Darya was coming back from work in a stuffy minibus when her neighbor, Valentina Ivanovna, sat down next to her and began excitedly sharing some news.
“Your mother-in-law has a brand-new car!” the woman exclaimed, adjusting the bag on her lap. “A beautiful one, silver. Yesterday I saw your Egor handing her the keys. What a good son, taking care of his mom!”
Darya felt the blood drain from her face. Her hands instinctively gripped the handle of her bag.
“Excuse me, what car are you talking about?” her voice sounded strangely hoarse.
“The new one! Some Hyundai, all shiny. She says her son gave it to her for her birthday. Showing it off to all the neighbors.”
For the rest of the ride, Darya sat numb. Her thoughts were tangled, refusing to form a clear picture. Egor bought his mother a car? With what money? Why didn’t he say anything? Questions swarmed her mind, each more painful than the last.
At home, her husband sat in the kitchen, absorbed in his phone. He looked calm, even relaxed. Darya put down her bag and, trying to keep her voice steady, asked:
“Egor, is there something I should know about?”
“What do you mean?” he looked up from the screen.
“I mean big new expenses related to our family.”
Egor’s expression changed slightly. He became guarded.
“I don’t understand what you’re talking about.”
“Then explain where your mother’s new car came from.”
Silence hung in the air. Egor put down his phone and rubbed his face with his hands. When he looked up, his eyes showed a mix of guilt and stubbornness.
“Dasha, I was going to tell you…”
“When? After I hear it from the neighbors?”
“Don’t yell. The kids are home.”
“Don’t you dare tell me what to do!” Darya’s voice cracked. “Why the hell are you buying cars behind my back?”
“Behind your back? It’s our money, and I have the right to spend it on my mother!”
“Our money?” Darya sat down on a chair, feeling her legs give out. “How much? How much did you spend?”
“Not that much…”
“The number!”
“Eight hundred thousand.”
The words hung in the air. Darya blinked, trying to digest what she’d just heard.
“Eight hundred… Egor, are you out of your mind? That’s almost all our savings!”
“Not all. Half.”
“Half!” Darya jumped up, the chair crashed to the floor. “We’ve been saving that money for three years! For the kids’ room renovation, for vacation, for Maksim’s education!”
“Mom deserves a good life. She’s seventy-two, and the buses for elderly people are pure torture.”
“And what about me? Don’t I deserve that?” Darya’s voice trembled with rage. “I take overcrowded minibuses to work every day and back! I get motion sickness, my back hurts, but it never occurred to me to demand a car!”
“You’re young; you’ll manage.”
Darya froze, not believing what she’d just heard. Those words, said so casually, hit her like a slap in the face.
“Manage? Egor, I’m thirty-four! I have two kids, work from morning till night, and the house on my shoulders! And your mother sits retired and goes to the store twice a week!”
“Don’t you dare speak like that about my mother!”
“Then don’t you dare spend my money however you want!”
“Your money?” Egor turned, his face twisted with anger. “Did you forget we have a joint budget? Or are we splitting every ruble in half now?”
“A joint budget means joint decisions! And you secretly blew almost a million!”
“Didn’t blow it, spent it on a close person. On my mother who gave birth to me and raised me!”
“And what, am I a stranger? Don’t your children deserve decent conditions?”
Egor waved his hand and turned away.
“You’re exaggerating. So what if the renovation is postponed a year? It’s not the end of the world.”
“Not the end of the world?” Darya grabbed the notebook from the table where she recorded family expenses. “Let’s count what’s ‘not the end of the world.’”
Flipping through the pages, she began reading out the numbers:
“Mortgage—27,000 rubles a month. Utilities—9,000. Groceries—minimum 15,000. Clothes for the kids—about 10,000 a month. Extra classes for Maksim—6,000. Medicine, gas, household expenses—another 20,000. Total—almost 90,000 rubles a month in fixed expenses!”
Egor was silent, staring out the window.
“With our salaries, we have about 40,000 rubles left. Forty thousand, Egor! And you spent one day’s savings of a year and a half!”
“Stop counting!” her husband exploded. “Money isn’t the most important thing in life!”
“Easy for you to say when you just blew someone else’s money!” Darya threw the notebook on the table. “Do you know how I saved to collect that sum? Buying the kids’ clothes in discount stores instead of normal shops! Skipping hairdressers, cosmetics, meetings with friends! And you burned it all in one go!”
“I didn’t burn it! I gave a gift to the most precious person!”
“The most precious? And what about your wife and kids—second place?”
“Don’t twist my words. Mom is one, she needs support.”
“And I don’t? My support comes in the form of joint decisions and respect for my opinion?”
Egor sighed heavily, rubbing his face.
“Dasha, why are you so worked up? It’s just a car. Mom walked all her life, she deserves comfort.”
“And what about me? Is my comfort less important?”
“You have comfort. Home, family…”
“The home I clean! The family I support equally with you!” Darya felt tears well up. “Egor, do you realize what you’re doing? We planned to go to the sea with the kids this summer. First time in five years! Maksim dreamed so much… And now what? Tell the kids that grandpa’s car is more important than their vacation?”
“Don’t dramatize. The sea won’t go anywhere.”
“Childhood will!” Her voice broke. “Maksim is twelve, Polina is ten. They’re growing up, and we promise them a tomorrow that never comes!”
Polina, the younger daughter, peeked into the kitchen. Her eyes wide, lips trembling.
“Mom, Dad, why are you arguing?”
Darya quickly wiped her eyes and sat down next to her daughter.
“We’re discussing important things, sweetheart. Go to your room, dinner will be soon.”
“Is it because of grandma’s car?” the girl asked softly. “Maksim said Dad bought grandma a car.”
Darya and Egor exchanged glances. So the kids already knew.
“Yes, because of the car,” Darya answered honestly. “Mom doesn’t agree with Dad’s decision.”
“Why can grandma have a car, but we can’t go to the sea?” The child’s voice held an adult-like hurt.
Egor blushed and turned to the window. Darya hugged her daughter.
“It’s hard to explain, Polinka. Adults sometimes make decisions that seem wrong.”
The girl nodded and left. A heavy silence fell.
“See?” Darya whispered. “The kids understand everything. They feel they’ve been lied to.”
“I didn’t lie to anyone,” Egor grumbled.
“Of course you did. We planned the vacation together, saved the money together. And you secretly spent it on something that only concerns you.”
Egor’s phone rang. Looking at the screen, he quickly answered:
“Mom, hi… Yes, everything’s fine… No, Dasha isn’t against it… Of course, you deserve it…”
Darya listened, feeling rage rising inside. Egor was lying to his mother, making it seem like his wife supported the purchase.
“Yes, Mom, we’ll come tomorrow to see it… Of course, we’ll take a ride… Okay, see you tomorrow.”
He hung up and looked at his wife guiltily.
“Mom invites us for a family lunch tomorrow. Wants to show the car to the kids.”
“How nice,” Darya said bitterly. “So tomorrow I’m supposed to pretend to be happy and amazed by a purchase that ruined our family?”
“Dasha, don’t be like that…”
“What? Honest? Principled?”
“Greedy,” Egor muttered quietly.
Those words fell like a stone into water. Darya froze, trying to process what she’d just heard.
“Repeat that,” her voice dangerously quiet.
“I didn’t mean it like that…”
“Repeat!”
“Okay, yes! You’re acting greedy! Mom saved her whole life, denied herself everything for the family. And now, when her son can help her, you’re making a scandal about money!”
Darya slowly stood up. Her face turned pale, her hands trembled.
“Greedy? Egor, I’ve worked as hard as you for twelve years. Gave birth to children, got up with them at night, went to work in the morning. Saved on myself to gather that money. And you call me greedy for demanding basic respect?”
“Mom deserves care!”
“And I don’t? Neither do the kids?” Her voice broke. “You know what, Egor? Tomorrow I’m not going to your mother’s. And I’m not taking the kids. Let her enjoy her gift alone.”
“You can’t do that! Mom will be hurt!”
“And what do I care about her feelings? Let her be offended. She got the car at my expense—that’s enough.”
Egor grabbed her hand.
“Dasha, calm down. Let’s talk calmly…”
“Let go of me,” Darya said coldly. “The conversation is over.”
But when Egor released her fingers, it was clear the conversation was just beginning. On the kitchen threshold stood the mother-in-law herself. Lidiya Petrovna held the keys to the new car and smiled triumphantly.
“Lidiya Petrovna!” Darya turned sharply. “How did you get here?”
“I have the keys,” the mother-in-law answered calmly, entering the kitchen. “Egor gave them to me in case of emergency.”
“And what emergency do we have?”
“That’s what I’m trying to find out,” Lidiya Petrovna glanced at her disheveled daughter-in-law. “I heard the shouting all the way down the entrance.”
Egor hurried to his mother and hugged her.
“Mom, why did you come? I told you we’d see each other tomorrow.”
“I wanted to thank Daročka for understanding,” the mother-in-law said coldly. “Egor told me how happy you are with my gift.”
Darya felt the blood rush back to her face.
“What understanding, Lidiya Petrovna?”
“Well, dear, you don’t mind that a caring son bought his mother a car? Egor said you fully support his decision.”
Silence fell. Darya shifted her gaze between her husband and mother-in-law. Lidiya Petrovna stood with a victorious smile, while Egor lowered his head.
“Egor lied to you,” Darya said clearly. “I am categorically against this purchase.”
The mother-in-law’s smile vanished instantly.
“Against? But why? Isn’t it good when children take care of their parents?”
“It’s bad when that care comes at the expense of one’s own family.”
“Daročka,” Lidiya Petrovna’s voice became syrupy, “are you really so greedy? Can’t you be happy for an elderly woman?”
“Greedy?” Darya straightened up. “Lidiya Petrovna, your son spent eight hundred thousand rubles of family money without my knowledge. Money we saved for three years for the kids!”
“Eight hundred thousand isn’t that much money,” the mother-in-law said dismissively. “With your salaries, you’ll save that in a year.”
“In a year?” Darya sat on the edge of the chair. “Lidiya Petrovna, do you understand what you’re saying? With our incomes, we can save at most forty thousand a month. That’s twenty months of saving!”
“So what? You’re young; you’ll manage.”
“And your grandchildren? Maksim dreamed of going to the sea. Polina asked to be enrolled in art school. What about that now?”
Lidiya Petrovna shrugged.
“The kids can wait. I’m old already; I don’t have much time left.”
Darya stood and went to the window. Outside, the summer evening was fading, and children played somewhere. An ordinary life that now seemed an unattainable luxury.
“You know what, Lidiya Petrovna? Return the car.”
“What?!” the mother-in-law threw up her hands. “Are you crazy?”
“Return the car to the dealership. Get your money back. Let your caring son buy you gifts with his own money.”
“Egor!” the mother-in-law addressed her son. “Do you hear what your wife is saying?”
Egor was silent, shifting from foot to foot.
“I hear sane words,” he suddenly said.
Darya turned, not believing her ears.
“What?”
“Mom, maybe Dasha is right. Maybe I was too hasty…”
“Egor!” Lidiya Petrovna’s voice rose an octave. “Are you really going to let this… this woman tell you how to care for your own mother?”
“Mom, I’m just thinking…”
“Don’t you dare!” the mother-in-law stomped her foot. “Don’t you even think about it! The car stays with me!”
“Fine,” Darya said calmly. “Then tomorrow morning I’m going to a lawyer.”
Lidiya Petrovna froze.
“To what lawyer?”
“To find out my rights to the family property. Egor spent our joint savings without my consent. We’ll see what the law says about that.”
“You won’t dare!” hissed the mother-in-law.
“I will. And do you know why? Because I’m thinking of my children. Unlike some.”
Lidiya Petrovna turned crimson.
“How dare you! I dedicated my whole life to Egor!”
“And now you want him to dedicate his whole life to you? At the expense of his own family?”
“Enough!” Egor shouted. “Mom, go home. Dasha, calm down. We’ll discuss everything tomorrow calmly.”
“There’s nothing to discuss,” Darya cut in. “Either the money goes back to the family, or I file for divorce.”
“Divorce?” Lidiya Petrovna clutched her heart. “Egor, do you hear? She’s threatening divorce over a car!”
“Not over a car,” Darya said wearily. “Over disrespect, deceit, and betrayal.”
The mother-in-law dressed silently and left, slamming the door loudly. Egor remained standing in the kitchen, confused and crushed.
“Dasha, you understand… Mom is alone, it’s hard for her…”
“And it’s easy for me?” her voice sounded hopeless. “Egor, I’m tired. Tired that in this family my opinion means nothing. Tired that your mother is more important than your wife and children.”
“That’s not true…”
“It is. And you know it well.”
Darya nodded and went to the bedroom. She had no energy left for arguments. And what was there to argue? Everything was clear.
In the morning, Darya woke with a firm decision. Egor was sleeping on the couch—he didn’t dare enter the bedroom. Quickly getting ready, she went to the city to see a familiar lawyer, Sergey Valentinovich. The man listened carefully, shaking his head.
“Darya, the law is on your side. Large expenses of joint property without the spouse’s consent can be challenged. Especially if you have documents proving the source of the money.”
“All documents are with me. Bank statements, income certificates.”
“Excellent. You can demand the purchase be declared invalid. But be prepared that your husband and mother-in-law will resist.”
“I’m ready.”
The next few days were spent gathering documents. Darya printed statements from all accounts, copies of salary certificates, documents about joint savings. Every paper confirmed—the money spent belonged to the family, not Egor personally.
Her husband tried to persuade her to drop the idea.
“Dasha, think about the kids. What a scandal this will be! Everyone will find out we’re in court.”
“Let them find out. At least they’ll understand I won’t let my family be ruined.”
“Mom is depressed. Says you hate her.”
“Let her return the car—then the depression will pass.”
But Lidiya Petrovna wasn’t ready to give up. The mother-in-law launched a real campaign, calling mutual acquaintances and relatives. She told them how greedy and evil Darya was, not letting her son care for his sick mother. Some acquaintances indeed started to look at Darya sideways, but Darya’s family supported her decision.
“You’re doing the right thing,” said Darya’s mother. “You can’t allow this. Otherwise, your husband will walk all over you.”
“Dasha, hang in there,” her sister supported her. “We’re with you, no matter what.”
The lawsuit was filed a week later. Darya demanded the purchase be declared invalid and eight hundred thousand rubles returned to the family budget. Egor received the summons and spent the whole evening pacing the apartment like a trapped animal.
“Do you realize what you’re doing? Mom will end up in the hospital from worry!”
“I do. I’m doing justice.”
“Justice? Dasha, that’s your mother! How can you sue your own mother?”
“I’m not suing my mother. I’m suing you. For robbing your own family.”
Lidiya Petrovna tried to influence the children. Once she came when Darya was not home and started complaining to Maksim and Polina about their evil stepmother.
“Imagine, kids, your mom wants to take away grandma’s only joy. The little car Dad gave her from his heart.”
But the kids were smarter than grandma expected.
“Grandma Lida,” Maksim said seriously, “then why is Mom crying? And why aren’t we going to the sea?”
“Yes,” Polina added. “Dad promised to take us to the sea. But now he says there’s no money.”
Lidiya Petrovna was at a loss, muttered something about childish whims, and hurried away.
The court hearing was scheduled for late summer. Darya was nervous, but the lawyer reassured her—the case was ironclad. All documents were in order, the law on the plaintiff’s side.
Almost the whole family gathered in the courtroom. Darya with her lawyer, Egor with his mother and their representative. Lidiya Petrovna sat with a tragic face, pretending to be a sick old lady offended by her evil daughter-in-law.
The judge carefully studied the documents, heard both sides. Darya’s lawyer clearly presented the position—that the husband spent joint savings without the wife’s consent, which violates family law. The defendants’ representative tried to prove the money belonged to Egor personally, but the documents said otherwise.
“Considering the evidence,” the judge said, “the court recognizes the transaction for purchasing the car invalid. The defendant must return the plaintiff the amount spent, eight hundred thousand rubles, within a month.”
Lidiya Petrovna sobbed and lamented the injustice. Egor sat with a stone face. And Darya felt relief—justice had finally prevailed.
“What will we do now?” the husband asked on the way home.
“Sell the car,” the wife answered shortly. “There’s no other way.”
“Mom will never forgive me for this.”
“And I will never forgive you for betrayal. So we’re even.”
They sold the car in two weeks. The money returned to the family account. Lidiya Petrovna didn’t speak to her son for a week but later came to terms. She had no choice.
But the family’s relationships changed radically. Darya set clear rules—all major purchases are discussed jointly. Help to parents is planned within the family budget and only after the needs of one’s own children are secured.
“If you want to help your mother, do it from personal funds,” the wife said. “But don’t touch family money without my consent anymore.”
Egor agreed. He had no choice—the divorce would have cost much more than the car.
In September, the family finally went to the sea. The kids were happy as little children, and Darya lay on the beach thinking about how important it is to defend your boundaries—even if you have to fight with the closest people.
Trust in the family recovered slowly. But Darya knew—without clear rules and mutual respect, the family would become a thoroughfare where everyone pulls the blanket over themselves. And that couldn’t be allowed.