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with nothing! The house goes to my sister.”
Dad hesitated, but I jumped in. “Did you not
talk to Mom before coming here? She’s
leaving with nothing. She said she doesn’t
care about our ‘filthy money‘.”
Their jaws dropped. “What? Is she crazy?”
Dad called security and gave them the boot.
“If she wants to discuss assets, she can come
talk to me herself.”
I nodded enthusiastically. “Elegant and
detached,” huh? I’d see how long that lasted.
Two days passed, no word from Mom. Dad’s
situation, however, was deteriorating. His
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business debts were piling up. I hated seeing
him stressed, so I suggested, “Dad, let’s sell
the villa.”
Before he could object, I continued, “It’s in a
great location. It’ll sell for a lot. We can pay
off the debts and still have some left. You can
rebuild.”
His eyes reddened. He wiped his face and ruffled my hair. “I thought you’d side with your mother… Don’t worry. I’ll take care of
you, no matter what.”
I smiled. Last time, with Mom, I had material
comfort, but no love, only exploitation. Now,
things were tough, but I felt secure.
“Dad, sell it fast. Before they try something.”
<
He contacted a realtor. The villa was listed,
and with its prime location, we had an
interested buyer immediately. It could fetch
over $3 million. The buyer scheduled a
viewing that day. On a whim, I tagged along. I
didn’t expect to run into my uncle and his
family at the gate.
6
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The buyer loved the house and was ready to
sign. Just as he was about to hand Dad a
check, my uncle and aunt stormed out. He
ripped up the check. We were stunned.
“John, what are you doing?!” Dad yelled,
moving towards him.
Uncle pulled his wife forward as a shield. “Try
it! My wife’s pregnant! If anything happens to
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her, I’ll sue you for everything!”
Dad backed off. The buyer was bewildered,
then furious. “You knew there were issues
with this property! You wasted my time!
Unbelievable!” He stormed off, ignoring Dad’s
apologies.
Uncle yelled after him, “That’s right! There
are issues! This isn’t his house! I own it! Tell
your friends not to bother coming around!”
Dad clenched his fists. Fearing he’d lose
control, I grabbed his arm. “Dad, call Mom.”
She created this mess; she could fix it.
Uncle and Aunt camped out by the gate. “No
one’s getting past us!”
<
Dad, fuming, called Mom. “Get them out of
here! If you sabotage this sale, I’m calling the
police.”
Mom’s voice dripped with contempt. “Fine, I’ll
be there. My family is nothing like you.”
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Mom sauntered in half an hour later, giving us
a withering look, Since I hadn’t chosen her, I
was apparently dead to her too.
“Lisa! Finally! Tell your ex–husband this
house is ours. You can’t just take back a
gift!” my uncle whined.
Mom’s face tightened, but she maintained her
air of aloof superiority, gazing at the villa with
an almost ethereal detachment. Too bad real
life demanded money. And Uncle definitely
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wasn’t detached from that.
“Have some dignity, John. It’s just a house.
Let it go.”
Uncle and Aunt gaped. He dragged Mom
aside. “Are you insane? This villa is worth a
fortune! I could never afford this! We have a
chance to keep it! Are you seriously going to
give it back?”
Dad and I watched the show, arms crossed.
Dad had endured years of this. Last time,
Mom’s rhetoric had trapped me. Standing up
for myself was “shallow” and “materialistic.” I
wondered what she’d call her brother now.
Aware of our stares, Mom flushed. She
pushed Uncle away. “Material possessions
are fleeting. True happiness comes from
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within.”
Aunt exploded, hands on her hips, but Uncle
went ballistic.
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He jabbed a finger at Mom. “Happiness
comes from within? I’m happy when I have
money! You’re decked out in designer labels,
lecturing me about material possessions?
Lisa, we’re family! Drop the act! I’m keeping
this house!”
Mom, stunned, could barely react. She’d been
so used to their fawning when she had Dad’s money, she’d actually believed their affection
was genuine.
“John, I’m your sister! How can you talk to me
<
“I’d call you ‘Mom‘ if you had money! Now
shut up!”
Mom froze, disbelieving. Dad and I watched.
Catching our eyes, she crumbled.
“Fine. Fine.” She dabbed at her eyes, chin
held high. “I suppose I’m destined to be alone.
Deal with this yourselves. I don’t care.” She
turned to leave.
“Wait,” Dad said.
My heart skipped a beat. Was he trying to
reconcile?
“I’m not staying with someone so selfish. Don’t even think about it,” Mom snapped.
Dad’s lips thinned. “I just wanted to remind
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you about our appointment at the courthouse
tomorrow morning.”
Mom’s composure cracked. She stammered,
“Fine, fine, fine.” Then, regaining her icy
demeanor, “Typical heartless businessman.
See you tomorrow.”
Classic Mom. Always the victim, always
assigning blame.
