After my husband died, I started seeing his soul, lingering in the air above. While I was sorting through his belongings, I heard him say, “Thank God she hasn’t found the deed to the apartment I gave Iris.” My hand, clutching his things, froze. I didn’t say a word. I turned, called my lawyer, and using our proof of shared marital assets, I reclaimed the property he had secretly gifted away. The day the apartment was legally returned to me, his soul paced frantically around the living room. But a second later, I heard him let out a sigh of relief. “At least I had the foresight to have her foster my son with Iris. With her personality, she’ll definitely take good care of him. It’s the least I could do to provide for them.” Again, I remained silent. That very day, I contacted the orphanage and sent the boy I had adopted back. They had no idea how hard I had worked for my money. There was no way I was letting his bastard son get a single cent of what was mine. 1 The moment I rushed to the doors of the emergency room, I was yanked aside with brutal force. It was Milton’s aunt. Her eyes were bloodshot as she shrieked, “Judy, you damn jinx! If you weren’t so shallow and materialistic, always pressuring Milton to buy you this and that, would he have gotten into an accident on his way to pick up your anniversary gift?” My mother-in-law lunged forward, grabbing my arm and twisting it viciously. “Milton was such a good, simple man before he married you! He worked himself to the bone for this family, and you still weren't satisfied! You and your stupid anniversary gift—it cost him his life!” The rest of his relatives swarmed around me, their words a torrent of blame, each one a sharp stone cast in my direction. I opened my mouth, wanting to explain that I had only mentioned in passing that our anniversary was coming up, that I never pressured him to buy me anything. But the words caught in my throat, strangled before they could form. It was my son, Leo’s, reaction that truly suffocated me. He tugged at my sleeve, shaking it wildly. “You’re a bad mommy! Daddy’s dead because you wanted a present! I don’t have a daddy anymore!” A child’s words are the most honest, and the most cutting. Guilt coiled around my throat like a wild vine, choking the air from my lungs. He was right. If I hadn’t mentioned the anniversary, Milton wouldn’t have been out at that exact time. He wouldn’t have been in that car crash. Tears streamed down my face, blurring my vision. And that’s when I saw it—a shimmering, translucent form floating near the ceiling of the ER. It was Milton’s soul. At first, I thought it was a hallucination, a cruel trick of my grief-stricken mind. But then his voice drifted down, and I knew it was real. “Thank God Judy doesn’t know I was on my way to buy a cake for Iris when I crashed.” “Iris is so timid. If she knew I died because of her, the poor girl would blame herself forever…” His voice was a weightless whisper, but it hit me like a bolt of lightning, freezing the blood in my veins. My tears stopped abruptly. My gaze locked onto his spectral form. Iris. Of course, I knew her. She was the junior from his college, the one who’d joined his company a couple of years after graduation. Milton mentioned her often, describing her as a sweet, naive girl from a poor family who was working incredibly hard. He’d said it was only natural for him to look out for her, a gesture of alumni solidarity. He told me not to overthink it. And he’d been true to his word, never crossing any visible lines with her. But I never imagined he could be so devoted to another woman behind my back. “If Iris hadn’t said she was craving that mango mousse from the West End bakery, I wouldn’t have been in such a hurry, wouldn’t have run that red light…” Milton’s soul drifted aimlessly, his voice thick with regret, but not once did he mention my name. “Good thing Mom and Dad are covering for me, telling everyone I was out getting an anniversary gift for Judy. Knowing her temper, she’d go after Iris and make the poor girl’s life hell.” “I died so suddenly, I didn’t get to leave Iris much. But at least I bought her that apartment when she first started. Now, even with me gone, she won’t be without a place to stay in this big city.” Hearing that, a bitter laugh escaped my lips. Let’s see how he planned to protect his precious little girl from beyond the grave. The day after the funeral, I called my lawyer. I gave him the address of the apartment Milton had mentioned, along with every piece of information I had on Iris. “Also, I need you to draft a statement. Say that Iris took advantage of my husband’s sympathies, that she lied about her family’s financial hardship to fraudulently obtain the property.” “My husband was a kind man and made the decision without consulting me. Now that he’s gone, as his legal spouse, I have every right to reclaim our shared marital assets.” The lawyer looked surprised, but he prepared the documents exactly as I’d requested. Three days later, I showed up at Iris’s doorstep with my lawyer and a team of movers. When the door opened, I froze for a second. Iris was wearing a cream-colored lounge set. The style, the cut, the details—it was identical to the one Milton had brought back for me as a “gift” from a business trip. Even the necklace she wore was the same as mine. So that’s how it was. He had split his love in two, one piece for me, and one for his college junior. The moment Iris saw me, panic flashed across her face. She instinctively pulled her collar tighter. “Judy? What are you doing here?” I didn’t answer. My lawyer stepped forward and handed her the papers. “Ms. Iris,” he said formally, “according to the law, this property is a shared marital asset of Mrs. Judy and the late Mr. Milton. Mr. Milton’s unilateral gift is legally invalid. Mrs. Judy is now demanding the return of the property. We ask for your cooperation in vacating the premises.” The color drained from Iris’s face. She turned to me, her voice trembling. “Judy, Milton gave this to me. You can’t just… you can’t make me leave.” A cold smile touched my lips. “Tell me, Iris, what exactly was your relationship with my husband?” Her body went rigid, her eyes darting away, unable to meet my gaze. “Judy… I… I was just his junior from college. We were just friends.” “Friends?” I repeated, the word dripping with sarcasm. “What kind of friendship is worth a three-million-dollar downtown apartment?” Iris glanced at the lawyer behind me, her lips trembling. It took her a moment to force out the words. “He… Milton said I was a recent graduate, that it was hard starting out. He wanted me to have a place to land on my feet…” Before she could finish, I saw Milton’s ghost spinning in agitation. He was muttering frantically, trying to coach her. “Iris, don’t be an idiot! Just say I was letting you stay here, that it was out of kindness between alumni!” He floated toward her, trying to tap her shoulder as a reminder, but his hand passed right through her. He could only stomp his spectral feet in frustration. “Say it! Don’t give her any ammunition! That apartment is your security; you can’t let her take it back!” I ignored him, my eyes fixed on Iris. “My husband told me you came from a poor family with nowhere to go. Funny, because my research shows your parents just finished building a new detached house back in your hometown.” “Ms. Iris,” I said, my voice low but carrying clearly to the curious neighbors who had started to gather, “preying on someone’s kindness isn’t a very good look.” Her face flushed crimson, then turned deathly pale. She opened her mouth to argue, but I cut her off. “We have already prepared the necessary documents regarding your fraudulent acquisition of this property from my husband. If you cooperate and move out, we will not press charges.” “However, if you refuse, we will proceed with legal action. At that point, you will not only have to return the apartment, but you will also face the legal consequences.” Milton’s ghost was in a frenzy, trying to rush at me to protect Iris, but he passed through our bodies again and again. Helpless, he could only scream at me. “Judy, stop it! You can’t do this to Iris!” He stopped mid-scream, his soul freezing in mid-air. A flicker of cunning hope crossed his face. “Besides, I almost forgot, Leo is still with her. He’s my son with Iris. Everything the family has will be his one day…” I felt like I’d been rooted to the spot, unable to process anything. The boy I had adopted from an orphanage with Milton, the child I had doted on for five years, treating him as my very own… was their biological son? A flood of memories rushed into my mind, uncontrolled and agonizing. Helping Leo with his homework. He would cry over a simple math problem, and even after I patiently explained it five times, he’d rip the page from his workbook, whining, “I don’t understand when you explain it!” Then Milton would come home, recite a formula once, and Leo would instantly get it. He’d throw himself into Milton’s arms, then turn to shoot me a smug look. “Daddy’s a hundred times smarter than you.” Reading him bedtime stories. He’d often jolt awake, complaining, “Mommy, your voice is ugly.” But on the rare occasions Milton read to him, even if it was something utterly boring, Leo would drift off into a peaceful sleep. A humorless laugh escaped me. All my affection, all my patience—it was all a one-sided fantasy. The child I’d poured my heart into for five years already had a mother. No wonder nothing I ever did was good enough for him. Nothing I did ever seemed right. “Iris was so clever, raising Leo right under Judy’s nose,” Milton’s ghost mused, his tone dripping with self-satisfaction as he floated in the air. “That woman, Judy, she’s a real softy. After raising Leo for five years, she’s already attached. She’ll never remarry now.” “When she gets old, the house, the cars, the savings—won’t it all go to Leo?” “And then, Leo can bring Iris to live with him. Mother and son, reunited. I can finally rest in peace.” He drifted back and forth, his voice growing lighter. “So what if she takes the apartment back for now? All of it will end up being Leo’s anyway. Judy is just an outsider. At best, she’s just holding onto it for him for a few more years.” Iris’s face was now a mask of fury, the fragile, pitiful act gone. “Judy, do you really have to be this cruel?” she snapped. “Milton’s barely gone, and you’re already kicking me out! It’s just an apartment! Do you have to be so petty?” “Aren’t you afraid of what Leo will think? The last time I took him out for candy, he told me he likes me more. Does your son ever say that to you?” Her words, meant to wound, instead sparked an idea. She was right. The most important thing now was to deal with Leo. I glanced at her flushed face, ignoring her taunts, and turned to my lawyer. “Proceed as planned. If the apartment isn’t empty in three days, file the suit.” Iris was stunned, her bravado deflating instantly, but she still managed to crane her neck and yell, “You wouldn’t dare! When Leo asks about me, what are you going to tell him?” I didn’t even bother to look at her. I walked straight downstairs and dialed the number for the orphanage. “Hello, is this the Sunbeam Orphanage? This is Judy, Leo’s adoptive mother.” “There’s been a new development. I’ve recently located Leo’s biological mother. According to regulations, I can no longer continue as his guardian. I’ll be bringing him in this afternoon to finalize the paperwork.” I was clutching the orphanage’s transfer certificate. As I bent down to take Leo’s hand, my mother-in-law grabbed my arm in a death grip. “You raised him for five years, and you’re just going to send him away? Judy, what is wrong with you?” she shrieked. “Milton is barely cold in his grave, and you’re already trying to get rid of your baggage so you can remarry, aren’t you?” My father-in-law’s face was dark with anger. “This is ridiculous! Leo may not be your biological son, but he is the future of this family. You dare lay a hand on him, and you’ll see what happens.” Leo exchanged a look with his grandfather, then threw himself onto the sofa, wailing. “I don’t want to go! This is my home! Why do I have to leave? You’re a mean mommy, I hate you! I want Grandpa! I want Grandma!” He kicked his legs and scrambled behind my mother-in-law, his sobs ragged and breathless. Before, seeing him like this would have sent me into a panic. I would have held him, cooed reassurances, and knelt down to gently tell him, “It’s all Mommy’s fault.” But now, all I felt was that the child in front of me was loud. Annoying. I rubbed my temples, ignoring Leo’s tear-streaked face and my in-laws’ glares. I scanned the room and stated flatly, “The paperwork is getting filed today. This is not up for discussion.” My mother-in-law released my arm and threw herself in front of Leo, shielding him like a mother hen protecting her chick. It was clear she was ready for a fight. “Let’s see who dares touch my precious grandson today.” My father-in-law frowned, probably sensing my resolve. For the first time, he put on a stern face and scolded Leo. “Leo, did you do something to make your mother angry?” “Get over here and kneel down. Beg her not to send you away.” Leo hesitated, then bit his lip and dropped to his knees with a thud. “Mommy, I’m sorry! I shouldn’t have made you angry. I won’t rip my homework anymore, and I won’t say your voice is ugly. Please don’t send me away, okay?” Thinking back on everything I’d done for him, I could have accepted three full kowtows from him, let alone this pathetic kneeling. I didn’t bend down to help him up. Instead, I took a step back, avoiding his outstretched hand, and looked directly at my in-laws. “This child is leaving today. Period.” Milton’s ghost, floating above, could no longer contain himself. He lunged at me like a madman, his transparent fists passing through me again and again.
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