Chapter 7 - The Ultimatum
Vanessa crossed her arms, her chest heaving with furious breaths. “I’m not giving in to blackmail. Go ahead, send your little video. My followers will just think it’s a smear campaign by a jealous sister-in-law!”
“Try explaining an active child abuse investigation and unedited footage of you coercing a minor to your brand sponsors, Vanessa. Let’s see how fast HelloFresh and Organic Baby Mama keep paying your invoices when they see you holding barber shears over a bleeding child,” I countered smoothly.
David stepped forward, grabbing Vanessa’s arm firmly. “Shut up, Vanessa. Just shut up and listen. What are her terms, Sarah?”
I laid them out one by one, my voice clear and unyielding.
“First, Vanessa deletes the Golden Morning Mama account permanently. Every single platform—Instagram, TikTok, Starlight, all of it. Done today, in front of us.”
Vanessa gasped, her face draining of all color. “Delete my account? That’s four years of work! That’s my entire livelihood!”
“You should have thought of that before you took scissors to my daughter’s head,” I snapped back. “Second, you and David are paying for private pediatric trauma counseling for Lily for as long as she needs it. Every single cent.”
David nodded immediately. “Agreed. Done.”
“And third,” I continued, looking directly into Vanessa’s terrified eyes, “you are going to record a public video confessing to what you did, admitting that you fabricated the entire 'sharing' narrative, and announcing that you are stepping away from social media forever to focus on intensive family therapy for Chloe.”
Vanessa shook her head violently, tears streaming down her face now—not tears of remorse, but tears of pure panic over the loss of her superficial empire. “No! I won't do that! I can't!”
“You can, and you will,” a small, quiet voice echoed from the hallway.
We all turned. Chloe stood near the doorway, clutching her doll tightly against her chest. Her eyes were wide, but for the first time since I had known her, there was a strange, resolute firmness in her expression.
“Chloe, sweetie, go back to your room,” Vanessa stammered, rushing toward her daughter.
Chloe stepped backward, avoiding her mother’s touch. She looked at David, then at me, and finally at Vanessa.
“I don’t want to be on camera anymore, Mommy,” Chloe said clearly, her voice trembling slightly but refusing to break. “I didn't want to cut Lily’s hair. You made me do it. You told me if I didn't do what the chat wanted, you wouldn't love me.”
The entire room went dead silent.
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David looked at his wife, his face contorting into an expression of absolute disgust that I had never seen on him before. He had known Vanessa was obsessed with social media, but hearing his own daughter confess that kind of emotional manipulation was the final straw.
“Pack your bags, Vanessa,” David said quietly, his voice dropping into a dangerous, gravelly tone. “Or I will help Sarah upload the video myself and file for sole custody of Chloe by morning.”
