My mother-in-law, Brenda, loved to prank me with AI-generated videos of a homeless man breaking into our house.
The first two times, panicked by Brenda’s pleas for help, I sped home, running several red lights. Only to find the front door wide open, Brenda and her friends laughing on the sofa.
“See? I told you my daughter-in-law does whatever I say. Even if I call her at midnight, she’ll rush right back.”
It wasn’t until the third time that she was truly stabbed by a homeless man and rushed to the emergency room.
The doctors told us the knife had pierced her heart, and the surgery was too complex for them. The only cardiac surgeon in the entire hospital who could do it was my husband, Ryan Miller.
I called him like a madwoman. He finally picked up on the 99th call.
“Ashley, are you out of your mind? I’m delivering Chloe’s dog’s puppies right now. If anything happens, can you take responsibility for that?”
He hung up, blocking me on every platform imaginable.
Ultimately, Brenda passed away on the operating table from excessive blood loss.
On the day of Brenda’s funeral, Ryan Miller and Chloe Davis knelt at her grave, crying until they fainted.
Once that jerk and his conniving witch had cried enough, I tossed my phone at their faces. “Now, Ms. Davis, can you explain why you hired someone to commit murder?”
I was deep in spring cleaning when Brenda called.
I chuckled. “Mom, stop messing with me. I’ve seen those AI-generated homeless intruder videos on TikTok a dozen times.”
My mother-in-law had always loved to torment me.
The first time, she claimed a homeless man had broken in. I ran several red lights, losing a bunch of points on my license, just to get home. I pushed open the door and found Brenda and her girlfriends chatting away as usual.
The second time, she claimed the homeless man was back. I dropped everything, got chewed out by my boss, and lost my bonus for the month. When I got home, she just laughed at me, recording my reaction on her phone.
This time, there was no way I was falling for it again.
Brenda sensed my disbelief and her voice instantly took on a panicked edge.
“Ashley, I’m really not lying this time! He has a knife! You need to come home, I’m scared!”
Just as I hesitated, wondering if I should take time off to check, Brenda suddenly let out a piercing scream, and the line went dead.
My heart dropped. Her scream sent a shiver down my spine. Could someone actually have broken in?
Thinking of Brenda alone at home, I didn’t care about anything else. I grabbed my car keys and rushed out the door.
All the way there, I prayed it was just another one of Brenda’s elaborate pranks.
But when I got home, I realized I’d been far too naive.
Our front door was surrounded by people: property management, security guards, and paramedics.
Seeing that scene, my legs went soft with fear. I nearly collapsed to the ground.
Without another thought, I helped Brenda into the ambulance, rushing to St. Jude’s Hospital in the city center.
This was the hospital where my husband, Ryan Miller, worked. With him there, Brenda would surely be fine.
Once I collected myself slightly, I called Arthur, my father-in-law, and Ryan.
Arthur said he’d be right there, but Ryan just kept not picking up.
Just then, the emergency room doors burst open.
The doctor, drenched in sweat, walked out.
“The patient’s heart was punctured. Her condition is extremely critical. Dr. Miller is the only one in the entire hospital who can perform this surgery!”
I didn’t hesitate. “Then where is he? Tell him to hurry up and operate on his mother!”
The nurse stammered, “But… but Dr. Miller is on vacation. We just called him, and he didn’t answer.”
I froze. Ryan was on vacation? He never mentioned it to me.
I didn’t think twice, pulling out my phone and calling Ryan again.
Once, twice, ten times…
All I got was the cold, automated voice: “Hello, the number you have dialed is temporarily unavailable. Please try again later…”
Refusing to give up, I opened SnapChat and suddenly noticed Ryan’s profile picture had changed to a white puppy.
I recognized that puppy. It was Chloe Davis’, his junior colleague.
As if by an unseen force, I clicked on Chloe’s SnapChat. Her story had just updated.
The caption was for that little white dog, Buddy: “Don’t be scared, Daddy and Mommy are with you.”
At that moment, I didn’t have time to question their relationship. I just wanted Ryan to come back and save Brenda.
Taking a deep breath, I called Chloe.
It rang twice before she picked up. Before she could speak, I quickly said,
“Hello, is this Chloe Davis? I wanted to ask if Ryan Miller is with you? Please tell him my mother-in-law was stabbed, and her condition is very serious. He’s urgently needed for surgery.”
My voice was practically begging, but then Ryan’s annoyed voice came through the phone.
“Ashley, are you ever going to quit? What kind of timing is this to cause trouble?”
“I can’t believe how cold-hearted you are! Buddy is having a difficult labor, her life is critical. What’s wrong with me, a doctor, helping her deliver her puppies?”
“At a crucial moment like this, why are you still making up stories about my mom getting stabbed? You need to know where to draw the line with your crazy schemes.”
Tears welled up in my eyes, but I pushed them back, trying to persuade him gently.
“Mom really is at the hospital, your hospital right now. Your chief of staff said no one else can do this surgery. Her condition is critical. If you don’t come back soon, she might…”
She might really be gone forever.
I couldn’t bring myself to finish the sentence.
“Might what? Might what?!”
A sneer came through the phone.
“Ashley, I swear you’re so stupid and malicious. You’re actually wishing death upon my mom just to trick me into coming home.”
I tried to explain, but then I heard Chloe’s sickeningly sweet voice in the background.
“Ryan, honey, come quickly! Buddy isn’t doing well…”
Chloe’s voice was so sugary-sweet and overly gentle, just hearing it made you want to pity her.
“I’m coming right now.”
Ryan said, about to hang up.
I panicked, shouting, “Ryan Miller, I’m not lying! Please, just come back and see, okay?”
Ryan’s voice came through the receiver again, each word dripping with venom, as if he was gritting his teeth.
“Ashley, if anything happens to Buddy, I swear I will never forgive you.”
Then he hung up.
Listening to the dial tone, my tears finally broke free, streaming down my face.
When I tried to call again, Ryan had blocked me everywhere.
Arthur, my father-in-law, rushed in. Seeing me collapsed on the floor, he quickly helped me up.
Like a drowning person grabbing a lifeline, I clutched his arm.
“Dad, quickly, call Ryan! Please, before it’s too late!”
Arthur didn’t hesitate, immediately pulling out his phone to call Ryan.
It rang twice before he picked up.
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