Fulfilling My Husband's Last Wish, My Mother-in-Law Sues Me

We all walked out, one after the other. Sam pulled me aside, lowering his voice. "Barbara, Todd's not got much time left—maybe a couple of days. You need to talk to him. We should get Ryan officially adopted by you two now, so he has a reason to handle the funeral."

I hesitated, feigning uncertainty. "Sam, I want Todd to have a proper send-off too, but I really don't think this is the way to go."

Sam frowned, clearly frustrated.

I went on, "It's not that I'm against adopting Ryan. But, you probably don't realize this—we've spent everything on Todd's treatment. We even mortgaged the house and racked up a lot of debt. If Ryan gets adopted, he's not getting any inheritance, just a heap of debt. It's really not worth it."

Sam's face darkened, and he dropped the subject for good.

As I walked Susan out of the hospital, I tried once more. "Todd's been wanting this sea burial for a while. He's in such bad shape now… maybe we should just honor his wish."

Susan gave me a sharp look. "You young people only think of what's convenient for you. Tossing him in the ocean might be easy for you, but back home, we'll be a laughingstock. This is non-negotiable."

With Susan so dead set against it, I knew there was no point in pushing further. I had no intention of letting history repeat itself.

After seeing them off, I turned back and headed into Todd's hospital room. The moment I opened the door, a plastic cup flew past my face.

"What on earth is your problem?" I snapped.

"Barbara, what were you thinking? I told you not to call my mom!" Todd struggled to sit up, his face twisted in pain. "She's too old to handle this kind of news."

It didn't look like she was struggling. Susan had no trouble lifting her nearly forty-pound grandson into the car. She didn't seem frail at all.

I picked up the cup, trying to keep my frustration in check. "This is a huge deal, Todd. I can't make these decisions alone. If I don't tell your family and something goes wrong, they'll blame me. Besides, your mom needs to handle this."

My words must have sounded harsh, because Todd just stared at me, shocked. Then he started coughing uncontrollably, each cough sounding like it might split his lungs.

"So that's all I am to you—just a burden."

I shook my head. "If that's how you feel, there's nothing more I can do."

In my previous life, I never saw Todd as a burden, which only led to more problems for me. Today made it clear—Todd wasn't worried about his mom's distress; he just didn't want her blocking his wishes.

I set up the cot I'd gotten used to sleeping on, poured out his medication, and watched him take it, all while saying, "Don't worry. Your mom promised to give you a grand farewell."

"I don't want that. I want a sea burial," Todd insisted, pounding his hand on the bed.

"There's nothing I can do about that," I replied, trying to stay calm. "Your mom's in charge."

Todd was so angry after that, he didn't speak to me at all.

The next morning, he demanded to be discharged. I tried to talk him out of it, but Todd wouldn't budge. Given that he had less than two days left, I reluctantly agreed.

After a grueling day of paperwork and arrangements, I finally got him home. Exhausted, I collapsed onto the bed and fell asleep instantly.

In my dreams, I heard someone calling my name. I wanted to answer, but my eyelids felt like they were made of lead.

In the middle of the night, the phone rang, jolting me awake. It was the police. They told me Todd had jumped into the sea.

Todd got his wish in the end—he died at sea. His body was quickly swept away, and the police were able to contact me only because he left a suicide note. In it, he stated that he had ended his life on his own terms, with no coercion from anyone, including the hospital or me. His sole wish was to die at sea, and he specifically requested that his body not be recovered.

Reading the note, I felt no sorrow. If I didn't know it was for his first love, I might have been devastated.

Susan and Sam rushed over from the countryside. The moment Susan saw me, she raised her hand as if to slap me.