After giving birth to my first children, I truly believed something would finally change. I thought my husband would start choosing us—me and our babies—over his mother. I thought becoming a father would open his eyes.
But I was wrong. This time, he chose her again… and it was the last time I stayed silent. What she did crossed every line, and I exposed her for the cruel bully and liar she truly was.
You would think bringing your newborn twins home would be one of the happiest days of your life. I imagined joy, tears, love, and togetherness. For me, it started that way… and then turned into an absolute nightmare.
After three exhausting days in the hospital, recovering from a long and painful delivery, I was finally cleared to go home with my beautiful twin daughters, Ella and Sophie. I had dreamed of this moment for months.
I pictured my husband, Derek, waiting at the hospital entrance with flowers in his hands, his eyes full of tears as he held one of the girls and whispered how proud he was.
Instead, everything fell apart with one short phone call.
At the very last minute, my phone rang.
“Hey, baby,” Derek said, his voice rushed and tense. “I’m so sorry, but I can’t come pick you guys up like we planned.”
“What?” I asked, tightening Sophie’s blanket around her tiny body. “Derek, I just gave birth to twins. What could possibly be so important?”
“It’s my mom,” he cut in. “She’s not doing well. Chest pains. Really bad. I have to go get her and take her to the hospital near her place.”
His words hit me like ice water.
“What?” I whispered. “Why didn’t you tell me sooner? Derek, I need you here. I can barely walk.”
“I know,” he said, clearly irritated. “But this just happened. It’s serious. I’ll come to you as soon as I can.”
I clenched my jaw, swallowing my anger and heartbreak.
“Fine,” I said quietly. “I’ll take a taxi.”
“Thank you,” he muttered before hanging up.
His mother lived in another city, so I knew he wasn’t coming back anytime soon. Derek had always been obsessed with his mom. I already knew he wouldn’t leave her side—not even for me or our newborn daughters.
As the call ended, my heart sank. I wanted to believe he wasn’t cruel, just overwhelmed. But the disappointment burned deep. This was the same woman who had insisted on having her own set of keys to our house “to help with the babies.” And now, suddenly, she was gravely ill—on the exact day I was coming home.
I pushed the thought aside and focused on my girls. Derek had dropped off the car seats the day before, so I carefully secured Ella and Sophie and took a cab home.
When the car pulled into our driveway, my breath caught in my throat.
My suitcases were on the lawn. Diaper bags were dumped near the steps. Even the crib mattress was leaning against the wall by the door.
My hands started shaking.
I paid the driver and slowly stepped out, holding my babies close as I scanned the yard. Something was very, very wrong.
I walked to the front door, calling Derek’s name even though I knew he wasn’t supposed to be home. I tried my key.
It wouldn’t turn.
I tried again. Nothing.
That’s when I saw it—a folded piece of paper taped to one of my suitcases.
My stomach dropped as I opened it.
“Get out of here with your little moochers! I know everything. —Derek.”
I felt like I couldn’t breathe.
I read the note again. And again. My hands trembled so badly I almost dropped it. This had to be a mistake. A joke. A nightmare.
Not Derek.
Not the man who held my hand through every appointment.
Not the man who cried when we heard our daughters’ heartbeats.
Then the real horror began.
I called him immediately. Voicemail. Again. Voicemail. Panic wrapped around my chest as Ella and Sophie started crying. I rocked their car seats, my mind spinning.
“Mom,” I whispered.
My fingers shook as I called her.
“Jenna?” she answered instantly. “What’s wrong? Are the babies okay?”
I broke down.
“He… he changed the locks. He threw my things outside. Mom, there’s a note. An awful note.”
“WHAT?” she shouted. “Stay there. I’m coming right now.”
When my mom arrived, she took one look at the mess and went pale with rage.
“This doesn’t make sense,” she said sharply. “Derek loves you. He would never do this.”
“That’s what I thought,” I said, rocking Ella. “But he won’t answer. And what does ‘I know everything’ even mean?”
She hugged me tightly. “Let’s go to my house until we figure this out.”
That night, I didn’t sleep at all. My mind raced with fear and confusion.
The next morning, I needed answers.
I left the twins with my mom and drove back to the house. The yard was empty. My things were gone. I knocked. No answer. I walked around back and looked through the window.
And froze.
My mother-in-law, Lorraine, was sitting at the dining table, calmly sipping tea.
I banged on the door.
She looked up, startled—then smirked.
“What are you doing here?” I demanded.
She opened the door just a crack. “Jenna, you’re not welcome here. Didn’t you read the note?”
“Where is Derek?” I snapped.
“He’s at the hospital,” she said smoothly. “Taking care of his sick mother.”
I stared at her. “Sick? You’re standing right here!”
She shrugged. “I must be feeling better. Miracles happen.”
“You lied,” I said, my voice shaking. “You faked being sick!”
“And?” she replied with a smile.
Then she said the words that destroyed any doubt I had about her.
“I told Derek we needed a boy to carry on the family name. But you gave us two girls. Useless.”
I couldn’t breathe.
She kept going.
“I wrote the note. I took his phone. I wanted you gone.”
I felt sick.
“You threw us out because they’re girls?”
“Of course,” she said calmly. “Derek always chooses me.”
That was when something inside me snapped.
I drove straight to the hospital.
Derek was pacing when he saw me. “Jenna! I couldn’t call you—I don’t have my phone!”
“Your mother stole it,” I said. “She lied. She locked me out.”
His face went white.
When we got home, Lorraine was still there.
“Mom,” Derek said coldly. “What did you do?”
She tried to speak.
“Save it,” he said. “I know everything.”
He exploded. He defended me. He defended our daughters. And for the first time, he chose us.
“Pack your things and leave,” he told her.
“I’m your mother!” she cried.
“And they are my family,” he replied.
She left that night.
Derek changed the locks, cut contact, and reported the nurse she bribed. It wasn’t easy, but we healed. And as I rocked Ella and Sophie one night, I realized something powerful.
She tried to destroy us—but she only made us stronger.
Sadly, I’m not the only daughter-in-law who has faced a cruel MIL. In the next story, Michelle’s mother-in-law tries to break her marriage with a DNA test… and completely fails.