She Gave Her Father’s Life Money to Her Lover
I was out of town on a business trip when my mother-in-law, Carol, called me in the middle of the night.
“Jake,” she said, her voice trembling, “Robert has a terminal illness. The doctors say the only chance he has is surgery and a course of specialized medication.”
I knew the total costs would run into the millions.
I spent the entire night mortgaging two apartments and withdrawing all my savings, planning to visit the hospital the next day.
But I discovered all the money I’d managed to gather had been transferred out by my wife, Vanessa.
“Brandon said the company needed some research funding,” she explained nonchalantly. “I gave him all of it.”
I grilled her: “Do you even realize what that money was for? It was for your father’s medical treatment! He’s terminally ill!”
Vanessa scoffed. “Jake, please. At least come up with a plausible lie. Robert is perfectly healthy—stop trying to jinx him.”
I stared at the ended call, sitting on the couch in silence for a long time.
The next morning, I called Mr. Miller, the company’s CFO, directly.
“Can you check something for me? Has Brandon Chen submitted any recent requests for project development funding?”
The reply came quickly: “Mr. Dawson, no. However, Mr. Davis did apply for $300,000 for team building last week, and it’s already been approved.”
What kind of team building costs $300,000?
I remembered the loud music from last night’s call, the suggestive cheers and laughter in the background.
My heart sank lower and lower.
I called Vanessa again. This time, it rang for ages before she finally answered.
In the background, a soft piano melody played—a stark contrast to the previous night’s chaos.
“What is it now?” Her voice held a faint edge of irritation.
I tried to stay calm, enunciating each word clearly.
“That five million dollars—you need to get it back today. There’s no new research project at the company, and your father…”
“Jake Dawson, are you ever going to drop this?” Vanessa’s voice suddenly sharpened.
“Brandon explained everything last night. It’s a confidential project for a new direction, so of course it wouldn’t show up in regular accounting. You just can’t stand seeing others succeed, can you?”
I managed a bitter laugh, though inside I felt a crushing weight of sadness.
“The finance department has no record of it. Call him right now and ask for a project plan—even just a draft. If he can provide one, I’ll drop this.”
“Who do you think you are, investigating him like this? Interrogating him?” Vanessa shouted. “My father helped you start this company! Now Brandon’s helping me manage my legacy! You’re always traveling for work—do you even care if the company survives? I transferred the money, and I’ll take responsibility!”
Her claim of being “responsible” sounded like a bad joke.
It was true—Robert had provided the seed money to start the company. That’s why I was willing to mortgage everything to save his life.
Yet there it was, that money—only to be transferred to a stranger by his own daughter.
“Go to the hospital yourself. I’ll text you the address…”
Before I could finish, Vanessa scoffed. “Please. I know Robert’s health better than anyone. Brandon said we’ll see initial results in a few days. Then you’ll eat your words about him being a liar.”
The call went dead again.
I held my phone, staring at the screen where she was saved as “Wife.”
For the first time, I felt a strange sense of alienation.
I went to the hospital, looked at Robert lying in the bed, and told them the truth.
Robert sighed repeatedly, saying nothing.
Carol was livid. “That ungrateful girl! We raised her so well, and now her father is dying, and she doesn’t even care? She gave all that life-saving money to a stranger? I need to call her right now and set her straight!”
That’s exactly why I’d brought them together—to let them explain directly.
As soon as the call went through, Vanessa started complaining.
“Mom, I’m in the middle of something. Can this wait until I’m free?”
Carol didn’t get a word in before Vanessa hung up.
