The Miracle of You

“You are selfish and a hypocrite,” Gregory repeated in a calm voice. He was completely unfazed in the midst of her tirade. “You’re still trying to make yourself look like a good person to justify your misdeeds. Don’t you feel even a little bit of shame?”

Pamela burst into tears.

She couldn’t take it anymore.

“I hate you. I hate you so much!” she cried out in despair. “You murderer! I don’t care what happens to you. I hope karma gets you for killing an innocent man who just wanted to live-”

“So you’re angry because I ordered Winston Berkley’s death,” Gregory interrupted, his soft smile contradicting the frosty look in his eyes. “Again, you have no compassion for our children. You really are not a good woman.” He stepped closer, his smile turning slightly wicked. “But don’t get me wrong. A woman with a clear bad side is also interesting. It’s even more amusing that you try to deny it.”

Pamela said nothing. She just continued to glower at him.

Gregory didn’t mind. Her vivacity after all these years was a delicious sight for him, and it gave him a fresh sense of excitement. She had always seemed sweet and submissive, like the perfect housewife.

But in the end, she was like all those women who were selfish and greedy. They preached about morality and all that, but they were complete hypocrites.

And that was interesting to him. He wanted to see more of that side of Pamela. He wanted to see her upset, angry, seething, sobbing heavily. He wanted to see her break down and crumble inside.

At that moment, she was like a beautiful red flower to him, and he wanted to pluck the petals one by one until she was weak and bare and completely his.

Until she was completely under his control and would only bloom fully if he allowed her to.

It was like what he had always told his son. “Women are fickle, Christian,” he had told the child calmly. “They always are. Anyone who tells you otherwise, including women themselves, is lying.”

“You don’t have to lie anymore. Whatever you think or feel, it no longer matters,” Gregory said with a tone of finality in his voice. “You cannot leave us again. I will see to it. The moment you betrayed me, Pamela, you also betrayed my trust. If you will not be loyal to me for eternity, then I will have no choice but to keep you here until you fully understand what it means to be my woman.”

He towered over her, causing her to take a precautionary step back. His usually calm voice grew more and more agitated by the second, and she began to fear that he might do something rash at any moment.

“You… You can’t do that!” she protested. “I’m unhappy here! Can’t you see that? Let me spell it out for you. I can never be happy with someone like you! For once in your life, please just leave me alone!”

She yelled out that last part in such a loud voice that it seemed to echo in the entire mansion.

“…Mama?”

Stillness instantly descended over the air.

Pamela’s thoughts clamored in her head as she processed the familiar voice.

Slowly, she turned to see her daughter, Patricia, standing near the railing, clutching her favorite teddy bear to her chest. She was so small that the railing towered over her.

She was staring at them with big, frightened eyes, and she looked like she was about to burst into tears.

She must have heard them shouting in her room and came to investigate out of concern and curiosity. Listening to them argue frightened her, and she hesitated to approach them.

Pamela felt a lump rise in her throat and guilt immediately enveloped her. She had been so angry and upset that she had completely forgotten that her children still lived here.

How much of their conversation had Patricia heard?

But she was still so young. She probably couldn’t understand the context, but hearing their shouting voices was what terrified her the most.

Even she was aware of what anger implied. It never meant anything good most of the time.

“H-Honey, what are you doing up? You shouldn’t be awake at this hour,” Pamela stammered as she rushed over to her daughter with an uneasy smile.

Patricia stared up at her with teary eyes, and a small part of Pamela’s heart broke at the sight. “You’re back, Mama,” she whispered. “I missed you so much.”© 2024 Nôv/el/Dram/a.Org.

“Yes I am, sweetie,” Pamela said softly, scooping the little girl into her arms. “I… Mommy missed you, too.”

This made Patricia sniff. “Are you going to leave again soon?” she asked. “Please don’t go. I don’t want you to go, Mommy. Please stay with me…”

Pamela’s heart dropped to her stomach.

Of course, as a mother, she felt guilty about leaving her children behind.

But she just couldn’t stand being in this house anymore.

She hated the pressure, the expectations, the endless stifling atmosphere. She especially despised being in the presence of Gregory Callahan.

He made her feel small and useless. He demanded her presence at all times, but always ignored her. He was cold and indifferent, preferring to work long hours rather than spend time at home with his family.

If he thought she was a hypocrite, well, he was even worse!

Even when she was pregnant with Christian, everything was planned. Her mother-in-law – Gregory’s mother – who passed away two years ago, was the type of strict and intrusive parent who interfered in everything.

Even to the end, she was never completely satisfied with things, especially when it came to her daughter-in-law. In her eyes, Pamela was not trying hard enough, and only Gregory was trying.

It became even harder when Christian made it clear that he would rather be with his father than with her. He only valued Gregory’s opinion and never Pamela’s.

Meanwhile, Greg would listen to his mother scold Pamela and never say a word. Sometimes he would stand up and calmly defend her, but only as a matter of course because she was his wife and it would only look bad on his part if she appeared incompetent.

It was driving Pamela absolutely crazy. Over the years it had all built up and she felt so alone and frustrated that she just wanted to leave that damn house no matter what.

But then there was Patricia. Her sweet, beautiful daughter.

There were no words to express how much she loved Patricia, even though her actions lately didn’t seem to match. Patricia was like the only light in Pamela’s dark world where everyone seemed to judge and blame her for every little thing.

Whenever members of the esteemed Callahan family came to visit, which seemed to be frequently, they would sneer at her and mock everything they could see.

In her moments of depression, Patricia was always there to cheer her up.

But life in that house was becoming too difficult for Pamela. The thought of staying even a second longer made her feel suffocated to the point where she felt that if she so much as breathed, she would still be criticized for polluting the air.

Winston was the only one in the mansion who treated her kindly. He would ask how she was doing, if she was eating well, that she shouldn’t skip meals or stay cooped up in the house all day.

Whenever she needed to vent, he was there, always listening, never judging.

But Winston… he was gone now.

All because of her damned control freak of a husband!