Valentina was shocked when her mother-in-law announced out loud that she had signed over her apartment to her only granddaughter, Victoria.
No one present at the news was pleased, except for the girl herself and her parents.
Vika was twenty years old, and she had just recently started dating a boy who was her age.
«I need my own apartment,» the girl said, visiting Zinaida Petrovna. «Grandma, who were you planning to give yours to?»
«I haven’t thought about that yet,» the elderly woman shrugged, puzzled.
«You should have decided by now, I need to know,» Victoria frowned. «Pasha and I have nowhere to live…»
«Which Pasha?» Zinaida Petrovna inquired. «You’ve got a boy? When will you introduce us?»
Victoria promised to bring her boyfriend to her the following weekend.
Zinaida Petrovna really liked the curly, freckled boy and at the table she declared:
«I will give the apartment to you, my granddaughter. You need it more…»
«Where will you live yourself?» Victoria asked in surprise.
«I’ll move to the country house, it just needs to be insulated,» Zinaida Petrovna winked at her granddaughter.
At the very first family evening after the conversation, the woman informed her relatives of her decision.
Zinaida Petrovna had two children: Valeria and Vladimir. Vika was the daughter of the first.
«Oh, grandma loves you the most,» the woman smiled, pleased that her mother’s apartment would go to her daughter.
All evening, she glanced at her brother and daughter-in-law, and when their gazes met, she smirked maliciously.
«I need your help,» Zinaida Petrovna turned to her son. «We need to move some furniture to the country house.»
«You’re going to be at the country house yourself?» Vladimir was surprised. «It will be very cold there in winter.»
«Yes, and you’ll help me with that too!» the mother clapped her hands. «The house needs to be insulated.»
The puzzled man exchanged a meaningful look with his wife, Valentina.
When they left Zinaida Petrovna’s apartment, Vladimir seemed to burst.
«It’s insane! Mom signed over the apartment to a granddaughter who has never lifted a finger,» the man grumbled indignantly. «What was she thinking? Did you see my sister’s face? Lera was reveling in her importance and power…»
«Well, she gave it away, what now?» Valentina replied bewildered. «It’s her apartment and her decision.»
«Yeah, and I’m supposed to help, not the son-in-law,» Vladimir gritted through his teeth, upset by this fact.
«That’s for you to decide: whether you want to help her or not,» his wife smiled in response.
The next day, Zinaida Petrovna called her son and asked him to hurry up.
«Find a truck, Vova, the youngsters need to move into the apartment, and I haven’t moved out yet,» the woman grumbled.
The man wanted to object to his mother and show his resentment, but instead, he bit his tongue and promised to take care of everything.
On Saturday, he arrived with movers, and some of the furniture from Zinaida Petrovna’s apartment was taken to her country house.
The next day, the woman herself also headed to the country house with her belongings.
Vladimir accompanied her, and upon arrival, she started giving him orders.
«Vova, something needs to be done about this! I’m old, it’s hard for me to go outside to the toilet. I might go out, slip, fall, and end up lying upside down, freezing to death there…»
The man looked at his mother in surprise, trying to figure out what she wanted from him.
«I need a toilet and a warm bath in the house!» Zinaida Petrovna demanded.
«Well, that’s going to be expensive…»
«You only have one mother, and if you want her to stay alive and healthy, you won’t spare any money,» the woman pragmatically replied, making it clear to Vladimir that he should bear all the expenses.
«And first and foremost, the house itself needs to be insulated,» the mother stated her primary task. «Snow has already fallen, I’ll freeze here.»
«Why did you move out of the apartment so early? You should have waited at least until spring. What was the need for Vika to move in?»
«Since I decided so, it means it’s necessary!» Zinaida Petrovna glared at her son sternly. «Anyway, let’s get everything done quickly.»
Without arguing with his mother, Vladimir went home, but before he could reach the city, Zinaida Petrovna called him again.
«Son, come to me tomorrow and buy some groceries on the way. I’ll send you the list in a message,» the woman said authoritatively.
From that day on, Zinaida Petrovna heavily leaned on her son’s wallet, demanding one thing after another.
Vladimir obediently fulfilled all his mother’s whims, though inside he was seething with anger and resentment.
He found it unfair that the woman had transferred the apartment to her granddaughter, yet asked him for everything.
The call from Zinaida Petrovna was a signal that it was time to put an end to this and stop keeping silent.
«Son, I’ve calculated, and I won’t have enough to live on, so transfer five thousand rubles to me every month,» the woman said unflappably.
«Me? Why me? Or did you forget that you have another daughter and a granddaughter, to whom you transferred your apartment?» Vladimir asked restrainedly.
«I remember, but why are you telling me this?» Zinaida Petrovna asked sarcastically.
«Ask for help from the one you gave the apartment to,» the man firmly replied.
Zinaida Petrovna was momentarily lost for words at her son’s response, and an oppressive silence hung in the air.
«Aren’t you supposed to help me?» the mother hissed through her teeth.
«I am, but within reasonable limits, and you, as I see, decided to hang all your worries on me,» Vladimir retorted. «Buy this, buy that… now even groceries…»
«I understand everything!» Zinaida Petrovna angrily roared into the phone and hung up.
However, a couple of days later, she had to call her son again because the groceries were gone, and her daughter and son-in-law cited their busy schedules and refused to help her.
«I will only take on the responsibility of buying and bringing you groceries once a week, don’t count on me for anything else,» Vladimir confidently said.
The son made it clear to his mother that he would not be insulating the country house or dealing with the bathroom and toilet.
Zinaida Petrovna turned to her daughter and son-in-law, but they only fed her promises and did nothing.
Then the elderly woman started threatening them that she would take the apartment back if they did not help.
Valeria promised to definitely help her mother, but continued to feed her with promises.
