Chapter 5 - Shattering the Lens
The dining room fell into a dead, horrifying silence.
Every single relative—aunts, uncles, cousins who had known Ryan for years—stood frozen in absolute disgust. Heads turned slowly from the tinny speaker back to Ryan, whose face had turned the color of ash. The mask of the charming, devoted family vlogger had been completely ripped away, exposing the hollow, narcissistic parasite underneath.
Diane froze with her hand on the front door handle, thick pink frosting still dripping from her chin and eyelashes, looking exactly like what she was: a caught criminal cornered by her own malice.
"Emily, listen to me," Ryan stuttered, his voice cracking as he stepped forward with his hands raised in a placating gesture. "It was just marketing! Influencer families do stunts all the time—it's industry standard! The engagement metrics were going to pay for Lily's college fund, I swear to God—"
I didn't let him finish. The sound of his voice made my stomach churn with a sickening revulsion.
Without a word, I turned away from him, walking over to the gift table where his expensive, professional-grade vlogging camera was mounted on a heavy-duty tripod. It was his prized possession—a custom rig worth thousands of dollars, equipped with external microphones and a high-end lens.
With a sudden, explosive surge of strength, I grabbed the tripod and hurled it violently against the tiled kitchen floor. The camera smashed into a dozen jagged plastic and glass pieces, scattering battery doors and lens fragments across the room. Before Ryan could cry out, I stepped directly onto the shattered body of the device, grinding my heel down hard until the internal memory card snapped beneath my shoe with a satisfying crunch.
I looked up, meeting his horrified stare with eyes carved out of pure ice.
"Get out," I said, my voice dead, flat, and steady. "Both of you. Out of my house right now."
Ryan stared at me, his mouth opening and closing like a fish out of water. "Em, you can't be serious. You're destroying our family over a business decision—"
"I said get out," I repeated, stepping toward him with such ferocity that he instinctively recoiled.
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When Ryan tried to argue further, my brother-in-law, Dave, stepped up. Dave’s face was dark with fury. Without a word, Dave grabbed Ryan by the collar of his shirt, physically hoisting him up and marching him toward the front door alongside Diane, who was sputtering indignantly.
With a resounding bang, the front door slammed shut behind them, and Dave threw the heavy deadbolt, locking them out of our lives for good.
