On the first day, my mother-in-law smiled and humiliated me: “In this house you will eat the leftovers”; I didn’t raise my voice, I just obeyed every word until she had to cook alone for the whole family, and then everyone understood that the black notebook hid something much darker.

“What a blessing to have such an obedient daughter-in-law, Tabitha,” the neighbor had said. “You told her not to touch the food and she let you cook for everyone, so now that is real respect.”

That night, after a completely silent dinner, Mrs. Tabitha called Colin and me to the living room. She sat with the black notebook on her lap, but she no longer continue reading …