The old grandfather clock in the hallway struck midnight as I ran my fingers over Dad’s framed picture. His smile was the same as always: calm, steady, and proud. We buried him a year ago, but the pain still feels new, like it happened yesterday.
“Dad,” I murmured, my voice quivering, “I miss you so much.”
At that moment, Mom came in, and her expression was as cold as it has been since the will reading. Partly sympathy, partly anger.
“Don’t be sad, Katie.” He is gone, and crying will not bring him back.
Her remarks were as piercing as glass. I still remembered the lawyer reading the will. Dad gave me the house, the land, and 90% of everything else. Mom and my brother Tyler didn’t make much money. Dad made his choice on purpose to keep me secure. But they always made sure I remembered it.
I convinced myself I would be able to deal with their fury without saying anything. But I would find out that silence just makes wolves stronger.
The Attack
On a rainy May afternoon, the front door sprang open, and the sound of rolling luggage hitting the hardwood floor that Dad had put up himself echoed through the house.
“Surprise!” Tyler beamed from the door, and Gwen was plastered to his side. Their luggage were spilling out like a flood.
I paused. “What’s happening here?”
“Our lease is over. We believed we would stay here. There’s a lot of space, right?
I stared at Mom and wished she would stop him. But her smirk told the whole story.
“I told them it was a great idea,” she said.
My throat felt tight. “This isn’t your house to give away.”
It got chilly in the room. Mom’s eyes went smaller. Tyler laughed. Gwen smiled.
“Come on, Katie,” Tyler said softly as he pulled in the bags anyhow. “Don’t be stupid. This is the family’s home. “We’re family.”
They moved upstairs like I was a stranger who had entered the wrong room. And just like that, the attack began.
My Life in Prison Months went by. My house looked very different. The laundry smelt bad in the dryer, food went missing from the fridge, and the dishes were piled up like monuments to their entitlement.
When Gwen told me she was pregnant one morning, she held up the test kit like a prize. She said in a quiet voice, “I guess we won’t be moving out anytime soon.”
I tried to set rules. Tyler thought they were funny. Mom told me I was being selfish.
I wasn’t just offering them a place to stay. I was their maid. The person who woke up at dawn to buy McMuffins for Gwen’s nighttime desires threw them away, cleaned them, prepared them, and took every insult since the word “pregnant” made everything better.
Nobody even knew it was my birthday. Zoe, my friend, had left cupcakes for me, but when I arrived home, Gwen patted her tummy with pride. “The baby wanted them.”
That night, I bought a lock for my little fridge. By dawn, Mom had opened it with her spare key.
“Family doesn’t keep each other out,” she remarked.
“No,” I answered quietly. “Family doesn’t steal either.”
But they never paid attention to me.
The Point of No Return
That day when everything fell apart, I hadn’t eaten since sunrise. I worked for eight hours, and I was so hungry that I felt light-headed. Then I dragged myself home to make Dad’s mushroom cream pasta, which is like comfort food in a bowl. I was on the phone before I could even eat. Ten minutes later, I returned back to find Gwen at the counter with my fork and no food.
“GWEN? That was mine!
She shrugged her shoulders. “I was hungry.”
“I haven’t eaten all day!”
She started crying straight away, just like she had before. “I’m going to have a baby!”
Tyler came in, his face full of anger and protectiveness. “What the hell is wrong with you?” “Yelling at a woman who is pregnant?”
His mom’s voice was sharper than his. “Your dad would be so disappointed in you.”
That made me cry. Dad was the only person who ever saw me, kept me safe, and believed in me. To hear that his memory was used as a weapon? A part of me broke.
“This is MY house!” I yelled, and my voice shook.
But they didn’t care what I said. Gwen cried even more. Tyler instructed me to go. Mom swore. Three angry faces gazed at me.
And at that moment, I knew I was already dead.
A Call
I shut myself in my room and called Uncle Bob, who is Dad’s brother. He answered on the third ring.
“Hey, Katie? Is everything all right, my love?
The wall fell down. I cried, and words flowed out. “Uncle Bob, they’ve taken over. They want me to get out of my residence. I can’t keep doing this.
There was a long wait, and then his voice dropped like steel under silk. “Your dad trusted you for a reason. Do you recall when I told you I would buy the house? That deal is still great.
I gazed at the walls of my room when I was a kid. It still sounded like Dad was telling me stories to put me to sleep. I grabbed on to memories like they were lifelines.
“I’ll sell it,” I responded in a low voice. “But they all have to go.”
“Let me handle that,” Uncle Bob said.
The Fight
The next morning, I saw them in the living room, where they were lazing about like they owned the place. My heart raced, but I maintained cool.
“I have something to say.”
Tyler didn’t even look up. “Do it fast.”
I turned off the TV. “I sold the house.” To Uncle Bob. You all have two days to get ready and leave.
The silence was like thunder.
“You’re kidding,” Mom responded in a quiet voice.
I gave her the papers. “No.” The improvements will start on Saturday. “Locks change at noon.”
“You can’t do this!” Tyler’s face got red. “Gwen is pregnant!”
I said in a chilly voice, “So I’ve heard.” “Pregnancy isn’t an extension of a lease.”
Mom’s voice shook with rage. “You are a selfish girl.” You caused us to lose our house.
“No,” I said, and my voice was steady. “You lost your home the moment you forgot what respect was.”
Gwen tried to get me to agree by rubbing her stomach. “This baby is a member of the family.”
I looked her straight in the eye. “Family doesn’t treat me like garbage. Not anymore.
Freedom
For the next two nights, I remained with Zoe. When I arrived back on Saturday afternoon, they were gone. There was only the smell of decaying clothes and an empty cupcake wrapper remained.
The deal went through. Uncle Bob gave me a check for $2 million that would change everything for me. I have enough money to buy a little, sunny cottage that has a lot of promise.
As I stood on my new porch the day I moved in, my phone buzzed with a last message from Mom:
“You’ve messed us up.” I hope you’re happy, you greedy animal.
I hung up.
I looked around my small home while holding the keys in my hands. I told the air:
“Dad, I hope you’re proud.” I finally stood up for myself. ”
And for the first time in a long time, I felt free.