Kathy walked out of the bedroom holding a piece of paper.
"Job, I'm going to ask you one last time. Are you deleting that video or not?"
"No." I stared her down.
Kathy slapped the paper against the doorframe.
"Fine. Divorce papers."
"You leave with nothing. I don't care where you go to die."
I looked at the paper. Not a second of hesitation.
"Fine. I'll sign."
Kathy froze.
She lunged at me, ripping the bag out of my hands.
"What are you doing!" I screamed, grabbing for it.
"Forget signing. Delete the video first." She was already tearing through my bag, hunting for my phone.
"Give it back!" I fought to wrench it away.
Frank seized a fistful of my hair and yanked my head back hard.
"You little bastard. You dare put your hands on my daughter."
My head was forced back, and Kathy pulled out my phone.
She opened the forum and hit delete.
Then she raised my phone high over her head and smashed it against the tile floor.
She shoved me into the hallway, one finger jabbing at my face.
"I smashed your phone. Let's see what kind of trouble you can stir up now."
I stood in the hallway, hair a tangled mess.
Inside the carrier in my hand, Marmalade was scratching nervously at the plastic door.
I closed my eyes and drew a long breath.
I turned and walked downstairs without looking back.
Even if I had to leave on foot, I was getting out of this city.
I had just reached the front gate of the complex when a police cruiser pulled up sharp, headlights cutting across my face.
Two officers stepped out and walked straight toward me.
"Are you Job Fox?" The younger one's expression was all business.
I blinked. "Yes."
"Someone reported you for posting fabricated emergency information online, inciting public panic. You need to come with us."
I whipped around. Kathy was standing by the hedgerow not far behind me, phone still in her hand.
"Officer, I wasn't making anything up." The words spilled out. "There's a real toxic gas leak at the abandoned chemical plant in the western suburbs. The rats were fleeing for their lives. You can go look at the fissure yourselves."
The officer's tone was clipped. "We've already contacted colleagues at the Environmental Protection Bureau to inspect the site."
"But as of now, there is zero data indicating any gas leak."
"Posting that kind of video without hard evidence constitutes disruption of public order."
I had nothing left to say.
"Officer, he's just a little unstable." Kathy walked over quickly.
"My husband's been under too much pressure lately because business at his pork stall hasn't been good. He stays up every night staring at the cat and watching rats."
"He treats that cat like royalty and insists the rats migrating means the end of the world."
"Sorry for the trouble. I'll take him to see a doctor right away."
The officer glanced at the carrier in my hand, then at the state of me.
"Since this is your first offense and the video has already been removed, we'll leave it at a verbal warning."
He fixed me with a hard look. "If there's a next time, you will be detained."
He turned and got back in the car.
After the cruiser pulled away, it was just the two of us at the gate.
Kathy stood with her arms crossed, a mocking curl at the corner of her lips.
"You hear that, Job?"
"Even the police say you're making things up. You still think you're some kind of savior?"
I gripped the handle of the carrier until my knuckles ached.
"Kathy, you're going to pay for this someday."
Kathy closed the distance fast, her voice dropping low.
"Karma? The only thing I know is that if you mess with my great-aunt's business again, I'll make sure you can't survive in this city."
She pointed at the pet carrier in my arms.
"Now get back inside and throw that dead cat away."
