Chapter 2: Step-mother
Entering the dining hall, Patricia was met with silence. Everyone ate quietly, minding their own business as they usually did whenever she wasn’t around to be their target. At the head of the table sat the old woman, chewing her food with that familiar air of arrogance. If she weren’t Patricia’s grandmother, she might have admired her for the commanding presence she carried with such ease.
"Do we still have to teach you table manners at age twenty-five?" The old woman remarked, still focused on her plate, not sparing Patricia a single glance.
"I decided to go deeper this time. Opportunities are everywhere," Patricia replied, standing upright with her hands by her side like a soldier reporting to her superior. In this house, the old woman’s word carried more weight than the law. Whatever she said was final. Not even her sons, including Patricia’s father, dared to defy her.
"And yet you have found none," the old woman snapped back, drawing a few quiet snickers from the table. No one was bothering to hide their delight in her misfortune. Patricia held back from telling them she had already secured a job. If they knew, they would do everything in their power to sabotage it.
"I am trying my best," she said calmly.
Her stepmother scoffed.
"Stop trying to gain sympathy just because you are too incompetent to find work. Your sister landed a job just a year after graduating. Learn from her instead of wasting your time," she said, shaking her head as though Patricia were a disgrace.
Patricia shifted her gaze to her mother, who quickly looked away. That didn’t surprise her. Her mother had always been like this, a woman who couldn’t stand up for herself, who let others walk all over her. But then again, wasn’t Patricia the same? Always afraid of her stepmother, always moving in secret just to survive.
"Yes, Mother," she replied flatly, then turned to take her seat.