Chapter 14 - The Fall of the Belly|
THUD.
The sound was heavy, dull, and undeniably hollow.
The large silicone pregnancy belly detached from Selene’s body, slid out from beneath her white silk gown, and landed squarely on the polished floorboards.
It rolled once, twice, and came to a stop right against the base of the three-tiered cake that read: Welcome, Precious Dela Cruz Heir!
A collective scream erupted from the church ladies in the front row.
Several relatives gasped aloud, covering their mouths in horror. People whipped out their smartphones, filming the surreal scene as the rubber stomach lay motionless under the bright chandelier lights.
Selene stood exposed in her tight undergarments, completely flat-stomached, looking like a caught thief.
Beatrice stared at the rubber object on the floor, her body trembling so violently she looked as if she were having a seizure.
“My... my grandson...” Beatrice choked out, her knees buckling as she collapsed into a nearby chair. “It’s... it’s rubber?”
“You deceitful snake!” Adrian roared, lunging toward Selene.
Before he could lay a hand on her, the television screen behind them chimed again, drawing everyone’s attention back to the wall.
“Don't look away yet, everyone,” I announced coldly. “The performance isn't over.”
The screen transitioned to a new set of video files recorded by my internal security cameras.
File one played: Adrian and Beatrice using a crowbar to break into my bedroom safe in the middle of the night, whispering about stealing my house deeds.
File two played: The detailed bank statements showing Adrian’s sixty thousand dollars in gambling debts and the pawn receipt for my parents' wedding coins.
And then, File three appeared.
The room went dead silent as the midnight camera footage from the night of my promotion filled the screen.
The video clearly showed Beatrice creeping into my bedroom at 1:00 AM while I lay asleep. It showed her holding the electric clippers. It showed her pinning my head into the pillow and hacking off my hair while I screamed in terror.
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It showed Adrian standing at the doorway, watching his mother assault me, saying calmly: “Hair grows back, Mara. You brought this on yourself.”
Gasps of horror echoed through the crowd. Relatives looked at Beatrice and Adrian with disgust and revulsion.
