Youre not going to lose anything, are you? Emily asked, exasperated. Where did you put the bracelet? Did you lose it, or pawn it? Why would you even think of doing that? What on earth is happening?
Her mum took it she dropped her eyes.
The room fell silent. Victor plumped down on the sofa, eyebrows raised. The whole thing struck him as absurd.
Took it? he repeated, stunned. What does that even mean?
She first asked if she could try it on, then said it looked good on her, and well, I felt too awkward to take it back. Shes, after all, my motherinlaw
Victor stared at his wife as if seeing her for the first time. He knew Emily was gentlehearted, but he hadnt imagined it would come to this degree.
So she just walked off with your bracelet? Emily, seriously? he demanded. Give me the whole story, step by step.
It was almost ironic. Victor had always wanted his wife to never need anything. Now he could finally afford to let her have a say, but Emily wasnt having it.
Theyd met back in their first year at university through a mutual friend. Hed been a naïve dreamer, born into a modest family, and hed promised himself that his future wife and children would always have the best of everything. He didnt yet know how to make it happen, but he had plenty of enthusiasm.
Emily, on the other hand, had no grand ambitions, just a golden heart. Victor realised hed fallen for her when she showed up one rainy evening, nursing a pot of hot soup while he was down with a cold.
Serge told me you were ill, she whispered, slipping off her shoes. I thought Id pop round.
You shouldnt have, Victor replied, though he didnt send her away. Youll catch it too.
If I do, well both be shivering and drinking tea together, she grinned. Im not a sugarcube, I wont melt away.
In Emily he saw the woman who could keep the fort down, and she did it all without a second thought, simply because she liked him and enjoyed looking after him.
A year later they were sharing a cramped flat in East London, with a humming refrigerator, a leaky tap and the occasional cockroach cameo. They pulled allnighters before exams, took extra shifts wherever they could. Victor lugged boxes in a supermarket; Emily was a waitress on her breaks.
They weathered everything. They discovered that instant noodles werent cheap after all. Emilys heart sank when Victor ended up in hospital with gallstones and they couldnt even afford the prescription. They kept borrowing cash from parents, aunts, friends.
Luckily Victor had a long list of mates who tossed him odd jobs: a builder needed a hand, someone wanted a garden fence painted for a token fee. He tackled almost any gig, while trying not to overburden Emily.
I want to help! she declared, before he headed off to another odd job.
And what will you do? Carry coal? Youll smash yourself and well end up with a bigger medical bill, Victor muttered, but he appreciated her spirit.
When Victor finally landed a junior role at a decent firm through a university contact, the hours were brutallate evenings and weekend calls were the norm. Emily kept the flat ticking over, cooking his favourite dishes, tidying up, looking after their ageing Labrador even when the dog grew too old to fetch.
Itll all pass, shed say when the stress peaked.
And it didnt. When Victor was promoted to head of logistics, the responsibilities multiplied, but he felt the love waiting at home. That was worth any sacrifice.
Soon they moved into their own twobedroom flat in a leafy suburb, bought a secondhand Ford Fiesta, and even a modest garden shed. No more hunting for furniture on online classifieds; they now collected brandnew pieces from highstreet stores. Their holidays shifted from visiting grandparents in the country to short trips to the coast.
Victor stopped gifting chocolates and cakes; instead he bought Emily scarves, handbags, a bit of gold jewelleryno special occasion needed, just a Friday evening or a good mood. Emily blushed at the price tags, but Victor loved pulling her out of the old pennypinching routine.
At first everything was rosy. She adored the new perfume, the designer clothes, the multicooker with all its gadgets. Then, oddly, she started pulling out the old cheap cooker, her oncestylish handbag cracked, and hid her perfume somewhere mysterious. Victor first thought she simply didnt like the scent, then blamed old habits, but something didnt add up. Why keep wearing shoes that blister when there were perfectly fine new ones?
Victor decided to test the waters when his colleague Simon invited them to his birthday dinner. He bought Emily a matching gold bracelet and sapphire earrings, hoping to showcase his affection.
Wear that dress we bought on Friday, and the jewellery I got you last week, Victor said. They go together nicely.
Emily suddenly grew nervous, stammering that the bracelet was broken, that shed given it to a jewellerthough she couldnt recall which one. Then she confessed that her mother had taken the gold. Not just the gold.
So everything I bought you has been pilfered by your mum? Victor pressed his lips together. Emily, seriously? Cant you push back?
She looked away.
I tried. She gets upset, says she raised me, that I owe her everything, that no one else will give me gifts now, so you keep buying for me. It wont cost you anything, she says.
Victor covered his face with his hands, feeling robbednot of trinkets, but of respect.
Alright then, he sighed. From now on Ill only give you things that wont find their way to your mum within a week.
Emily was speechless. Shed been too easy to manipulate. Victor wanted to shake her, to set a line, but knew it would be pointless. He settled for accepting her as she was.
He realised that if he wanted a warm home, the leak wasnt Emilyit was the motherinlaw, Vera.
Vera was noisy, brazen, and clingy. Victor had met her almost as soon as his relationship with Emily began.
I dont mean to intrude, but shed begin, then launch into a tirade of unsolicited advice.
Vera worked as an accounts clerk; her husband was somewhere vague, earning a modest wage that matched his lowkey lifestyle.
From day one Vera tried to worm herself into their lives, turning up at odd hoursonce at eight in the morning, right in the middle of a romantic evening. Victor finally told her, calmly, that they hadnt invited her.
Yes, Mum, he nodded, but we werent expecting you. Please let us know in advance before you drop by.
Now Veras invasions came not through the door but via guilt trips she cultivated in Emily.
Oh, those perfume bottles! No one ever gives me any. Can I borrow yours for a week? Lucys birthday is coming up and I want to swan around smelling divine. You wouldnt mind, would you, dear? Ive given you everything already.
Victor wondered how to stop the theft of affection. Emilys birthday was looming, and he had a new plan.
At the birthday dinner, Victor rose from his seat and slid a small envelope across the table.
Sunshine, this is for you. I know youve always wanted to visit Italy. Have a proper holiday, on me.
Veras eyes lit up.
Oh, how lovely! Ive always dreamed of the Mediterranean, the gelato, the ruins!
Fine, Vera, the second ticket is mine. Youll have to travel with me, and Im not the most pleasant roommate. I snore loudly, blast music at night, and stroll around the hotel in my birthday suit. Are you up for that?
Everyone laughed. Emily blushed, smiled, and Vera flushed, pursed her lips, and left early. Victor grinnedhed gotten two gifts that night: his wifes genuine smile and his motherinlaws quiet exit.
