Emily opened the antique mahogany jewellery box, running her fingers over the velvet lining. The diamonds sparkled in the morning light, making her heart ache with memory. Her grandmother had given her the set a month before passinga ring with a large centre stone, delicate earrings, and a pendant on a fine chain.
Jamess voice carried down the hall.
“Em, are you ready? Theyve called three times already!”
“Almost,” Emily replied, closing the box.
James appeared in the bedroom doorway. Three years of marriage had taught her to read his moods in the slightest details. Today, he was tense.
“Admiring Grans jewels again?” He nodded at the box. “Might as well wear them sometime.”
“Its just your colleagues birthday party,” Emily said. “Hardly a diamond occasion.”
James shrugged and walked out. Emily glanced at the jewellery once more before carefully tucking the box into her dresser.
Two weeks later, Jamess mother, Margaret, came for dinner. Emily was in the kitchen when she heard familiar voices from the living room.
“Jamie, show me those diamonds of Emilys again,” Margaret urged. “Such beauty just sitting unused!”
Emily froze, a plate in her hand, irritation rising.
“Mum, theyre her inheritance from her gran,” James said. “Shell wear them when she wants.”
“I know, but Lindas daughter is getting married next month,” Margaret sighed. “Imagine the impression Id make wearing something like that!”
Emily walked in, setting the plates down with deliberate care.
“Margaret, weve discussed this,” she said calmly. “These pieces mean a lot to me.”
“Just for one evening!” Margaret clasped her hands pleadingly. “Id take such good care of them!”
“Im sorry, but no.”
The air at dinner grew heavy. James ate in silence, avoiding Emilys gaze. Margaret pushed her plate away pointedly.
Over the next month, Margaret visited more often, always finding a way to bring up the diamonds.
“Emily, darling,” she cooed one afternoon. “The universitys anniversary gala is coming upId love to look my best for the dean!”
“Margaret, you have plenty of lovely jewellery,” Emily replied, patience wearing thin.
“Not like these!” Margaret exclaimed. “Jamie, tell her!”
James, who had once stayed quiet, now sided with his mother.
“Em, whats the harm?” hed say in private. “Its not like shes keeping them forever.”
“James, theyre all I have left of Gran,” Emily protested. “She trusted me with them!”
“Oh, come off it!” hed snap. “Theyre just stones. Youre upsetting Mum over nothing.”
Emily stared at him, bewildered. Where was the man shed married?
One evening, after another visit from Margaret, the argument erupted.
“Your mother is unbearable!” Emily burst out the moment the door closed.
“Youre the unbearable one!” James shouted back. “Hoarding junk like its treasure!”
Emily recoiled. Junk? Her grandmothers heirlooms were junk to him? Her throat tightened.
“If thats how you see them,” she said, voice trembling, “then we dont understand each other at all.”
“Mums right,” James shot back. “Youre selfish. Its always about you!”
Tears burned, but Emily clenched her fists. She wouldnt let him see how much it hurt.
She turned and slammed the bedroom door behind her, choking on silent sobs. Why should she surrender what mattered most to someone who saw only shiny trinkets?
Margarets sixtieth birthday loomed. Emily agonised over a gift.
“Margaret, any ideas what youd like?” she asked politely.
Margaret gave her a condescending smile. “Oh, I dont need a thing, dear.”
Emily looked to James. He was glued to his phone.
“James, what should we get your mum?” she pressed that evening.
“Dunno,” he muttered. “Figure it out.”
“But shes your mother!”
“And?” He tossed his phone aside. “She said she doesnt want anything.”
Emily bought an expensive silk scarf and French perfume, wrapped elegantly, though dread gnawed at her.
On the morning of the party, she dressed in a deep green gown and reached for her emerald earringsanother gift from Gran, but less precious. She opened the jewellery box and froze. The velvet slots were empty. The diamonds were gone.
Her heart hammered. She tore through the dresser, checked every shelf. Nothing. She stormed into the kitchen, where James sipped coffee, unfazed.
“James! Where are my diamonds?” Her voice cracked.
He took a slow sip. “I gave them to Mum,” he said flatly. “They suit her better.”
Emily swayed, the room tilting.
“What did you do?” she whispered.
“What shouldve been done ages ago,” James set his mug down. “Stop being so stingy.”
“Theyre my inheritance!” she screamed. “How dare you?!”
She gripped the table, vision blurring with rage. James stood, unfazed. His indifference cut deeper than words.
“Stop overreacting!” he scoffed. “Mum deserves them more than you! At least shell wear them!”
“This wasnt your choice!” Emilys voice broke. “Or hers! Youre both thieves!”
Her hands shook. This manher husbandhad betrayed her for his mothers greed.
“Watch your mouth!” he barked. “Thats my mother!”
“And Im your wife! Or was?”
She grabbed her bag and fled. In the taxi to Margarets, she clenched her fists, trembling.
Margaret answered the door in a burgundy gown, Emilys diamonds glittering at her throat and ears.
“Emily?” Margaret blinked. “Youre early! Guests arent due for hours!”
Emily stared at her jewels on another woman, fury boiling.
“Take. Them. Off,” she hissed.
“Excuse me?” Margaret stepped back. “Have you lost your mind?”
Emily lunged, unfastening the necklace. Margaret shrieked, swatting at her.
“Dont you touch them!” she screeched. “Theyre a gift from my son!”
“Theyre mine!” Emily snatched the earrings, then the ring from the hallway table. Her hands were steady, though inside, a storm raged.
“Thief!” Margaret wailed. “Ill call the police!”
“Go ahead,” Emily said coldly. “Explain how your son stole his wifes inheritance.”
“You vile girl!” Margarets face flushed crimson. “On my birthday! James will never forgive you!”
Emily turned at the door. The woman shed called “Mum” for years stood theregreedy, petty, willing to ruin everything for shiny stones.
“Dont expect me at the party,” Emily said. “I never thought youd sink this low.”
She slammed the door so hard the windows rattled.
At home, James was waiting, livid.
“Have you lost your mind?!” he roared. “You humiliated Mum on her birthday!”
“Your mothers a thief!” Emily marched past him. “And so are you! How could you?”
“How dare you?” James blocked her path. “She wanted them, so she got them!”
Emily stopped. Her chest ached. Three years of love, ending like this. James seemed a strangercold, hostile. How had she missed the rot in him?
“And what am I?” Her voice wavered. “Nothing?”
“Youre selfish! Valuing rocks over family!”
The words cut deeper than any blade. Emily bit her lip, refusing to cry. Rage steadied her.
“Youre a spineless mummys boy, stealing from your wife to please her!” she spat. “Get out of my flat!”
James stumbled back, stunned.
“What?!”
She saw his confidence shatter. But it was too late.
“You heard me! Pack your things and run back to Mummy!” She shoved past him. “Since she matters more!”
A month later, the divorce was final. Emily sat in the quiet flat when Margaret called.
“Happy now?” Margaret sneered. “You chose stones over your marriage!”
Emily laughed coldly.
“You chose shiny rocks over your sons happiness,” she said. “You made him steal what was mine.”
“How dare”
Emily hung up. The jewellery box sat open on her dresser, diamonds glinting softly. Grans legacy was still hers. That was what mattered.
Six months passed. The silence, once deafening, now soothed her. It held no dread of Margarets visits, no snide remarks from James.
She kept the diamonds outnot hidden, but displayed, a reminder of Grans love, not pain. She focused on herself: a new job, reconnecting with old friends whod quietly disapproved of James.
One Saturday, as she brewed coffee, a text came from Grans
