Chapter 5
Frank stayed in a regular ward for another week.
During that time, he recovered quickly.
The doctor said he had a strong will to live and a positive mindset.
I knew he was doing it for me.
He was scared that if he was gone, I'd be left all by myself.
The day he was discharged, the sun was shining brightly.
I completed all the paperwork and wheeled him out of the hospital.
Warm sunlight fell over us, washing away the gloom of the past days.
Emily and David still hadn't shown up.
It was as if we had completely disappeared from their world.
And that was fine.
This clean break made me feel more at ease.
I called a car and went straight home.
Everything was as we had left it, except for a thin layer of dust.
I helped Frank settle into bed.
"Get some rest. I have to run an errand. I'll be right back." I said.
"What's so urgent?" Frank held onto my hand, clearly worried.
I patted his hand. "Nothing serious. Don't worry."
I didn't tell him about selling the house, or that I had completely cut ties with our daughter.
His condition couldn't take that kind of shock.
I would carry them alone.
I walked out the door without hesitation and went straight to the bank where we had originally set up Emily's mortgage.
It wasn't crowded. I took a number and sat quietly in the waiting area.
My mind was at ease.
No anger, no resentment, not even sadness.
It felt like handling a matter that had nothing to do with me.
"Number A034 to window three." The loudspeaker announced.
I stood up and handed my ID and bank card to the teller. "Hello, I'd like to stop an automatic payment for a personal housing loan."
The teller was a young girl. She took my documents and began typing.
"Ma'am, you mean you want to cancel the auto-debit?" She confirmed.
"Yes," I replied.
"The borrower is Emily Grant. What are you to her?" She asked.
"I'm her mother," I said calmly.
She paused and looked up at me, a little surprised.
But she was professional and didn't ask questions.
"Okay. The payment account linked to this loan is your debit card. If you stop the auto‑pay, we only need you to sign a form.
"But if Ms. Grant doesn't make the payments herself, the loan will become overdue, and her credit score will be affected."
"I know."
My voice was flat.
Credit score.
That's what Emily and David value most.
To them, it's worth more than our lives.
The girl quickly printed out a form and handed it to me.
"Ma'am, please confirm and sign here." she said.
I picked up the pen and, without hesitation, I signed my name at the bottom.
Linda Lee, my name.
As I wrote the last stroke, I felt the heavy chains of the past decades finally break.
From now on, Linda Lee would live only for herself and Frank.
Then I walked out of the bank.
The sky was blue, and the sun was bright.
I checked my phone. It was 3 p.m.
The bank closed in two hours.
The final deadline for the mortgage payment was five o'clock this afternoon.
I put my phone away and didn't go home. Instead, I sat on a bench in the park nearby.
I watched children play and old couples walk arm in arm. I felt a peace I had never known before.
I waited.
I was waiting for a call.
I was waiting for the storm that was bound to come.
Sure enough, at 5:01 PM,
my phone went crazy.
An unfamiliar number flashed on the screen.
I knew it was her.
I didn't pick up.
The call ended, then rang again immediately.
The second call came, then the third.
Then David called, also from an unknown number.
I had blocked all their old numbers, so they were calling from new ones.
I quietly watched my screen light up and go dark, over and over again.
Like that night, when I had called her again and again in desperation.
What goes around comes around.
Now it was her turn to feel it.
Calls, texts, and friend requests came flooding in.
I ignored them all.
Until one text message popped up: [Linda Lee! How dare you stop my mortgage payments. Are you trying to kill me?]
I looked at the message and smiled coldly.
I didn't reply.
I slowly stood up and walked home in the sunset.
My new life started today.
And her good days were over.