I thought the worst part was being treated like free childcare.
Then my eight-year-old grandson found something on his mother’s tablet that made my son ask a question none of us expected.
Friday evening, my daughter-in-law dropped off her three children without warning.
“Weekend trip. Eric knows.”
He didn’t.
When I complained, she simply said:
“You’ll manage.”
The next morning, Brooks asked me:
“Grandma, are we going to live with you now?”
I froze.
Their bags contained far more than clothes.
Schoolbooks.
Medication.
Insurance information.
Even their birth certificates.
Then I found an envelope addressed to my son.
I called Eric.
“Don’t call Vanessa,” he said. “I’m coming home.”
Forty minutes later, he arrived.
Before we could figure anything out, Vanessa suddenly returned.
She stopped when she saw Eric holding the envelope.
“Eric, I can explain.”
Then Brooks walked into the room holding her tablet.
“Mom… why does it say our flight leaves tonight?”
Eric checked the passenger list.
There were four tickets.
Three for the children.
One for him.
He looked at Vanessa.
“Why did you buy tickets for all of us without telling me?”
Vanessa’s face went pale.
And then she revealed something that changed the entire situation.