**Diary Entry – 14th March**
I always knew my mother-in-law didnt care for me. Still, I never imagined how far shed go.
When I fell pregnant, she lost all reason. She meddled in everythingfrom the choice of crib to what we had for dinner. Shed scream that I wasnt good enough for her son.
And when the ultrasound revealed we were having a girl, she made such a scene the midwives nearly called the police.
*Cant even give him a son. Youre useless!* she shrieked across the room.
I burned with shame and terror all at once.
When labour began, I prayed things might change. No such luck.
She barged into the delivery room, ignoring the doctors orders. The second the nurse handed me my daughter, my mother-in-law snatched her from my arms, cradling her as if she were her own. I nearly fainted from sheer panic.
A week passed. I tried adjusting to motherhood while my husband, Thomas, was at work. One evening, his mother marched in, clutching a thick envelope. She handed it to him without a word.
He opened it. His face darkened, his hands trembling.
*What is it?* I asked, already dreading the answer.
He looked at me like I was a stranger.
*Pack your things,* he said, icy cold. *You and the child are leaving. Youve got an hour.*
The envelope contained a falsified paternity test.
I was shattered. I begged him to listento hear me out.
*Have you lost your mind? Shes your daughter! Ive never betrayed you!*
*Stop lying!* he roared, fists clenched. *Its right here in black and white!*
His mother stood in the corner, smirking.
That night, I was thrown out into the pouring rain, clutching my newborn, with nowhere to go.
Weeks later, I found shelter with a friend. Exhausted, desperatebut a small fire burned inside me. I had to uncover the truth.
I tracked down the lab where the test was supposedly done and demanded a retest.
The truth came out.
His mother had forged the papersmanipulated the results. The real test confirmed Thomas was the father.
I sent him the proof. For the first time in months, he called, his voice shaking:
*Im sorry I I didnt know.*
*You trusted a piece of paper over me,* I said. *And you let your mother destroy our family.*
He begged me to come back. But I couldnt.
I chose myselfand my daughter, Emily.
**Lesson learned:** Blood ties dont excuse cruelty. And sometimes, walking away is the only way to keep your soul intact.
