Chapter 3

"Beatrice, I hate to say this, but you're kind of a slob and overly frugal. You'll set a bad example for Adam. It's not like we're not going to support you. We'll send you money every month and visit during the holidays."

I trembled with rage, my voice turning shrill. "That's blatant favoritism!"

"So what if it is? She's my mother. If you want someone to take care of you in your old age, go talk to your own son. See if he'll listen to you."

After she hung up on me, I felt my blood rush to my head. Soon, everything went dark, and I passed out.

When I slowly came to, I found myself lying in a hospital bed again. The nurse changing my IV didn't notice I was awake and was chatting with a colleague.

"Hey, did you hear? This Beatrice Chambers' son came to the hospital two days ago to give Dr. Glover a gift to express his appreciation!"

"What? That can't be right. This patient's attending physician isn't Dr. Glover."

"But Dr. Glover is his mother-in-law's doctor! When that woman twisted her ankle, he ran around doing everything for her and stayed with her for a whole month!"

"Then why hasn't he come to see his own mother when she's hospitalized?"

"I heard when the hospital called him about the bill, he said, 'Just let her fend for herself!'"

The nurse gasped. "What? That's inhumane!"

I closed my eyes. Warm tears slid down my face, and by the time they reached my hairline, they were already cold.

My wonderful son had been my pride and hope since he was little. He was my whole world.

I knew he was always just good with words and did nothing to back them up, but I never thought he'd be this heartless.

If that were the case, then he would have to pay that IOU after all. After making up my mind, I gently tugged at the nurse's sleeve.

Startled, she quickly replaced my IV bag, checked the monitors, and asked how I was feeling.

Looking into her eyes, I felt a wave of sorrow.

Even a stranger with no connection to me did more than my own son, who refused to take even the slightest responsibility.

I sat propped up on the hospital bed as the doctor tactfully suggested I call Raymond so he could come handle the bill and caregiving.

I forced a smile, trembling as I dialed the number I knew by heart.

The call quickly connected. "What is it? I'm busy right now."

Just as I was about to speak, I heard Shirley's voice in the background. "Oh wow, your house is so big! It's bright and spacious!"

I swallowed what I was about to say and asked bitterly, "Raymond, you won't abandon me, right?"

"Mom, what are you saying? You'll always be my mom! I'll definitely take care of you in the future!"

I blinked away my burning ears. "I'm in the hospital. Could—"

"Something came up at work. I'm hanging up."

When I heard the beeping from the phone, I could no longer hold back my tears. I lifted my head and, through my blurred vision, noticed the doctor's sympathetic gaze.

My lips trembled as I said, "Doctor, I have money. I'll pay the bill myself."

Shaking her head, she patted my shoulder before turning to the nurse. "Apply for the subsidy for her. We should help her where we can."

As she walked away, I could vaguely hear her say, "How tragic…"

I was covering my face while sobbing when I heard that familiar voice ring out again.

"An empty promise has been detected. Calculating… Ten days remaining until scheduled IOU enforcement. As the debtor has made another empty promise, enforcement of the IOU begins immediately."

"Generating… Stamping in progress… One property worth 1 million dollars has been seized and liquidated. The debtor's account balance of 500 thousand dollars has been transferred.

"Remaining unpaid debt is 1.5 million dollars. Ding! Debt exceeds 1 million dollars. Debtor has been notified."

I laughed as tears fell, feeling bitter deep down, yet strangely satisfied.

The next second, Raymond's call came in.

He flew into a rage, yelling, "Why did all my money go into your account? And when have I owed you 1.5 million dollars?"