Three Months of Mourning

Sloane shot to her feet, pointing at me. "This has always been the Marlowe family's house. Asking you to leave is perfectly reasonable. And we're introducing you to someone for your own good, to give you somewhere to belong. Don't be ungrateful!"

"Let me make this clear right now. Either you remarry or you move out. Otherwise, don't blame us for not being nice about it!" Donovan's tone was harsh.

I took a deep breath. "You need to understand. This house..."

Before I could finish, my mother-in-law, who had been standing silently to the side, suddenly went limp and collapsed straight to the floor.

"Mom!"

Everyone froze in shock.

When the ambulance arrived, the paramedics said only one family member could ride along.

Without thinking, I got in.

After a quick examination at the hospital, the doctor said, "The patient is fine. She just fainted from stress and emotional distress. Her blood pressure spiked.

"She clearly has something on her mind. As her family, try to be more accommodating and don't upset her further. We'll do a full checkup tomorrow. If there are no issues, she can be discharged."

Seeing the doctor say there was nothing serious, Sloane sidled over.

"Graham, so... Maya's home alone with no one watching her. I need to head back."

Donovan immediately chimed in, "I've also got some things to handle. Can you look after Mom for now? We'll come back first thing tomorrow morning to relieve you."

Watching their eagerness to leave, I did not argue. I just nodded.

"Fine. Go ahead. I'll call if anything comes up."

The next day around noon, a nurse came asking for my mother-in-law's ID and insurance card. Only then did I realize I had not brought them.

I called Donovan and Sloane, but after several attempts, no one picked up. I had no choice but to go home and get them myself.

When I reached the front door, I pulled out my key and inserted it into the lock. However, no matter how I turned it, it would not budge. The key would not come out either.

My next-door neighbor came out with her trash. Seeing me struggling with the door, she mentioned casually, "Graham, didn't your family tell you? Your sister-in-law had someone come change the lock this morning. The new lock was just installed not long ago. Your old key definitely won't work."

My heart sank. Changed the lock? What did that mean?

I immediately called Sloane. The next second, her phone's ringtone sounded clearly from inside the apartment. So she was home.

I raised my hand and pounded on the door. "Sloane, open up!"

The sounds inside paused. After a long moment, Sloane finally shouted impatiently through the door. "What are you banging for? Grace is still in the hospital. Why aren't you there watching her? What are you doing back here?"

I suppressed my anger. "What gives you the right to change my lock without permission?"

"Your lock?" Sloane let out a mocking laugh, her tone self-righteous.

"Graham, get it straight. This is the Marlowe family's house! This is Arya's house! Now that Arya's gone, this house belongs to the Marlowes. It belongs to us! I'll change the lock if I want to."

"This house was bought by my father for me. My name is on the property deed!" I raised my voice. "Your whole family has been freeloading here from day one!"

"Stop lying!" Sloane did not believe me at all.

"This house was bought by Arya. Now that she's gone, you have no connection to the Marlowe family anymore. What right do you have to keep living here? Get lost!"

"I'm asking you one last time. Are you opening this door or not?"

"No! If you're so tough, stay out there!"

I took a deep breath. Without wasting any more words on her, I opened my phone's dial pad and pressed three numbers. The moment the call connected, I said in a calm voice, "Hello, I need to report a crime. Someone is illegally occupying my house."