“You?” I stood by the open door, completely taken aback.
“Hello, Olechka! Didn’t expect me, did you?” My now ex–mother-in-law, Anna Evgenyevna, stood on the threshold of my apartment, smiling warmly.
“Uh… hello. No, I didn’t…”
Honestly, I was stunned by the sight of her. Why on earth would Vlad’s mother suddenly come to visit me as if nothing had happened? Had my ex-husband not said anything to her? Did she really not know about our divorce yet? Unbelievable.
“Are you not happy to see me or what?” my mother-in-law asked, surprised by my strange reaction. “I don’t exactly pester you with my presence. I try to come as rarely as possible.”
Anna Evgenyevna was nervously twisting the handle of a large bag in her hands. Probably, as usual, she’d brought goodies. She always did. She never came to us empty-handed: all kinds of treats, and plenty of little gifts both for me and for Vlad were always tucked into her bags.
“Come in, Anna Evgenyevna. I was just a bit lost in thought, I’m sorry. I’ve just come back from work, I still can’t switch off, my mind’s still there.”
I really started to feel awkward. My mother-in-law had come to visit us with an open heart. With presents and treats. Just like always. Only there was no “us” anymore. Vlad and I were no longer a family. Could it be that Anna Evgenyevna truly didn’t know?
I had never been at war with my mother-in-law. On the contrary, she was that rare exception—she genuinely loved me.
This kind woman always took my side in our arguments with my husband. And afterward, gently but very convincingly, she would try to explain to her son that you cannot treat your wife that way. That we women are very sensitive by nature, and the best thing you can do for your wife is simply to love her under any circumstances.
“So where’s Vladya then? Off on some business trip again? He didn’t tell me anything. We spoke on the phone just yesterday, and not a word!” she said, puzzled.
“Vlad? He…” I faltered again.
I was trying to decide when to tell her about our divorce—right now or a bit later. Maybe I should prepare her first? Gently lead her to the fact that our marriage had burst like a soap bubble.
Now it was clear—Vlad hadn’t been able to tell his mother that we had separated and hadn’t lived together for over a month.
“Yes. Yes, Vlad is away. An urgent business trip. Come in, take off your coat. We’ll cook something for dinner now.”
I started bustling about in the kitchen, and Anna Evgenyevna began to unpack her bag of treats. I’d been right—the bag was full of gifts for me and for Vlad.
“Olechka, you work far too much. Just look at yourself, you’re so skinny! That’s not good, it’s your health we’re talking about. You and Vlad still have children to bear. Stop giving all of yourself to your work, no one will appreciate it. Here’s some honey for you, very healthy and completely natural. And here’s a herbal mix to strengthen your immune system and, at the same time, your appetite.”
She handed me a big jar of amber honey and a small canvas sack of herbs. Then she took from her magic bag a warm, fluffy scarf the color of baked milk, and a pair of down socks for me and her son. My mother-in-law loved knitting.
“Here, take these. Winter is coming, they’ll come in handy,” said Anna Evgenyevna with a smile. “And here I’ve packed a bit of everything for you—cured salted pork fat with garlic, pickled cucumbers, ketchup from my own tomatoes. You don’t eat properly, I know that. Always on the run, snacking, dry food. And food is a very important and necessary ritual in a person’s life. We recharge our bodies with vital energy so they can serve us long and well.”
“Oh, why did you bring all this? It’s heavy! We have everything. And we can buy whatever we need at the store.”
“Store-bought isn’t the same, not at all! It’s all chemicals and no taste. And mine is all natural and good for you. Take it while it’s being given.”
I quickly put dinner together—boiled some rice and fried turkey cutlets. Then my mother-in-law and I sat down at the table.
“Listen, Olia, what do you say to this… idea? Let’s have a little drink to my visit, shall we?” Anna Evgenyevna said with a sly smile. “Do you have anything for such an occasion?”
“Yes, I do. There should be some wine somewhere. I’ll go check.”
I got up, found a bottle of cabernet in the cupboard—the one I had recently been given at work. I uncorked it and poured it into pretty wineglasses. To be honest, I wanted something relaxing myself. I felt very uncomfortable and awkward about the whole situation. As always, wise Anna Evgenyevna found a quick solution.
Having downed a glass each, we moved on to dinner.
“My God, this is just amazing! Your salted pork fat is always so delicious, Anna Evgenyevna! Simply magical!” I praised her, after tasting my favorite treat.
I even closed my eyes with pleasure. It was that good. And the wine had already started to relax me.
“Nothing special, Olechka! I just make it with love. Go on, eat, don’t be shy. You need to put on some weight. And pour us another glass. The wine is just perfect. Tonight we’re going to have ourselves a bit of a spree,” she laughed and winked at me.
“Anna Evgenyevna, the thing is…”
After the second glass I decided it was time to tell her the truth. Vlad’s mother looked at me attentively.
“I have to tell you something,” I began uncertainly.
Then fell silent, searching for the right words. Of course I understood that no matter what phrases or explanations I came up with now, they would still hurt this woman, who had been so happy about my marriage to her son.
“Olia, let me tell you something first,” my mother-in-law got ahead of me.
“I’m listening,” I said with obvious relief.
“A long time ago, when Vlad was only seventeen, a certain young woman named Tatyana appeared in his life,” began Anna Evgenyevna.
And at that moment it was as if an electric shock went through me—Tatyana! Could she really be talking about her? About that snake? Why? How, from where did she know about her?
“Tatyana was three years older than my son, and as for her character—bold and even brazen. She lived nearby; I knew that family well. They lived badly, everyone survived as best they could. That’s where the brazenness came from, and even rudeness in her behavior. There were no boundaries of decency for her, no limits.”
“When Vladik started bringing Tatyana to our house, I realized I had to do something. And quickly! That girl was as cloying and intrusive as thick syrup that’s hard to wash off. I could see perfectly well that my son was helplessly lowering his hands, tangled in the web of her seduction. But he was so young and inexperienced back then. And he was never happy with her, Olia. Not once! I’m his mother, I know very well how his eyes sparkle and shine when they’re full of happiness. That’s exactly how they shone when my son met you.”
“So you know everything?” I asked, genuinely surprised.
“I know, my dear, I know. And I can say with certainty—Vladik is tangled up again, he’s fallen into her trap just like he did in his youth. He wasn’t happy with her then, and he’s unhappy now! Olechka, my dear girl, he needs to be saved, not driven away!”
Anna Evgenyevna came up to me and hugged me like a mother. I hadn’t even noticed when tears started running down my cheeks. All the pain of the past weeks and all the resentment suddenly burst out, melted by the wine and the warm compassion of my former mother-in-law.
“I can’t, Anna Evgenyevna! I can’t! Don’t you understand? He betrayed me! He betrayed our love…”
“There, there, my dear girl, stop it now. It’s not worth crying like this, and you mustn’t torture yourself either. You have to understand that Tatyana came back into his life with one single goal—to destroy your marriage. That treacherous woman has never forgiven Vlad for leaving her once and meeting you instead. For daring to be happy. Without her! That’s what’s been gnawing at her all these years.”
“Anna Evgenyevna, this is betrayal! And no explanations or arguments can fix that. My husband was seeing her, and I found out. And if I hadn’t found out, then what? Would he have kept running to her behind my back? Is that it? And why would I need that?”
“All right, let’s set emotions aside for now. How did you find out about it, tell me, Olia?” my mother-in-law suddenly interrupted me.
“Oh God, what difference does it make how? What does that change?” I was almost shouting now, remembering all the details of my personal disaster.
“It does make a difference, it does, believe me! And it changes a lot—the fact how you found out.”
“That sly Tatyana sent me a photo of Vlad to my cell phone. He’s lying there, you understand? Asleep! At her place! In her bed!” I spit the words out, full of hurt.
“Olia, my sweet girl, you have to understand that this vile woman will stop at nothing. And she got what she wanted. We don’t know how she lured Vladik to her place. And we don’t know how he ended up asleep in her bed either. Maybe she drugged him? Slipped him sleeping pills or something worse? Did you ever think of that? The main thing is that this viper achieved her goal—you drove Vlad out of your life.”
“It’s still despicable. Why, tell me, why did he even meet with her if he loved me?” I couldn’t calm down and kept crying.
“Why, we don’t know either. Perhaps she tricked him? Told him she was in trouble and urgently needed help? Did you even try to talk to him, Olia? Try to find anything out?”
“No! Why would I? Those photos on my phone were more than enough. What was there to find out? And Vlad… he just silently packed his things and left. Where is he now, huh? Where? Surely with her!” I wouldn’t let up.
“No, Olia. From the first day of your separation, my son has been living with a friend. And before coming to you, I went to see him. Forgive me this little trick, Olechka… Vlad is living with his former classmate. And he misses you terribly. He told me he didn’t cheat on you, but that you would hardly be able to forgive him. Vladik does not lie to me.”
“What is there to forgive if he didn’t cheat?” I snapped bitterly.
“His weakness and gullibility, his stupidity, if you will! Olia, you and he have an entire life ahead of you. You love each other so much, you’ll have children, and someday grandchildren for me to dote on. Don’t destroy what the Lord has given you. You loved each other. And even now, I’m sure, you still do!”
“You don’t understand, Anna Evgenyevna, this is very hard! Very few people manage to forgive infidelity. It feels like a life sentence.”
“Life isn’t an easy thing at all, child! If everything always went exactly the way we wanted, would we really value our lives? Forgive him, I beg you! Take a step toward him! Vladik is not guilty.”
At that moment my mother-in-law began to cry herself. I felt sorry for this kind woman. But I still couldn’t imagine how to forgive my husband’s betrayal.
“I’ll think about it, Anna Evgenyevna. I’ll talk to Vlad, I’ll give him a chance to explain. But I promise you nothing.”
The next day my mother-in-law left. As she said goodbye, she told me:
“I really hope so, Olia. Be wise.”
All day I couldn’t find a place for myself, I kept thinking about our conversation the night before.
And in the evening, Vlad called. His voice sounded sad and kind of lost.
“Olia, I want to talk to you. You didn’t let me do that back then. And I need to explain a lot to you. I understand I should have told you everything…”
“Speak.”
“You see, Tatyana appeared in my life again so suddenly that I was completely thrown off. She asked me to be there for her. Her mother had just died, and she was suffering terribly. She was alone and cried all the time when she spoke to me on the phone.”
“So? Did you comfort the poor sufferer? I hope she’s not suffering anymore?”
“Olia, nothing happened between us, I swear! And it couldn’t have! For me, there’s only you. From the first day we met, all my thoughts have been only about you. Tanya… she’s cunning and sly like a fox! She arranged everything to separate us. And she succeeded. I went over to her place only because she asked me to bring her some medicine. Then I sat down to have some tea, she insisted. And that’s all I remember. I woke up on her couch, for some reason undressed. She planned it all. But I never meant to cheat on you! I never even thought of it. Why would I? She disgusts me…”
“Why is another question. But what I really want to know is what made you go to a single woman’s apartment at all, let alone to your ex-girlfriend’s—that’s the big question!” I let my emotions loose.
“Forgive me, my love! Please, forgive me for the pain I caused you. I can’t live without you, Olia…”
Two weeks later Vlad came back to me. We’re still officially divorced for now, but we’re thinking about going back to the registry office and getting married again. Only on one condition—absolutely no more “help” for suffering lonely women
