« »Starting tomorrow, your salary goes into a joint account controlled by my mother. At six AM, you cook. When I return, dinner is plated. And the most important rule: when the man speaks, the woman shuts her mouth! » »
I stared at him.
Just twenty-four hours ago, he had played the sensitive modern gentleman.
Now that the marriage was notarized, the predator finally dropped his disguise.
A sudden, sharp laugh escaped my throat.
« »What’s funny? » » Tom snapped, retreating a half-step. He had expected a cowering, weeping victim.
I stood up gracefully, picking up a sharp fragment of shattered porcelain.
My smile evaporated into the frigid air.
« »I was just wondering, » » I said, my voice dropping to an icy, alien register, « »if this is what ‘hitting her until she learns’ looks like. » »
Before the final syllable left my mouth, I dropped my center of gravity and launched a textbook front kick with explosive precision.
My heel connected dead-center with his solar plexus.
He launched backward, slamming into the oak console before collapsing into a gasping, terrified heap.
His eyes bulged as if he had just witnessed a demon.
I calmly crouched beside him, gently patting his sweat-drenched cheek.
« »You were right, Tommy, » »
I whispered, my fingers digging into his jaw, forcing him to meet my dead eyes.
« »You do have to hit until they learn. But you made one catastrophic miscalculation. » » « »You didn’t bother to ask what I actually did before I transitioned into corporate finance, » » I whispered, the cold edge of my voice cutting through his terrified wheezing. « »You just saw a quiet woman who liked baking and wore nice dresses. You never asked why my knuckles are flat, or why I have a cauliflower ear hidden under my hair. » »
Tom clutched his chest, his eyes darting frantically toward the front door. He tried to scramble backward, his expensive leather shoes slipping on the spilled chicken parmesan and shattered plates.
I didn’t let him retreat. I grabbed him by the collar of his designer shirt, pulling him up just enough so he was forced to inhale the scent of my perfume mixed with his own cold sweat.
« »I spent seven years fighting in professional Muay Thai leagues across Thailand, » » I said, my voice dangerously calm. « »I have broken more ribs than you have brain cells, Tommy. And I spent the last three years teaching self-defense to domestic abuse survivors. Women who were married to men exactly like you. » »
« »Are you crazy?! » » he finally managed to choke out, spitting a mixture of saliva and fear. « »My mother—! » »
« »Oh, yes. Let’s talk to your mother, » » I interrupted.
Still pinning him to the floor with one knee planted firmly on his chest, I reached into his slacks and pulled out his phone. I pressed his thumb to the screen to unlock it, found his mother’s contact, and hit dial. I put it on speaker and set it on the intact section of the hardwood floor right next to his ear.
It rang twice.
