“You wouldn’t report me.”
“I may not need to. The vendors can decide how they want to handle their collections.”
She started crying.
“But I am not writing a check. Not for the venue, not for the catering, not for the flowers.”
“Mom, this will destroy our credit.”
“Then your credit will be damaged.”
“We won’t be able to buy a house.”
“Then you’ll rent.”
I stood.
“You’ll make a budget. You’ll pay your debts over time. That’s what adults do when they spend money they don’t have.”
As I walked toward the entryway, I noticed Emily’s purse. Her keys were sticking out.
I picked them up.
Years earlier, I had given her a spare key to my house.
I removed it from the ring.
“What are you doing?”
“Setting a boundary.”
Her voice cracked.
“Mom—”
“You made it clear I’m not part of your inner circle. I’m respecting that decision.”
I put my house key into my pocket and handed her the rest.
“You are a guest here now.”
Emily stared at me.
“And guests don’t have keys.”
They left quietly.
They had no backup plan because I had always been the backup plan.
Once I removed myself, they had to face the consequences themselves.
Over the next couple of weeks, the Harrison family virtually disappeared from their social circle. Their financial problems were no longer easy to hide.
Patricia Harrison even called me one afternoon.
“Linda,” she began in an overly sweet voice. “I feel like perhaps we started off on the wrong foot.”
I had her on speaker while trimming plants in my backyard.
“The children are under tremendous pressure. Surely, as a mother, you can find some money to help them avoid financial disaster.”
I almost laughed.
“Patricia, I was informed that I wasn’t part of the closest circle.”