“Why did you come over to our apartment when we were away?” the son asked coolly.
“Do you really think it’s a good idea to give your mother the keys to our apartment?” asked Susan suspiciously, looking at her husband, John.
“You never know what might happen. We will be out of town for two weeks, after all,” John reminded his wife.
“Alright,” Susan sighed regretfully, not entirely enthusiastic about the idea.
Susan had her reasons to worry. She planned to leave five hundred pounds in the apartment, which she had been saving to buy a gift for the CEO whose birthday was in a month.
She shared her concerns with John, whom she’d been married to for a little over a year.
“Don’t worry; no one will take your money,” John chuckled at Susan’s worries.
Three days later, the couple left for their vacation. Susan tried not to dwell on the money, but an ominous feeling lingered in the back of her mind.
A couple of times during their holiday, John called his mother to check if everything was alright in their apartment.
“I haven’t been there,” Mary admitted apologetically. “We agreed I’d only go if the neighbors complained.”
“Right,” John said, relaxing, and tried to reassure his wife, who was quite jittery about the situation.
Two weeks later, they returned home, and Susan immediately dashed to the bedroom to check if the five hundred pounds were still there.
But as soon as she stepped into the room, she froze: a porcelain figurine lay shattered on the floor.
Sensing something was wrong, Susan checked where she’d left the money for the gift and was stunned to find it gone.
“John! John!” Susan shrieked. “The money’s gone, and the figurine is broken! Who’s been in our house?”
“I asked Mom, and she said she didn’t come by,” John replied, bewildered.
“Don’t be ridiculous! Nobody else had the keys to our apartment!” Feeling utterly deflated, Susan sat on the bed and began to cry. “How am I going to find another five hundred pounds?”
“Are you sure it’s not there? Maybe you moved it and forgot?” John asked hopefully, though realizing his mother was the only suspect.
He double-checked the spot with his wife, but the money was nowhere to be found, as if it had vanished.
“Mom wouldn’t have taken it. She’s no thief,” John shook his head.
“Then she gave them to someone!” Susan burst into tears.
To get to the bottom of things, John suggested they visit his mother to ask directly about the keys.
“Are you accusing me of theft?” Mary, taken aback by the accusation, exclaimed. “I told you I never went there…”
“Mom, we’re not accusing you, but could you have given the keys to someone?” John proposed.
Mary paused for a moment, then firmly stated that no one else had access.
“Oh, wait, I did go. Just once,” Mary admitted unexpectedly.
“Why?” the couple asked in unison, exchanging glances.
“I was with Sarah from shopping, and she needed to use the bathroom, so we stopped by,” Mary said with a silly grin.
“With your niece?” Susan remembered the unruly fifteen-year-old who respected neither her mother nor her grandmother.
“Yes, we were buying her a jacket and popped in. We didn’t stay long,” Mary rushed to clarify.
“Did you leave Sarah alone?” Susan inquired calmly.
“Well, I was in the bathroom and on the phone for about ten minutes,” Mary admitted hesitantly. “No, come on! She wouldn’t do that! She’s spoiled, but she’s not a thief! How dare you accuse the poor girl of this! You probably squandered the money and now want to blame a child!”
“Are you kidding? Then explain who was in our bedroom, broke the figurine, and took five hundred pounds?” Susan demanded angrily. “You know what?! If the money isn’t back by tomorrow, I’m going to the police. Let them dust for fingerprints, and we’ll find out who took my money!”
Having said her piece, she stormed out, confident her ultimatum would alarm her mother-in-law.
The following morning, Mary showed up at the couple’s apartment bright and early.
With a displeased expression, she walked in without greeting them and sat down on the sofa with her hands folded in her lap.
“I hope you haven’t gone to the police?” she asked Susan sternly.
“Not yet, but it’s on my to-do list,” Susan fibbed, wanting to make an impact on her mother-in-law.
Mary quickly reached into her handbag and pulled out an envelope.
“Here are your five hundred pounds! Count them if you don’t trust me,” Mary said with a frown, handing over the money.
Susan counted each bill carefully and sighed with relief.
“It’s all here! Thank goodness, I was worried I’d have to rush to the bank for a loan!”
“Mom, do you care to explain where the money came from?” John asked coolly.
Mary dropped her gaze guiltily and frowned.
“Sarah took it. I don’t know when she managed it. At first, she denied it, but when I mentioned the police, she confessed. Just, please, don’t go,” Mary pleaded, looking at her daughter-in-law with hope.
“I won’t go, but we’re never leaving the keys with you again,” Susan sighed.
“You shouldn’t leave such sums at home when you’re going away,” Mary grumbled. “It might not have been her, it could have been a burglar, and you’d be none the wiser.”
Realizing her mother-in-law partly wanted to shift the blame onto them, Susan stared back defiantly.
“Alright, I’ll be off then,” Mary rose from the sofa and headed to the door.
As soon as she left, Susan crossed her arms and, giving John a stern look, said:
“No more keys for any relatives!”
