At the Engagement Party, My Mother-in-law Embarrassed Me1
There was no money in the card from Sylvia Dalton, my future mother-in-law as a dowry for me.
During the engagement banquet, I discovered that Sylvia actually had plans to take advantage of me.
Even the card she had just given me had no money.
After being exposed, Sylvia became furious.
"So what if there is no money? Are you going to back out of the engagement?
"You're nothing but a filthy woman now. Who else would want you besides my son?"
But when they saw my dowry worth millions of dollars, they were filled with regret.
***
At the engagement banquet, I was so busy and my face was practically stuck in a forced smile as I greeted all the guests.
Suddenly, my Mom Kendra Warner, looking serious, pulled me out of the crowd and into a room where no one else was.
"We can't go through with this engagement today! I cannot just stand by and watch you being schemed."
What was happening? All the guests were already here, and now we were calling off the engagement.
"Mom! What's going on? Did Marco do something to upset you? Yesterday you couldn't stop talking about how much you liked him, and now, all of a sudden, you've changed your mind. Why?"
My mom frowned, handed me her phone, yanked off her corsage, and said angrily.
"Listen for yourself. If, after listening, you still insist on going through with this, then I'll consider myself no longer your mother!"
What could have possibly happened to make my usually calm and composed mother this furious? I wondered.
I hit play on the recording curiously. The sharp, grating voice of Sylvia immediately blared from the phone, scaring me into quickly turning down the volume.
Disgusting remarks filtered through in fragmented sentences.
"She acts so high and mighty. Look at her, acting like she's a queen.
"If it weren't for her wealthy family, who would ever bow and scrape before her?
"Just wait. This is only temporary. Once her parents are dead, won't all the inheritance go to my son?
"When her family's gone, she'll be at our mercy. I'll make her kneel every day to serve me."
I didn't even finish the recording before my blood was boiling.
How could this old woman be so vile and shameless?
She had always presented herself as gentle and kind, but it turned out she was plotting to rob me of everything. And worse, she was cursing my parents to die.