My Mom Wanted Me To Save My Brother – Through My Own C-Section Chapter 2

After a brief silence, my mom got serious and said, “I’ll need to discuss this with your dad. You know how his job is. When Billy was younger, we had to pay off so many fines because of him.”

Then, almost to herself, she muttered under her breath, “If it wasn’t for you, he wouldn’t have had to hide out like he did, barely getting enough nutrition to grow up healthy. You set him back, that’s what.”

“Oh, times have changed, Mom,” I replied, sarcasm barely contained. “Who knows, if you two had a second child, Dad might get a retirement promotion for answering the call. Wouldn’t that be something?”

That shut her up. I saw the look in her eye, as if she’d rip me to shreds if she could. She’d always had that glint of anger toward me. Even my name was an unlucky omen to her. Everything bad she pinned on me; Billy’s problems, the hardships. And if I were gone, she’d say my death was just “right.”

In less than three days, she showed up at my place. I was sipping some tea when she barged in, demanding to know what I was drinking.

“Jack’s friend brought back some saffron tea from a trip out West. Supposedly, it’s worth a hundred dollars a gram.”

My mom, ever the opportunist, immediately wanted me to set some aside for her to take home. That was just what I was hoping for, considering I’d saved it just for her.

She then handed me a paper. “I haven’t been feeling well, so I went to the doctor. They told me I’m in menopause.”

I glanced at it. Just as I thought—a cheap excuse to get out of my suggestion. I knew she was bluffing. Just last week, I’d seen a box of tampons in her bathroom. What, did she use them for a nosebleed?

“Well, Mom, you hang on to that.” I handed her the paper back. “While you’re at it, take a look at this one. It’s not that I don’t want to be a good sister, but I do have some concerns.”

She handed me the proof of her supposed diagnosis, but I had my own, showing I had a small tumor. Harmless for now, but it would interfere with any chance of helping Billy.

Mom called us over for dinner that night, saying there’d be “company.” The so-called guest was none other than Ruby Malone. In my last life, Ruby was nothing more than my mom’s pawn.

She was a simple country girl, barely twenty and utterly clueless. She had a chunky gold necklace around her neck that looked so out of place on her—proof enough my mom was willing to spend on her if it served her plans.

“Jack, this is your cousin Ruby,” she said, putting on a pleasant voice. “She’s hoping to find a job in the city, so I thought she could help out at the factory.”

Jack glanced at me, knowing I usually made the decisions. Our factory was full of machines and heavy labor, not a place for a young girl with no experience.

In the last life, Ruby started at the factory under the guise of learning the job, but she spent more time getting close to Jack. He tried to warn me, but I dismissed him. After I died, she drugged him into a marriage, stole everything, and left him so broken he took his own life.

This time, I stepped in, blocking her view of Jack. “Jack’s shop is all machine work—heavy and greasy. Not exactly a girl’s place. Dad, didn’t you say your office needed a part-timer? She could help out with some clerical work. Sounds much better, and more respectable.”

I turned to my dad. “Didn’t you mention something about needing a dependable temp? It’d look great on her resume if she wants to marry someday.”

Ruby’s face went pale. She shrank back and cried, “Auntie, I don’t want to end up with a broken arm! I need to work and help my parents someday!”

“Oh, that’s rare,” my mom interjected hastily. “It’s not like it happens all the time.”

“Alright, let’s start her on Monday, then,” my dad said, interrupting. Since he’d spoken, my mom had no choice but to stay quiet. But I knew she wouldn’t let it go that easily.