Chapter 4 — The Mask Comes Off

Tony Parker’s smile started to fade with time. The sweet words were gone. The caring tone was gone. Only control and anger stayed behind. In the beginning, Linda Miller believed it was stress from work. But soon she understood that her husband’s voice had changed, his eyes had changed, and his love had become something heavy and cruel.

He started shouting for small things. He wanted everything his way. He told Linda what to cook, how to dress, when to talk, and when to stay quiet. He wanted her to forget her own thoughts. Sometimes Linda said softly, “Tony, please calm down.” But his voice grew louder. “You should be grateful I married you,” he said once. “No one else would have.” Those words broke her inside. She smiled outside but cried silently when no one was watching.

Sofia watched everything. She felt the pain growing every day. Her heart ached when she saw her mother trying to please that man. She whispered to herself, “This is not love. This is control.” She wanted to protect her mother, but her mother had already lost her strength. One night Sofia said carefully, “Mom, you don’t have to live like this.” Linda looked at her daughter with tired eyes. “He gets angry sometimes,” she said quietly, “but he is not bad.” Sofia touched her hand and said, “Anger that hurts you again and again is not love.” But Linda didn’t answer. She only wiped her tears.

Tony began to notice that Sofia didn’t fear him, and that made him angry. He wanted control over her too. He called her “dear” but in a way that made her feel cold inside. He started asking personal questions — things that had nothing to do with him. He said, “Why don’t you have a boyfriend, Sofia?” She said calmly, “That’s my choice.” Tony smiled, “A beautiful girl like you shouldn’t waste her time alone.” His words made her skin crawl.

Linda didn’t see these moments. She thought Tony was only trying to be friendly. She even said one day, “He treats you like his own daughter.” Sofia looked down and whispered, “No, Mom. Not like a daughter.” Linda didn’t understand. She thought her daughter was just being sensitive.

Then one evening, Tony came home drunk. His eyes were red and his steps unsteady. He sat on the couch, shouting Linda’s name. When she came, he said, “You don’t care about me. You only care about your daughter.” Linda tried to calm him, “Tony, please. You’re drunk.” He pushed her hand away. “She is the reason you don’t love me.” Sofia came out of her room and shouted, “Stop it!” Tony looked at her with anger and said, “Don’t talk to me like that. You live in my house now.” Sofia’s voice shook, “This was my father’s house.” For a moment, everything went silent. Then Tony laughed bitterly and walked away.

After that night, things became worse. He began to ignore Linda and focus more on Sofia. He complimented her clothes, her smile, her eyes. Sofia started locking her room. She avoided being near him. But Tony always found a way to be around. When Linda wasn’t at home, he asked, “Do you hate me?” Sofia replied coldly, “I don’t talk to drunk men.” He smiled strangely and said, “You’re strong. I like that.” Sofia walked away without answering.

When Linda returned, she noticed her daughter’s face looked pale. “Sofia, are you okay?” she asked. Sofia looked at her mother and wanted to tell everything. But when she saw how fragile Linda had become, she stayed silent. “I’m fine, Mom,” she said softly. Linda hugged her and whispered, “I’m sorry for everything. I just want peace.” Sofia closed her eyes. “Me too, Mom,” she whispered.

A few days later, Tony started shouting again, this time about money. He said, “You spend too much. I work hard for this family.” Linda said quietly, “You’re the only one who uses the money, Tony.” He slammed his hand on the table. “Don’t talk back to me.” Sofia stepped forward, her voice shaking but firm. “Don’t speak to her like that.” Tony glared at her. “You think you can tell me what to do?” She replied, “I can tell you to stop hurting her.” Linda tried to stop them both. “Please, no fighting,” she cried.

Tony left the room angrily. That night, Sofia sat beside her mother and said, “I can’t watch him break you like this.” Linda held her hand and whispered, “Please, give me time. Maybe he will change.” Sofia looked at her mother’s face and saw fear instead of hope. “He will not change,” she said softly. “He is showing us who he really is.”

As the days passed, Tony’s mask continued to fall. The house that once had love now had only silence. Linda tried to save her marriage. Sofia tried to protect her mother. But both of them knew that the man they had once trusted had become a stranger they now feared.

And yet, the worst night of their lives was still waiting for them — a night that would break everything they thought was still safe.