Chapter 3 - THE UNWELCOME VISITORS
Two days later, on a chilly Tuesday evening, I was in the kitchen helping Ava with her fourth-grade math homework when loud, aggressive knocking rattled my front door.
Ava flinched, instinctively shrinking back into her chair. “Is that Grandma?”
“Stay right here, sweetie,” I said softly, keeping my voice calm. “Don’t open the door for anyone.”
I walked down the hallway and checked the smart doorbell camera on my phone. Standing on my porch was not just my mother and sister—they had brought Evan Wright, Nicole’s wealthy fiancé, and his mother, Victoria Wright.
Victoria Wright was a woman known in the local high-society circles for her immaculate reputation, charity galas, and zero-tolerance policy for public scandal. She looked furious, holding a designer handbag tightly against her tailored coat, while Nicole stood behind her wiping away fake tears.
I opened the door, keeping the heavy iron security screen locked between us.
“Maya, open this door this instant!” my mother barked, stepping forward. “We need to talk like adults instead of you posting edited, slanderous videos to the family!”
“This is private property, Linda,” I said coolly. “You have three seconds to turn around before I press the panic button for the security system.”
“Maya, please!” Evan stepped forward, looking anxious. He was a spineless man who did whatever Nicole told him, but right now he looked terrified. “My mother saw the video you sent around. Nicole explained that it was a terrible misunderstanding and that you edited the audio clip to make her sound bad!”
Victoria Wright held up her hand, instantly silencing her son. Her cold gray eyes locked onto mine through the metal screen.
“Ms. Vance,” Victoria said, her tone dripping with corporate authority. “I am Victoria Wright. My family’s foundation is sponsoring Evan and Nicole’s upcoming wedding. Nicole claims that you are threatening legal action over a minor venue miscommunication, and that you are attempting to extort her for five thousand dollars.”
I looked at Victoria, then looked at Nicole, who was hiding a smug grin behind her handkerchief. Nicole thought bringing her future mother-in-law to my front porch would intimidate me into backing down. She thought I would protect her image to keep the peace.
“Mrs. Wright,” I said, pulling my phone from my pocket. “Did Nicole show you the full, unedited video file, or did she just show you a ten-second screen recording?”
Victoria frowned slightly. “She showed me a clip where she claimed she was reading a line from a movie script they were joking about.”
I laughed—a sharp, humorless sound. I tapped my phone screen and turned it around, casting the unedited audio and video directly to the smart speaker mounted near my doorway. The loud, crisp sound of Nicole’s voice echoed across the porch for the entire neighborhood to hear:
“Maya spent eight months saving for this venue. It’s about time she paid for something useful for this family instead of wasting five grand on a fatherless nine-year-old.”
Victoria’s face paled. She slowly turned her head and looked directly at Nicole.
“Is that your voice, Nicole?” Victoria asked, her voice dropping to a dangerous whisper.
“Victoria, no! She manipulated the file! She used AI!” Nicole panicked, her face turning bright red as she grabbed Evan’s arm. “Evan, tell her! Maya works with digital design tools at her architecture firm! She fake-generated my voice!”
“AI?” I sneered. “Would you like to see the signed venue alteration sheet with my mother’s handwriting, Nicole? Or perhaps the police report I filed two hours ago for identity theft regarding the fake email address created to impersonate me?”
Victoria turned back to me, her jaw set firm. “You filed a police report?”
“I did,” I said clearly. “And tomorrow morning, my legal counsel is filing a formal suit in civil court for theft of services, fraud, and emotional distress caused to a minor. If Evan stays attached to Nicole, his name will be listed in the public court filings as a beneficiary of stolen property.”
Evan gasped. “What?! Mom, I didn't know anything about a fake email!”
“Shut up, Evan!” Victoria snapped. She looked at my mother, then at Nicole, her eyes filled with utter disgust. “You told me Maya was a bitter, unstable woman trying to ruin your happiness. You lied to me.”
“Mrs. Wright, please!” my mother begged, grabbing Victoria’s sleeve. “Maya is just jealous because Nicole found a good man and Maya’s husband abandoned her!”
Victoria snatched her arm away from my mother’s grip as if she had just touched trash.
“Do not touch me,” Victoria warned coldness radiating from her every word. “Evan, get in the car. Right now.”
“Mom—”
“I said get in the car!” Victoria commanded. She turned to me one last time, giving a curt, respectful nod. “Ms. Vance, I apologize for bothering you at your home. You will not be hearing from us again regarding this matter.”
May you like
As Victoria marched down the driveway, Nicole turned on me, her eyes wild with rage. “You ruined everything! You ruined my life, Maya! I hope you burn in hell!”
“Get off my porch, Nicole,” I said softly. “Before the police remove you themselves.”
