Evelyn still remembered her conversation with that dreadful woman who had become Liams wife. She had tried her best to talk her beloved son out of the marriage, but it hadnt workedat least not at first. And honestly, that provincial nobody had far too much nerve.
“Listen, Evelyn. Stop pretending to be the wise mother. I can see you cant stand me, and its because I see right through you. I wont bend to your will. Why on earth do you barge into our flat every evening without asking? Were not living off your money,” the brazen girl had said to Liams mother.
“Excuse me? You dare lecture me? Wait till youve lived as long as I have” Evelyns polite facade crumbled, revealing the petty, small-minded woman beneath. Her only goal in life was comfortsweet treats, peace and quietand shed crush anyone who got in her way. Everyone was on their own in her world.
“Evelyn, Liam and I love each other. And Ive noticed your little chats dont do him any good. First, you drove his father out and talked him into signing his share of the flat over to younow you wont even let your son live his life? If you dont love him, at least let someone else try,” said the impossibly cheeky Sophie.
“Oh, so thats your tune now? Well, let me tell you something, you little upstart! Who do you think you are? What backwater town did you crawl out of? Youre nothing. Lose your job tomorrow, and youd be out on the street. Some actress you are. And you have the nerve to tell me what to do?” Evelyn exploded.
“Oh, so thats how you measure decency and dignity? If you swindle a flat and kick everyone out, youre a proper lady, but if I earn my keep, thats a crime? Not all of us had the luck to latch onto a husband with property and bleed him dry! And for your informationI know you werent born in London either.” Sophie had struck Evelyns sorest spot. It was trueshed come from a tiny village years ago, with no education, no prospects.
“You will never be with my son! A mother is sacred! Get out!” Evelyn had nothing left to say, so she played her trump cardthe one no one could argue with.
Sophie just scoffed and walked away. The fight changed nothing. She and Liam married anyway.
But Evelyn didnt give up. When Sophie had their baby, she set about turning Liam against his wife. Eventually, they divorced. Their son, Alfie, was only four.
Still, Evelyn couldnt shake the fear that Liam might go crawling back to that shameless little actress. She knew he still saw Sophie sometimeseven paid child support.
What she didnt know was that Liam and Sophie had never actually split. They still lived together, raising Alfie, while Evelyn believed her son was working in another city.
The brilliant plan wasnt just because of Evelyn. Years before the marriage, Liam had gotten into serious troubleracked up debts. Sophie had warned him then.
“Liam, dont do this. That bloke Oliver is a shark. Youre a lamb next to him. I knew the second I met himhed chew you up and spit you out.”
“Soph, youre overreacting. Ollys a good mate. Men have to stick together. Thats how we survive.”
“Im telling you, hes using you. You go on about brotherhood, but decency isnt about gender. When will you grow up?”
He ignored her. Oliver made him director of a shell company, emptied the accounts, left Liam with the debt, and vanished.
It wouldve been better to live on a modest salary than drag his family into ruin. So they hatched the plansolve two problems at once. Evelyn was happy theyd divorced. And Sophie and Alfie were safe from Liams creditors.
Officially, Liam lived in company housing, returning to his old job. But every evening, he slipped back to the cosy flat where Sophie and Alfie waited.
He was happy. Still, once a month, he had to visit Evelyn, pretending he was back from a business trip. She never stopped pushing him to remarry, introducing him to “suitable” women.
“Maybe tell your mum about the debts? And us?” Sophie suggested.
“No Itd break her. There has to be another way,” Liam sighed.
“But what? We cant hide forever. Some sort of underground family!”
She couldnt see a way out. She scraped by with odd jobs, while most of Liams wages went to debts. They were practically broke. Sometimes Liam told her to leave himbut Sophie loved him.
“Soph, how long can you keep this up? Youve got nothing but problems. Renting a room on your own wages, feeding him Why? Youre not even married anymore!” Sophies mother, Margaret, was a schoolteacher. Shed take Sophie and Alfie into her tiny flatbut not Liam.
“Mum, you know I love him. We have a son. I cant abandon him!”
Margaret had raised Sophie alone. She worried endlessly. She thought an ultimatum might make her daughter leave that troublesome man. But no such luck. So she made a plan.
“Evelyn We need to talk.” Margaret had travelled from the countryside just for this.
“Hes in debt? And my son is still with that woman? Lying to me?” Evelyn was furious.
“Yes. And my daughter is scraping her pennies together to feed him, pay rent I had to say something. Sophie forbade it!”
“So hes been lying about working away The little rat!”
“What do we do? Were the elders. We have to fix this.”
“How?”
“Help. Ive got a bit saved For my daughter. And my grandson.” She suggested splitting the costfair for both.
“Are you mad? My sons a grown man. I raised him. Thats enough! No help. After all this, I dont even want to know him!”
Evelyn wouldnt dream of lifting a finger.
“Well then move in with me. Its cramped, but well manage.” After Evelyns refusal, Margaret made peace with Liamfor Sophies sake.
“I dont mind” Sophie sighed.
“What choice do we have? Sorry, Margaret Mum and I behaved terribly at the wedding.”
Liam remembered sneering at Sophies country relativeshow they didnt use knives and forks properly. Now he knew none of that mattered.
“I havent needed you in years But our daughter needs help.” Margaret called her ex-husband.
“Meg, of course Ill help. Sophies my only child. What do you need?” asked George.
“Theyve got nowhere to live. And money would help.”
She knew George was doing well in construction. Still, she expected refusalhed always been tight-fisted.
“How much?”
“As much as you can.” She named the debt.
“Fine. But one condition”
“Reasonable, I hope?”
“One dinner. Just us.”
George laughed.
Years later, when Alfie turned eighteen, the family gatheredcomplete again. Margaret and George held hands. Love had returned after long courtship. Liam and Sophie had remarriedbut only after Margaret insisted Sophie get the flat George bought her first. Liam had straightened out, worked a steady job.
“Everyone here?” said Alfie.
Then the doorbell rang. Alfie answeredand there stood Evelyn.
“You invited her? Alfie, we talked about this!” Sophie scolded.
“Mum, I felt sorry for her! She kept calling, saying how lonely she was!”
“Took you long enough to apologise,” Margaret said to Evelyn.
“Come on, Meg. If not for her, we wouldnt be together. Nobodys perfect,” George said.
“Mum, why the act?” Liam frowned.
“I just came to say sorry” Evelyn looked sheepish.
Shed waited years for them to beg. When no one came, the loneliness grew unbearable.
“I thought youd grovel. But Im not all bad. Forgive me.”
Silence. Then someone poured her tea, passed the snacks.
No one in that family ever learned proper table manners. But they had something bettergenerosity, happiness. And forgiveness.
