Stay With Me, Use Me, And Even Kick Me Out - Chapter 3

“Just wait,” John said.

“Wait for what? She hasn’t even let Mark sleep in the bed for days now!” Mary sounded frantic. “Is that stuff from your friend even working? We’ve been giving it to Sarah for over three years now, and she’s still perfectly healthy. When is she going to…you know?”

My blood ran cold. What “stuff“? Mary wanted me dead. Suddenly, everything clicked into – place the constant colds, the nosebleeds, the hair loss. Before moving back in with John and Mary, I’d rarely gotten sick.

“Of course, it’s working,” John said, revealing another horrifying secret. “How do you think her parents died? Same way.”

I felt dizzy. So that’s why my parents had died so suddenly, even though their vitals had been stable.

Mary sighed. “Should we increase the dosage?”

John thought for a moment. “We could. It took a year and a half for her parents to die, and it’s been three years already. No one would suspect anything.”

“I still say we should have just arranged a car accident. This is taking too long. She’s almost spent all of her parents‘ inheritance.”

“Don’t worry. It’ll all be ours eventually.”

I stumbled down the stairs, my mind reeling. John’s kindness had all been an act. They were poisoning me. My parents hadn’t died naturally. As I passed the living room, Jessica called out to me, unusually friendly.

“Sarah!”

“What is it, Jessica?”

“Mark and I talked it over. It wouldn’t be right to kick you out now that you just started your job.”

What was this? I couldn’t figure out her angle.

“But,” she continued, “we’re not really family, and Mark works hard to support everyone. Now that you’re earning, you should contribute. Rent is expensive these days. We think $1,500 a month for living expenses is reasonable.”

So that was it.

I laughed. “Reasonable? Perfectly reasonable. But there’s something you don’t know, Jessica. This house? It’s mine.”

Jessica’s jaw dropped. “You’re lying! That’s… that’s impossible!”

“It’s true,” I said. “And not just the house. I’ve been paying for all of your living expenses, too.” Before I moved back in, I paid John a salary, plus whatever he claimed he needed for house maintenance.

New lawnmower, repairs… I was a student; I had no idea what things cost, so I paid whatever he asked. And since I’d returned, I’d been covering all the household bills. I realized I needed to check the accounts.

“You’re making this up! How could you, a broke student, have that kind of money?” Jessica’s shriek brought John and Mary downstairs. They looked surprised to see me.

“Sarah, what are you doing home so early?” Mary asked.

Before I could answer, Jessica rushed to her side and pointed at me. “Mom, she said the house is hers! Is that true?”

Their faces paled. Mary recovered first. “No, no, of course not, dear. Sarah’s joking.” She frantically winked at me.

I ignored her and pulled the deed to the house out of my bag, tossing it onto the coffee table.

“Is that a joke?” I asked, holding out the deed. “Take a good look.”

Jessica’s hands trembled as she grabbed it. The blood drained from her face. “You lied to me!” she shrieked at Mary. “You promised to put the house in my name after the baby was born! How were you planning on doing that?”

John, his feigned affection gone, turned on me. “Sarah, I was going to tell her! Why’d you have to blow this up?”

In the past, guilt would have gnawed at me.

Now?

I laughed. “Jessica’s right. We’re not family. Even friends draw the line somewhere.”

“She wants $1,500 a month? Fine. I’ll be generous. $750 each from you two. For the past three years. Pay up.”

“$750 each? That’s $54,000!” John exploded.

“Sarah, I’m your uncle!”

“Even grandpas pay their debts,” I retorted, my smile razor sharp. “Oh, and Jessica, remember that $50,000 for your wedding? John promised to pay me back. Three years. Pay up.”

The blows landed one after another. Jessica crumpled to the floor. I didn’t go to the hospital. I called movers to clear Jessica’s stuff from my room. John arrived as they finished.

“Sarah, what the hell?”

“I’m taking my room back.”

“Of course, of course! I already told Jessica to move.” He was back to his oily, two–faced self. I just smiled.

“As your uncle, I gotta say, you were harsh on Jessica. We’re family. What’s with the nickel- and–diming?”

“I treated her like family. She didn’t reciprocate.”

“I talked to her. It’s just… Mark’s been away on business. No one to, you know, keep her calm.”

He fidgeted.

“Spit it out, John.”

“Jessica’s… not well. She’s talking about an abortion, divorce… the whole nine yards.”