When Hazel found out that her daughter’s wedding was ruined by greedy cousins who stole the money she gave them, she was furious. She is now determined to expose their lies and get revenge. She vows to keep looking for proof that can’t be argued with. Will this determined mom be able to tell her daughter the truth and make her dreams whole again?
I whispered as I looked at my computer screen, “I can’t believe this.”
As I looked at pictures of Jinny’s wedding party, the temperature in my chilly Australian kitchen dropped.
I always thought her special day would be a beautiful event, but what I saw was heartbreaking.
Jinny’s wedding took place in a run-down café with fake furniture, and she wore an ugly dress that didn’t fit right.
I put my hands over my face because I was so angry and sad at the same time. How could this happen?
I had saved up a lot of money so that I could give Jinny a fancy wedding. This wasn’t what I had planned for her.
Suddenly, my cell phone vibrated on the counter, and I picked it up. It was a message from a close friend in the United States.
I called her because I needed to talk to someone.
“Hi, Hazel! How are you feeling?” The woman asked.
“It’s sad, Jane,” I replied. “I just looked at Jinny’s wedding pictures, and they’re terrible.” It was held in a run-down café, and she wore this horrible dress. Jane, I gave money to help pay for a beautiful wedding. “What took place?”
She spoke up after a short pause and said, “Hazel, I’ve heard something about Diane and Charles.” They may have used the money to pay for repairs around the house and on their car.
Even worse, my mood got even worse. “What?” They used Jinny’s wedding money for their own fancy? “How could they?”
“Hazel, I’m not sure, but you need to find out the facts.” Maybe you should talk to Jinny?”
“I’m going to, Jane.” I can’t let this go. I need to rest up and go there. I need to make things right for Jinny.”
When the call was over, I put my laptop away and took a big breath. I had to focus on getting better. I had to help my daughter and make things right.
In this way, each day was a step toward getting better.
I carefully followed my doctor’s instructions, took my medicines on time, and got a lot of rest.
It even got me started on some light exercises to get my power back.
As the weeks turned into months, my health slowly got better. My determination to help Jinny gave me strength.
Even though I still had doubts and fears, I finally called my travel planner and booked a flight to the USA.
While I was packing, I told myself, “You can do this, Hazel.” Just for Jinny.
I was set on being strong for my kid.
My heart was beating fast when I finally got to her house in the US.
I hadn’t told her I was coming because I wanted to surprise her. I took a deep breath and knocked.
As soon as she opened the door, her eyes got really big. “Mom?” she asked with tears in her eyes.
I gave her a tight hug and said, “Jinny, my dear.” I could feel her shaking because she was so happy and relieved. I said, “I’m here, and I won’t leave until we fix this.”
When we walked in, I saw sadness in her eyes.
The house was clean, but there was a noticeable sadness in the air.
I grabbed her hands as we sat down on the couch.
I began, “Jinny, I’m so sorry for everything you’ve been through.” “I know it’s been hard since your dad died, and I’m sorry I couldn’t be at your wedding.” But I’m here now, and I promise we’ll fix everything.
As she looked at me, she was sad. “Mom, I felt so alone.” The money was taken by Nathan’s parents, and I couldn’t fight him.
I gave her a comforting squeeze on the hands. “Jinny, you’re no longer by yourself. I’ll help you. We’ll figure this out together.
Jinny wiped her tears away and nodded. “Mom, I’ve missed you.”
“Darling, I’ve longed for you too.” “More than you know,” I said, bringing tears to my eyes. “But now we have to be strong.” They cannot be used against you any longer.
She gave another nod. “I’m sorry for being a bother.” I’m not sure how to talk to Nathan about his parents. He loves them so much.
“We’ll take it one step at a time,” I said with a smile to reassure her. “Now that I’m here, don’t worry.”
Jinny took a deep breath and smiled. “All right, Mom. With you here, I feel like I can handle this.
I told her, “That’s my girl,” and gave her a tight hug. “We’ll get through this together.” Promised.
The next day, my lawyer, Madison, and I were in the office of a private detective.
I said, “Thank you both for coming.”
“I need your help to fix the mess Diane and Charles made at the wedding of my daughter.” They took the savings I had built up for her and spent it on things they needed. My daughter was too shy to talk to them, so she didn’t. They took advantage of her.
Lucas said “yes.” “Hazel, we’ll figure this out. Tell everyone everything you know.
It was all there in my story, from the tacky wedding pictures to Jinny’s sad eyes. Madison took notes while Lucas listened carefully. He leaned forward after I was done.
Lucas said, “Diane and Charles seem to have a long history of doing shady things together.” “I’ll start looking into their background.” Not long now until we find out the truth.
As it turned out, Lucas did gather a lot of proof rather quickly.
During our next meeting in his office, he confirmed, “Hazel, you were right.” Diane and Charles have been linked to several scams. Over the years, they’ve taken advantage of many people.
He showed papers that showed their dishonest actions, like forging loans and stealing money.
I told him, “Thank you, Lucas.” “This is exactly what we asked for.”
Madison looked up while he was looking at the proof. “Hazel, we can start a lawsuit with this information.” But at first, I think you should talk to them directly. Often, the fear of being found out is enough to make people be honest.
Yes, I agreed. “I agree. I want to face them, but I want to do it the right way. Let’s plan a surprise “family get-together” at a fancy restaurant. They won’t be ready for it, which gives us the upper hand.
Lucas gave a grin. “Your plan works for me. “Let’s make plans.”
We planned the meeting with Madison’s help. The plan was easy to understand. Diane and Charles wouldn’t think anything was wrong until it was too late to change. We booked a private room at a fancy restaurant so that our argument would be private.
I got to the place early on the day that was set. With all the proof Lucas had gathered, I set up the projector. It was all set. We were just waiting for them to show up now.
Soon, Jinny, Nathan, Diane, and Charles showed up and greeted each other, completely unaware of what was about to happen.
“Thank you for getting together,” I said, trying to stay calm. “I need to share some important information.”
When I pressed the button on the remote, the first slide appeared on the screen. As I looked at Diane and Charles, I said, “This is the evidence we’ve put together about the money you took from Jinny’s wedding budget.”
Their faces went from being relaxed to shocked as I went on. “You put that money toward fixing up your house and buying a car.” But your lying goes further than that. You’ve been linked to many scams and have been taking advantage of people for years.
Nathan got angry and embarrassed, which made his face turn red. When he faced his parents, he asked, “Is this true?”
Diane stumbled and said, “We… we can explain.”
I did, however, speak up. “There are no good reasons for this.” You hurt my daughter, and now you have to deal with the consequences.
“Mom is right,” Jinny said strongly. “I deserve better.”
Nathan changed his mood as he looked at Jinny. “I’m truly sorry, Jinny.” I didn’t know. “I—I’m shocked!”
Jinny looked at Nathan and said, “It’s okay.” “We can move forward now that the truth is out in the open.” I’m sorry about what happened.
Nathan, Jinny, and I were the first ones to get up and get ready to leave the place. I could feel Nathan’s pain, and I knew he needed time to think about everything. Before leaving, we gathered our things and gave Diane and Charles one last, deep look.
As we were leaving the diner, I ran into Evelyn, a reporter I had told before. Even though we had known each other for years, she was there today as part of her job, getting her film crew ready.
“Hazel, could you tell me more about what I heard inside?” Evelyn asked while holding out a microphone.
“This happened because Diane and Charles, my daughter’s in-laws, took money meant for her wedding and used it for their own needs,” I said. “They’ve been involved in a lot of scams, and people need to know about it.”
The film crew took notes as I talked about the proof Lucas had found. Jinny stood next to me with her hand in mine. She looked stronger than ever.
Evelyn nodded and listened carefully. “This story will reach a lot of people, Hazel.” “Thank you for being brave.”
The story went global overnight. The public’s reaction was quick and harsh. Diane and Charles were punished by society and the law; they lost their home and had to pay back the money that was stolen.
After getting the money back, Jinny and I started making plans for a new, more beautiful wedding. On this occasion, everything went perfectly. There were people who really loved her walking down the aisle with her, and I was there to see it.
Nathan did have a hard time, but he’s been working hard to get better.