“How can you say that? He’s a living person! Your husband’s own brother!”
“I’ll say it againI’d rather burn that money than give it to him! At least then it’d do some good! If he wont take care of himself, why should I?” snapped the younger sister-in-law, pursing her lips in defiance.
Margaret could barely breathe from outrage. Andrew, her younger son, rubbed his temples and sighed heavily. He seemed just as shocked but kept his composure, as alwayscalm, logical, never one to panic.
“Emily, you cant be serious! Lifes longtoday you help him, tomorrow he helps you,” Margaret pleaded, struggling to make such simple things clear to a woman who shouldve known better.
“Oh, please! Him? That glutton? Hes drowning in debt!”
“Not everythings about money, love,” Margaret sighed. “If you care for Andrew at all, at least show some respect for his brother. Im not asking you to sit by his hospital bed.”
“Margaret, forgive me, but we have our own plans,” Emily replied coldly. “Were saving for our daughters future. Unlike Steven, she still has a chance to make something of herself.”
Margarets cheeks burned with anger. The way Emily spoke about her eldest son, as if he were dirt beneath her shoeswhen he was nothing of the sort.
Steven might not have been a high achiever, but he was a devoted family man. He worked hard, loved his wife and son, never strayedjust an ordinary bloke, like thousands of others.
Andrew, on the other hand, was fiercely ambitious. From childhood, hed dreamed of rising above the crowd, carving out a comfortable life. Hed chosen dentistry not out of passion but for the money, and now he was raking it in. He worked gruelling hours, dealt with difficult patients, but lived well because of it.
Steven wasnt destitute either, though he scraped by. He had a caralbeit on financeand a flat left to him by his grandmother.
His weakness? Rich food. Steven had a sweet tooth, adored bread and butter, skipped breakfast only to make up for it at dinner, and spent weekends glued to the sofa. Not dangerously overweight, but it wasnt doing him any favors.
“Steven, love, maybe go easy on the salads. The leafy kind, not the ones smothered in dressing,” Margaret would chide.
But she hadnt worried too muchuntil he landed in hospital with heart trouble. Tests revealed a whole list of problems.
“Hell need a diet. Possibly for life,” the doctor warned.
Steven didnt listen. At first, he half-heartedly tried, then gave up. He skipped follow-ups, abandoned treatment after the first round. If he felt ill, he soldiered on.
“Sarah, youve got to make him see a doctor. Hell run himself into the ground,” Margaret begged her elder daughter-in-law.
“Ive tried! But you try dragging him. Stubborn as a mule. Ive nagged him about the diet till Im blue in the face. And what? I throw out the crisps, he buys more. Says hell stop eating at home if I force-feed him rabbit food,” Sarah sighed.
It was clearuntil Steven decided to change, nothing would. But he wouldnt budge. Not that he was aloneplenty of people ignored warnings until it was too late.
But Emily, the younger sister-in-law? She didnt just judge him. She despised him.
“I dont get why you all fuss over him. Let him dig his own grave,” she scoffed once when Margaret and Andrew discussed Steven.
Margaret tried to convince herself that Emily was just strong-willed, that tough love might work. But deep down, she knewEmily was just cruel.
It showed in everything. Emily never shared, never lifted a finger unless it suited her. If Margaret asked for help, Emily always had an excusetoo busy, helping her own mum, not feeling well. Shed never lifted a spade in Margarets garden but never missed a barbecue. If they needed someone to watch little Lily, Emily called Margaret first, never her own mother.
Margaret had bitten her tongue for years. Not her place to interfere. But now she was starting to worry for Andrew, too.
A few days ago, Steven had another attack. He needed surgery. Recovery would be long. For once, he seemed scaredwithdrawn, barely eating, brushing off questions.
Margaret couldnt take it. She called Sarah.
“Sarah, how are you coping? Steven wont tell me anything.”
“Oh, Margaret Im terrified,” Sarah admitted. “Were barely making ends meet as it is. The tests, the meds, the surgeryand you know what the NHS is like these days.”
“Dont fret, love. Well sort the money. Hes family. Well manage.”
“If you can help, Ill owe you everything.”
Margaret felt a weight lift. Money was the least of her worries. Shed assumed Andrew and Emily would chip inshed raised her sons to support each other.
What she hadnt expected was Emilys outright refusal. Especially since Emily lived off Andrews earnings. She “kept house,” as she put itthough really, she lived for herself. Gym classes, lunches with friends, shopping sprees. Margaret saw the new outfits every time.
“Your daughters future” Margaret repeated slowly. “Do you realise Steven might not have a future if we all turn away now?”
Emilys lips thinned.
“He stuffed his face for years, and now I should pay for it? Not a chance! Hes a grown manlet him sort himself out!”
With that, she stormed out.
“Andy, Im waiting in the car,” she tossed over her shoulder.
But Andrew didnt follow. He stared at the table, fists clenched. Margaret looked away.
The silence was thick, suffocating. Something inside both of them was breaking. After five minutes, Andrew picked up his phone.
“Andy I never interfere, but She just refused to help your brotherwith your money. What if its you next?” Margaret asked quietly.
“I know, Mum. Dont worryIll help Steven. But Emily Im not sure I want to live with someone like that after today.”
That evening, Andrew sent Emily home in a taxinot to their house, but to her parents. She screamed, called him a mummys boy, threatened divorce. But he stood firm.
He filed first. Emily waited, expecting him to crawl back. When he didnt, she threatened to take Lily.
“Ill take her, and youll never see her again!”
“Dont be daft. You havent asked about her once since we split,” Andrew scoffed.
Still, they negotiated. Emily demanded half his assets, though shed contributed nothing. In the end, she settled for the carAndrew handed it over just to be rid of her.
Margaret never saw her again. From social media, Emily now raged against all men. No more fancy dinnersjust fast food. The false lashes and weekly blowouts were gone, too.
Greedy, and left with nothing.
“Regret the divorce?” Margaret asked Andrew once, guilt niggling at her.
“Not a bit. If helping my brother is a crime to her, we were never right for each other.”
He didnt seem to dwell on it. Between work and raising Lilynow a sensible girl who didnt need constant watchinghe was busy.
As for Steven? The surgery went well. He took his second chance seriouslystuck to the diet, even started walking with Sarah. Their family was smaller now, but stronger for it.
