My female neighbor insisted that my dad molested her, and directly brought people to smash my house. "I am a respectable woman, how can I live after being defiled by your dad!" "The old one has no shame, the young one is sinister and cunning, a family of beasts!" "Must compensate! Medical bills, lost wages, emotional distress damages totaling $500,000! Not a penny less." More and more neighbors gathered around, all forcing me to hand over the person. Looking at the indignant crowd, I laughed in anger. I would like to hand him over, but my dad has been dead for ten years! Chapter 1 "My dad has been dead for ten years!" My words were like splashing a ladle of cold water into boiling oil, instantly exploding the pot. Karen was stunned for a moment, then that face crying like a pear blossom bathed in rain twisted into an exaggerated mocking expression. "Dead for ten years? Can he climb out of the grave to molest me after being dead for ten years? Daphne, use your brain when making up lies!" Standing next to her were two big burly men and a woman with curly hair, obviously relatives she called. One of the men with a face full of flesh had already smashed a crack in my door frame. The hallway was crowded with neighbors watching the fun, some holding phones recording, some pointing fingers, everyone's eyes stabbing at me like needles. I tried to keep my voice steady: "I really didn't lie to you, my father passed away ten years ago, his ashes are buried in Greenwood Cemetery, we go to sweep the grave every year. This house was bought by my husband and me not long ago, how could my dad live here?" Karen's tears came just like that, she covered her face, shoulders shaking violently: "You still want to quibble! I saw it with my own eyes! Last night around eight, I came back from overtime, elevator was broken so I had to take the stairs, just reached the fourth floor corner, an old man hugged me from behind, hands reaching into my clothes..." She stopped here, seemingly unable to continue, sobbing. The middle-aged woman with curly hair next to her quickly supported her, glaring at me: "Don't be afraid, girl, we are all here! This kind of shameless family needs to be exposed!" "I struggled desperately, he then let go and ran away." Karen wiped a handful of tears, suddenly pointing at me. "He must be your dad! I saw him come out of your house with my own eyes, and saw you giving him money, giving him food, if not your own dad why you raise him? Pretending to be what philanthropist!" My heart sank. She was talking about the homeless man near the community garage. I did help him a few times, after the weather turned cool, I gave him an old wool coat my husband didn't wear, and a beanie I bought too big. But I never thought this little act of kindness would become a knife stabbing at me today. "That is a homeless old man in the community, not my father, I just saw he was pitiful..." I explained. "Pitiful?" Karen interrupted me fiercely, voice suddenly rising, "Your dad pretends to be a homeless man, specifically squatting in the stairwell to molest women, this is called pitiful? This is called a pervert! This is called no respect for old age!" "Right! No respect for old age!" The curly-haired woman shouted along. "Whole family is not good stuff!" Another man echoed. The crowd of onlookers began to commotion, discussion getting louder and louder. "Can't tell, a decent looking family..." "Know the face but not the heart, old man pretending to be homeless, this move is insidious enough." "Karen is also quite pitiful, being by an old man... tsk tsk." I felt blood rushing to my head, that suffocating feeling of being unable to defend myself grabbed my throat. "You can check! My father's name was David, died of liver cancer ten years ago, I have the death certificate, cremation certificate, cemetery purchase contract!" Chapter 2 "Then take it out! Take it out now! Let everyone see if it's true!" Karen immediately took the words, a flash of successful pleasure in her eyes. I turned to look at my husband Mark behind me, his face was iron green, fists clenched tight. I held his fist, advising him not to be impulsive. The house has already been smashed by them, doing it now would purely be giving the advantage to the other side. I signaled my husband to find the death certificate in the room. The room was quiet for a moment, leaving only Karen's affected sobbing and neighbors' rustling discussion. I took a deep breath, trying to calm my mood. I had met Karen in the elevator and talked. She said the house she lives in now is rented, and asked about my situation. When learning I bought the house with full payment, she threw a sentence: "Why rich people still live in this kind of old community." "Save for children's school fees." I answered casually. In the elevator, Karen didn't speak again, but her face was already not very good. I regretted saying these words, money should not be revealed, obviously Karen dared to ask for five million, must have guessed my family is financially well-off. Time passed second by second. An ominous premonition rose in my heart. Sure enough, five minutes later, Mark came out empty-handed, face ugly, lowered voice said to me: "Dad's death certificate... is not in the drawer where documents are usually kept." "What?" My voice was a bit tight. Mark frowned tight: "I searched the study, bedroom, didn't find it, could it be put in wrong place after using it for some procedure last time?" Karen obviously heard our conversation, she immediately screamed: "Can't find it? Ha! So coincidental? Daphne, your acting is really full set! First make up a lie of death without proof, now say certificate lost? You treat everyone as three-year-old kids?" "Really can't find it! But we have other proofs! Cemetery contract! Photos! My dad's medical records before death!" Karen relentless: "Those can all be forged! How easy is it to Photoshop now? I want to see the official death certificate! Issued by the police! Issued by the funeral home! Can't take it out means it's fake! You are just guilty!" The flesh-faced man who smashed the door beside her stepped forward, almost sticking to my face: "Little lady, don't play tricks. My wife suffered such a big grievance, there must be an explanation for this today! Compensation! Medical bills, lost wages, emotional distress damages, five million! One cent less, I smash your house again!" "Right! Compensate!" "Hand over the person! Hand over that old rogue!" "Not hand over person then compensate! Otherwise call police catch you!" The crowd was incited, a few young people even started to squeeze forward. Mark protected me behind him, sternly said: "What do you want to do? Trespassing is illegal!" Karen cried and shouted, "When your dad molested me why didn't he think about whether it's illegal? I am a respectable woman, body not clean anymore, how can I live! Better to die!" She said and was about to hit the wall, held back tightly by the curly-haired woman. This scene aroused the onlookers' sympathy even more. "Too pitiful..." "This family is really sinning, stay away from this family later." "Call the police, let the police handle it." Husband nodded to me. Seems husband understood my gesture when he went into the room to find the death certificate just now, he had already called the police. At first, when this group of people entered the house and smashed, we were afraid of provoking the other party, dared not call the police easily. I looked at this group of people coldly: "Police will arrive immediately! My dad indeed passed away ten years ago, this is a fact! You are now Extortion!" I don't believe white can be said into black. Chapter 3 "Extortion?" Karen suddenly stopped crying, she took out her phone, started recording me, "Everyone look ah, this is the daughter of the molester! Refuse to admit! And bite back saying I extortion! I Karen walk straight sit straight, today is to seek justice! If you are innocent, take out the death certificate ah! Take it!" She approached step by step, phone almost shoved into my face. The crowd around also booed along. "Take it out!" "Where is the certificate?" "None means guilty!" My brain was buzzing, Mark went into the room to rummage through chests and cupboards again, but I knew hope was slim. That blue folder containing all of father's documents after death, clearly always placed in the second drawer of the study, how could it disappear? "Give me some more time." My voice was dry. "Enough!" Karen interrupted me fiercely, she turned off recording, a cruel smile on her face. "Daphne, I tell you, this matter is not over today. "Either, you take out five million compensation now; or, I immediately post the video just now online, with text: Rich girl assists father pretending to be homeless to molest female neighbor multiple times, afterwards refuses to admit.. "Guess how netizens will view you? Will your family business be affected?" I was cold all over. She came prepared. From insisting it was my father, to asking for five million like a lion opening its mouth, to now cyber threat, every step was calculated. She seemed not to care about the truth at all, she just wanted money. "You... you are framing." I said weakly. "Framing?" Karen leaned close to me, using a voice only two of us could hear said, "Daphne, I know you have money. You drive Mercedes, live in large flat, the bags you carry are thousands of dollars. Five million is nothing to you, but to me, can change fate. You give money, I shut up, from now on well water not violate river water. You don't give..." She stepped back, restored that look of victim's sorrow, voice clear and loud: "You don't give, I will come to your door to cry every day! Let the whole community, whole network people see, what kind of goods your family is! Old one no respect for age, young one sinister cunning, a family of beasts!" "You!" Mark rushed over, pulled back tightly by me. Move hand and it's over. Once moved hand, we really have reason but can't say clear. The atmosphere in the hallway had reached boiling point. Someone was shouting "Hitting people", someone was calling police, more people holding phones shooting non-stop. The men and women Karen brought blocked my door, a posture of not giving up until achieving goal. I felt a burst of dizziness. Ten years, father has been dead for ten years. I never thought, one day he would be dragged into a dirty farce in this way, becoming a tool for others to blackmail me. "Found it?" I asked Mark in low voice. Mark shook head, eyes red: "I search again, could it be left in the old house..." "Too late." I looked at the gathering crowd, looking at Karen's face written full of greed and malice, knew today impossible to end well. Sure enough, siren sound from far to near. "Police here!" Someone shouted. Karen's eyes lit up, immediately cried louder: "Officer, you must decide for me ah! I was molested, they still don't admit!" Chapter 4 Two police officers squeezed into the crowd, looked at the messy doorway and crying Karen, then looked at me and Mark. "What happened?" The younger officer frowned and asked. Karen spoke first, adding oil and vinegar to tell the story once. Officer looked at me: "Is what she said true?" "Partially true." I tried to organize language, "I did help a homeless old man, but he is not my father. My father passed away ten years ago, death certificate temporarily not found, but we can provide other materials, can also check records at police station." Karen screamed: "Temporarily not found? Officer, she is delaying tactic! That old rogue must be hidden in her house! I demand search!" I really didn't expect, Karen in front of police can still be so righteous. "Officer, can your device check if my father is already dead?" Saying, I reported father's ID number. Officer nodded. At start, I recited smoothly, state code, city code, birth date all no problem, but reached last few digits I actually couldn't remember no matter what. Karen seeing this, immediately made noise again, "Officer you look, I didn't say wrong right!" Older officer rubbed temples: "All stop arguing." He pointed at Karen, "You said molested, did you make statement? Medical exam?" "I... I haven't had time, I only thought about reasoning with them." Karen eyes flickered a bit. Officer looked at me again, "You said father died ten years, any other evidence besides death certificate? Relatives friends, former neighbors, all can testify." "Yes! My mother, my uncle, and dad's former colleagues, all can prove!" I was like grabbing a life-saving straw. "Those are all your people, of course help you speak!" Karen immediately refuted. Officer obviously saw this kind of wrangling scene a lot, he looked at the hallway blocked water-tight, said: "Here is not place to solve problem, you few, all follow us to precinct to make statement." He looked at Karen, "As for you, if you insist on being infringed, need to formally report case, then go hospital for injury check." "What about them? What if they run?" Karen relentless. "Can't run." Officer looked at me, "Ms. Daphne, since you said can provide proof, then please find death certificate or other strong evidence ASAP. Also, regarding that homeless old man, your community should have surveillance right?" Surveillance! I fiercely looked up. If really an old man molested Karen, and ran into my house, surveillance must capture it! Karen's face changed for the first time, although recovered quickly, but that moment of panic didn't escape my eyes. "As everyone knows, surveillance in stairwell broke long ago, you hurry let Daphne pay, don't waste time anymore." Karen wasn't wrong, this community's surveillance indeed always malfunctioned, when moved in heard neighbors introduce, most surveillance old and disrepair, especially those in hallway. Young officer said: "Broken can check previous, always leave some traces. Let's go, all go to precinct, gathering here influence not good." "No!" Karen suddenly got excited, "Go to precinct, they definitely find connections to suppress it! Are you seeing they have money, so want to shield them? I want solve here! Solve in front of all neighbors!" She shouted this, a few unknowing neighbors started to help again. "Exactly, having money amazing ah!" "Police need handle fairly!" Older officer's face sank: "You are interfering with law enforcement, either follow procedure, or you mediate yourselves, but smashing other's property already suspected illegal." He pointed at the mess inside my house. Flesh-faced man shrank neck. Situation deadlocked for a moment. Just then, a burst of hurried footsteps came from stairs. Mrs. Lewis from HOA panted squeezing into crowd, followed by two building staff.
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