“Grandma!” Ashley cried out, almost screaming. “That must be some kind of mistake. Maybe you got the address wrong. There are lots of similar houses around there, and you just got back. You must be exhausted.”
“That’s right, Mom,” my mother, Sandra, jumped in. Beads of sweat dotted her forehead. “It’s just jet lag. Your memories mixed up. Come on. The turkey’s getting cold.”
“Be quiet.”
My grandmother’s shout slammed down on my mother’s words like a physical blow. Despite her age, her voice was so powerful that everyone at the table flinched.
“My mind is not failing me yet. The address, the exterior, it was exactly the house I signed the contract for. And more than that…”
My grandmother reached into her handbag, pulled out a photograph, and slid it across the table.
“This is what Kevin’s parents, who were living in that house, said to me. ‘We’re staying in this home owned by our son’s wife, Ashley.’”
The moment those words landed, the color drained completely from Ashley’s face.
In the photo was a beautiful mansion by the lake, and in front of it, smiling for the camera, stood Ashley, her husband Kevin, and his parents.
“Shall we ask for an explanation of this photo?”
Faced with irrefutable evidence, the air in the room grew thick and heavy.
I stared at the photo, doubting my own eyes. It was the very same place Ashley had posted on social media with the caption “my new vacation home” back when I was wearing myself down juggling three part-time jobs.
That was my house.
“What is going on?” I stood up. “Mom, Dad, what does this mean? Grandma bought a house for me. Then why am I living like I’m homeless right now?”
At my question, my father looked away awkwardly.
“Uh, Mom, it’s complicated. Today’s Thanksgiving. Talking about money at a family dinner isn’t exactly appropriate, is it? Tomorrow we can sit down in my study and talk it through properly.”
My grandmother cut him off coldly.
“No, we’re clearing everything up here and now. Mandy, you really don’t know anything, do you? About the million-dollar vacation home I sent you 3 years ago and how it was used.”
A million dollars. The room spun.
The balance in my bank account when I checked it this morning was $12.50.
Working three jobs, sacrificing sleep, only to watch everything disappear into student loan payments and living expenses. A million dollars was a number I couldn’t even imagine.