After my husband threw me out of the house after our divorce, I took the old bank card my father had left behind and used it at a branch in the U.S., sending the whole bank lobby into a stir as the staff hurriedly called the manager over, and the words “Look at the name on this account!” revealed a family secret I had never known.

She saw Zelica sitting alone in a corner, reading documents on a tablet while drinking tea.

Aniya slammed her hand directly on the table, making noise on purpose.

“Well, well, well. Look who’s here,” she said, her voice projected so everyone could hear. “Mrs. Zelica Okafor, right? Moving fast, huh? Climbing classes—from being thrown out in the lobby to sitting in an expensive café.”

Zelica looked up slowly, looked at Aniya, and then went back to looking at her tablet. She said nothing.

That indifference made Aniya even angrier.

“Hey, I’m talking to you here. Don’t play deaf. Who do you think you are, huh? You’re bothering Quacy. Stay away from him. He is mine now.”

Zelica sighed and put down her tablet.

“Yours?” she asked. Her voice was calm. “Things that are owned are usually objects, Ms. Aniya. Isn’t a human being.”

“Don’t give me lessons. I know your game. You came back to steal Quacy from me again, right? Because he’s successful.”