Anne was looking forward to a quiet night at home with her husband, Edward. They met in college, and at first, her father, Chris, didn\u2019t approve. But that was his gut instinct. He didn\u2019t trust anyone anymore, primarily after building Harrison Group and gaining wealth. But his mistrust started earlier, when Anne\u2019s mother, Fiona, left them forever.<\/p>\n
Anne remembered that moment clearly. She was just five, and her parents fought all the time. One night, after yelling for a while, Fiona walked out. Back then, Chris worked three jobs to support his family and only founded his company years later.<\/p>\n
Luckily, Chris warmed up to Edward and loved their relationship. He particularly liked that Edward refused the spot he offered at Harrison Group, choosing to work for his passion on his own. Chris respected his ambition and let it go. But Anne did work for him, and she deserved her job despite being the boss\u2019s daughter.<\/p>\n
It was hard work, and now, she was returning home looking forward to making dinner and talking to Edward about her day. But when she approached her front door, she saw a post-it note stuck in it.<\/p>\n
Please, call me. Love, Mom.<\/p>\n
There was a phone number after the message, and Anne couldn\u2019t believe it. Her mother had not made contact in years. What could she want from her now? Should she call? Did she want money? She knew she would never get the answers unless she reached her so she took the plunge.<\/p>\n
***<\/p>\n
\u201cHello, darling!\u201d Fiona chirped when she saw Anne entering the restaurant. The younger woman finally dialed the number and agreed to meet her mother for lunch the following day. But now, the moment had arrived, and Anne was nervous. This woman was a stranger.<\/p>\n
\u201cHey, uhhh\u2026 Mom,\u201d she replied awkwardly.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you don\u2019t feel comfortable calling me that, it\u2019s ok. You can call me Fiona for now,\u201d the older woman said and sat back down, gesturing for Anne to do the same. \u201cAlso, thank you for calling me. I\u2019ve been dying to catch up with you.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cLet\u2019s get to the chase, Fiona. Why did you call? The last time I saw you I was five years old. What do you want?\u201d Anne demanded.<\/p>\n
\u201cI want to tell you the truth about what happened,\u201d Fiona stated, pursing her lips and crossing her fingers on the table. \u201cIt was all your father\u2019s fault\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n
Fiona revealed that she came back a few years later and wanted to see Anne. But Chris refused and told her to stay away from the little girl. She understood why he did that. Anne had been traumatized when she left. But Fiona finally discovered Anne\u2019s address and decided to take a chance.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t understand. You had many chances to find me for years. Why now? Do you need money?\u201d Anne asked seriously. It was the most important question on her mind.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo! Of course not! I actually have a rich husband now. Also, I\u2019m buying your lunch today! I don\u2019t know how else to prove that I don\u2019t want anything but a relationship with you,\u201d Fiona replied. \u201cWhen you get older, you realize your priorities, and I wanted to make amends before it was too late. Is it too late?\u201d<\/p>\n
Anne thought about that for a few seconds. \u201cNo, it\u2019s not too late. So, tell me about yourself.\u201d<\/p>\n
They changed the subject and talked for several hours while Fiona ordered all kinds of things off the menu. She even requested the most expensive wine, so Anne was sure that she didn\u2019t need money from her.<\/p>\n
***<\/p>\n
While lunch with her mother had been lovely, Anne became enraged afterward. According to Fiona, her father had prevented her from reaching out for years and he was the reason they didn\u2019t have a relationship now. She could understand that her father was probably hurt and trying to protect her, but she had been an adult for a while.<\/p>\n
So instead of heading home, she went to her father\u2019s house.<\/p>\n
\u201cHow could you keep her away from me all these years, dad? That wasn\u2019t fair! She wanted to make amends. I was old enough to make that choice! We wasted years!\u201d Anne almost yelled, trying not to become hysterical.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe didn\u2019t, Anne. She\u2019s lying to you,\u201d Chris told her.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo! You\u2019re lying!\u201d<\/p>\n
He breathed a huge sigh, placing his hands on his waist. \u201cI didn\u2019t want to show you this, but come with me,\u201d her father insisted and walked towards his office. He sat down on his chair and started clicking some things while Anne reached his side.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat is it?\u201d she asked, drying a few errant tears that had fallen.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve been protecting you from this for many years. But you\u2019re right. You\u2019re old enough to know the truth now,\u201d Chris said quietly and opened a video. It showed Fiona and her dad having a heated discussion. It was from the mid-2000s when she was a teenager.<\/p>\n
Her father increased the volume, and Anne could hear Fiona screaming. She was threatening her father with court and taking Anne away. Finally, she saw Chris handing her some money. The woman smiled like a cat that ate the canary and left. The video ended, and her dad pulled up another. It must have been a few years later.<\/p>\n
Chris had video after video of the same situation. \u201cI didn\u2019t record it the first time. But my lawyer suggested it, so I placed the cameras at home, not knowing if she would return to demand more money,\u201d he whispered, his mouth tight, trying to hold his emotions.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut what if she has really changed now? She paid for lunch, so maybe, it\u2019s true about her rich husband,\u201d Anne suggested, not wanting to believe the worst of her mother.<\/p>\n
\u201cOh, sweetie,\u201d her dad replied, his head falling. \u201cLook. This video is dated yesterday. I assume she left you that note right after this moment.\u201d<\/p>\n
It was clear as day. Fiona was even dressed exactly as she had been yesterday. Once again, she demanded money.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut why did you give her anything? I\u2019m an adult. She can\u2019t take you to court now,\u201d she wondered, tears falling from her eyes.<\/p>\n
\u201cI didn\u2019t want her to get involved in your life. She could ruin you and Edward. She\u2019s toxic. I wanted her gone. I would keep doing it if you want,\u201d Chris said, looking at his daughter, and Anne couldn\u2019t deny all the love in his eyes. Her father indeed did what he thought was best for her.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo, Dad. This stops now. I\u2019ll take care of it,\u201d Anne finally stated, reaching up and wiping her tears off.<\/p>\n
***<\/p>\n
\u201cDarling! I\u2019m so glad you called again. I loved having lunch with you the other day! Have you thought about what I said? Are you ready to forgive me?\u201d Fiona asked with a saccharine smile that Anne no longer believed.<\/p>\n
\u201cOf course, Mom,\u201d she responded, and Fiona cheered at hearing that word. \u201cBut I\u2019m buying lunch today! You can order anything you want today too!\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s wonderful, baby!\u201d the older woman sat and looked at the menu. She ordered lobster, caviar, several appetizers, desserts, and two bottles of the most expensive wines on the menu. Obviously, she knew that Anne worked at Harrison Group.<\/p>\n
When they had devoured almost everything two hours later, Fiona excused herself to the bathroom. \u201cI\u2019ll be right back, sweetie. Why don\u2019t you order the check, and we can do something fun together?\u201d the older woman said as she rushed away to the toilets.<\/p>\n
Anne did precisely what she requested. She ordered the check, pasted a post-it note on top, and left it on the table.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe\u2019ll pay when she comes out of the bathroom,\u201d Anne told the waiter, who gave her a questioning look.<\/p>\n
When Fiona returned from the powder room, she saw the post-it note first.<\/p>\n
I enjoyed lunch, you shrew. Good luck paying for it!<\/p>\n
Her mouth dropped open as she looked around the restaurant.<\/p>\n
Anne never saw her again, but she heard a rumor that Fiona had made a huge scene when she couldn\u2019t pay her bill.<\/p>\n
What can we learn from this story?<\/p>\n
Some people are not meant to be parents. Fiona didn\u2019t deserve the title of \u201cmother\u201d at all. She only cared about herself for many years.<\/p>\n
Recordings can save your life. If you\u2019re being harassed or blackmailed, record as much as you can because it can prove that you\u2019re not lying.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Anne was looking forward to a quiet night at home with her husband, Edward. They met in college, and at first, her father, Chris, didn\u2019t approve. But that was his gut instinct. He didn\u2019t trust anyone anymore, primarily after building Harrison Group and gaining wealth. But his mistrust started earlier, when Anne\u2019s mother, Fiona, left […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-29088","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/newzdiscover.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29088","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/newzdiscover.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/newzdiscover.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newzdiscover.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newzdiscover.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=29088"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/newzdiscover.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29088\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":29089,"href":"https:\/\/newzdiscover.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29088\/revisions\/29089"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/newzdiscover.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=29088"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newzdiscover.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=29088"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newzdiscover.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=29088"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}