Nina could not understand why her encounters with her former mother-in-law had become so frequent. She couldn’t just write it off as coincidence. Tamara Viktorovna seemed to be stalking her. Their first meeting happened a week ago. The woman herself approached her former daughter-in-law on the street when Nina was leaving the office and heading to the bus stop.
“Ninochka, what a surprise!” Tamara Viktorovna persistently pretended to be glad to see Nina. “How are you?”
“Everything is fine, Tamara Viktorovna,” Nina answered as calmly as possible.
“How are you feeling after the divorce?” Tamara Viktorovna asked.
“All is well,” Nina lied, still hurting deeply from her husband’s brazen betrayal.
And not without the involvement of the now ex-mother-in-law.
“I’m glad you’ve recovered,” Tamara Viktorovna scrutinized her former daughter-in-law. “I see you’ve lost weight. Has someone new appeared?”
“Yes,” Nina lied again, “and I’m actually hurrying to see him. It was nice to see you.”
And Nina quickly walked away.
That was the first meeting with her former mother-in-law in a long time. At the time, Nina didn’t give it much thought.
Tamara Viktorovna appeared again in her path a few days later.
“I’ve been watching you, Nina, and you’re lying about everything,” said Tamara Viktorovna. “You don’t have anyone.”
“And what business is it of yours?” Nina was surprised. “My personal life doesn’t concern you in any way.”
“Who knows,” Tamara Viktorovna replied vaguely. “By the way, Kolya has had a baby. I’m a grandmother now.”
“Congratulations,” Nina muttered and left again.
On Saturday early morning, someone rang the intercom. Nina was still asleep, so the persistent visitor had to ring several times before the hostess woke up.
“Who is it?” Nina asked.
“Neighbors,” came the voice through the intercom. “I forgot my keys. Please open.”
Half asleep, Nina didn’t bother to ask questions and just opened the entrance. She was about to go back to bed, cursing the stranger’s forgetfulness, when a few minutes later someone knocked on the door.
“Don’t you have anything better to do?” Nina didn’t even try to hide her true mood.
She had dreamed of finally sleeping in, but here was a setback. At the door stood Tamara Viktorovna.
“So, it was you ringing?” Nina clarified. “Why did you lie?”
“Because you wouldn’t have opened otherwise,” Tamara Viktorovna replied and entered without waiting for an invitation.
She looked around appraisingly.
“Will you pour some tea?” she asked her former daughter-in-law.
“No, I wasn’t expecting guests,” Nina answered. “Honestly, if I knew who it was, I wouldn’t have opened.”
“You’ve always been prickly,” remarked Tamara Viktorovna. “That’s why Kolya divorced you.”
“We divorced because you are an old matchmaker!” Nina reminded her. “I hope you’re happy now.”
That was exactly how it was. Tamara Viktorovna had long and persistently been matchmaking for her son Nikolay with the girlfriend of his younger sister, Alena. Nikolay had known her since childhood; they were three years apart. Everyone had already gotten used to calling Nikolay and Alena fiancé and fiancée. Especially Tamara Viktorovna. Nikolay’s marriage to Nina came as a shock to all the man’s relatives. Nina herself only learned about the family dramas after the registration.
“Yes, mom and Natasha planned everything for me,” Nikolay said then, “but I decided to do it my way.”
Nina suspected her husband’s relatives disliked her when none of them came to the registry office. Nikolay assured his wife that his mother and sister had urgent matters that day. Nina didn’t really believe it but didn’t press for details.
Everything became clear when Nina was met after work by Natalia, her sister-in-law.
“You shouldn’t be with him,” the girl stated. “You took someone else’s place next to my brother. He was supposed to marry Alena!”
Of course, Nina told her husband about the meeting and the unpleasant conversation.
“Nina, don’t pay attention,” Nikolay said. “That’s just childish nonsense.”
However, apparently neither Natalia nor Tamara Viktorovna intended to back down. Six months after the registration, Nikolay began regularly going to his mother’s for dinner on Friday evenings.
“Nina, it means nothing,” he said. “Mom is getting older. Natasha moved out, and Mom has become terribly afraid of loneliness.”
Nikolay’s younger sister had just moved in with her boyfriend, so everything matched. Nina might have kept believing her husband if it weren’t for a meeting with a neighbor who knew her mother-in-law.
“Ninok, so what? Did you and Kolya divorce?” Aunt Dasha asked.
“No, why would you think that?” Nina was surprised.
“Well, he goes to his mother every week with Alenka,” the neighbor reported.
And again Nikolay denied it.
“Nina, her mother invites us,” he said. “I’m not involved.”
“Couldn’t you just not visit your mother then?” Nina asked.
“But I’m going to my mother,” Nikolay tried to justify. “I don’t care about Alena.”
Nina wanted to believe her husband. She thought suspicion and checking were unworthy, but then she couldn’t stand it anymore. As mentioned, relations with her mother-in-law and sister-in-law were already tense. But that Friday evening, Nina decided to overcome herself. She went to her mother-in-law’s house and rang the doorbell of the neighbor who had informed her. The woman let her in the entrance, and Nina rang the apartment doorbell. Tamara Viktorovna opened, and Nina entered without giving her time to react. Nikolay and Alena were sitting at the table holding hands, completely idyllic. Nikolay was clearly confused by his wife’s arrival, but Nina drew all necessary conclusions. By nightfall, Nikolay was kicked out of the apartment with his belongings. Nina refused to listen to any explanations.
She suffered deeply from the betrayal and divorce. It took her almost a year to somewhat recover.
Now Nina had mostly calmed down, but her former mother-in-law started reminding her of herself again.
And that Saturday morning, Tamara Viktorovna came to Nina with a serious talk.
“Nina, I already told you Kolya became a father,” Tamara Viktorovna reminded her. “He and Alena had a daughter.”
“What business is that of mine?” Nina asked.
“The fact that the four of us are crammed into my two-room apartment,” said Tamara Viktorovna, “and you live alone in three rooms.”
“So what?” Nina crossed her arms. “It’s my premarital apartment.”
“But Kolya lived here for three years,” Tamara Viktorovna said. “And I know he did renovations shortly before your divorce. So, you’ll have to share.”
“He didn’t do any renovations,” Nina replied.
Tamara Viktorovna looked at her indignantly.
“How come he didn’t?” she asked. “He took almost a million from me for repairs.”
“I don’t know how much or for what he took from you,” Nina said, “but he didn’t do any renovations.”
Tamara Viktorovna looked around again.
“Nina, let’s settle this amicably,” the ex-mother-in-law declared. “Don’t force me and Nikolay to go to court.”
“Go wherever you want,” Nina answered. “Now just leave!”
“Nina, you have no heart or conscience,” said Tamara Viktorovna.
“Get out!” Nina said decisively.
By her tone, Tamara Viktorovna understood it was better not to joke with her and left reluctantly.
But it didn’t end there. Closer to noon, the very same Alena appeared at the door holding a baby, apparently intending to use the child as a shield.
“I want to see the apartment,” Alena declared. “Nikolay and I decided to offer you a swap. You move to Tamara Viktorovna’s two-room apartment, and we move in here. I think it’s a great idea.”
“No,” Nina said firmly. “I like my apartment, and I don’t want to move anywhere.”
“But Tamara Viktorovna…”
“I don’t care what Tamara Viktorovna said,” Nina said. “I’ve already given her my answer.”
“Nina, but you have to understand…”
“I owe you nothing!” Nina said sharply.
“Nikolay can prove he invested in this apartment,” Alena said.
“Good luck!” Nina replied and simply pushed Alena out the door.
By evening, Nikolay called.
“Nina, let’s settle this peacefully,” he began. “Two rooms for one — it’s a great deal.”
“Have you all gone mad?” Nina was outraged. “Why should I owe you anything at all?”
“Nin, we’re not strangers,” Nikolay tried again.
“Strangers,” Nina cut him off. “And I don’t care about your new wife or your child!”
But Nikolay didn’t want to give up easily. And on Monday after work, Nina met him near her office.
“Nina, I know I’m very guilty before you,” Nikolay said. “But help me as a favor. You see, if you don’t agree, I’m done for.”
Nina looked closely at her ex-husband.
“What million did your mother talk about?” she asked. “Why did you take it and where did you spend it? Clearly not on repairing my apartment.”
Nikolay didn’t answer immediately. He stood silently for a while, hesitating, while Nina stared at him.
“Look,” Nikolay began, “I wanted to start a business. I thought I had planned everything. But I failed. I had to tell my mother I invested the money in repairs. That was all her savings. Please, help me.”
“Nikolay, that’s your business,” Nina replied firmly. “Deal with it yourselves. And I’m fine as it is.”
And Nina left. Nikolay didn’t notice that at the beginning of the conversation she had turned on the recorder on her phone and started recording.
When she saw Tamara Viktorovna again on the way home, she even laughed.
“Looks like you’re having fun,” the mother-in-law said unhappily. “Last time I warn you nicely…”
Instead of answering, Nina took out her phone and played the recording. Hearing her son’s confession, Tamara Viktorovna immediately darkened. She said nothing and simply left. For a long time, no one from the ex-husband’s family bothered Nina.
A month later, she met that same neighbor, Aunt Dasha, again.
“Can you imagine, Kolya divorced his wife,” the woman reported. “They didn’t live well, and lately, they fought so loudly the whole building heard. Recently, she left with the child and her things. Kolya stayed with his mother. Now he’ll have to pay alimony.”
Kolya himself appeared near Nina’s work a week later.
“Nin, I’m sorry,” he said. “I was an idiot. I don’t even know why I fell for it. Let’s try to start over.”
“If one more of your family crosses my path, I’ll call the police,” Nina said firmly.
It was after that conversation with her husband, leaving, that Nina realized she had finally healed.