“How dare you insult my father?!” she spat, her voice sharp and biting as it cut through the silence. Her words echoed off the walls, bouncing back to remind me of the authority she believed she held. “You were nothing more than a maid back then! A lowly servant! Why would you ever think you deserved anything different? Are you stupid?!”
Her words stung, but I refused to show it. I refused to let her see the cracks in my armor. Instead, I lifted my chin, forcing myself to meet her scornful gaze.
“No,” I whispered, my voice soft but filled with a quiet strength. The words floated in the air like a fragile thread, yet they carried the weight of every wound I’d ever endured. “I am not stupid. But I am sane enough to know this—I do not deserve to be treated so badly.”
The room fell into sil
