My Mother-in-Law's Romance Scam

After my mother-in-law retired, she fell into an online romance, insisting she'd found her second chance at love.

I'd worked at the Anti-Fraud Center for years.

I recognized this scam pattern immediately.

So in my previous life, when my mother-in-law was about to wire three hundred thousand dollars of her retirement savings to support her boyfriend's "business venture," I stepped in to stop her.

Her boyfriend quickly blocked her, and she had a complete breakdown,pointing at me and screaming:

"You think everyone's like you, eyeing my three hundred thousand in retirement savings!"

My usually reasonable husband, Nathan Williams, turned cold toward me too:

"Mom's been single for years. It's normal for her to find a

boyfriend."

My mother-in-law posted my intervention video online.

The internet tore me apart, saying I wanted to steal my mother-in-law's money.

Depressed, I died in a car accident.

When I opened my eyes again, I was back on the day my mother-in-law held

her phone, ready to transfer the money.

This time, I didn't stop her:

"Linda, is three hundred thousand enough? If not, I can help you scrape together more."

"None of you better even think about my money. I'm absolutely giving this three hundred thousand to support my boyfriend's business."

When Linda May's voice rang in my ears again, I instantly realized I'd been reborn.

In my previous life, after my mother-in-law announced her online romance, she spent every day calling him "baby" and "sweetheart."

Before long, she couldn't wait to pull out three hundred thousand to support her boyfriend's business venture.

Working at the Anti-Fraud Center, I immediately recognized this as a scam.

My mother-in-law was over sixty, a rural woman with limited education.

Besides money, what else could this person possibly want from her?

When I discovered the three hundred thousand had already been transferred, I nearly fainted. I worked through the night, getting colleagues to help freeze the scammer's account.

After that, I pulled strings and called in countless favors to recover the money from the account.

But once the money was recovered, my mother-in-law could no longer contact her boyfriend. She flew into a rage:

"This is all your fault! If you hadn't insisted Raymond was a scammer, I would've made who knows how many more hundreds of thousands by now.

Now he's blocked me!"

She maliciously edited surveillance footage of me trying to warn her and posted it online, claiming I was preventing older women from pursuing happiness.

I never imagined a good deed would destroy my entire life.

Fortunately, fate gave me a second chance.

"Mia Johnson, are you deaf? Can't you hear me talking to you?"

I snapped back to reality and pretended to look apologetic:

"Linda, is three hundred thousand enough? Let me have Nathan scrape together more."

Linda scrutinized me for a few moments before pursing her lips.

"Nathan's my son, of course he'll support me. What about you---how much are you planning to contribute?"

I froze.

From her tone, Nathan's contribution apparently didn't count.

I needed to chip in money too.

I pointed at Nathan, who stood silently nearby. "Nathan and I are family. What he gives represents both of us."

Linda swatted my hand away, her cloudy old eyes widening:

"You married into this family to serve us! Nathan's money has nothing to do with you!"

So marrying in meant I'd been sold to the Williams family?

If Nathan hadn't gotten on his knees before my parents, begging them to let their daughter marry him, I never would have married down.

I'd genuinely considered myself part of this family.

But them?

This time, I wouldn't be so foolish.

I didn't argue with Linda. Instead, I looked dejected:

"Linda, I'll be honest with you. My parents need money for surgery recently."

"I've already taken out one loan. If I apply for another, the bank probably won't approve it."

When Linda heard I was giving money to my family, she immediately started cursing.

"Look at you! You haven't brought much money into this house, but you're giving it all to outsiders!"

Her words got increasingly ugly, dragging my parents into it too, her face full of disgust.

In my previous life, my parents already had high blood pressure. To clear my name, they'd rushed around speaking up for me.

Finally, while arguing with Linda to defend me, they got so worked up that they both passed away.

Thinking about it, I clenched my fists, my resolve hardening.

This time, I would make this family pay a terrible price.

"Linda, that's not fair. When Nathan was unemployed, wasn't I the one supporting the household? Why don't you mention that?!"

Seeing the topic shift toward him, Nathan stammered:

"Linda, three hundred thousand isn't a small amount. Who would..."

Linda put her hands on her hips and yelled at him:

"What do you mean? You think your mother can be scammed?"

Recently, to secure Linda's retirement savings, her online boyfriend had gone all out.

Various anniversary transfers and birthday gifts.

That gold necklace alone was worth at least ten thousand dollars.

Seeing Linda throw a tantrum, Nathan looked to me for help.

"Mia, why don't you check in the system at work? Then we can all feel reassured."

I sneered internally.

In my previous life, Nathan had also tried to smooth things over like this when the money was being transferred.

But after I recovered the money, he stood on Linda's side.

"Mia, Mom just wants to find someone to talk to. Why are you making such a big deal out of it!"

Starting over, I wouldn't be so stupid.

"Nathan, that's not necessary. I trust Linda's judgment."

"And if we make money, our whole family will have a better life!"

Linda immediately nodded smugly.

"That's right, Nathan. Why don't you come to the bank with me and transfer a hundred thousand?"

Nathan's eyes also showed a hint of greed.

But he was still uneasy. "Linda, all my money went to the mortgage. I don't have any..."

Before he could finish, I quickly interrupted.

"Nathan, money's not a problem. We can take out a mortgage on our house."

"I can get a clean divorce first, with the debt under my name. Once the money comes through, we can remarry."

"That way the bank won't have any issues."

Linda's expression finally improved.

"Alright, let's do it your way!"

Probably afraid this money-making opportunity would slip away, Linda dragged Nathan and me to the Registry Office first thing the next morning.

After completing the paperwork, I used work as an excuse to leave early.

Looking at the divorce certificate in my hands, I couldn't help but

laugh.

From now on, whatever happened to this family had nothing to do with me.

Living under the same roof with these people---even one more day felt suffocating.

Linda pointed at my retreating figure and cursed:

"Look at what you married! She's useless every single day!"

"Good riddance. I didn't even know she'd been quietly taking so much money home to her family until yesterday."

I hadn't been at work long when my phone rang.

Nathan's anxious voice came through.

"Mia, this bank account is showing as abnormal. Can you check it out?"

I gripped my phone and answered crisply.

"Sure, I'll check for you."

Five minutes later, I called back, my tone certain.

"Nathan, I looked into it. The account is fine, no problems at all."

Nathan's voice clearly dropped.

"Really no problems? But the bank is showing a warning..."

"It's probably a system error. Large transfers often trigger risk controls. Just go ahead and transfer it."

The line went silent for a few seconds.

"Really? Let me think about it..."

I deliberately sighed.

"What, you don't even trust me?"

"I've worked at the Anti-Fraud Center for years. Can't I tell if someone's a scammer?"

I was about to add a few more reassuring words when Linda's furious cursing came through the phone.

"Stop being so paranoid! She already said it's fine. Why are you asking so many questions!"

"This kind of money-making opportunity---people are fighting over it.

If you keep hesitating, you won't even get scraps!"

Imagining Nathan cowering on the other end, unable to speak up, a mocking smile crossed my lips.

"That's right, Nathan. Just listen to Linda. Opportunities don't wait."

Two days after the money was transferred, Linda received a deposit of three hundred and fifty thousand dollars.

In the following days, she went around the neighborhood endlessly sharing her investment wisdom.

She even claimed that anyone who wanted to make money could come to her for advice---five thousand dollars per consultation.

The neighborhood was full of retired folks with pensions and nothing to do.

"Linda, you really made three hundred fifty thousand? That's not pocket change!"

"What kind of business is this? Can you bring me in on it?"

"Of course!"

She patted her chest, guaranteeing everyone they wouldn't lose money.

Watching one consultation fee after another roll in, Linda's smile never faded.

Nathan became even more arrogant, completely reclaiming his masculine

pride.

"Mia, I told you that you don't have your priorities straight, always supporting your family."

"Now you've missed out on such a great opportunity to get rich. Being jealous won't help."

I watched their smug displays, secretly sneering inside.

That three hundred fifty thousand was just bait the scammer threw out to hook bigger fish.

Just wait---this was only the beginning.

The happier they were now, the more miserable they'd be when they lost everything.

From that day on, I never returned to that house.

I used the excuse of caring for my sick mother to move back to my parents' home.

Seeing my parents again, I couldn't help but throw myself into their arms and cry.

Seeing me return alone, my mom looked worried.

"Mia, be honest with us. You and Nathan..."

I wiped my tears and said:

"We're divorced."

After I spoke, I felt anxious, but I saw her breathe a sigh of relief.

"Good. Your father said all along that boy wasn't good enough for

you."

"I'll have your aunt set you up with some better prospects."

Her words made me laugh, and the depression and grievance I'd been carrying lifted considerably.

During my time at my parents' house, I completely avoided the Williams family's troubles and focused on spending time with my parents.

Linda was too absorbed in her get-rich-quick dream to bother with me.

But calculating the timeline, it was almost time for the scammer to close the net.

Sure enough, within two days, I received frantic calls from Nathan.

When I didn't answer, message after message flooded in.

"Mia, you knew all along, didn't you? That person was a scammer!"

"Now the bank's coming to collect debt every day. This is all your fault.

You have to take responsibility!"

Seeing his crazed state, I simply changed my social media accounts and contact information.

My phone finally fell silent.

The next news I heard about Linda came when I was leaving work and two old ladies downstairs were gossiping.

When I heard the total amount collected, I couldn't help but gasp.

I knew Linda would scam money from people, but I didn't expect her to raise an amount that could lead to a life sentence.

Linda's online boyfriend had vanished without a trace.

The mortgage on the house worth hundreds of thousands, the loan sharks, and all those retirees' pension money---all gone.

Now they couldn't even go home. Every day, people demanding their money back blocked the door.

"At her age, falling for an online romance. Does she really think anyone would be interested in an old lady?"

"What about her son and daughter-in-law? Why aren't they doing anything?"

"Oh my, her son can't even take care of himself. I heard he borrowed from loan sharks and got one of his legs broken."

I was munching on sunflower seeds, enjoying the gossip, when I caught sight of two familiar figures.

I quickly dialed the police.

"Hello, I've spotted suspicious individuals from a wanted notice."

Seeing me, Linda lunged forward viciously, her nails scratching several bloody marks on my skin.

"You bitch! You knew that account had problems all along, didn't you?

You tricked us into taking out loans! How did our family end up with a daughter-in-law like you!"

I gripped her hands tightly, struggling to speak.

"I have... nothing to do with your family anymore!"

Just then, my parents suddenly appeared and kicked the thrashing Linda away.

"Let go of my daughter!"

Linda collapsed on the ground in pain, rolling around and wailing loud enough for the entire neighborhood to hear, drawing a crowd of onlookers.

"Help! Someone's trying to kill me!"

"She said the account had no problems. Now something's happened, and she's working with the scammer!"

" You married into this family! You're one of us, whether you like it or not!"

"You have to pay our debts!"

Many neighbors stood around with folded arms, watching the show.

Some eyes darted between Linda and me, seemingly speculating about something.

"Mia, let's talk this through. Don't make such a scene in public.

Let's go inside and discuss this."

Nathan, who'd been silent the whole time, finally spoke.

His words seemed to give me an out, but he was actually desperate to pin the scam on me.

Waves of contemptuous voices rang out.

"Could what the old lady and her son are saying be true?"

"The Johnson family's daughter works at the Anti-Fraud Center.

If everything was fine, why would her mother-in-law get scammed out of so much money?"

"She's been staying at her parents' house lately. Who knows if it's out of guilt!"

I steadied myself with my parents' support and clenched my fists.

In my previous life, Linda had done the same thing---shamelessly slandering and spreading rumors, ultimately dragging me into the abyss.

This time, I would never repeat that mistake.

I looked at Linda still throwing her tantrum on the ground and sneered:

"Do you have any evidence for what you're saying?"

"I moved out simply because Nathan and I got divorced. That's all!"

Clearly not expecting such a firm, decisive response, Linda's face turned alternately pale and flushed, her neck stiff as she shouted: "I have evidence!"