Divorced by Three My Daughters-in-Laws Betrayal

Why should I be the only one serving her? She's not just *my* mother-in-law! If Bella divorces, I'm divorcing too! Olivia Montgomery's lip curled as she glanced at the eighty-five-year-old woman slumped in the wheelchair. Pure disgust. Not even an attempt to hide it.

Sarah Montgomery's voice cut through next, shrill and triumphant. "You divorce! I'll divorce too!"

Old. Paralyzed. Dying.

I was garbage to them. Something to be shoved back and forth, passed around like a burden no one wanted to claim. My sons were worseinventing business trips, fleeing to other cities, anything to avoid the inconvenience of their own mother.

Unable to feed myself. Unable to bathe. Unable to do anything but exist.

They dumped me in my old hometown and left me there to rot.

I died alone. Consumed by bitterness so deep it had eaten through my bones.

A lifetime of devotion. Every dollar. Every ounce of love I had. Poured into children who couldn't wait for me to stop breathing.

From the moment my three sons married, I had divided my entire retirement pension evenly among their wives. I raised their children with my own hands while my back bent lower each year. They called me "the best mother-in-law in the world." They swore they'd take care of me when I was old.

*We'll be there for you, Mom. Always.*

Lies.

When the time came, they ran faster than rabbits fleeing a hawk.

But then

The darkness receded.

My eyes opened. The stench of decay was gone. My limbs moved. My spine was straight.

I was back.

Back to the very day my three daughters-in-law married into this family.

They sat in my living room right now, discussing the future. Should we all eat from one communal pot? Or should Mother rotate between households, cooking and cleaning for a month at a time?

Their voices droned on, making plans for my servitude.

I didn't let them finish.

"I'm getting a divorce."

The words sliced through the air like a blade.

"You can discuss these arrangements when you have mothers-in-law of your own."

Silence.

Every head snapped toward me. Eyes wide. Mouths hanging open.

"Samantha, what did I do? Why are you angry?" My husband Sebastian's face had gone white. His hands trembled as he reached for minesomething he never did in front of the children. "Scold me if you must. I'll change! But why... why divorce?"

Sebastian died ten years before me in my previous life. He never knew what happened after he was gone. Never witnessed the horror of what his sons became.

Ian stepped forward, my eldest, his brow furrowed. "Mom, what nonsense are you talking about?"

"You and Dad are fine." Sean looked genuinely baffled. "Why would you divorce? Did Dad upset you?"

Julian let out a scoff. My youngest. Always treating everything like a joke. "Mom, you're fifty-five, not twenty-five. What are you making a fuss about at this age?"

Bella crossed her arms, her voice dripping with mockery. "What is this? We just got married, and the mother-in-law is staging a divorce drama?"

"Exactly." Olivia's sneer matched her tone. "What's the difference between this and marriage fraud? If I'd known it was like this, I wouldn't have married into this family at all."

Sarah rolled her eyes so hard I was surprised they didn't get stuck. "Divorce or not, you're still our husbands' mother. You're still our mother-in-law. You still have responsibilities to fulfill!"

Their voices crawled under my skin like insects.

In my past life, these three women had each been more calculating than the last. I had foolishly believed that sincerity would be returned with sincerity. *Only a good mother-in-law makes a good daughter-in-law*, I had told myself.

So I gave them everything.

My $9,000 monthly pension, split three ways. Daily home-cooked meals, delivered door-to-door so they could enjoy their privacy while I slaved over a hot stove. Their laundryincluding underwear they "accidentally" left in the hamper for me.

Eight grandchildren. Sebastian and I hadn't slept a full night in years.

And for what?

To die choking on my own filth while they counted down the days until my heart stopped?

Not this time.

In my previous life, I worked myself to the bone. A servant in my own home.

My daughters-in-law would brag to outsiders about their luck, calling me "Mom" with honey-sweet smiles. I thought I had won their hearts.

I didn't realize until I was paralyzed that I had been raising wolves.

Now, staring at these six ungrateful faces, rage boiled through my veins like molten iron.

"What responsibility?" The words ripped out of me, sharp as broken glass. "I raised my three sons. They have families now. What am I to youa bank? Did your parents refuse to let you leech off them, so you came to drain me instead?"

The daughters-in-law's expressions curdled into something ugly.

Olivia was the first to snap. "Look at what your mom is saying! Is that even human language?" She grabbed her purse. "Divorce!"

Bella followed, heels clicking against the floor. "I'm divorcing too! What the hell is this?"

Sarah puffed up like an angry hen. "I was blind to marry into this family! I'm not serving anyone!"

Ian whirled on me, face flushed. "Mom! What are you doing? We just got married, and you're tearing the family apart!"

I spread my hands, letting indifference settle across my features. "What does that have to do with me? Live your lives or don't. Your choice." I paused, letting the words sink in. "I'm no longer a member of the James family. I'm getting a divorce."

My three sons stood frozen. Red-faced. Humiliated.

"Dad, talk some sense into Mom! Calm her down!"

They threw the command over their shoulders as they scrambled after their wives, desperate to salvage their marriages.

Sebastian stood alone in the middle of the room. Lost. Frantic. His eyes pleading like a child who didn't understand why he was being punished.

"Samantha, please. What's wrong? Everything was fine." His voice cracked. "I've never hit you. Never cursed at you. Why are you doing this?"

Something ached behind my ribs.

It was true. We had lived a lifetime together with mutual respect. He genuinely couldn't understand this sudden coldness.

I met his gaze. "Fine. If we don't divorce, will you agree to cut off all ties with our three sons? Right now?"

He froze. The color drained from his face. "No, Samantha... why? They're our children."

Sebastian was a good father. He could never abandon them.

That was exactly why I had to leave.

"Because I refuse to be an unpaid nanny until I die." My voice dropped, soft but unyielding. "I don't want a miserable death, Sebastian. If you truly care for meif you have any pity for me at alldivorce me."

He didn't understand. He shook his head again and again.

I spent the entire night talking to him. Wearing him down. I promised him that in my heart, he was the only man I would ever love. But I could not stay in this house.

Finally, heartbroken and bewildered, he agreed.

He signed the papers. Transferred all the property under his name to me as a parting gift.

On the day we received the divorce certificate, he looked at me with red-rimmed eyes. "Samantha, remember your promise. Behind closed doors, we are still husband and wife."

I nodded, clutching the certificate.

My ticket to freedom.

The moment I returned home, Ian came rushing in, practically bouncing.

"Dad! Mom!" His grin stretched ear to ear. "Bella is pregnant! You're going to have a grandson!"

He was so excited he didn't notice his father packing a suitcase in the corner. Didn't notice the stillness in the room.

"Mom, you've got work to do now. Take good care of Bella." He beamed at me. "She's pregnant, so you need to treat her like royalty."

I sat on the sofa, peeling an orange with slow, deliberate movements. I lifted my eyes and gave him a bored glance.

"I can't take care of her. I'm not a member of the James family anymore."

The smile died on his face.

He opened his mouth, then closed it. Still assuming this was a joke. Some kind of petty revenge.

Bella walked in behind him. Hearing my words, her expression soured. She placed a hand on her still-flat stomach, posturing like she was already nine months along. She approached me with the arrogance of an empress dowager inspecting a disobedient servant.

"Don't look for excuses to be lazy."

"If you don't want to put in the effort, that's fine. You can pay instead." Bella examined her manicure as if this conversation bored her. "That's how it works with mothers-in-law. You either contribute labor or cash. Pick one."

She spoke with absolute entitlement. Like she was doing me a favor by offering an alternative.

Ian nodded immediately. "Right, Mom. Just pay up. Five thousand dollars a month for nutrition and expenses should be enough."

Their voices carried through the house. Sean and Julian appeared in the doorway with their wives in tow, drawn by the scent of money like sharks to blood.

Olivia shoved past her husband, eyes bright with greed. "I'm planning to get pregnant too! Since you have three sons, you have to be fair. Give me five thousand a month for nutrition as well."

Sarah wasn't far behind. "We're also planning for a baby. As the saying goes, inequality is worse than scarcity. Five thousand a month. Same as everyone else."

I sat there, popping imported cherries into my mouth. Two hundred dollars a box. In my past life, I wouldn't have dared spend money on such luxuryevery penny went to these ingrates.

Now, the sweetness of the fruit was enhanced by the bitter comedy unfolding before me.

I watched them like a circus performance. Clowns tripping over each other, scrambling for imaginary money.

Sebastian stood by the door, jaw clenched so tight a vein pulsed in his temple. Finally, he spoke, his voice tight enough to snap. "Your mother's pension is only nine thousand a month. She doesn't have that kind of money to give you."

Olivia waved him off, smug. "Mom used to run a supermarket on top of her job. She made plenty of money." Her eyes glittered. "If she doesn't spend it on her sons, who is she going to spend it on? Taking it to the grave?"

Sebastian's face turned a dangerous shade of crimson. His hands curled into fists at his sides.

It was one thing for parents to give willingly.

It was another thing entirely for children to demand it like a debt owed.

"I've already divorced your mother." Sebastian's voice dropped to a low growl. "Didn't you see I'm packing? I'm getting the hell out of here!"

Dead silence.

They looked at me. Then at Sebastian. Then at the suitcase behind him.

Disbelief painted every face. Old couples didn't actually divorce. This had to be a bluff.

Sarah recovered first, anger flooding her features. "You say you're divorced? How? A divorce means dividing property! We're part of this family. We have a right to know how the assets were split!"

Bella and Olivia flanked her, crossing their arms in unison. Stern. Demanding. Like auditors descending on a fraudulent business.

"Exactly! What kind of divorce is this? Explain it clearly!"

"Divorcing at this age? Aren't you afraid of dying alone?"

Sebastian's face went dark as a thundercloud. "Our business is not your concern. You focus on your own lives." His voice hardened. "The divorce is simple. I'm leaving with nothing. Your mother followed me for a lifetime, and now she wants out. I respect that. And you will not make things difficult for her."

*Leaving with nothing.*

The words detonated like a bomb.

The room exploded into chaos.

"Dad, why are you leaving with nothing?"

"Mom is the one who wants the divorce! If anyone leaves with nothing, it should be her!"

"I don't care about your divorce papers! She's my husband's mothershe's my mother-in-law! She has to support our family!"

"Dad! Mom! What is this? You're just dropping the burden and running away?"

"Have you considered our feelings? We have expenses!"

"I must be cursed! Why are you two going crazy?"

The noise battered against my skull like fists.

My patience snapped.

*SMACK!*

The heavy fruit platter slammed against the coffee table. Glass rattled. Cherries scattered like drops of blood.

Silence.

I rose to my feet, finger shaking as I pointed at the door.

"All of you. Get out!"

My voice cracked through the room like thunder.

"My life belongs to ME! It is not up to a pack of parasites to tell me how to live it!"

I drew a breath. Let it out slowly.

"Today, I'm setting the record straight."

"From now on, I won't meddle in your affairs, and I don't need you meddling in mine!"

Bella Montgomery's chest heaved violently. A mottled flush crept up her face, and the veins in her thick neck bulged like worms beneath the skin. She clutched her stomach, her body folding inward.

"I... my stomach... it hurts so much."

A trembling finger rose, pointing directly at the bridge of my nose. "You won't be happy until you make me so angry I miscarry, will you?"

I watched her performance without blinking. "If the child is gone, that is your fate."

"Mom, shut up! Stop talking!" Ian Montgomery roared.

He didn't spare me another glance. In one motion, he scooped up his wife and rushed her to the hospital.

That afternoon, Ian called. I didn't answer.

A barrage of text messages followeda dense wall of guilt and accusations. I didn't read a single word. If I softened even a fraction, I would be betraying the woman I was in my previous life.

Sebastian James saw the notifications lighting up my phone. Fury flickered across his face at their disrespect, but old habits die hard. His heart softened, and he went to the hospital to check on Bella.

Hours later, a video arrived from Sarah Montgomery.

The scene was Bella's hospital room. The entire family had cornered Sebastian, surrounding him like a pack of hyenas closing in on wounded prey.

Ian's eyes were bloodshot. Tears streamed down his face as he pleaded with his father. "Dad, Nana wants to divorce me now. She wants to abort the child. That's your first grandson. If you and Mom want to divorce, finebut you can't just walk away from your responsibilities to us!"

Sean Montgomery jumped in, fuming. "It's not just my sister-in-law. My wife wants a divorce now too!"

Julian Montgomery's temper was even more explosive. "Mine too! I've only been married a few days. The ink isn't even dry on the marriage license, and she's already talking about leaving me!"

Sebastian sighed heavily, looking deeply beleaguered. "Your mother wants to divorce me. There is nothing I can do."

Olivia Montgomery's eyes widened in agitation. "How is there nothing you can do? Get the money back! If she won't give it up, sue her!"

Sarah added fuel to the fire. "Dad, I'm not calling you stupid, but think about it. Mom divorcing you so suddenly? She definitely has a lover on the side. She's going to spend all that money on some wild man. She won't spend a dime on her own sons, but she'll shower it on a stranger. If word gets out, where will your dignity be?"

From the hospital bed, Bella's voice came out weak but venomous. "Exactly. Dad, I don't know why you're being such a coward. You used to subsidize each of our families three thousand dollars a month for our mortgages. All that money went to her. Does this mean you won't be able to help us anymore?"

A breath. Then the ultimatum.

"Here's the reality. Either you get Mom's money back and divide it evenly among your three sonsthe ones who will actually support you in your old ageor I abort this child and divorce your son."

Ian stepped forward, his voice dropping to a threat. "Dad, the James family money cannot flow into an outsider's hands. If you don't sue to get it back, and Nana divorces me, you lose a son."

Sean and Julian echoed him immediately, wielding their estrangement like a blade.

Ian shoved a legal document into Sebastian's hands. "The lawyer wrote this. He says he's confident we can win the money back. If Mom refuses to pay, you propose remarriage. Just focus on taking care of your eldest grandson."

My husband held the lawsuit, silent and unmoving.

They all took his silence for agreement.

But the moment Sebastian walked through our front door, he looked at me with weary clarity.

"I finally understand why you wanted to divorce me." His voice came out raspy. "Those ungrateful parasites... I don't want them anymore, either."

I took his hand, squeezing his rough palm.

"Then from now on, we live for ourselves."

"The children and grandchildren have their own lives. We won't interfere anymore."

Sebastian nodded. A heavy weight seemed to lift from his shoulders.

The very next day, we sold the house. A former coworker from our old unit bought it for a lump sum, sparing us the hassle of the market. Cash in hand, we packed our bags and left town.

As we boarded the plane, a message from Ian lit up my screen.

*Mom, don't blame me for not giving you a chance. Hurry up and apologize to my wife, remarry Dad, and help us out a bit in the future. Help look after the grandchild, and you can enjoy your later years.*

I deleted the thread without replying.

The next day, he tried again.

*Dad is going to sue you. Now you're abandoned by everyone.*

Ignored.

On the third day, all three sons and their wives showed up at the house looking for Sebastian. Only then did they discover the locks had been changed and a stranger was living there.

They blew up Sebastian's phone. It rang incessantly until he finally answered Julian's call.

"Dad, what is going on! Why did you sell the house? Where are you?"