One evening, I was just getting ready to cook dinner when my son Hassan Payne and his family came by for a visit.
As soon as they walked in, Hassan's wife, Riley Hayden, pulled out a glittering gold necklace and put it around my neck.
Smiling brightly, she complimented me on my long, slender, and fair neck while dramatically urging my grandson, Wade Payne, to greet and say happy birthday to me.
That was when I realized it was my birthday today.
But this was not typical of Riley. In the past, she would never come by without a reason.
Yet here she was today, not only visiting but also bearing gifts.
I figured it was so strange.
After they had a meal, they showed no signs of leaving.
Riley kept encouraging my grandson to put on a little show for me.
Watching Wade's adorable and silly antics had me laughing out loud.
Just as I was getting lost in the joy of the moment, Riley finally revealed her true intentions.
She suggested that I transfer the house and compensation money from the recent demolition to Hassan's name.
After all, my old house had just been demolished.
Because it had a large courtyard, I had been compensated with several new apartments and hundreds of thousands of dollars.
I was not surprised at all.
For years, Riley and I had a distant relationship; she rarely came by.
Her actions today had a motive.
I had thought about how to divide the property.
But that was for me to bring up, not her.
While playing with my grandson, I said lightly, "Let's talk about it in a few years."
Then, I tried to change the subject.
Riley immediately objected.
She said that while I was still healthy, we should sort everything out now, to avoid future conflicts between my son and daughter if something happened to me.
I chuckled coldly and said nothing. So, she remembered that Hassan had a sister, huh?
But her idea of "sorting everything out" was really just her way of saying she wanted all the assets for themselves.
How could I not understand her intentions?
I saw through it, but I chose not to call it out.
I said, "I have two children. When the time comes, they will each get half. What is there to figure out?"
Riley looked at me in shock, as if she had not expected me to divide my assets this way.
She seemed to be reminding me, "Gracie is a daughter."
I replied, "So what? She's also my child. I love both my children equally."
Riley added, "But Hassan is your eldest son. How could you bear to give his inheritance to an outsider?"
I responded coldly, "I am still alive. It's my property!"
Riley's eyes darted around, and then she smiled and put her arm around my shoulders.
"Kenya, you love your grandson the most. What's yours is Hassan's anyway, and eventually, it will all belong to your grandson."
Looking at Hassan, who remained silent, his head lowered while smoking, I felt my heart turn cold.
His silence said it all. He was thinking the same thing. Riley was just acting as his spokesperson.
Anger surged through me. My assets were not for anyone else to divide.
I would decide how to distribute them.
Their appetite for everything was just too much.
I stated that the assets would remain with me for now.
When I passed away, each of my children would receive half. I would ensure fairness.
There was a reason for my decision.
I loved both of my children. I had my pension, so they didn't need to spend money on me.
If I fell ill, they could take turns looking after me if they were available. If not, I would hire a caregiver.
So, I believed that dividing everything equally was fair.
Riley's expression suddenly changed, and her tone became impatient.
"Hassan is your only son. You cannot divide the house and money with anyone else."
Finally, Hassan stepped in and told her to stop talking.
Chapter 2 Introducing a Man for MeRiley flew into a rage. "I'm only doing this for your good. A man like you has no skills, yet you can fight for what's rightfully yours. If you don't push for it now, you'll end up with nothing!"
She then turned her sharp gaze to me. "Kenya, let me make this clear. You have a son and a grandson. If you decide to give away your property to Gracie, don't blame us for not recognizing you as part of the family anymore."
Before she could finish her tirade, I threw the whole family out the door.
As if I'd be scared of not being called Mom? I just didn't even care.
Riley, however, was not ready to give up.
A few days later, she came by again. This time, she did not mention anything about the house.
As soon as she entered, she busied herself around the house. I sat on the couch, watching her flit around, feeling more awkward by the minute.
Once she finished, she sat beside me and started chatting.
She expressed sympathy for how hard I had worked all these years, how much I had overexerted myself, and how it pained her to see me like this.
All I could do was offer half-hearted responses.
Then, she suddenly changed the subject and asked if, over the years, I had found an elderly gentleman I liked.
Her words sent a rush of blood straight to my head, but I held my temper in check.
I replied, "I'm old now, and I don't have the heart for that anymore."
Riley teased me, saying I had high standards and that the men her mother had introduced to me did not stand a chance.
"Well, you're too good for just anyone, Kenya. You've got to be choosy to find someone who's truly suitable."
She prattled on, saying that as my family members, they completely supported and understood me.
She said it would be nice to have someone to grow old with, someone to care for each other in later years.
My face grew darker, but she seemed oblivious.
Finally, Riley got to her real point.
She said that if I were to remarry, they would fully support it. However, before that, I should transfer my assets to the younger generation so that the property would not become shared marital property after the marriage, benefiting some outsiders.
Well, so she had come to give me a lesson.
I figured it was better to make my stance clear today, to avoid any more of their future tricks.
I told her that I was old and had no interest in such things.
This matter was off the table, and I warned her that bringing it up again would be an act of disrespect.
Then, I kicked her out before she could say anything else.
After Riley left, I immediately called Hassan and scolded him harshly. I demanded to know whether it was his idea or his wife's to suggest that I get remarried and transfer all my assets to them.
Hassan explained that Riley was just looking out for me and told me not to hold a grudge against her. As for the property, although it was unpleasant to talk about, Riley's words made sense. And regarding whether or not I wanted to find a partner, that was entirely up to me. No one would force me.
I was so furious that I hung up the phone on him right away.
Riley's scheming left me in a foul mood for several days. I wanted to go out with my best friend, have some fun, and clear my head.
My husband had passed away many years ago due to illness.
For years, I had been both mother and father, raising the two kids on my own. I had worked hard to see them establish their own families and careers.
For over a decade, I had been so busy that I never had the chance to go out and see the world.
Now that I was retired, I finally had a chance to relax, but I never expected to be caught up in such frustrating matters.
When Hassan wanted to marry Riley back then, I was initially against it.
It wasn't that I disliked Riley; it was her complicated family background that concerned me.
Her parents were notorious troublemakers in the local area, and her brother had been a delinquent since childhood, running with a bad crowd and achieving nothing in life.
And didn't even get me started on Riley's mother. Just thinking about her made my blood boil.
In the past couple of years, who knew what had gotten into her? She had been making all sorts of suggestions, subtly and openly, about introducing me to potential couples.
Every time, I refused firmly, leaving no room for negotiation.
Seeing my unyielding stance, she had no choice but to drop the subject.
The land from the demolition had been left to me by my father.
When I was younger and just starting to work, I didn't have much money, so I built a small house on the land and fenced in the yard.
A few years later, after saving up some money, my husband and I bought a commercial apartment and moved out.
The property sat abandoned for many years, and back then, I never thought it would turn out to be so valuable.
Chapter 3 At Gracie's HouseThe day before I was supposed to leave for my trip, I got a call from my daughter Gracie Payne.
On the phone, she told me she was pregnant.
This news brought a bit of sunshine to my otherwise gloomy mood.
But I also knew right away that my travel plans were ruined.
Gracie said she could not stomach her mother-in-law's cooking. In the early stages of her pregnancy, she had been dealing with constant nausea and cravings. She insisted I come over to take care of her for a while.
So, I had to cancel my plans with my best friend, pack my things, and head over to Gracie's place to take care of her.
By the time I got to her house, I felt much better in my mood.
My health was still relatively good, and all I had to do at her place was some cooking and grocery shopping.
I could manage that just fine.
After meals, I would accompany her on walks, and we would chat about life. Gradually, my spirits lifted.
Deep down, I felt grateful that Gracie was still so considerate.
But after a while, things started to feel a bit off.
Paying for groceries and fruit was fine. I loved Gracie, and it was my choice to spoil her.
However, her husband kept coming to me every few days to borrow a bit of "small change", saying that Gracie kept a tight grip on their money. That started to raise some questions in my mind.
One day, he approached me again, explaining that his car had accidentally scraped someone else's. Since he wanted to settle it privately, he needed some money to pay for the damages. He promised to return the money as soon as he got his next paycheck.
I hesitated for a moment, but then I figured that everyone ran into trouble sometimes, so without a second thought, I withdrew a few thousand dollars and handed it to him.
That evening, during our walk, I told Gracie not to be so tight with money. After all, a man had his pride, and it was hard for him to feel confident if his pockets were empty.
Gracie just smiled, seemingly unbothered.
I kept going, but eventually, she grew impatient and snapped back.
"What's wrong with spending a little money on your son-in-law? Is it only okay for my brother to get money but not for us?"
Her words left me speechless for a good while.
So, my children both thought I was secretly funneling money to the other's family behind their backs.
After that, Gracie started hinting that I should just give her my bank card to manage, so her cunning sister-in-law would not get any bright ideas.
I refused firmly, saying I would be careful about it.
Gracie promised she would not touch a cent of my money, only keep it safe for me. I could access it anytime I wanted.
Still, I did not agree.
Her tone grew sharp. "What do you need all that money for at your age? If you keep it with me, at least it'll be secure.
"Besides, I know how to invest! By the time I'm done, you'll have more money, not less."
I held my ground. I told her that I would spend my own money, and neither my son nor daughter would get a penny from me.
I also expressed my strong opposition to her talk of investing. I told her I was just grateful to hold onto my principal and had no interest in chasing dreams of making more.
Not giving up, she started telling me stories of elderly people living alone who got scammed out of their savings by health supplement salespeople or tricked by phone scammers.
But I remained resolute.
Seeing I would not budge, Gracie seemed a bit saddened.
She sighed and said, "I know. You just want to leave all your money for your precious grandson, right? I get it. I'm just the daughter who married out."
I swore to her that this was not the case.
She gave me a small, bitter smile, looking helpless.
After a few moments of silence, she brought up the issue of the demolition property again. I made it clear to her, as I had with her brother, that the property would be split evenly between my two children.
She pouted, looking like she did not believe me.
"Mom, it's easy for you to say that now. But you won't even let us touch a little of your money without making a fuss. Do you think you'll be able to give me a fair share of your assets when the time comes? Empty words mean nothing if you haven't written a will."
Chapter 4 Gracie's DoubtsI told her that I would write a will, but the time had not come yet.
Gracie smiled and said, "Mom, just make sure you are fair when the time comes. We are both your children, so I should have my share of your things. If you leave everything to my brother, I will take it to court if I have to, just to get what is rightfully mine."
She went on to say that in today's world, I couldn't trust anyone; only what you held in your own hands was truly reliable.
I could only sigh, left speechless.
I thought that my children had grown up and developed their own opinions, but all I felt was a deep sadness.
Here I was, taking care of her out of love, only to receive such cold remarks. I felt somewhat hurt.
Over the past few days, I have been buying groceries and household items, always using my own money.
Buying small groceries was one thing, but my son-in-law had a lot of friends, and it seemed like every few days there was a small get-together, and every few weeks a larger one. Every time, I ended up hauling home bags of food, and just the cost of the good wine alone was significant.
One day, my son-in-law announced that he was hosting another dinner.
As usual, he reminded me to buy some more expensive dishes and not to worry about saving money.
He handed me a carefully prepared menu.
I was surprised by it. There was chicken, duck, fish, seafood, and so on. It looked like it would cost well over a thousand dollars.
"Kenya, today I'm hosting my superiors, so we can't cut corners. Don't worry about the money; you cover it for now, and I'll repay you later."
I grabbed my bag and headed out the door.
Every time he said he would repay me, it never seemed to happen.
Once the groceries were home, I rested for a moment before starting to prepare dinner.
By the time everything was ready, a group of people came, finishing the lavish spread I had laid out.
I was so tired that I barely ate a couple of bites before losing my appetite.
When everyone had finally left, I looked around at the mess of leftovers, my son-in-law slumped drunk on the couch.
I knew I was in for a long night of cleaning up.
Gracie gave me an apologetic look. "Mom, I'm sorry you had to go through all this trouble. But, Mason is about to get a promotion. You've really played a big role in that."
What a lovely daughter. She sure had no problem working her mother to the bone.
I began clearing the table quietly, washing dishes, and mopping the floor.
It was late into the night by the time I could finally rest.
The next morning, I got up early, but Mason had already left for work.
As for the promised money, I could never get it.
Not that I ever took his promises seriously.
I decided it was time to go home. I had my own life to live, after all.
Gracie objected, and Mason also strongly urged me to stay.
But I was firm. I did not want to keep playing the fool.
Gracie then said that if I insisted on leaving, she would have to hire a nanny.
I expressed strong support for that.
She hesitated and then mentioned that the cost of hiring the nanny might require some financial help from me.
I did not respond. I just sighed.
I could not understand how the little girl I had once adored had turned into the person she was today.
I looked at her calmly and said, "I could pay for that. But Gracie, do you really think that money should come from me?"
She pouted and acted spoiled.
"Of course! If you do not want to put in the effort, then you can just pay instead."
It was June, yet I felt a chill run through my entire body.
This was the daughter I had raised.
Seeing that I was silent, she went on, "Mom, you don't even need money right now. You get a lot in retirement funds. What's wrong with giving some to your daughter?"
I replied, "It seems you're taking it for granted."
Her face immediately darkened.
"Mom, do you not love me anymore? Or do you just want to save your money for my brother? After all, he is the true heir of the Payne family, right?"