"Brother-in-law, you must have justice for me!" Linda Ling wailed, hammering against my Toyota.
For some reason, she found out that I was visiting the game shop in a mall. In the past (especially when I was still a university student), I had frequented my friendly local gaming store every weekend to build and paint models, and then field my miniatures as an army in a tabletop war-gaming session against other gamers. Like I said, I was a Warhammer 40,000 fan. Unfortunately, after I founded Shen Industries and was driven to the verge of bankruptcy, I had neither the time nor the funds to continue my hobby on a weekly basis.
Fortunately, things had improved recently and I was finally able to take some time out to engage in my hobby once again. Which was why I had driven my trusty Toyota to the mall, to visit my friendly local gaming store.
I had barely pulled into a parking lot when the bitch showed up. I wisely kept my door shut, watching her through the window as she pummeled against my door. Damn it, she couldn't even make a request politely. What a rude and entitled brat.
I patiently waited for her to exhaust herself from the ceaseless hammering. Linda Ling finally slumped against the side of my car, causing me to wince. Damn, I had best get the car washed later. The bitch was going to taint the clean, polished surface of my trusty Toyota. For now, I just thanked the heavens that she had stopped making a ruckus. That was annoying as fuck.
"What's the matter?" I asked mildly, but made no move to lower the window or open the door. Linda Ling seethed visibly, but she had exhausted herself from the exertion earlier so she didn't make any major movements. Instead, she took a deep breath before beginning her rant.
"Royston Tan and the film staff! How dare they treat me in such a manner?!"
"What manner?" I was deliberately being obtuse, frustrating her further. She was getting riled up at my smile, but she pushed forward anyway.
"They…they ill-treated me! Abused me on the set! Ganged up to bully me!"
"No, they didn't."
"Yes, they did! They slapped me during filming! And then kicked me out when I refused to put up with their abuse!"
Linda Ling pressed her palms against my window, leaving blurry smears. I winced at that and resolved once again to bring my Toyota to a carwash after I returned from my friendly local gaming store. That bitch dared to leave such stains on my precious Toyota. I couldn't forgive her for that.
"I was there, you know?"
"Huh?" Linda Ling was taken aback by my revelation. I continued to smile pleasantly and held up my smartphone to play the recording.
"Like I said, I was there. And I fully agree with Royston Tan's decision."
"You…but…but…! You promised me!"
"And I kept my promise. I gave you a role. You were the one who blew your chance." I shook my head. "We are running a business here, not a charity. You think I'm going to keep incompetent staff around? I can't afford to lose money because of your lack of skills and refusal to cooperate with everybody. You wanted a role, I gave you the role. And how did you repay me? By throwing a tantrum on the set. In the end, Lily had to shoulder your role and she took it on admirably, without any complaints. Without screwing it up. Unlike you."
I leaned closer, glad that there was a window between us. "So tell me, why should I keep you around when Lily can do your job so much better? You're a complete waste of time and money. Now get lost before I call security."
"No! You can't…! You can't! Please give me another chance!" Linda Ling howled. I shook my head.
"Sorry, but that won't be fair to others. I can't show favoritism to anyone, not even Lily. If you want a role, you have to earn it. You had your chance and you blew it."
"No! I didn't blow it! You all ganged up to sabotage me! Why did you put me in the role of a villainess? Why the slapping scene? You did this on purpose!"
"Then let me ask you this. Why was Lily able to pull off the role of a villainess and endure the slap without whining like a slutty bitch?"
Linda Ling fell silent. But she stubbornly clung to the side of my Toyota. Not for long, though. I had already called security and I could see them approaching from the distance.
"Let go of me!" Linda Ling shrieked when they grabbed her and dragged her away from my car. "Do you know who I am?"
I smirked at that question. "We all do. The question is…do you?"
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"It means that you should keep yourself updated regarding your status. You won't always be the spoilt, wealthy princess forever, you know?"
Linda Ling stared at me in horror, only to vanish when the two security guards hauled her out of the carpark and tossed her outside.
About a week later, Lily Ling received a visit from an unexpected guest. She was in Royston Tan's studio, getting ready for one of the final few scenes for his movie. The makeup artist was helping her brush her face and apply the appropriate skin tones.
"You look amazing, Ms. Ling," she said. Lily Ling smiled and bowed her head.
"Thank you."
"And you're so much more humble than your stepsister." The makeup artist shuddered. "I don't mean to speak ill of her, but she was so…fussy. Nothing we did was right. She would scold us over every little thing."
"That sounds like her," Lily said quietly.
"You're so much more talented than your sister," Arnold Ang assured her as he stepped into the room. He was consulting his smartphone for more meetings and roles. He beamed. "Rumor has it that she has been banned from the entertainment industry. No director wants to work with her because of her lack of professionalism. Not to mention, her tantrum the other day was uploaded online. People are laughing at her…even though she's a C-rate actress at best, she insists on putting on airs, making ridiculous demands and acting arrogant."
"She deserved what she got," the makeup artist huffed.
"Now, now." Arnold chuckled but he nodded in approval. "It's not very nice to gossip about other people."
Lily remained silent throughout the whole thing, and the makeup artist was impressed by her dignity. Even though Lily would have the most reason to complain about her wicked stepsister, she did not resort to such childish gloating.
Instead, she regarded her agent coolly. "Speaking of which, Arnold, you mentioned a new job after this film?"
"Ah, yes. Director Deng saw your performance and he was very impressed. He would like to invite you for an audition…to cast you as the main villainous for one of his historical drama pieces. He thinks you will fit in well as the second female lead…I think you will be playing the Empress for this one."
"Excellent. That will be a fresh challenge. I'm not sure I'll pull it off well, but I'll do my best in the audition."
"You'll be fine, my dear." Arnold smiled confidently. Before Lily could respond, there was a knock on the door. Arnold frowned and then stepped outside to check on it. "Sorry, but Lily is in the midst of preparing for the next scene right now. Could you return later?"
A few seconds later, he gasped and stepped back. Lily, suddenly on high alert, spun about to look at him.
"What's the matter, Arnold? Are you all right?"
"Y…yes. It's just that…"
"I'm sorry for disturbing." The guest stepped into the room. Lily's eyes widened when she recognized her.
"Ms. Lim?"
"It's been a while, Lily." Wendy Lim bowed her head slightly. She took a deep breath and glanced around. "Do you mind if I have a quick word with you?"
"Sure." Lily glanced at her makeup artist, who received the hint and swiftly left the room. Arnold, on the other hand, remained. Wendy Lim glanced at him, but he glared back at her, folding his arms.
"It's all right, Ms. Lim." Lily's voice was cold. "You can trust him. He knows everything I do."
"I see." Wendy Lim sighed. She lowered her head. "First of all, I must apologize to you regarding your sister."
"Linda?" Lily frowned. "What did she do this time?"
Wendy Lim grimaced. "I'm sorry for taking so long, but I've only found out about this just recently. I heard that Linda took over your shares of the company, forcibly acquiring them. She even bought them at a much reduced rate, way below the market price…basically, she took advantage of you and extorted your shares."
Lily remained silent. What her stepmother said was true.
"Why didn't you tell me or your father about this?"
"I thought you guys already knew about it," Lily replied flatly. Hell, she believed they were all responsible for it. "You were aware that I was relieved of my position when…I was recovering from the drowning incident."
"Didn't I talk to your father about giving you your position back? But he told me you wanted to focus on acting instead?"
"What?" Lily's jaw dropped. "You asked Dad to give me my position back?"
"Yes. But he told me you turned him down, said that you wanted to have a new career in acting. I was surprised, but I thought we should respect your choice."
The gears churned in Lily's mind. Her father had certainly offered her the position of manager of Ling Electronics back, but she had no idea that her stepmother was the one who convinced him to do so.
"Look, Lily…I know that I have always favored Linda over you…as much as I am ashamed to admit it, I am biased toward my own blood and flesh. But you're also my daughter. If she goes too far, you can let me know."
Wendy Lim sighed and shook her head. She then took an envelope out of her handbag and passed it to Lily. The blond actress accepted it and stared at it dumbly.
"Those are your shares. I bought them back from Linda and put them under your name."
"You're returning my original shares of Ling Corporation to me?" Lily asked incredulously. Wendy Lim nodded.
"That's right. They are yours to begin with. What Linda did was not correct. She has no right to steal from her own sister."
"That didn't stop her from doing so," Lily muttered bitterly.
"What's with this sudden change in attitude?" Arnold asked darkly, his arms still folded. "Forgive me for being skeptical, but it's hard to believe that you would do a sudden U-turn."
"U-turn?" Wendy Lim looked confused.
"Where were you the whole time when Linda Ling was bullying Lily?" Arnold asked, trying not to sneer. "Now you suddenly want to come and play the role of good mom?"
"I honestly didn't know." Wendy Lim hung her head in shame. "You can choose not to believe me, but Linda has been keeping me in the dark all this while. You know I don't understand business. I didn't even get the shares thing…until yesterday, when Linda came to me with some crazy scheme. I only found out about this when she confided in me."
She scowled. "I can't believe Linda wanted to murder her own sister. She has gone too far."
"What?" Arnold blurted out in disbelief. On the other hand, Lily didn't say anything. She was recollecting everything that had happened in the past.
Wendy Lim was telling the truth. Everything made sense now. Even though Wendy Lim was undoubtedly biased toward Linda Ling and favored her, she was never overtly hostile toward Lily, and she never took any direct action to harm her. Also, there was those times when she reprimanded and even hit Linda for going too far. It did make sense that she had been kept in the dark this entire time.
"But why?" Lily finally asked. "I'm…I don't mean to be rude, but I'm not your real daughter. I would understand if you didn't help me. Yet you went as far as to return the shares to me."
"You might not know it, but I was once very good friends with your mom." Wendy Lim leaned against the wall, a shadow crossing her face. "Before she passed away, I promised her that I would take care of you. On retrospect, I failed to keep that promise. This probably won't make everything right, but I will do my best not to let Linda bother you again."