Chapter 1

The slap was heavier than Adrian had anticipated, and his head whipped sideways as Evelyn's hand connected with his cheek.

The shock hit him first, followed by a wave of shame.

She glared angrily at him, satisfied with the force she'd used.

“Pathetic," Evelyn spat, her eyes cold and full of disgust.

Her sharp features contorted into a sneer as she stood only feet away.

The designer heels clicked with each movement she made closer, her presence looming over him.

"Do you even know how long my car's been sitting there, filthy? What kind of useless man can't even wash a car?

Adrian kept his head down, his fists curling at the sides.

His gaze briefly moved to the sleek black car-the one he hadn't had time to clean.

He'd been busy, taking care of his mother, making sure she had everything she needed. But he knew Evelyn didn't care about that. Never did.

"I was going to clean it, Evelyn," he said in a low voice, trying to keep himself from lashing out.

"I just-”

"Shut up!" Her sharp voice cut through the air, her finger jabbing toward him accusingly.

"You and that wretched mother of yours should be thanking us every single day for letting you stay here. We took you in when we should have thrown you both out on the street!

Adrian flinched. He hated it when she talked of his mother that way, constant insults and constantly telling them they weren't meant to be there.

Of course, what was he to do? He didn't want to make things worse, not when his mother needed him.

"Don't talk about my mother like that," he said. His voice was low but firm, knowing full well it wouldn't stop her, but he had to say something.

Evelyn's eyes blazed with malice. "What was that?" her voice echoed loudly as she closed the space between them further. "Standing up for yourself, Adrian? Cute."

Without giving him even a chance to speak, she raised her hand again and slapped him harder than before.

Adrian stepped back, and his cheek began to sting.

"Don't you ever talk back to me," Evelyn hissed, "you're nothing but a piece of thrash. You should feel lucky we let you stay under this roof."

Footsteps cut through the tension. It was Jane, his wife.

Jane's eyes darted from her sister to Adrian and back again, her face unreadable. "What's going on?" she asked flatly.

"Your useless husband, that's what's going on" Evelyn snapped.

"He can't even do the one thing I asked of him. My car is still dirty, and he's standing here making excuses. Honestly, why did you marry him? He's nothing but a cockroach.

Adrian waited, his chest tight with hope. Maybe, just maybe, Jane would say something, anything to come to his defense.

But instead, Jane let out a sigh; her shoulders sank as she said, "Adrian, just do what she says. Don't make things harder than they need to be."

And with that, she turned and walked away, leaving him standing there, humiliated and alone.

Evelyn snarled, "See? Even your wife knows you're worthless."

She enjoyed every bit of his misery as she folded her arms.

"Now, get on your knees and apologize.”

“What?”

“You heard me, on your knees!” She repeated her commanded.

Adrian's jaw tightened as his whole body tensed up, overwhelmed by anger, shame, and defeat.

He knew there was no winning this, not today. Slowly, he sank to his knees, the cold concrete greeting him.

"I'm sorry, Evelyn," he mumbled, barely audible.

"Louder you piece of shit!" she insisted, her eyes filled with malice.

"I'm sorry!" he shouted, louder now, and hating every word that left his lips.

Evelyn wasn't done. She kicked him in the chest and sent him sprawling onto his back.

"Useless," she smiled wickedly.

"Get my car washed. I don't want to ask a second time because next time, it will be worse.” She warned.

Adrian remained on the ground. He waited until she had walked away before he slowly pulled himself to his feet.

He could still feel the pain from her hot slaps on his cheek.

Feeling completely humiliated, he moved towards her car to get it washed.

As Adrian scrubbed the car, his mind drifted back to how he ended up here in the first place. How had his life spiraled into this daily humiliation?