Semua Bab No Free House: Bab 1 - Bab 8

"Mom... Mom, what's wrong?"When I snapped back to reality, Chloe's face had moved closer. She squeezed my hand, signaling for me to take the flowers.I snatched the bouquet from her, pulled out the wish list, and set the flowers on a nearby cabinet.Then, ignoring her startled expression,I began reading every item on her extravagant wish list aloud in front of our family and friends."Electronics, travel, clothes, shoes, handbags, salon appointments, manicures, gifts for classmates..."Before I could finish, several people had already started defending her."Helena, what are you doing? She's grown now and has her own taste. Those things might cost five or six thousand dollars. So what?""Exactly. Is it worth humiliating her in front of everyone over a few thousand dollars?"One of Chloe's classmates made a face from across the room. "Chloe, your mom is so old-fashioned."I ignored the scattered criticism and glanced at Chloe, whose face had already turned scarlet."Everyon

A chill spread through my entire body. I'd thought Chloe had simply lost her way.I hadn't realized someone else had been coaching her on how to bleed me dry.She was rotten at the root. Her birth had been a mistake.Years ago, Derek Collins and I had opened a small diner together. We worked ourselves to exhaustion and finally saved a little money.While I was pregnant with Chloe, I discovered that Derek had been gambling in secret. He'd lost the house and the diner.He'd even stolen and pawned the gold bracelet I'd saved for Chloe, while my mother-in-law, Marlene Collins, helped him hide it from me.He dropped to his knees and swore he'd never gamble again. Seven months pregnant, I kept the diner running until my water broke behind the counter.Chloe was a year old before we finally paid off Derek's debts.But when she was three, Derek decided a daughter wasn't worth much and started sleeping with a married woman.Fate intervened. The woman's husband came home unexpectedly in

When I saw the video, I pressed my lips together. My fingers began trembling harder and harder, and cold sweat ran from my forehead into my ears.I felt as though I'd returned to that rainy night. The curses rang in my ears again, and every vicious word reappeared before my eyes.A crushing pain seized my chest. My vision went black, and I had to brace myself against the wall to keep from collapsing.I slowly made my way to a chair. As I began gathering evidence, a sharp pain shot through my hand.I'd clenched my fist so tightly that my nails had broken the skin, and the sweat made the wounds sting.The pain was excruciating.But it steadied me. I collected every piece of evidence and arranged it into a chronological slide deck showing everything Chloe had done since graduation.Then I opened an account called "The Mother Accused of Abandonment."I uploaded the presentation, placing several especially important documents at the end and in the comments.Then I paid for the plat

A relative from our old farming town called me."Helena, get to the hospital. Chloe is having her stomach pumped, and she may need dialysis. Hurry."The news left me stunned.Chloe had drunk pesticide? She might need dialysis?How had she gotten hold of it? You couldn't simply buy a chemical that dangerous in the city.I booked the first flight and reached the hospital within a day.From what I learned, Derek had started gambling again.Every dollar they had, including the worn-down little house they lived in, had been swallowed by that bottomless pit.That was why he'd contacted Chloe and filled her head with stories about buying a house and cutting ties with me.He'd intended to use the money from the house to pay his gambling debts.In my previous life, I hadn't known what happened after my death. Perhaps his plan had succeeded.I was considering what evidence I could use to report him when I pushed open the hospital-room door.Chloe lay on the bed with her eyes wide ope