\u201cMuch better,\u201d he said arrogantly. \u201cLooks like you finally figured out your place.\u201d<\/p>\n
Evelyn chuckled softly.<\/p>\n
\u201cI told you, son. Some women need a firm hand.\u201d<\/p>\n
Vanessa slowly poured coffee into Nathan\u2019s cup. He sat at the head of the table exactly where she wanted him.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you\u2019d understood this arrangement from the beginning,\u201d Nathan added smugly, \u201cour marriage would\u2019ve been much easier.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cEasier for who?\u201d Vanessa asked quietly.<\/p>\n
Nathan\u2019s smile disappeared.<\/p>\n
\u201cWatch your tone.\u201d<\/p>\n
Right then, the doorbell rang.<\/p>\n
Nathan frowned.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou expecting somebody?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes,\u201d Vanessa answered calmly.<\/p>\n
\u201cAt this hour?\u201d Evelyn asked suspiciously.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey\u2019re important guests.\u201d<\/p>\n
Nathan leaned back with a mocking laugh.<\/p>\n
\u201cPerfect. Let them see how obedient you\u2019ve become.\u201d<\/p>\n
Vanessa walked to the foyer and opened the door.<\/p>\n
Attorney Danielle Brooks entered first, dressed impeccably in gray. Behind her came two state detectives in uniform. Then came Marcus Reed, a banking executive carrying a black briefcase. Beside him stood Trevor, Nathan\u2019s accountant, pale and exhausted. Finally came Chloe, Nathan\u2019s executive assistant, clutching a folder tightly against her chest.<\/p>\n
The moment Nathan saw them step into the dining room, the color drained from his face.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat the hell is this?\u201d he shouted, pushing his chair back violently.<\/p>\n
Vanessa stepped aside.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s the breakfast you asked for.\u201d<\/p>\n
Nobody laughed.<\/p>\n
Danielle sat beside Vanessa while the officers remained near the doorway. Marcus opened his briefcase. Trevor avoided Nathan\u2019s eyes entirely. Chloe looked like she had spent the night crying.<\/p>\n
Evelyn clutched her pearls tightly.<\/p>\n
\u201cNathan, tell these people to get out of our house!\u201d<\/p>\n
Nathan pointed toward the door.<\/p>\n
\u201cEverybody out! Now!\u201d<\/p>\n
One of the officers stepped forward.<\/p>\n
\u201cMr. Collins, sit down and remain silent.\u201d<\/p>\n
For the first time in years, nobody obeyed Nathan.<\/p>\n
Vanessa placed a tablet in the middle of the table and pressed play.<\/p>\n
Nathan\u2019s furious voice filled the room.<\/p>\n
\u201cTomorrow I want a proper breakfast waiting for me. No attitude. No melodrama.\u201d<\/p>\n
Then the sound of the slap echoed through the speakers.<\/p>\n
Evelyn\u2019s horrified face froze as her own voice followed:<\/p>\n
\u201cA wife who can\u2019t follow simple instructions will fail at important things too.\u201d<\/p>\n
Nathan lunged toward the tablet, but the officer grabbed his arm immediately.<\/p>\n
Vanessa looked directly at him.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou chose the wrong woman to humiliate.\u201d<\/p>\n
Nathan let out a nervous laugh.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou think recordings are enough to ruin me?\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
\u201cMuch better,\u201d he said arrogantly. \u201cLooks like you finally figured out your place.\u201d Evelyn chuckled softly. \u201cI told you, son. Some women need a firm hand.\u201d Vanessa slowly poured coffee … <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":6401,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6404","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-story"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/storyintheworld.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6404","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/storyintheworld.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/storyintheworld.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/storyintheworld.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/storyintheworld.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=6404"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/storyintheworld.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6404\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6407,"href":"https:\/\/storyintheworld.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6404\/revisions\/6407"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/storyintheworld.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/6401"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/storyintheworld.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=6404"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/storyintheworld.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=6404"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/storyintheworld.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=6404"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}