Chapter 3

Brad glared at me with pure hatred, pulling out his phone to call our mother right in front of me.

The moment she answered, her voice was sickeningly sweet.

"Brad, sweetie, what's wrong?"

"Pack your bags and get out of Chris's house right now. Move back in with us."

"Oh, sweetie, that won't work. Your three bedrooms are all occupied right now, and it's too cramped for me. Chris has plenty of spare rooms. I can just stay here, commute to your place every day to cook and clean for you and Vanessa, and pick up Sam from school!"

"Shut up and do what I say! Chris is at my office right now, making a massive scene! Are you happy now?!" Brad snapped, hanging up without waiting for her reply.

I immediately pulled a printed document from my briefcase. "Sign this. From now on, we go our separate ways. I'll pay my legally required share of her elder care when she's bedridden, but don't expect a single cent from me before then."

Brad looked down at the severance agreement and lost his mind. "You're cutting ties with Mom?!"

"Yes."

I had spent my life letting things slide.

Even when I realized she was fleecing me to fund Brad's lifestyle, I hadn't pressed charges.

But the moment she tried to poison my son against me—the moment she secretly swapped Leo's expensive imported formula for cheap, generic powder to save a buck for Brad—I knew she was a monster beyond redemption.

"Sign it," I threatened coldly, "or pay back the $300,000 right now."

Cornered, Brad scribbled his name on the paper.

The entire time, my phone had been vibrating with frantic incoming calls from my mother.

I declined every single one.

Once I had Brad's signature, I blocked her number immediately.

The silence was intoxicating.

When I got home, I opened the family Snap group and almost laughed out loud.

Brad had posted the severance agreement, crying that I was an unfilial monster.

He had even uploaded a video of me confronting him at his office.

My mother was already playing the heartbroken martyr: [What did I do to deserve such a rebellious, cold-blooded son...?]

My aunts and uncles flooded the chat, condemning my cruelty.

I didn't flinch. I unloaded my arsenal.

I uploaded the screenshots of my mother's demands, the recordings of her bashing Brad and Vanessa, and the undeniable financial paper trail showing how Brad had mooched off me for years.

Then I tagged my aunts and uncles directly: [Tell me, is this how you treat your children?]

Seeing the security footage of my mother screeching outside Sarah's office building, my uncle was the first to send a voice note.

"Brenda, this is out of line! You're the one who refused to go on the trip. How could you go harass your daughter-in-law at her job?!"

My aunt chimed in right after. "Exactly! You always bragged about how successful Brad was, claiming he bought his own house and car. Turns out he was living off Chris the whole time! Brenda, I am so disappointed in you."

Watching her own siblings turn on her, my mother's defensive texts lost all their confidence.

[Brothers are supposed to help each other out! It's natural for the younger brother to look after the older one!]

[Then shouldn't an older brother look after his younger brother even more?!] my aunt fired back. [Brenda, if you favor Brad this much, stop lying to everyone that you treat them equally! Do you have any shame after everything Chris has done for you?!]

Thankfully, my aunt and uncle had basic moral decency.

Faced with the mountain of evidence, they completely withdrew their support.

My mother realized she had lost her audience and fell completely silent.

Terrified of ruining his own image, Brad scrambled to cover his tracks:

[I had no idea about any of this! Mom did all of this behind my back!]

[Mom, I am so disappointed in you. I can't believe you treated Chris like this.]

[Chris, I'm so sorry. It's all my fault. From now on, I'll only provide basic elder care just like you. Mom can do whatever the hell she wants.]

"Whatever she wants."

What a masterclass in dodging accountability.

I wondered how my mother felt, watching her precious golden boy toss her into the trash the moment things got tough.

Right on cue, heavy, violent pounding rattled my front door.

My mother's shrieking voice pierced through the wood. "Chris, you ungrateful bastard! Get your ass out here right now! I know you're inside!"

"You had the guts to slander your own mother in the family chat, but you don't have the guts to face me?!"

Even now, she still thought she could bully me into submission.

Did she think I flew back early just to be her punching bag?

As neighbors began poking their heads into the hallway, annoyed by the racket, I swung the door open.

Right behind me stood two police officers.

"Did someone here call 911?" the officer asked.

"I did," I said calmly, looking at my mother. "I'm reporting a grand larceny. The stolen property exceeds $30,000."