Chapter 2

In the blink of an eye, Leo turned seven.

This past summer, my mother called out of the blue.

Sobbing uncontrollably, she complained that now that her other grandson was older, Vanessa had no use for her and started treating her like an unwanted burden.

At first, I offered polite comfort.

Realizing I had no intention of inviting her over, she took the initiative. "How about I come stay with you and look after Leo? At least I won't have to look at Vanessa's sour face."

I desperately wanted to refuse. But her pathetic, desperate weeping wore me down, and I gave in.

Letting her back into our home nearly destroyed my family.

She immediately resumed her tyrannical ways. Whenever we asked her to cook, her back suddenly hurt.

Every evening, when Sarah spent hours making dinner, my mother found a dozen things to criticize.

She even started sneaking away the expensive fruit and snacks Sarah bought for me and Leo.

I only found out recently that she had been smuggling them straight to Brad's house.

Then, Sarah's high-end skincare products began disappearing from the vanity.

When I confronted her, she barked defensively, "I'm here serving your household, which means I can't take care of Vanessa! What's wrong with giving your sister-in-law a few bottles of lotion? You're already getting free childcare from me—don't be so ungrateful!"

To be honest, I never wanted her "help" to begin with.

So when Sarah looked at me exhausted and said, "Chris, please have your mother leave. I can't take this anymore," I agreed without hesitation.

I told my mother it was time for her to go. She refused.

She threw an epic tantrum, screaming and crying.

When I couldn't take her hysterics any longer, I laid it flat on the line: "Fine. You can stay—right after you pay back the $300,000 you stole from us."

That shut her up immediately.

She went pale and swore she would behave and take proper care of Leo.

Seeing her back down, Sarah let the matter drop.

When my mother actually started acting pleasant, I foolishly felt a flicker of hope that she had genuinely changed.

Taking Leo on this road trip had been planned months in advance.

Since my mother was staying with us, I invited her to come along out of courtesy.

She flatly refused, claiming she hated traveling.

I never imagined she would turn around and pull this garbage behind my back.

I was utterly exhausted.

Just then, my phone buzzed. It was a message from Sarah:

[Babe, your mom is making a huge scene outside my office building. What is going on?]

Attached was a video clip of my mother wailing in the corporate lobby, screaming to the world that her daughter-in-law was abusing her.

My breathing turned heavy and ragged.

I never thought she would stoop this low.

The last trace of maternal affection I held for her died right then.

I texted Sarah back: [I'll handle it.]

I booked the earliest flight home the next morning.

Leo seemed to sense the gravity of the situation. Without a single complaint about cutting the trip short, he patted my arm. "It's okay, Daddy. We can go on another adventure next time."

Tears pricked my eyes at how mature he was. I choked out an agreement and hugged him tight.

The moment my plane landed, I didn't go home. I headed straight for Brad's corporate office.

Since my mother loved targeting my wife's workplace, I was going to give Brad a taste of his own medicine.

She worshipped her golden child, didn't she? Let's see how much she liked the fallout.

I stood outside his office building, exposing how he neglected our mother.

I called out Vanessa for encouraging my mother to steal from my wife.

I had printed hundreds of copies of the chat logs and bank records, handing them out to every single employee walking through the front doors.

By the time Brad rushed downstairs, his face was the color of a bruised plum.

"Chris! Are you completely insane?!"

Gritting his teeth, Brad grabbed my jacket, trying to drag me away, but I stood my ground like a brick wall.

"You want me gone? Simple. Get Mom out of my house right now, and make damn sure she never harasses me or Sarah ever again."

"Are you out of your mind? She's our mother! Taking care of her is your responsibility!"

"Is that right? Then where were you when I needed her help? Why did you keep her to yourself and let her scam me out of hundreds of thousands of dollars?"

"Now that she's old and useless to you, you dump her on my doorstep and have her steal our belongings for your family! Do you honestly take me for an idiot?"

"Our whole lives, Mom spun lies to make me believe she treated us the same. Did she?!"

"Brad, who paid the down payment on your house? Who's paying your mortgage? Who buys the groceries and fruit your family eats every month? Whose money paid for your son's private tutoring? You want to look these people in the eye and pretend you don't know?!"

My voice echoed across the plaza.

Brad was completely caught off guard. He turned pale, staring at me in shock.

Neither he nor my mother ever imagined I would connect the dots. They had always treated me like an obedient, brainless ATM.

A sucker who would quietly swallow every bitter pill.

Well, even a doormat eventually learns to stand up.

Brad's coworkers gathered around, whispering and pointing at him in disgust.

Unable to bear the shame, Brad panicked. "Fine! Fine! I'll tell Mom to move back to my place right now, okay?!"