug."

"Slipped into the soup he drinks every daya small dose, but taken long term."

"It slowly strips away his fertility."

Her friend was clearly startled.

"Then isn't that harmful to his body?"

Violet shrugged, her tone airy.

"No idea. Who cares."

"Whether Thomas lives or dies, what's it to me?"

"As long as Nat's fine, that's all that matters."

"Oh, rightour marriage certificate is fake too."

With that, she stuffed a stack of invoices into the drawer.

Like she was talking about the most ordinary thing in the world.

My head buzzed.

I was in a state of total disbelief.

The marriage certificate was fake?

And all these years, she'd often stewed all kinds of fertility tonics for me.

I'd always taken it for the warmth of marriage.

Turns out every last bowl was poison!

No wonder I couldn't get her pregnant no matter how hard I tried.

Turns out I'd been betrayed at the same time by the two women closest to me.

Violet poured herself a glass of water.

She leaned against the counter, and her voice suddenly dropped a little.

"Honestly, he was good to me too. Shame it didn't matter."

"All I see is Nat. There's no room in me for any other man."

She gave a little smile, and it looked cold.

"When it comes down to it, he had it coming."

"Who told him to stand in Nat's way."

I was shaking all over.

Not from the coldfrom a rage that came straight from my heart.

My chest felt tight with it, but then I gave a bitter little laugh at myself.

So this was how she saw me.

All the good I'd done over the years was nothing but a joke.

Her friend was silent for a few seconds, then asked.

"So you really mean to have his kid?"

Violet lowered her head and touched her stomach.

"It's almost there."

"Once Thomas signs the divorce papers, I'll be with Nat out in the open."

"My mother-in-law said she'd give us this store as our marital home."

"Thomas won't get a single cent."

She looked up, a smile in her eyes.

She seemed gentle, but underneath was three years of cold, ruthless scheming.

I edged forward a step.

I wanted to storm in and have it out with her, to ask why she'd screwed me over like this.

While Violet was busy drinking her water, her friend seized the moment.

She turned her head, and her gaze cut straight through the glass and landed right on me.

She didn't make a sound, just blinked.

And made a hushing gesture at me.

I thought I'd hidden it wellI never imagined she'd spotted me long ago.

But I didn't understand what she meant by it.

She didn't expose me, and she even warned me to stay quiet.

Just now I'd been blinded by anger.

Thinking it over now, storming in would only have tipped them off.

In the end I decided to go home first.

On the way, I thought about how even if I sold the store, I'd still owe over a million.

Not to mention the safety accident at the construction site.

Someone had even lost their life over it.

I'd originally thought I was the one who'd brought in the substandard wire.

I'd chalked it up to bad luck and accepted the compensation and the penalty.

Now that I knew the truth, there was no way I could keep sitting still and waiting to die.

The moment I got home, the debt-collection calls started coming, one after another.

I took the cursing like a whipped dog.

"Thomas Delgado, you're a goddamn fraud!"

"You actually used cheap wire? Did the dogs eat your conscience?!"

"If you can't afford to pay, just wait to rot in prison!"

I gripped my phone tight and apologized over and over.

"I'm sorry. I'll pay it back, I swear."

"Give me a little more time, please don't sue me."

After the call ended, I slumped onto the sofa.

The debt collectors, the people demanding money, the ones cursing meit kept up until evening.

Violet came home as usual.

The moment the door opened, she called out to me sweetly.

"Honey, I'm home."

She changed her shoes and came over to sit beside me.

"Don't worry, you've got me."

"I'll get through this hard time right along with you."

Then she went straight to the kitchen.

Before, I would have been touched.

I would have thought I'd married a good wife.

Now all I felt was disgust, and more disgust.

She spent half an hour in the kitchen, then carried out a bowl of steaming soup.

"Honey, drink up."

"I heard it's good for that, you knowmaybe it'll help us get pregnant."

I looked at the soup in the bowl and sneered inside.

That same line.

Over the past three years, I'd heard it countless times.

Every time I drank every last drop. Now it just made my whole body go cold.

I moved my eyes off the soup.

"I don't feel like drinking it today."

Violet's eye twitched.

"Honey, don't be so negative."

"I know you're under a lot of pressure, but your health comes first."

"Drink itmaybe then we'll have a baby."

She nudged the bowl toward me again.

I stared into her eyes.

Those eyesgentle enough to fool anyone.

So I pushed the bowl away again.

"I said I don't feel like drinking it today."

The smile on her face froze.

Then she demanded, "Thomas Delgado, what exactly are you trying to do?"

"It was just a mistake, wasn't it?"

"Who doesn't slip up now and then?"

I leaned back against the sofa and gave a small laugh.

"Right, nobody's perfect."

"But the truth is, this really was because of me."

Her gaze flickered for a moment, then quickly settled.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Are you saying I was the one who stuck that cheap wire on your site?"

I didn't say anything. I just looked at her.

She grew uneasy under my stare.

"I'm warning youdon't get pushed around out there and then come home and take it out on me."

"I make you soup out of kindness, and this is the face you give me?"

I asked her flatly.

"If it's so useful, why don't you drink it?"

She stammered.

"I'm a woman, it wouldn't do anything for me."

"Besides, the ingredients in this soup aren't cheapwe can't waste them."

Was she afraid of waste, or afraid of problems?

I'd known the answer for a long time.

I pushed the bowl aside and got ready to stand and go rest in the room.

Her expression changed.

"Thomas Delgado, don't be ungrateful!"

She grabbed my arm. "Are you drinking it or not?"

I stopped, and said the same thing again.

"As long as you'll drink it, I'll drink it."

I stared straight at her.

She started to panic, then suddenly slammed the bowl onto the floor and screamed.

"Then nobody drinks it!"

The porcelain burst apart, soup splashing all over the floor.

She stormed off to the room. "Don't even think about touching me tonight!"

I looked at the shards on the floor.

The soup was still steaming, but my heart was going cold, bit by bit.

Just as I was about to bend down and clean it up, my phone rang again.

I thought it was another debt-collection call.

I picked it up and saw it was a court summons.

The construction company I'd recently worked with.

They had formally charged me with causing a safety accident.

3. Really, the very thing I dreaded came to pass.

I figured I'd sell off the paintings and calligraphy I'd collected over the years.

Pay off part of the debt first.

Then pay the rest on schedule, even if it meant a little extra interest.

This construction company in particular was owed the biggest chunk.

It had to be dealt with first.

I called Grayson Chavez at the construction company right away.

"Uncle Grayson, didn't we have a deal?"

"I'll make up the money in full, and you promised you wouldn't sue me for now."

"Besides, didn't the police already rule it an accident?"

There were a few seconds of silence on the other end, then Uncle Grayson sighed.

"Thomas, I understand how hard this is for you."

"But it's a decision from up top."

"I'm caught in the middle. There's nothing I can do."

My heart sank, and I pressed him.

"Uncle Grayson, who wants to sue me?"

He didn't dare say.

He just brushed me off with a couple of vague lines.

"Don't ask anymore."

"Take my advice and hire a good lawyer."

"You might be out in two years at most."

I glanced at the bedroom door, then turned and walked toward the balcony.

I lowered my voice and said to Uncle Grayson.

"Uncle Grayson, I'm being framed."

"Someone is setting me up on purpose."

"Those substandard wiresI never ordered them."

Uncle Grayson didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

"Thomas, quit with the conspiracy theories all the time."

"Didn't you say yourself last time that you might have gotten them mixed up?"

"Why are you changing your story again?"

I opened my mouth, wanting to explain.

"Uncle Grayson, that was before I'd looked into it"

"All right, all right, I've got other things going on."

"I'm hanging up now."

I stood on the balcony, my mind a complete mess.

That night, Violet never opened the bedroom door.

So I slept in the guest room for the night.

Early the next morning, she started dressing up with great care.

I walked by carrying a glass of water.

She was penciling her eyebrows in front of the mirror, not even looking at me.

"I've got a class reunion tonight."

I answered flatly.

"Oh."

Her hand paused for a moment.

"Do you want to come along?"

I asked back, "Do you want me to go?"

Her hand stopped for a second as she was putting on lipstick.

"Suit yourself."

"But they're all my old classmates."

"You won't know anyone there, so it'll probably be awkward."

I was sure she wouldn't let me go.

And of course, I had no intention of asking for that kind of trouble.

"You go ahead. I've got things to do today."

"Fine, then get some good rest at home."

Deep down she was hoping I'd say I wasn't going.

On top of that, I had to sell off the family's belongings today.

Clear out the valuables in the house first.

After Violet left.

I sat on the couch and called a few regular buyers.

Asked if they wanted to take the paintings and calligraphy.

A lower price was fine.

Just as I was talking, there was a knock at the door.

I went over and opened it.

Prudence MatthewsViolet's best friendwas standing at the door.

She gave me a little wave.

"Mind if I come in and talk?"

I looked past her, surprised.

"Violet just left."

Prudence smiled. "I know. I came here specifically to see you."

Puzzled, I still let her in.

She didn't beat around the bush, going straight to the point.

"Violet isn't going to a class reunion tonight."

I looked at her, waiting for her to go on.

"She lied to you."

"And what about you?"

"What are you getting at, telling me all this?"

Prudence didn't explain.

She just pulled an invitation out of her bag.

"Seven o'clock tonight."

"The Century Grand, the private banquet hall."

"Violet and Nat Delgado are holding their engagement party there."

I took the invitation, half in doubt.

The moment I opened it, my pupils shrank.

Printed clearly across it: the engagement party of Mr. Nat Delgado and Ms. Violet Head.

The time and place were exactly as Prudence had said.

I stared at those two lines, my fingers trembling slightly.

Prudence added one more thing.

"The two of them have decided to get engaged tonight."

"After the trial ends, once you've been successfully put away in prison."

"Then they'll formally hold the wedding."

The more I listened, the more alarmed I became.

I thought I already knew a good deal of the truth.

But the reality was far crueler than I'd imagined.

I frowned at the woman in front of me.

"Why are you telling me all this? Aren't you and Violet best friends?"

Prudence gave a faint smile.

"We've only been best friends for three years."

"To put it nicely, we're friends."

"To put it bluntly, we've just been using each other."

She paused, then added another line.

"I simply can't stand watching them bully someone like this."

I knew she definitely wasn't telling me the whole truth, but I didn't press her.

After all, what she was giving me now was real, solid help.

I murmured a thank you.

She stood up to leave.

She walked to the door, then turned back.

From her bag she took out a manila evidence envelope.

"This is for you."

It was heavy in my hand.

She didn't say what it wasshe just left.

Only when I opened it did I understand.

Inside was the evidence of my mother, Violet, and Nat conspiring to frame me.

Chat logs, audio recordings, videos.

Every single one was enough to nail them.

I sat there holding the envelope for a long time.

The more I looked, the harder my hands shook.

My phone rang many times during it all.

I didn't answer a single call.

I just sat on the sofa and smoked half a pack of cigarettes.

Six o'clock in the evening.

The Century Grand, the private banquet hall.

Quite a few guests had come.

Most of them relatives and friends.

There were also clients who did business with our family.

Violet and Nat stood up on the stage.

One in a long white dress.

One in a made-to-order suit.

To outsiders, they looked bright and dazzling.

A talented man and a beautiful woman, perfectly matched.

My mother held both their hands, tears in her eyes.

"Nat, Violet."

"Mom has waited so long for this day."

"You two have to be good to each other."

My father sat at the head table.

Raising his glass and chatting with friends and relatives, his face creased with smiles.

The whole scene looked warm and joyful.

But they seemed to have forgotten.

There was still one more member of this family.

Standing at that very moment in the doorway of the banquet hall.

Watching everything before him with cold eyes.

My mother wiped away her tears and looked at Violet.

"Violet, dear, you and Nat should have a baby soon."

"I'll take care of the child from now on."

"All I want in this life is to hold a grandchild."

Violet covered her mouth and smiled.

"Mom, don't worry."

"We will."

The words had barely left her lips.

She seemed to sense something.

She slowly raised her head.

Her line of sight collided with mine at the doorway.

The smile on her face froze in an instant.

Her lips quivered, and then she screamed.

"Thomas Delgado?"

"You... how are you here?!"

Every pair of eyes in the room turned to look at once.

My mother froze too.

Nat frowned before he could stop himself.

I walked calmly into the banquet hall.

Picked up a wine glass that hadn't been used yet and slowly filled it.

Then I lifted my head and scanned the room.

Finally my eyes settled on Violet and the rest of them.

"First of all, I wish you a lifetime of happiness together."

I raised my glass, my tone calm.

A faint, barely-there smile still on my face.

"Second, you ask why I'm here?"

"Simple. I've come to settle the accounts."