For twenty years, I endured my mother-in-laws crueltybut her final words left me horrified.
*”You shouldnt have shouted at her like that, Emily. Shes old now,”* James set his teacup down, guilt flickering in his eyes.
*”Old?”* Emily whirled from the window. *”Was she old when she made my life miserable? Twenty years, James! Twenty years Ive put up with her!”*
*”But shes ill now”*
*”Ill!”* She let out a bitter laugh. *”Only when it suits her. When shes snapping at Mrs. Wilkins next door or fraying my nerves, shes suddenly the picture of health.”*
James sipped his tea in silence, weary of the endless battles between his wife and mother. The same script every daysharp words, slammed doors, the sting of resentment hanging in the air.
*”What did she say this time?”* he asked, though he knew better.
Emily shut her eyes, as if bracing herself.
*”That Im a terrible housewife. That my soup tastes like dishwater, the house is filthy, the children spoiled. And then”* Her voice cracked. *”Then she said I ought to learn from Sarah, your brothers wife. Now theres a woman who knows her way around a kitchen.”*
*”Mum just likes to be in control.”*
*”Control?”* Emilys voice rose to a shout. *”And what about me? Am I not in control? Do I not cook, clean, and work shifts at the supermarket? Do I not listen every day to how worthless I am?”*
James stood, reaching for herbut she stepped back.
*”Do you know what she left me with today?”* Emily wiped her sleeve across her eyes. *”That when youre gone, Ill still be alone. Because no one would ever want someone like me.”*
James froze, arms still outstretched.
*”She didnt”*
*”She did. Word for word. Then slammed the door so hard the plaster shook.”*
Footsteps padded down the hall. The kitchen door creaked open, and ten-year-old Lily peeked in.
*”Mum is Gran gone? She didnt say goodbye.”* The girl wrapped her arms around Emilys waist.
*”Shes gone, love. Back to her flat.”* Emily smoothed her daughters hair.
*”Why were you shouting again? It scares me.”*
Emily knelt, meeting Lilys gaze. *”Im sorry, sweetheart. Grown-ups forget how to talk nicely sometimes. But it doesnt mean we dont love each other.”*
*”Gran doesnt love you,”* Lily whispered. *”Shes always cross with you. And it makes me sad.”*
Emily pulled her close, tears spilling anew.
*”Go finish your homework, darling. Dad and I need to talk.”*
When Lily left, James sat beside her. *”Em Ill speak to Mum. Make her understand”*
*”Understand what?”* Emily sighed. *”Youve been saying that for twenty years. Nothing changes.”*
*”Then what do we do?”*
She stared at her handshands that scrubbed dishes, folded laundry, worked till her fingers ached. Hands her mother-in-law still deemed *”useless.”*
*”Remember how we met?”* she asked suddenly.
James blinked. *”Of course. At the community dance. You wore that blue dress.”*
*”Sky blue,”* she corrected softly. *”I thought you were the handsomest man alive. And your mother hated me from the first hello.”*
*”She was just worried Id marry”*
*”Stop making excuses!”* Emilys voice cracked. *”She hated me because my dad was a mechanic, not some city banker. Because we lived in a council flat while you had a house with a garden.”*
*”That was decades ago”*
*”Was it? Remember our wedding? She scowled through the entire reception. And when we moved in, her first words were, My house, my rules.”*
Emily stood, filling the kettle.
*”Twenty years, James. Twenty years cooking her favorites, cleaning to her standards, raising the kids by her book. And what do I get?”*
*”Mum appreciates you”*
*”Appreciates?”* She laughed bitterly. *”She tolerates me. Theres a difference.”*
The kettle whistled. Emily poured the tea, hands trembling.
*”You know what I dream of?”* she murmured. *”Waking up without dreading her critique of my breakfast. Coming home from work without fearing shes found dust on the mantel. Buying the kids sweets without hearing Im rotting their teeth.”*
*”Em”*
*”No, let me finish. I dream of our own place. Where no one picks apart my every step. Where the children dont hear us screaming.”*
James took her hand. *”But Mums on her own. Wholl look after her?”*
*”Who looks after me?”* Emilys voice broke. *”When I had pneumonia, she never brought me so much as a cuppa. Yet demanded I make her lunch because my soups too bland.”*
*”That was years back”*
*”And when I had my appendix out. And when I sprained my wrist. Every time, James! Every time, its my fault for failing her.”*
A knock at the door. James returned with Auntie Margaret from down the road.
*”Hello, love!”* The older woman sat, waving off tea. *”Heard Doris stormed off earlier. Thought Id check in.”*
*”Stormed off,”* Emily echoed flatly.
*”Dont take it to heart, dear. Shes poorly, set in her ways. At her age, the vinegar comes out.”*
*”Auntie Margaret do you know what she told me today?”*
She repeated the words. The older woman shook her head.
*”Oh, Em. Doris only lashes out cause shes scared. She knows shed be lost without you.”*
*”Knows?”* Emily scoffed. *”If she knows, why does she treat me like dirt?”*
*”Shes proud, thats all. How many times has she bragged to me about you? My James married a gem, she says. Raises the kids proper, keeps the house shining.”*
Emily stared. *”She brags?”*
*”Like clockwork! Says youre the best thing that ever happened to him. Just too stubborn to say it to your face.”*
*”Then why the constant nitpicking?”*
Auntie Margaret sighed, glancing between them.
*”Youre clever, love. Doris ruled this house since her Frank passed. Then you cameyoung, pretty, James doting on you. She felt replaced.”*
*”I never took her son”*
*”Not his presence. His heart. And that cuts deeper.”*
Emily fell silent. The truth sat heavy in her chest, offering no comfort.
*”So I just endure?”*
*”Try talking soft. No shouting, no spite. Tell her you value hereven if its a fib.”*
*”I have tried. A hundred times.”*
Auntie Margaret stood to leave. *”Well, its your choice. But rememberbreaking a familys easier than mending one.”*
After she left, the house settled into quiet. Outside, streetlamps flickered on; a dog barked in the distance.
*”James what if we rented our own place?”* Emily whispered.
*”We cant afford”*
*”Ill take extra shifts. The corner shop needs weekend staff.”*
*”And Mum?”*
*”She keeps this house. Its hers. Well find something small somewhere thats ours.”*
A long silence. Then
*”Maybe its time.”*
*”Maybe?”* Emily turned to him. *”James, I cant do this anymore. Im forty years old and I still feel like a scolded child in my own home.”*
*”Alright,”* he murmured. *”Well start looking.”*
She hugged him, burying her face in his shoulder. For the first time in years, she glimpsed a life beyond these walls.
*”What if she forbids it?”*
*”She forbids plenty. But this is our choice.”*
The next evening, Emily returned to find Doris at the stove, stirring a pot with rigid precision.
*”Evening,”* Emily said.
*”Evening,”* Doris muttered. *”Had to make dinner myself. Cupboards were bare.”*
Emily bit back a retort. Instead
*”Smells lovely.
