A Daughter's Court

In the modern mystery A Daughter's Court, a mother becomes the target of national outrage after her daughter denounces her during a viral livestream. The girl shares messages showing her mother's cold refusals to provide money for basic necessities like food and hygiene. As the public labels her heartless, a famous influencer intervenes to demand answers. In response, the mother challenges her critic to live with them for a week to discover the dark reality hidden behind the girl's tears.

Chapters

Chapter 1

After I refused for the eighth time to give my daughter a monthly allowance of $80, she went live online to denounce me.

During the broadcast, she shared screenshots of our messages, showing how she had repeatedly and desperately asked me for money after the new school term began.

"Mom, I just got my period. I do not have money to buy sanitary pads. Could you send me this month's allowance?"

I replied calmly, "No."

"Mom, I have not eaten in three days. I am really hungry."

I responded with sarcasm. "What does that have to do with me?"

The screen quickly filled with comments calling me suffocatingly cruel and heartless.

Looking straight into the camera, she sobbed uncontrollably. "Mom, I am not asking for much. I only need $80 a month for living expenses.

"Do you really have to push me to death before you feel satisfied?"

Within a short time, I became the target of widespread online abuse.

A well-known education influencer reached out to me. "It is only $80. It is not something you cannot afford. Why are you treating your own daughter so harshly?"

I looked at her calmly. "Try livestreaming seven days of life with me and my daughter.

"If you can do that, you'll understand."

"Are you out of your mind? Do you have any clue what it means for an average person to stream their personal life for the whole world to see?"

As predicted, she was incredulous.

I just smiled and nodded.

She stared at me, then shook her head fiercely. "You're clueless! Every glance, every word you utter will be blown out of proportion by the online crowd. You'll be on the verge of a breakdown, or worse..."

I curled my lips into a half-smile, finishing her thought. "Worse, you might not make it. Might even end up taking your own life!"

She asked again, her confusion clear, "What's your endgame here? All this for a measly monthly stipend of eighty dollars? Is it really worth it?"

Online fame was a double-edged sword. She was a top influencer and remained cautious about taking risks. I knew I had to up the ante.

I leaned in, locking eyes with her. "Before you hit it big as a blogger, you were a senior editor at a paper that's since shut down, remember? You spent six months in a rural village to craft the truest story about kids left behind by migrant parents.

"Do you recall what's at the heart of a great news story?

"True depth comes from going deeper."

As I spoke, I saw the doubt creep into her eyes.

I went for the jugular. "You've been peddling 'Mind Soup' to millions for two years, but don't those sleepless nights tell you something? You know those catchy quotes are hollow! I'm offering you a story with grit and substance!

"Just picture it, in an age when women are waking up to their power. A mother financially tormenting her only daughter. If you nail this story, think of the payoff!"

Her hesitation crumbled to dust.

A true journalist would never pass up a story with real value.

Three days later, the announcement hit the video platform.

Celebrated educational influencer Jessica Lowell was set to unveil a groundbreaking live documentary series titled, 'Cruel Mom Refuses $80 Allowance, Poor Daughter in Trouble.'

My daughter, Evelyn Smith, and I had both signed on for the reality show, agreeing to let cameras follow us around the clock for a full week. No filters, no edits–just raw, unvarnished life.

I knew those seven days would be a nightmare, but I was out of options.

As the live stream kicked off, cameras were rigged up next to both Evelyn and me. The instant they zoomed in, we became the center of attention for millions online.

Continue to next part

After a fire traps her mother-in-law, a desperate wife calls her firefighter husband, Scott, only for him to dismiss her as a liar while he helps his first love. His refusal to act results in a fatal delay. Following the tragedy and his absence from the funeral, she seeks a divorce. Unaware his mother has already perished, Scott violently rejects the split, clinging to a false reality. Their marriage is now a wreckage of secrets and grief.

Modern Mystery Romance

8.4

Flash Marriage To My Secret Tycoon

8.4

On the eve of her high-society wedding, Alayna catches her fiancé cheating and walks away—only to survive a near-fatal crash in freezing rain. When her father freezes her accounts and demands she beg for the family merger, she proposes a strict one-year contract marriage to Cruz, the quiet, scarred laborer who pulled her from the wreck. But Cruz is Augustine Cleveland, a lethal billionaire commanding global empires from the shadows, who has already launched scorched-earth protocols against everyone who ever made his wife cry.

Action Adventure Billionaire Modern Romance

9.5

His Lover's Dawn, My Cold Floor

9.5

For three years, my estranged husband, Dayton Cole, paraded his childhood sweetheart around while I upheld our billion-dollar family merger. His latest hotel scandal splashed across the news, and I was once again called to clean up his mess, playing the part of the devoted wife. But this time was different. My best friend handed me divorce papers, urging me to finally choose myself. Yet, Dayton cornered me, using my family's ambitions as leverage. He demanded I maintain our charade for three more months-a performance that included sharing his bed. He'd humiliate me, calling me a tool for his family's image, then turn around and whisper that I was a beautiful woman he couldn't let go of. His jealousy flared when another man showed me kindness, yet he spent his nights rushing to his lover's side. The ultimate degradation came when he forced me to sleep on the floor of our shared room at his family's estate, declaring he had no desire for a wife who didn't want him. But in the dead of night, as I shivered on the cold floor, I felt his arms wrap around me, his lips brush my temple in a secret, tender gesture. I woke up alone, the warmth gone. A quick check of social media showed a new post from his sweetheart, thanking her "quiet strength" for being there at sunrise. That was the moment everything snapped. The game was over. He could have his fragile flower. I was taking back my life.

Modern Romance

8.8

I Married My Fiance’s Comatose Uncle

8.8

After three years of marriage, Caroline Webb's life ends in a nightmare. Blinded in a private hospital room, she discovers a devastating betrayal: her sister, Josie Garza, is pregnant with her husband Dennis's child. To make matters worse, they stole Caroline's corneas under false pretenses. As Dennis mocks her and Josie pulls her life-saving IV, Caroline realizes the man she loved is her worst enemy, leaving her helpless against their deadly cruelty.

Billionaire Modern Romance

9.8

My Incubus is a Drama Queen

9.8

Iris is a human living in a modern world of supernatural secrets, adopted by Austin Colton, a top-tier incubus who has recently come of age. After her offer to help him feed is rejected, she assumes he despises her. However, Iris suddenly gains the ability to hear Austin's private, chaotic thoughts. She discovers his internal struggle with his physical urges and the terrifying reality that a single night with him could drain half her life force.

Fantasy Modern Romance Young Adult

7.3

Ninety-Nine Times, Then No More

7.3

This was the ninety-ninth time I caught my husband, Chase Vargas, with another woman in our five-year marriage. I stood in the hotel doorway, numb, tired of the cheap perfume and his cold, familiar eyes. But this time, his mistress, a blonde woman, hissed, "He told me all about you. The pathetic wife he's stuck with because of some business deal. He said he can't stand the sight of you." Her words, meant to hurt, were things I already knew, things Chase had made sure I understood. Still, hearing them from a stranger felt like a new humiliation. She lunged, scratching my face, drawing blood. The sting was a surprising jolt in my numb world. I wrote her a check, a routine part of this pathetic scene. Then my phone rang. It was Chase, calling from across the room. "What are you doing? Are you making a scene? Clean it up and get out. You're embarrassing." He thought I had orchestrated this, that I was the embarrassing one. The betrayal was casual, complete. "I'm tired, Chase," I said, the words finally coming from a place I thought had died. "I want a divorce." He laughed, a cruel sound. "A divorce? Elena, don't be ridiculous. You love me too much to ever leave me." I hung up. He then handed me a signed divorce agreement, telling me his true love, June, my adopted sister, was back. He wanted me to play the dutiful wife for her welcome-home concert. My heart, which I thought had turned to stone, felt a final, crushing blow. He wasn't divorcing me because I wanted it. He was divorcing me for her. I signed the papers. The ninety-ninth time was the last time he would do this to me.

Action Modern Romance

A Daughter's Court

Chapter 1

You may also like