Valya, have you already made the mortgage payment? Today is the final deadline,” Denis said without even looking up from his phone as he continued scrolling through the news feed.
“Yes, as usual. Ninety-two thousand. And, as always, it was charged to my card,” replied Valentina as she set a cup of coffee in front of him and sat down across from him. “You know, I was thinking… Maybe we should finally take a look at the apartment documents? We’ve been paying for two years, and I haven’t seen the purchase agreement even once.”
Denis finally tore his gaze away from the screen, and for a moment, something resembling worry flashed in his eyes.
“Why? The bank has accepted our apartment as collateral, so the documents are in order.”
“I just want to take a look. After all, it’s our joint property,” Valentina said, watching his reaction carefully.
“Well… the documents are with my mom. I’ll ask her to find them,” Denis replied reluctantly, once again focusing on his phone.
“With your mom? Why are they with her?” Valentina felt a growing sense of foreboding inside.
“She keeps important papers better. Remember how I lost the car’s contract?”
Valentina nodded, yet the inner unease only increased.
April rain was tapping on the windows when Valentina arrived at her mother-in-law’s. Denis wasn’t there – he had some urgent business matters. Nina greeted her with her usual restrained smile.
“Come in, Valechka. Denis said you wanted to look at the apartment documents? Alexey has everything prepared; they’re in the living room.”
The father-in-law was sitting in an armchair, sorting through a stack of papers.
“Ah, Valentina!” he exclaimed as he rose and handed her a folder. “Here are all the documents for your apartment. We keep them in a separate folder.”
Valentina sat at the table and opened the folder. The purchase agreement, the technical passport, the extract from the Unified State Register of Real Estate… She began to examine the documents and suddenly froze.
“Alexey Ivanovich, there is some error here,” her voice trembled slightly. “You and Nina Petrovna are listed as the owners. It should be Denis and me.”
Her mother-in-law and father-in-law exchanged glances.
“Valya, this isn’t a mistake,” Nina Petrovna said softly. “The apartment is registered under our names, but it’s just a formality. You and Denis live there.”
“A formality?” Valentina felt the room start spinning. “And the mortgage is in my name! I’m paying for an apartment that belongs to you?”
“Didn’t Denis explain it to you?” Alexey Ivanovich looked surprised. “It was his decision. He has a business and risks. He wanted to protect the property in case of problems with creditors.”
“At the expense of me paying off the loan for your property?” Valentina felt her anger boil inside.
“Valya, don’t dramatize,” Nina Petrovna said as she sat next to her. “After all, we’re family. What does it matter whose name the apartment is in? The important thing is that you live in it.”
Valentina stood up, gathering the documents back into the folder.
“It matters a lot, Nina Petrovna. A great deal.”
“You deceived me!” Valentina slammed the folder with the documents onto the table as soon as Denis entered the apartment. “For two years I’ve been paying for an apartment that belongs to your parents!”
Denis sighed, as if he had been expecting this conversation.
“Please, sit down. I’ll explain everything.”
“Explain what? Why did you register the apartment under your parents’ names and put the mortgage in my name?”
“That’s not it,” Denis said as he sat on the edge of the sofa. “Listen, I have a business. You know what kind of times we are living in? One bad contract and I’d be bankrupt. I wanted to protect us.”
“Protect us?” Valentina gave a bitter laugh. “You protected yourself and your parents! And I, if something happens, will be left without an apartment but with a debt of twelve million!”
“That won’t happen,” Denis tried to take her hand, but she pulled away. “My parents would never claim the apartment. It’s just a legal formality.”
“A legal formality,” she repeated echoing his words. “So you don’t see a problem in deceiving me? In pulling off this… scheme behind my back?”
“I meant for the best,” irritation crept into Denis’s voice. “And don’t dramatize – it’s not deceit. I just didn’t go into details because I knew you’d start to panic.”
“Panic?” Valentina shook her head. “No, Denis. I’m not panicking. I just see things as they are. I’m paying for someone else’s apartment.”
Marina Viktorovna placed a cup of tea before her daughter and sat across from her.
“Dear, I’m so sorry,” she said, taking Valentina’s hand. “But you did the right thing by coming to me.”
“Mom, I don’t know what to do,” Valentina looked exhausted, as if she hadn’t slept in days. “Denis says this is to protect our property. But it turns out it isn’t even my property!”
“Of course it isn’t yours,” Marina Viktorovna shook her head. “And believe me, in my experience, this isn’t an accidental slip-up. It’s a well-thought-out plan.”
“A plan? You think Denis planned this from the start?”
“Not only Denis. I saw his parents at your wedding,” Marina Viktorovna frowned. “Especially his mother. Did you notice how she always says ‘my son’ instead of ‘your husband’? They never intended to let him go. And now they have an apartment that you’re paying for.”
“But what am I supposed to do?” Valentina’s voice trembled with despair.
“First, talk to a lawyer. Your friend Irina, isn’t she working in this field?”
“Valya, the situation is worse than you think,” Irina spread out some documents in a small café where they met during a lunch break.
“Worse? How much worse?” Valentina tried to joke, but her voice shook.
“Much worse,” Irina said seriously. “You are the co-borrower on the mortgage, but not the owner. This means that legally, you’re paying off a loan for property that isn’t yours. If Denis divorces you, the apartment will remain with his parents while you continue paying the mortgage.”
“That just can’t be! The bank couldn’t have agreed to such a scheme!”
“They could,” Irina pointed to the contract. “The bank doesn’t care who the owner of the collateral is. The important thing is that there’s a borrower with a good credit history and stable income – that’s you. If you keep paying, they have no problems. And if you stop, they’ll seize the apartment from Denis’ parents and sell it to cover the debt.”
“And what about me?” Valentina felt a lump rise in her throat.
“For you, the consequences are the most serious,” Irina squeezed her hand. “If Denis’ parents decide to sell the apartment, they have every right to do so. The bank will get its money from the sale, the mortgage will be closed, and any remaining funds will go to them as the owners.”
“And what about all my payments?”
“In the best case, you could try to claim compensation through court as a spouse. But that’s a long process, and success isn’t guaranteed.”
“What should I do?”
“First, stop the payments,” Irina said firmly. “Then talk to your husband and his parents and demand either the transfer of ownership or a legally binding agreement that protects your rights.”
Valentina sat in her office, staring blankly at the monitor. The report’s numbers blurred before her eyes.
“Val, are you okay?” Andrey from the adjacent department sat on the edge of her desk. “You don’t look well.”
“Everything’s fine,” she tried to smile. “Just some family problems.”
Andrey glanced around and lowered his voice:
“Listen, I accidentally found out something. I’m not sure if I should mention it…”
“Speak. What happened?” Valentina immediately became alert.
“Yesterday I ran into Oleg, your husband’s brother. We work out at the same gym.”
“And then?”
“He mentioned that Denis has big problems with his business. He owes a large sum to his partners. That’s exactly why the apartment is registered under his parents’ names – so that creditors can’t seize it.”
Valentina felt the color drain from her face.
“Are you sure?”
“Oleg said it himself. He mentioned that the parents are aware, and that Denis is afraid to tell you – he thinks you’ll stop paying the mortgage if you find out.”
The next evening, Valentina arrived unannounced at Denis’ parents’ place. Fortunately, there were guests there, including Nina’s sister, Alla, whom Valentina had never met before.
The apartment was noisy. Valentina apologized and intended to leave, but Nina Petrovna insisted that she stay for dinner.
At the table, Valentina remained silent, listening intently to the conversations at the edges of her hearing. Suddenly, a phrase from her mother-in-law made her start.
“…so, Alla, soon we’ll sell the apartment and buy a house outside the city. You know that cottage settlement in Sosnovka? They’re building such beautiful houses there! Denis will move in with us, and Oleg too, if he wants.”
“And the daughter-in-law?” Alla asked.
“Oh, don’t be silly,” Nina Petrovna lowered her voice, but Valentina still caught every word. “She’ll keep her apartment. She has a job in the city, her mother is nearby. And honestly, they aren’t really a family. They’re just cohabiting…”
Valentina gripped her fork until her fingers ached.
Later, at home, she met Denis with an icy silence.
“What’s wrong?” he asked, looking concerned.
“When were you planning to tell me about your debts? And about your parents’ plans to sell our apartment?”
Denis paled.
“Who told you that?”
“Is it true?”
“Valya, listen,” he tried to take her hand, but she pulled away. “I’m just having temporary business difficulties. I’ll manage, nothing’s really wrong.”
“And your parents’ plans to sell the apartment?”
“Mom is simply dreaming of a country house,” he said with a tentative smile. “She’s been talking about it for a long time.”
“Of course, you’ll move there and I’ll be left with a mortgage on a sold apartment,” Valentina said bitterly.
“What nonsense!” Denis protested. “No one is selling anything!”
“You know what,” Valentina said as she stood up. “From tomorrow, I’m not paying the mortgage anymore. Let your parents, as the owners, deal with the problem themselves.”
“Mikhail Borisovich, thank you for your time,” Valentina said, sitting in the lawyer’s office while nervously fidgeting with her purse.
“Irina explained the situation,” the lawyer, Mikhail Borisovich, nodded. “Let’s take a look at the documents.”
He examined the papers closely, making notes.
“The situation is indeed complicated,” he said finally. “You’re a co-borrower on the mortgage, but not the owner of the property. This could be considered an abuse of rights on the part of your husband and his parents.”
“What should I do? Irina advises me to stop the payments.”
“That’s risky,” Mikhail Borisovich shook his head. “You’re still liable to the bank. The best option is to officially demand the transfer of ownership or to sign an agreement that protects your interests legally.”
“And if they refuse?”
“Then we file a lawsuit to annul the transaction and recover all the payments you made, plus interest. And we’ll also claim moral damages. But going to court should be the last resort.”
Valentina organized a family meeting at their apartment. She invited her own parents, Denis, and his parents. Oleg, Denis’s brother, arrived uninvited, saying that he “wanted to support his brother.”
When everyone was gathered in the living room, Valentina spoke up:
“I have gathered you here to discuss the situation with our apartment,” she began calmly. “As it turns out, the apartment is registered under Alexey Ivanovich’s and Nina Petrovna’s names, even though I’m the one paying the mortgage.”
“Valya, we’ve already discussed this,” Denis started.
“No, Denis, we haven’t discussed it,” she said firmly. “You just said it was to protect us from creditors. But you didn’t mention that you already have those creditors! And even less that your parents plan to sell the apartment!”
“What nonsense!” Nina Petrovna exclaimed indignantly. “We’re not planning to sell anything!”
“Don’t say that, Mom,” Oleg suddenly interjected. “I saw the documents on your table. You’ve already consulted with a realtor about selling.”
A heavy silence fell over the room.
“We have no concrete plans,” Alexey Ivanovich finally said. “We’re just exploring the options.”
“You’re exploring options to sell the apartment that I’m paying off,” Valentina said coldly. “And in which we, you and Denis, live.”
“But officially, it’s ours,” Nina Petrovna snapped. “And we have every right to do with our property as we please!”
“Mom!” Denis tried to pull her aside.
“What’s the matter with that?” Nina Petrovna spread her arms. “It’s true! If needed, we’ll help you with the down payment for another apartment.”
Marina Viktorovna, who had been silent until then, stepped forward:
“So you’re admitting that you planned from the start to deceive my daughter? To force her to pay for your apartment?”
“No one deceived anyone!” Alexey Ivanovich raised his voice. “This was a business decision!”
“A business decision,” Valentina echoed bitterly. “Well, I have a business decision too. I’m stopping the mortgage payments. Either we transfer the apartment’s registration to Denis and me, or I file for divorce and demand all the money I’ve paid back.”
“Valya, you won’t do that,” Denis looked frightened.
“I will,” she stated firmly. “I have a lawyer’s opinion saying that your actions can be considered an abuse of rights.”
“What abuse?” Nina Petrovna demanded. “Denis, tell her!”
“Mom, it’s really not fair,” Oleg suddenly interjected. “Valentina will be paying for this apartment for six years and then be left with nothing? That’s not how things work.”
“Are you really taking her side now?” Nina Petrovna exploded. “Against your own mother?”
“I’m on the side of justice,” Oleg said firmly. “And if you truly cared about Denis, you’d help him solve his business problems rather than hide the property.”
Silence fell over the room once again.
“Then,” Valentina straightened up, “we have two options. First, Denis and I become the official owners of the apartment, continue the mortgage payments, and forget this ever happened. Second, I file for divorce and initiate legal proceedings.”
“Valya, wait,” Denis said, looking perplexed. “Let’s talk about this privately.”
“There’s nothing to discuss here!” Nina Petrovna snapped. “Denis, don’t let her manipulate you! We bought that apartment – we’re responsible for it!”
“You bought it?” Valentina said slowly. “Over two years, I’ve paid two million rubles out of my own pocket. That doesn’t even include the down payment!”
“Denis, it’s up to you,” Alexey Ivanovich turned to his son. “Either you’re with us, or with her. There’s no third option.”
The room fell silent as Denis shifted his gaze between his parents and his wife.
“I… I can’t decide right now,” he finally mumbled.
“Then it’s clear,” Valentina said bitterly. “Mikhail Borisovich,” she turned to the lawyer, who had been quietly observing, “please prepare the documents for filing a lawsuit. And also the papers for divorce.”
A month later, Valentina was sitting in the lawyer’s office, reviewing documents.
“So, the court has ruled that the transaction was made in violation of your rights as a spouse,” Mikhail Borisovich said with a satisfied look. “Denis’ parents are obliged to compensate you for all the mortgage payments you made, with interest.”
“And the apartment itself?” Valentina asked.
“It remains in their ownership, but with an encumbrance in the form of your lien. In effect, they cannot sell it until they have paid you the compensation.”
“And the divorce?”
“The divorce petition has been accepted for consideration. Given that you have no children and it’s by mutual consent, the process will be minimal.”
Valentina nodded. Over that month, she felt as though she had lived a new life. Denis tried to come back, pleaded with her, promising to fix everything. But his indecision at the crucial moment had already revealed everything. He would always be subservient to his parents, incapable of protecting even his own wife.
“You know, Mikhail Borisovich,” she said with a smile for the first time in a long while, “I think I’ve found an apartment I want to buy. A small one, but in a good neighborhood.”
“I approve,” the lawyer nodded. “Only this time, make sure it’s registered strictly in your name.”
“You can be sure,” Valentina replied confidently. “Now I’m going to read every single word in a contract very carefully.”
When she left the lawyer’s office, the April sun was shining brightly, playing off the puddles left by the recent rain. Ahead lay a new life – without Denis, without his manipulations, and without the feeling of being used. And that prospect, despite all the trials she had endured, filled her with nothing but joy.