My husband’s relatives looked down on me for my poverty, but they never knew I was the granddaughter of a millionaire, conducting an experiment on them all along.
“Edward, just look at what she’s wearing,” my mother-in-law, Margaret Townsend, hissed with a sweetness that dripped venom. “That dress is straight from a market stall. I saw one just like it last week. Fifty pounds at most.”
I quietly adjusted the collar of my plain blue dress. It was, indeed, inexpensivelike everything else in my wardrobe. This had been one of the key conditions of the harsh wager Id made with my grandfather.
My husband, Edward, coughed awkwardly, avoiding eye contact.
“Mum, leave it be. Its a perfectly fine dress.”
“Fine?” His sister, Victoria, scoffed, pouring fuel on the fire. “Edward, your wife has the taste of awell, what can you expect from an orphan from the countryside?”
Her disdainful gaze swept over me from head to toe, pausing at my slender wrists. Triumph flickered in her eyes. “At least put on a bracelet. Oh, waityou dont have any, do you?”
I met her gaze slowly, my expression calm, almost clinical.
Inside, I was taking notes: *Subject Two, Victoria. Aggression level: High. Primary motivation: Envy and self-validation through belittlement.*
It was like observing predators in the wildfascinating, yet utterly predictable.
Margaret heaved a theatrical sigh and sat beside me on the sofa, her heavy hand landing on my shoulder. The scent of hairspray and fried sausages clung to her.
“Anna, darling, were not your enemies. We only want whats best for you. But you must understandEdward is a rising star, a department head. And you well, you know.”
She paused, waiting for tears or apologies. None came. I merely watched.
Where was the Edward Id married? The sharp, confident man whod charmed me with his independence? Now, he was a shadowa puppet in his mothers and sisters hands.
“Ive had a brilliant idea!” Margaret beamed, pleased with her own cleverness. “Those earrings your mother left youthe ones with the little stones. You never wear them. Why dont we sell them?”
Edward choked on air.
“Mum, are you mad? Theyre a keepsake!”
“Oh, what sentimental nonsense!” She waved him off. “Keepsakes of poverty? This way, at least well have some money. Well buy Anna a few decent jumpers. And a new grill for the summer house. Everyone wins.”
Victoria chimed in at once: “Exactly! Besides, those earrings look ridiculous on her anywaylike a saddle on a cow.”
They didnt even realise they were humiliating themselves, not me, revealing their pettiness for all to see.
I studied their faces, twisted with greed and smugness. Every word, every action, confirmed my early hypotheses.
The experiment was proceeding exactly as planned.
“All right,” I said softly.
A stunned silence fell. Even Edward stared at me.
“What do you mean, all right?” Margaret frowned.
“Ill sell them,” I allowed a faint, barely-there smile. “If its for the family.”
Margaret and Victoria exchanged glances. Suspicion flickered in their eyes, but it was quickly smothered by gleeful anticipation. Once again, they mistook my strategy for weakness.
Each of them was nothing more than a pawn on my chessboard. And today, they had just walked straight into my trap.
* * *
The next day, Margaret dragged me to the nearest pawnshop. Victoria followed, eager for drama. Edward came along, his face stormier than the sky. He tried to protest, but his mother cut him off.
“Stop interfering! Cant you see were trying to help your wife? She dresses like a beggar!”
The pawnshop was a cramped, airless cubicle with barred windows. The appraiser, a man with weary eyes, lazily took the small velvet box I handed him.
He examined the earrings under a loupe while Margaret tapped impatient fingers on the counter.
“Well? Theyre gold, arent they? And the stones sparkle. Surely worth at least two hundred?”
The appraiser snorted.
“Gold, yes14 karat. But the stones? Cubic zirconia. Workmanship is basic. Fifty quid. And thats being generous.”
Margarets face fell. Victoria clicked her tongue in disappointment.
“Fifty? I thought wed at least get enough for new boots.”
I played my part perfectly. Stepping forward, I murmured timidly, “Maybe we shouldnt? Theyre a keepsake… And fifty pounds is so little. Lets try somewhere else?”
It was a calculated move. A feigned attempt at compromiseone I knew theyd reject.
“Quiet, Anna!” Margaret snapped. “What do you know about these things? Hes the expert!”
Victoria sneered. “Exactly! Or well waste the whole day dragging around town only to get less. You always ruin everything with your stubbornness.”
Edward tried to intervene. “Mum, maybe a jeweller would”
“Enough!” Victoria cut him off. “Is your wife already wearing the trousers? We decide whats best for this family!”
The money changed hands. Right outside the shop, Margaret took thirty for the “summer house and garden.” Victoria pocketed twenty, declaring she desperately needed a manicure.
“And what about my new jumpers?” I asked softly, playing my role to the end.
Victoria laughed in my face. “Oh, Anna, dont be ridiculous. What jumpers on that pittance? Maybe from a charity shop.”
They strutted away, smug, leaving me with Edward on the pavement. He looked crushed. He hadnt defended his wife, nor his mothers memory. Another mark against him.
“Im sorry,” he muttered, avoiding my eyes.
“Its all right,” I said gently, taking his arm. “I understand. Family comes first.”
But the real blow came that evening. Returning home, I found my bedside table emptywhere my laptop always sat. Outwardly ordinary, it was a secured model with triple encryption.
My heart skipped, but I kept my face blank.
“Edward, wheres my laptop?”
Victoria strutted in, beaming. “Oh, that old thing? I took it. Mine broke, and I need it for work. Its not like you use it for anything important. Films can wait.”
I turned slowly. My mask of meekness didnt slip, but inside, something clickedloud, final. The trap had sprung. The last specimen delivered.
That laptop wasnt just an object.
It was my research tool. An encrypted portal to my real life, holding reports, charts, and meticulous records of every step in this social experiment.
Breaking its security was impossible, but the theft itself was the last straw.
I looked at Edward. One final test. One last chance.
“Edward, return my laptop. Now.”
My voice was quiet, but it held no pleaonly a demand.
He hesitated, glancing between Victoria and me.
“Vicky, just give it back. Its hers.”
“Oh, here we go!” Victoria flopped into a chair. “Since when do you take orders from her? I told you, I need it! Well buy her a new one when I get my bonus.”
“Anna, be reasonable,” Edward said weakly. “Its for her job. Dont be selfish.”
There it was. Rock bottom. He hadnt just failed to defend mehed sided with them. Permanently. The man Id loved was gone.
Id clung to memories, but reality had won. Hed made his choice. Now, Id make mine.
*Enough.*
The experiment was over. Results conclusive.
I pulled out my cheap mobile and dialled a contact labelled “Supervisor.” The emergency line.
“Mr. Whitmore, good evening,” I said, my tone crisp, professionala voice theyd never heard from me. “Observation phase complete. Proceed as discussed. All three subjects. Initiate Protocol Consequences. Start with the eldest.”
I hung up and set the phone down. Victoria gaped, unsure if this was a joke. My face gave nothing away.
“You have exactly ten minutes to return my laptop. Untouched.”
She let out a nervous laugh. “Or what? Youll sic your supervisor on me?”
“Im not threatening you,” I said, voice icy. “Im informing you. In ten minutes, your urgent projectthe reason you stole my propertywill be deleted from your companys servers.”
“And in five, your boss will receive a very interesting report on your work methods. Commercial espionage, I believe its called?”
Victoria paled. “Youyoure lying! You cant”
“Nine minutes,” I said, checking my phone. “Clocks ticking.”
She stared at her mobile as
