Chapter 4

The morning sun poured through the floor-to-ceiling windows of the dining room. Estrella was already downstairs.

She didn't go to the kitchen to cook. Instead, she sat in the chair directly to the right of the head of the table. She poured herself a cup of black Colombian coffee from the silver carafe and opened the Wall Street Journal.

Julian trudged down the stairs, his backpack slung over one shoulder. He walked into the dining room and stopped.

He stared at the empty table. "Where are my blueberry pancakes?" he demanded, his voice whiny and entitled.

Estrella didn't look up. She turned a page of the newspaper.

Julian's face turned red. He marched over to her and slammed his hand down on the table, rattling the fine china.

"Are you deaf, you stupid bitch?" Julian yelled. "Make my breakfast! You don't get to sit here and do nothing!"

Footsteps sounded on the stairs. Judith, wearing a silk robe, walked down, a smug look on her face. She was ready to watch the show.

Encouraged by his grandmother's presence, Julian reached out to grab the plate of scrambled eggs the maid had just set in front of Estrella.

Before his fingers could touch the porcelain, Estrella snapped the newspaper shut.

Her hand shot out, grabbing the handle of the silver carafe. Without a second of hesitation, she flicked her wrist upward.

The scalding hot black coffee splashed directly across Julian's chest, soaking instantly into his pristine white school uniform shirt.

Julian let out a blood-curdling scream. He stumbled backward, clutching his chest, and tripped over his own feet, crashing to the floor.

Judith shrieked. She ran across the room and dropped to her knees beside her grandson, her hands hovering over his red, blistering skin.

The maids in the corner gasped, one of them dropping a tray of silverware with a loud crash. Two of the younger girls exchanged a look of pure terror mixed with undeniable awe at the sudden shift in power, before quickly backing out of the room to avoid the crossfire.

Judith whipped her head around, her face twisted in pure fury. "You psychotic animal! I'll kill you!" She lunged upward, raising her hand to strike Estrella.

Estrella didn't flinch. She picked up her heavy crystal water goblet and smashed it against the edge of the mahogany table.

The glass shattered. Estrella held the jagged, broken stem in her hand, pointing the sharp edges directly at Judith's face.

Judith froze in her tracks. Her eyes widened in terror.

Estrella stood up. Her heels clicked sharply against the hardwood floor as she stepped closer to the older woman.

"Scream at me again," Estrella said, her voice dropping to a lethal whisper. "And the next thing I pour on him will be acid."

Julian stopped wailing. He scrambled backward on the floor, hiding behind Judith's legs, trembling uncontrollably.

Estrella looked down at them, her eyes cold and merciless. "Until the divorce papers are signed, I am the lady of this house. If any of you cross me again, I will drag this entire family to hell with me."

The dining room was dead silent. The only sound was the coffee dripping from the table onto the floor.

Estrella tossed the broken glass onto the table. She grabbed a napkin, wiped her hands, and picked up her Hermes Birkin bag from the chair.

She stepped over the puddle of coffee and walked out the front door, leaving them shaking in her wake.