Three years later, she regretted it bitterly
Helen shouted at her daughter-in-law: Take your child and leave. That boy isnt ours. And David trusted you so much! All Emily could do was hold her baby close and cry. All throughout Emilys pregnancy, Helen wouldnt stop saying that her son couldnt possibly be the father. David had always been a proper mummys boy, completely under his mums thumb his whole life. Not even marriage managed to change that, and Emily was utterly helpless; she could only look at her husband with tear-filled eyes.
David, why do you let your mother pick on me for every little thing? What have I ever done wrong?
Just give it some time, love. You know what Mums like, he said. But the straw that broke the camels back was Helens final blow, telling Emily the newborn couldnt possibly be Davids. That was the end of it. Emily packed up everythingthe babys tiny clothes, all their thingsand went back to her parents house. The worst part wasnt even the move, but the fact that David didnt so much as try to stop her as she walked out, broken.
Helen seemed to think shed finally won. She was positively smug. Now, at last, she could return to how things used to beher darling David coming home from work, just the two of them at the table, chatting over tea and dinner, life nice and orderly again.
But life has a way of upending your plans. Not long after, something utterly unexpected happened. David was coming home late from the office one night when some thug jumped him, knocked him senseless, and robbed him. He never properly came round David passed away, just like that. Helen was nearly driven round the bend with grief. Every night, shed wander into his room, touch his shirts, and weep, lost in memories.
Meanwhile, Emily found happiness again. Shed picked herself up, landed a promotion at work, and now had a new partnerthe sort of kind man who made her dinner while her young son filled the flat with laughter and joy. One day, while picking her boy up from nursery, Emily caught sight of Helen. She barely recognised her. There stood a frail, broken womanit was hard to see what was left of the old Helen.
Oh, that’s Davids lad well, yesDavids… Helen muttered, tears streaming down her cheeks. Please, forgive me. I tore your family apart, but destroyed mine too. I am the worst sort of woman…
Emilys heart softened. She felt a pang of pity for her former mother-in-law. Now, every so often, she lets the boys grandmother spend time with her grandsonjust little visits, which seem to bring some light back into Helens eyes.
