The Revenge of the Mute Wife by Melanie Paulson
Chapter 57

Chapter 56

"Damn old man, you ruin my plans even from beyond the grave," Sophia muttered furiously, clenching her fists. "Is everyone conspiring against me?" She glared hatefully at the television screen tuned to a tabloid channel.

She couldn't understand... how was it that a boring mute woman without grace or elegance managed to snag the richest men? What did Deborah have that Sophia didn't?

Sophia looked at herself in the mirror and remembered the words of her so-called friends: "You may be pretty, but you're still the daughter of a maid. Your last name isn't worth a cent."

"No! I am worth a lot," she said, staring at her reflection. "I can manipulate any man to worship me."

She was absolutely furious, especially now that she had another problem on her hands. Sophia was supposed to have a baby boy. But the problem wasn't the gender at all. It was the fact that there was no baby in her belly. Her pregnancy was a lie she told to expedite the divorce. But now that things turned out this way, Sophia regretted rushing into it.

"I think I'll have to buy some ultrasound scans. Luckily the idiotic mother and son are too busy with their own problems to notice anything," Sophia said to herself before glancing at her phone to see the report that the twins had sent her. She smiled.

'At least someone is doing their job right, Sophia thought. They had someone monitoring and following Deborah, so it didn't matter that she was safe in that house; it was only a matter of time before Sophia could strike.

But then the smile vanished from her face. The twins were expecting her to keep her end of the bargain. The problem was that she knew nothing about the Andersons. The little she knew was from some scandals she vaguely remembered. Moreover, the Andersons had never interested Sophia so she didn't know much about them in general.

Sophia knew Deborah wouldn't know anything about the special clauses that would enable Frederick to access the Andersons' money. Otherwise, Deborah wouldn't have lived in poverty all this while. The other alternative Sophia could think of was asking Isabelle. But how would she force the woman to cooperate?

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Just then, she heard the apartment door open, and Isabelle entered, looking a bit angry and carrying several luxury shopping bags.

"Sophia!" Isabelle shouted as she closed the door and left her bags on the couch.

"What?" Sophia replied grumpily, coming out of her room to confront Isabelle. "Can you tell me what this means?" Isabelle demanded, spreading her arms to gesture around the place.

"I don't know what you mean. I just see an insufferable old woman who's been abandoned," Sophia scoffed, crossing her arms.

"No, idiot," Isabelle gritted her teeth at the insult. "I mean, why is the house still dirty?"

"Well, I think it looks decent," Sophia mocked.

Isabelle walked over to the coffee table and ran her index finger across it, showing Sophia the layer of dust swiped. "You call this clean?"

"Well, if it bothers you so much, you can clean it yourself."

"You're mistaken. Keeping the house clean is the only reason you're allowed in this house, you cheap floozy."

"You need to show some respect. I'm your son's partner, and-"

"And that's exactly why your duties are to take care of the home, cook, attend to me and my son, and replace a job. You need to contribute to this household if you want to keep living here."

Sophia looked at her supposed mother-in-law, astonished and incredulous. Isabellet was the worst, but she was mistaken about one thing.

"Listen carefully, you crazy old woman, because I'll only say this once: I'm not Deborah, the idiot who let herself be walked all over. You will respect me, or I will make you regret bothering me for the rest of your life," Sophia declared, giving Isabelle a look of superiority. Isabelle's eyes narrowed. "What a good joke. But tell me, how can a woman without a last name punish me?"

"Perhaps I should reveal that dirty little secret to your husband and beloved son," Sophia retorted.

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The tension thickened. "Wow, it looks like you're a real rat. Quite classic for someone of your kind, but for your information, I'm not -"Isabelle said before Sophia cut her off.

"Listen carefully, you foul-smelling rat. This mission shouldn't be too complicated for you: I want you to go to my house today at this exact time and steal or kill that damned brat my husband forced me to bear."

The room fell silent. Isabelle's face drained of color.

"What..." Isabelle stammered.

Sophia's malicious smile widened.

"Those were the exact instructions that caused the childhood accident of my beloved husband, weren't they?" Sophia feigned concern.

"How do you..." Isabelle's voice trembled.

"But what if my dear Roger replaces out the truth?" Sophia continued.

"Impossible! How..." Isabelle trailed off.

"That's my secret, ma'am. Now, how about you keep me content? Behave like a good mother-in-law, clean the house, and maybe even prepare dinner. Otherwise, all the evidence I have might end up in the hands of your ex-husband. And I don't think he would be so generous with those monthly allowances for your shopping sprees anymore," Sophia taunted.

Isabelle was terrified. How did Sophia know? She'd thought she had disposed of all the evidence before her husband concluded the investigation into those events.

Before she could ask more questions, Roger arrived.

"Sophia!" He embraced her, planting a kiss on her lips. "Hello, Mom," he greeted his mother with a smile.

"Roger..."

"Guess what, darling? Today, your mom just gave me great news." Sophia interjected, glancing at Isabelle. been cooped up here all day, so she's giving us money for a date. It's been ages!" "She's sorry!

Roger sighed. "Sophia, I'm exhausted from working like an ordinary employee."

"Cheer up, darling. Things will change soon. And your mom insists I rest for the +15 BONUS

baby's sake while she handles cleaning and cooking."

"What...?" Isabelle tried to protest.

"Thank you for this, Mom," Roger said cheerfully. "And Sophia deserves royal

treatment. After all, she saved my life once." He scooped Sophia up and carried her to their room, leaving Isabelle speechless.

What did her son just say? And how did Sophia know about that accident? She needed to replace a way to get rid of this infuriating woman, and fast.