“About us, about our relationship. I feel like something’s gone wrong. You’ve become distant, closed off, you changed the lock, didn’t give me a key, as if I’m some kind of enemy.”
“I don’t think of you as an enemy.”
“Then why is it like this? I’m Mike’s mother, I want what’s best for you.”
Susan looked up, meeting her mother-in-law’s gaze directly.
“If you want what’s best for us, then why did you come into our home and go through our things?”
Eleanor blinked, momentarily flustered. Then she laughed, but it was a wooden, fake laugh.
“What? I didn’t go through your things. I came in to water the plants, Mike asked me to. Maybe I accidentally bumped into something?”
“We don’t have any plants.”
A pause. Her mother-in-law took a sip of tea and set the mug down. Her face hardened.
“Fine, you don’t want to be honest? Don’t. But I know anyway: you’re hiding something. You withdrew money, there’s almost nothing left in your account. Mike is worried.”
“Is Mike worried, or are you?”
“I’m worried about my son. He called me yesterday, said you two had a fight. He’s torn up, doesn’t know what to do. And why? Because you’ve started keeping secrets.”
Susan stood up and grabbed her purse.
“I have to go to work. Thanks for the muffins.”
“Susan, wait, I’m not finished!”
“But I am.”
Susan left the kitchen and put on her coat. Eleanor followed her, her face twisted with anger.
“You’ll regret this! I’ll tell Mike everything. I’ll tell him you kicked me out, were rude to me, that you’re hiding money. He’ll take my side, you’ll see.”
Susan opened the door and turned around.
“Tell him. I don’t care.”
She slammed the door and went down the stairs. Her hands were shaking, her heart was pounding. She got in her car, rested her head on the steering wheel. She took deep breaths, trying to calm down. Just hold on, a little longer, just a little bit more.
The day at work was agonizing. Susan checked invoices, balanced accounts, answered calls, but her mind was elsewhere. She knew there would be a fight that evening. Eleanor had already poisoned Mike’s mind, turned him against his wife. He would come home angry, demanding an explanation.
At lunch, Susan felt nauseous again. She drank some water and ate a cracker. The morning sickness was getting worse, now hitting her in the afternoon as well. Her colleague, Mary, noticed.
“Sue, you look pale. Maybe you should go home?”
“No, I’m fine, just tired.”
“Listen, are you pregnant, by any chance?”
Susan froze and looked at Mary. She was smiling, but there was curiosity in her eyes.
“Why do you ask?”
“Well, you’re nauseous, pale, you’ve been irritable. That’s how I was with my first.”
“No, I probably just have a cold.”
Mary shrugged and turned away. But Susan realized she had to be more careful. It was hard to hide morning sickness, people noticed. Another week or two, and everyone in the office would guess. And from there, it would get back to Mike: someone would see her, tell him. Or his mother would find out somehow. No, she had to tell him herself, soon. But first, she had to get the bonus, hide the money. Then she could.
That evening, when Susan got home, Mike was already there. He was sitting in the kitchen, looking grim, phone in hand. He saw her and stood up.
“Mom called. She told me how you threw her out today.”
Susan took off her coat, walked into the kitchen, and set down her purse.
“I didn’t throw her out, I just ended the conversation.”
“She said you were rude. Said you told her you didn’t care about her.”
“I did say that. And it’s true.”
Mike took a step closer, his face turning red.
“How can you say that? She’s my mother!”
“And? Does that mean she can go through our things, control how I spend money, come into our home uninvited? And I’m supposed to just shut up and take it?”
“She’s not controlling, she’s worried! She’s not meddling. This is our family!”
“She’s part of the family!”
“No.” Susan shook her head. “Our family is you and me. She is your mother. That’s separate.”
Mike fell silent, giving her a heavy look. Then, quietly, with a threat in his voice:
“Mom said you’re hiding money. That you took everything out of your account and hid it somewhere. Is that true?”
“Yes, it’s true.”
“Why?”
“It’s my money. I have the right to do what I want with it.”
“We’re a family! We have a joint budget!”
“We don’t have a joint budget. You’re the one who refused to make one, remember? You said, ‘Why make things complicated?’”
Mike clenched his fists and turned away. Susan could see he was on the edge. A little more, and he would snap.
“Where did you put the money?” he asked, without turning around.
“For our needs.”
“What needs?”
“Our needs. The family’s.”
He spun around, stepped toward her, and grabbed her by the shoulders.
“Tell me… Where did you put it? Right now!”
Susan pulled away and stepped back.
“Get your hands off me!”
“Answer me!”
“It’s none of your business.”
He raised his hand. Susan squeezed her eyes shut. But the blow never came. Mike froze with his hand in the air. Then he slowly lowered it and stepped away. He sat down in a chair and buried his face in his hands.
“What’s happening to us?” he mumbled hoarsely. “Why are we like this?”
Susan stood against the wall, her hands pressed to her stomach. Her heart was pounding. He almost hit her. For the first time in all their years together. He almost hit her.
“I’m going to my mom’s,” Mike said, standing up and grabbing his jacket. “I’ll spend the night there. We’ll talk in the morning, when we’ve both calmed down.”
He left, slamming the door. Susan was left alone. She slowly sank into a chair. She rested her head on the table. Quietly, so no one could hear, she began to cry.
For the next two days, Mike didn’t come home. He called a couple of times, speaking briefly: “How are you?” — “I’m fine.” Susan’s replies were just as curt. They were both in a holding pattern, unsure of what to do next. Eleanor didn’t call. But Susan knew her mother-in-law was at work. Dripping poison into Mike’s ear. Turning him against his wife. Telling him how awful, greedy, and heartless Susan was. And Mike was listening, believing. Because for him, his mother was the final authority.
On Wednesday, Susan got her bonus. $300 in cash. She counted it and tucked it into her purse. That evening at home, she got the box from the top of the closet and added the money to the rest. There was now $1,300 in there. Another month or two, and she’d have enough for everything she needed. She closed the box and pushed it back into its hiding place. As she stood on the chair, holding onto the shelf, she suddenly felt a pulling sensation in her lower abdomen. Not strong, but noticeable. She got down and sat on the bed. It pulled again, a little stronger. Susan tensed. Could it be contractions? It was too early, only eight weeks. She lay down and tried to relax. After a minute, the feeling passed. A false alarm. The doctor had said things like that could happen. The uterus was growing, the ligaments were stretching. But it was still scary.
Susan picked up her phone and opened her chat with Mike. She wanted to write, “Come home, I’m scared.” But she didn’t. She deleted the message. He was at his mother’s now, under her influence. He would come home and start in again about the money. It wasn’t worth it. She went to sleep alone in the empty bed. She stroked her belly and whispered, “Hang in there, little one. Just a little longer, and everything will be okay. I promise.”
The next morning, Thursday, Eleanor called the office. The receptionist transferred the call to Susan.
“Hello.”
“Susan, it’s me. Please don’t hang up.”
Susan was silent.
“I’m listening.”
“I want to apologize. I got carried away, I said things I shouldn’t have. Let’s meet, talk calmly. Without Mike, just you and me.”
“Why?”
“To make peace. To fix our relationship. I don’t want us to be enemies.”
Susan thought about it. On one hand, she didn’t want to meet. On the other, maybe it was worth talking, explaining once and for all that her boundaries were not to be crossed.
“Fine. Where?”
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