Today Inna Nikolayevna was in high spirits. She was getting ready for a banquet, and she chose her outfit with painstaking, critical attention.
At the crack of dawn she ran to the beauty salon. Yulia—who had been taking care of Inna Nikolayevna for years—did a brilliant job. The styling came out perfect. And the dress suited the occasion: a dark emerald gown made of heavy fabric, the very one the woman had once worn to her boss’s anniversary party.
Inna Nikolayevna was heading to a birthday celebration. Her son’s woman, Olga, was turning thirty. A week earlier Arkady had dropped by his mother’s place and casually mentioned how huge the party was going to be.
“Olga booked the best restaurant in the city—can you imagine? She invited a whole regiment of guests! Oh, you have no idea—so many important people will be there. It’s all for business. She’s smart, she knows exactly what needs to happen for our joint venture to get the green light.”
“Well, I’ll be—no arguments there. A real business lady,” Inna Nikolayevna said, and then lectured her son. “Hold on to a wife like that. And appreciate her.”
“I do appreciate her. All right, Mom, I’ve got to fly. Come—I’ll send you the time and the address.”
Arkady left, and the woman began waiting for the banquet. Ah, how few celebrations remained in her lonely life—and how much she missed them.
Inna Nikolayevna was already imagining how, at Olga’s birthday party, she would finally indulge herself. She would meet interesting people. And if luck smiled on her, she might even make new friends. The most important thing was to look dignified—that was what she had to worry about. She needed to make a strong impression, to shine not only with her mind but with her appearance as well.
Arkady had been living with Olga for two years. He had moved in with her without even asking his mother for advice—he had simply presented it as a fact.
“Mom, this is Olga. I love her, and we’re going to live together.”
“And what about a wedding?” his future mother-in-law gasped.
“There will be a wedding too. In time,” her son assured her.
“It doesn’t feel right,” Inna Nikolayevna muttered. “Of course you’re adults, you decide for yourselves, but still…”
That day, with sudden irritation, Inna Nikolayevna realized her son still hadn’t bothered to tell her the time and place of the anniversary dinner. It was strange, but also easy enough to explain: they’d been spinning in circles and simply forgotten about her. Fine—she wasn’t proud. She’d call and clarify everything herself.
“Hello, Arkasha, why haven’t you called or written? What time is Olga’s banquet tomorrow?”
“Mom, sorry. So much running around—work, errands—I forgot. About the banquet… it’s complicated. Something didn’t work out for Olga, some kind of problem. Anyway, she canceled everything.”
“Canceled?” his mother went blank. “How so? What happened? I hope it’s nothing serious. Come on—tell me the truth,” she ordered, knowing her son well.
“Mom, I don’t have time!”
Arkady hung up, leaving her bewildered.
Something had definitely happened, but her son refused to explain.
“It must be Olga stirring trouble—she doesn’t want me at her anniversary!” Inna Nikolayevna thought angrily. “Well, too bad for her. I’m not some fool. I’ll come myself—invitation or not!”
She immediately dialed a friend.
“Hi, Kira! How are you? Everything good—healthy? Wonderful! I have a favor. Please, ask your neighbor—the one who works at the ‘Zvezda’ restaurant—whether they have a banquet tomorrow for a thirtieth birthday, with a big crowd of guests. Yes, dear—do this for me, please!”
After learning what she needed, Inna Nikolayevna formed her plan.
She would go there—she absolutely would. She had every right. She would spit on her daughter-in-law’s meanness and go anyway. Olga wouldn’t dare throw her out in front of all those “important people” she had invited. It would be improper. Not classy.
Inna Nikolayevna looked a solid ten out of ten. She thought for a long time about what to give a person who had insulted her by refusing to invite her. It was a complicated question, but not unsolvable. She decided she would give Olga a little money and some flowers.
But when she walked into the restaurant, dressed for celebration, she hesitated. She searched for her son and couldn’t find him anywhere. Strange—Arkady, for some reason, was late to his partner’s milestone birthday.
Unable to take it any longer, Inna Nikolayevna approached the birthday girl, who at that moment was hugging a distinguished-looking man congratulating her. Olga looked genuinely surprised.
“You’re here? Why? What is this nonsense?”
“Don’t make a scene, Olya. Why? I came to congratulate you,” the flustered woman said, handing over the gift. “Where is Arkady?”
“How should I know where he is?” her daughter-in-law shot back rudely.
Inna Nikolayevna became even more embarrassed, but quickly composed herself.
“I’ll wait for him… over at that table, all right?”
“Well, if you want, stay,” Olga answered reluctantly. “I’m not going to throw you out,” and she returned to her conversation with the handsome man.
Everything about this strange event felt off. And for some reason, Inna Nikolayevna wasn’t having any fun at all. Yet she had hoped so much for this banquet—had waited for it so eagerly.
First, Arkady still didn’t appear. It was unsettling and raised a thousand questions she had no one to ask. Second, to her astonishment, she noticed Olga constantly leaning into that impressive stranger who hovered at her side. It was shockingly irresponsible behavior for a married woman.
But what stunned the mother-in-law most was that the stranger spoke into the microphone and called Olga his beloved. He said it plainly: “Happy anniversary, my love!” Then it got worse—he kissed her in front of everyone and placed a luxurious amethyst necklace around her neck.
“Just a second!” Inna Nikolayevna finally burst out.
She stood up and walked decisively to the center of the hall.
“What is going on here? What kind of shamelessness is this? You’re doing it openly, without any embarrassment at all! Olga, have you forgotten you’re my son’s wife? Aren’t you ashamed of yourself? Where is Arkady? Why hasn’t he come and put a stop to this?”
“There’s no shamelessness. It’s simple,” the tipsy birthday girl replied boldly. “I don’t love your son anymore. And Arkady won’t be coming, so don’t wait. And you don’t belong here either.”
“Darling, who is that?” the handsome man asked her.
“Don’t worry about it. Wait for me—I need to explain something to her,” Olga said, stepping toward Inna Nikolayevna.
“Explain? Olga, what is happening? I’m your mother-in-law, and I demand respect! And you—behave decently!”
“What claims could you possibly have? Wake up already! You and I are nobody to each other. It’s simple—your son and I split up. There are no feelings left. And you are not my mother-in-law, so stop lecturing me! Arkady was never my husband anyway. Your little boy is weak—spineless.”
“What? Spineless?” Inna Nikolayevna choked with rage.
“Yes, you heard me. Weak and pathetic. I waited and waited, hoping he’d change. But he’s useless—zero. Like getting milk from a goat, right? That’s how you say it. And don’t start a scandal here,” Olga continued with icy confidence.
“My son is weak? And then what are you, you nasty—” Inna Nikolayevna snapped and couldn’t hold herself back, hurling a crude insult.
The guests who witnessed the ugly scene began to chuckle. At least something “entertaining” had happened that evening.
“Give me my money back!” Inna Nikolayevna shouted, moving toward Olga. “If you’re not my daughter-in-law, then you don’t get a gift! I’m not spending a dime on you, shameless creature!”
“Fine. Roman, pass me that white envelope.”
Olga spitefully tossed the money at her and told her to leave the event.
“I don’t want to stay here anyway!” Inna Nikolayevna declared proudly. “Why would I sit and watch your circus!”
In the taxi, heading home under the heavy weight of a ruined evening, she opened the envelope to check whether that dishonest woman had cheated her. And to her surprise, she found the amount inside was ten times larger than what she had originally given Olga.
“Well, look at that… would you believe it!” Inna Nikolayevna exclaimed, delighted. “So the party was a success after all! The performance happened—and the fee is there!” She laughed. “It’s just a pity about Arkasha. Who knows what happened between them. Although… maybe it’s for the best they split up. We don’t need a treacherous daughter-in-law like that.”
