My Daughter-in-Law Is Trying to Teach Me Lessons? In My Own House That I Paid For? I Told My Son.

I did my hair; I put on a little makeup. I wanted to look dignified, strong, not like a victim.

Before leaving, I put copies of some documents in my purse, just in case. Just in case I needed to show Lucas something.

Just in case I needed to defend myself. At 6:45 I left my house.

Benjamin was already waiting for me on the corner in a gray car, discreet. I approached his window.

“Ready?”

“As ready as I can be.”

“Remember, I am going to be right here outside. If something goes wrong, if you feel you are in danger, call me or run out, whatever it takes. But do not stay there if things get ugly.”

“Understood.”

“And Patricia, one more thing.”

“Yes?”

“Be strong, but be smart. Do not reveal everything you know. Observe first. Listen. Let them talk. People always give themselves away when they talk too much.”

I nodded; he was right. I could not arrive there and throw all the cards on the table.

I had to play this intelligently. I arrived at Lucas’s apartment at 7:00 sharp.

It was a small apartment, nothing luxurious, nothing compared to my house. That made me think: if Lucas had so little, why had Victoria married him?

The answer was obvious. She did not marry him; she married the possibility of keeping my house.

I rang the doorbell. I heard footsteps inside.

The door opened; it was Lucas. He was smiling, but the smile did not reach his eyes.

“Mom, thanks for coming.”

“I am here.”

I entered the apartment. It smelled of home-cooked food.

The table was set. Everything looked very arranged, very planned.

Victoria came out of the kitchen. She was wearing an apron.

She was also smiling; it was also fake.

“Patricia, good thing you came. I hope you are hungry. I made your favorite dish.”

My favorite dish? You do not even know what my favorite dish is, I said it in my mind, not out loud.

Not yet. I still had to play the game.

“Thank you, Victoria.”

We sat down, the three of us, at the table. Lucas poured wine.

Victoria brought the food: chicken with rice, salad, bread. Everything looked good, but I was not hungry.

My stomach was in knots. We ate in silence for a few minutes, uncomfortable.

No one knew how to start the conversation. Finally, Lucas spoke.

“Mom, we asked you to come because we want to apologize. What happened the other time was very wrong. Victoria and I have talked about it and we want to start over.”

I looked at Victoria. She had her head down.

She was playing with the food on her plate.

“Is that true, Victoria? Do you want to apologize?”

She looked up; her eyes were cold, but her voice was sweet.

“Yes, Patricia. I crossed the line. I should not have spoken to you like that. I was worried about you, about your well-being, but I understand you took it wrong. I am sorry.”

Fake. It was all fake.

I could see it in her face; I could feel it in the air.

“Worried about me? Is that why you said I did not know how to take care of my house? Is that why you wanted to hit me?”

The atmosphere became tense. Lucas shifted uncomfortably in his chair.

Victoria stopped smiling.

“I was not going to hit you, Patricia. I was just frustrated.”

“You raised your purse at me, Victoria. I was there. I saw it.”

“It was an impulse, a moment of madness, but I would not have done it. I would never hurt you.”

Liar. I knew she was a liar.

I knew what she had done before. I knew what she was capable of.

“That is fine,”

I said finally.

“I accept your apology.”

Lucas released the air he was holding. Victoria smiled again.

They thought they had won, that they had convinced me, that I was foolish enough to believe them. But I knew how to act, too.

We continued eating. The conversation became lighter.

Lucas told me about his work. Victoria talked about some friends.

I nodded, I smiled, I pretended everything was fine. After dinner, while Lucas was clearing the dishes, Victoria approached me in the living room.

“Patricia, there is something else we wanted to talk to you about.”

Here it comes, I thought. Here comes what they really wanted.

Lucas came back from the kitchen. He sat next to Victoria.

Both of them looked at me. There was something on their faces, something that put me on alert.

“Mom, we have been thinking. Living alone is not good for you, especially after Dad’s death. You need company, you need support.”

“I see. And what do you propose?”

Victoria took Lucas’s hand. They looked at each other, then they looked at me.

“We want to move in with you,”

Said Victoria.

“To your house, so we can take care of you, so you are not alone there.”

There it was, the real plan. They wanted to get into my house.

They wanted access. They wanted to start the process of removing me from my own life.

I stayed quiet, counting to 10 in my mind, controlling myself.

“I do not know if that is a good idea,”

I said finally.

“Why not? It is a big house, it has space, and that way we would all be together, like a family.”

Lucas nodded.

“Think about it, Mom. You would not have to be alone. I would be there, Victoria would be there. It would be like before.”

Like before? Before what?

Before you abandoned me? Before you forgot me?

Before you tried to take everything from me?

“I need to think about it,”

I said.

“It is a big decision.”

Victoria tensed up. She did not like my answer.

“What is there to think about, Patricia? We are family. Families live together.”

“Not all families, Victoria, and not in all circumstances.”

The silence became heavy. Lucas looked at Victoria.

Victoria looked at me. There was rage in her eyes, rage she was trying to hide.

“All right,”

She said finally.