They Kidnapped the Wrong Mother

It had been six months since my wife, Amelia, started cheating on me.

Today, her assistant-turned-lover, Julian, showed up at my house, demanding I pack my bags and leave.

I gave him a faint smile. Im not divorcing her.

Amelias dad put thirty million dollars into a trust fund for me when we got married just to ensure my loyalty. You think your petty insults can faze me?

"If youre so tough, get me a hundred million dollars so I can pay him back and walk away. Otherwise, shut up."

Julians face turned pale with rage. "Fine. I tried to give you a way out, and you threw it back in my face. Youre going to regret this!"

The next day, he sent me a video on Snapchat.

In the video, an elderly woman was tied up with ropes, dragged mercilessly behind a moving car on the gravel road.

"Divorce Amelia, or watch your mother die."

I froze. I knew for a fact my mom was currently vacationing in Europe. I zoomed in and took a closer look at the screen.

Holy shit. That wasn't my mom.

That was my mother-in-law, Mary!

When Julians video popped up on my Snapchat, I was in the middle of a thirty-million-dollar board meeting.

Marcus, my father-in-law, had specifically put me in charge of this deal.

He always said Amelia was too reckless and that I was the only one he trusted with the family empire.

Over the past few years, Amelias parents had truly treated me like their own son.

To repay their kindness, I did everything I could to be a perfect husband to Amelia.

Not only did I quietly handle all her mess-ups at work, but I also took care of her health.

Amelia had a weak stomach, so I drank in her place at business dinners.

She hated having strangers in her personal space, so I personally cleaned our bedroom every single day after work.

Even when her extended family pressured us to have kids, I took the blame for our lack of children just to shield her from the stress.

In my mind, marriage was about building a life together and cultivating love over time.

Until Amelia bluntly sat me down one day.

"Julian and I are sleeping together. Keep this from my parents, Liam."

"Love isnt a transaction. Just because you do things for me doesn't mean I have to love you. And honestly, I don't."

"If you find someone else you like, go ahead. I won't stand in your way."

That day, I was shocked for a second, but I accepted it quickly.

Our marriage had always been a match of convenience.

After we married, Marcus and Marys mentorship allowed me to make massive breakthroughs in my career.

Compared to chasing after a woman who didn't love me, I cared far more about the opportunities and resources her parents gave me.

So, I promised Amelia I would keep her secret as long as she didn't do anything too humiliating in public.

That was why I had never cared when Julian tried to mark his territory before.

But this time, because I didn't reply immediately, Julian started spamming my Snapchat.

[Liam, if you don't sign the divorce papers, I cant guarantee this old lady is going to keep her arms.]

I frowned, tapping into the chat, and the video started playing.

The footage was blurry, but I could clearly see an older woman tied with ropes, being dragged behind a car.

Panic surged through me. I quickly typed back:

[Don't do anything stupid. If you cross the line, Amelia and I won't be able to bail you out.]

Julian replied instantly.

[Bail me out? Shes your mother. When she dies, just bury her.]

My mom?!

My mind went completely blank. I paused the board meeting, walked out of the conference room, and FaceTimes my mom.

My heart pounded violently with every ring.

Just as the call was about to time out, she finally answered.

"Liam, sweetie! Why are you calling me at this hour?"

My moms voice was bright and relaxed. She didn't sound like she was in pain at all.

In the background, I could hear the bustling sounds of a Parisian caf.

I let out a long sigh of relief. Thank God, my mom was safe.

But before I could even catch my breath, my chest tightened again.

If the woman in the video wasn't my mom, then who the hell was it?!

I quickly made an excuse and hung up, then fired off a text to Julian.

[You kidnapped the wrong person! That is not my mom! Let her go and get her to a hospital right now!]

Thirty seconds later, Julian sent a voice note.

A weak, agonizing voice gasped through the speaker: "My son is Liam... He won't let you get away with this..."

My entire body went numb. I froze on the spot.

That was Marys voice!

I panicked and instantly texted Julian back.

[That's Mary! Amelias mother! Get her to a hospital right now, or youre going to prison for the rest of your life!]

But Julian didn't believe a single word.

He sent back a laughing emoji, followed by a wall of text.

[You got lucky marrying Amelia, and now youre actually delusional enough to think youre the CEO's real son?]

[Youre just a glorified house husband. Know your place.]

[You think youre important to the company, but to the Donald family, youre just a dog they keep on a leash.]

[They dont view you as real family!]

If Julian knew anything about the Donald family, he would never have said that.

Amelia was a wild child. Whenever she had free time, she was out partying, barely spending any time with her parents.

I was the exact opposite. In my spare time, I loved sitting down with Marcus and Mary, talking about business strategies and management.

My own parents lived abroad, so I gave all my free time to them.

They genuinely loved me and called me their son.

And because Mary had called me "son" to her captors, Julian thought she was my biological mother!

I immediately hit the FaceTime button on Julian.

"Julian, I swear to God, that is Mary! If anything happens to her, Amelia will destroy you!"

On the screen, Julian smirked. "Oh, please, Liam. Youre just saying shes Mary because youre terrified Ill beat your actual mother to death."

"Relax, I'm not a monster. Look, shes perfectly fine."

He flipped the camera to show Mary.

My heart stopped. Marys lips were turning blue, and her body was twitching. She was struggling to breathe.

She had severe asthma. Under my care over the past few years, she hadn't had a single attack.

But now, she was on the verge of suffocating!

Marcus had a weak heart, and his blood pressure had been dangerously high lately. I couldn't tell him yet, or he might have a stroke.

Taking a deep breath, I forced myself to calm down. "Mary has asthma! Shes having an attack right now!"

"Julian, call an ambulance! She is going to die!"

Julian burst out laughing.

"Didn't you just say she wasn't your mom? Now youre begging me to save her?"

"Liam, youre so bad at lying. You broke so easily."

"If you want me to save her, get down on your knees and beg me. Do it, and I might consider it."

I clenched my fists so hard my nails dug into my palms. Rage boiled in my veins.

I knew this piece of trash was just trying to humiliate me. But if I delayed any longer, Mary would die!

When I first joined the company, many senior executives refused to respect me. They tried to sabotage a massive deal to ruin my reputation.

It was Mary who showed up at the client dinner, turned the tide, and secured the contract.

Afterward, she fired every single executive who had bullied me.

When Amelia complained about me, Mary told her that I needed time to grow.

She mentored me, hand-in-hand, teaching me how to run the business.

Without Mary, I wouldn't be where I was today.

On the screen, Marys face was turning purple. Julian sneered, "Whats the hold-up? Is her life not worth your pride?"

"Guess you don't care about your mommy that much after all."

I gritted my teeth. "Ill kneel! Just promise youll save her!"

He nodded, grinning.

I got down on my knees right in front of the camera. "Please, save her."

Julians hysterical laughter echoed through the phone.

I glared at him, my eyes bloodshot. "Now call 911!"

Julian sneered coldheartedly. "If the ambulance comes here, itll cause a scene and ruin the companys reputation. We cant have that."

"But Ill give you the address."

"370 Spring Road. Come and get her yourself."

"Don't worry, your mom isn't that fragile. This was just a warning. I don't actually want her dead."

With that, he hung up.

I rushed out of the office, speeding toward 370 Spring Road. On the way, I dialed 911, explaining Marys medical history to the dispatcher.

Then, I spam-called Amelia.

This was her mother. She had to know. But after ten consecutive calls, she didn't answer.

My car screeched to a halt in front of a private villa. The ambulance and I arrived at the exact same time.

But Julian was standing at the gate, blocking the paramedics.

He glared at me. "Liam, are you deaf? I said no ambulances! Do you want to ruin the company's stock price?!"

I was shaking with pure rage.

"Now you care about the companys stock price?"

"Why didn't you think about that before you did something this brainless?!"

Julian yelled back, "What did I even do?"

"Let me tell you the truth. That video I sent you was a deepfake. I used an AI generator. There is no injured person inside."

"You idiot, take the ambulance and get the hell out of here!"

Hearing this, the lead paramedics expression turned stern. "Whats going on here? Emergency resources are extremely tight. We don't tolerate prank calls!"

If the video was a deepfake, how did he get Marys face? Julian was lying to get rid of them.

The nearest hospital was a forty-minute drive from here. If the ambulance left, I was terrified Mary wouldn't survive.

My heart hammered against my ribs.

I turned to the paramedics. "She is inside, I swear to you!"

Then, I glared at Julian. "This is a matter of life and death! Let them in, or I will call the police right now!"

Julian laughed mockingly. "And tell the police what? That I sent you a prank video?"

"Liam, I admit I was just trying to mess with you."

"Every time you act all lovey-dovey with Amelia in front of me, it makes me sick."

"But this is a private matter between us. Ive already admitted the video was fake. Stop wasting medical resources and get lost."

Julians words made the paramedics look at me with suspicion.

I was stunned. He was painting me as some jealous husband throwing a tantrum!

Before I could explain, the paramedic asked Julian, "Are you sure there is no patient inside?"

"If someone dies because you blocked us, you will be held criminally liable."

"I swear there is no one inside!" Julian said confidently.

Believing him, the paramedics turned to walk back to their truck.

I ran and blocked them. "I can prove shes in there!"

I stepped up to Julian and whispered, "Mary has a reddish birthmark on the right side of her neck. Think carefullydoes the woman you took have that birthmark?"

Julians smirk vanished. His eyebrows furrowed. He clearly realized the woman he captured had that exact mark.

He immediately pulled out his phone and texted Amelia.

[Liam said your mom has a red birthmark on her neck. Is that true?]

Thinking about the ten missed calls, I said quietly, "Amelia is busy. She won't reply to you."

But to my surprise, Amelias text popped up a second later.

[I don't think so? Why?]

Julian let out a huge sigh of relief and smirked at me.

"Nice try, Liam."

"The more you lie, the more it proves that the old bag inside is your mother."

"I wasn't going to let her die, but you really pissed me off today."

"Now, Ive changed my mind."

Julians eyes glinted with malice.

His voice was so low that only the two of us could hear it.

The ambulance was about to leave, and I still didn't have proof to make them force their way in.

Just as I was about to call the police, Amelias call came through to Julians phone.

"Why are you asking about my moms birthmark?" her voice echoed.

Before Julian could answer, I snatched the phone from his hand.

"Amelia! Your mother is having a severe asthma attack inside this villa!"

"Julian is blocking the paramedics from going in! If we wait any longer, shes going to die!"

Amelia snapped instantly. "Liam, are you out of your mind? How dare you curse my mother!"

"My mom is currently in Europe! How could Julian block her in some villa?!"

"I bet your own useless mother is the one dying, and youre trying to use my mom to get my attention. I'm not helping you beg Julian!"

I froze. A cold dread washed over me.

Amelia knew Julian was going after my mother. And she had approved of it!

I clenched my jaw so hard my teeth ached.

For years, I had treated her parents like my own family, and this was how she treated mine.

Mary must have returned from Europe early without telling anyone, and Julian kidnapped her by mistake.

To make Amelia take this seriously, I threatened her. "The company is at a critical stage. If this gets out and the stocks plunge, you know exactly what will happen to your inheritance."

That finally struck a nerve. Amelia screamed through the phone.

"Liam! Are you threatening me?!"

"Im coming over right now. I want to see what kind of game youre playing!"

I finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Standing next to me, Julian saw my sweaty, pale face and laughed.

"You think Amelia will side with you when she gets here?"

"Let me tell you something, she will protect me no matter what. Even if your mother dies here today, she won't stay mad at me for long."

Just as Julian finished his sentence, his assistant ran out of the villa, panicking. "Julian! The old lady... shes stopped moving!"

The paramedics face turned serious instantly. He grabbed his trauma kit from the truck and ran toward the house.

But Julian quickly slammed the iron gates shut. "What do you think youre doing? This is private property! Ill sue you for trespassing!"

"Someone is dying in there!" the paramedic yelled.

"So what?!" Julian yelled back arrogantly. "I said Ill take responsibility! Are you deaf?!"

The paramedics cursed at him for being heartless.

But no matter what they said, and even though I called the police right in front of him, Julian kept the gates locked, looking completely fearless.

My only hope was the police.

But before the police arrived, Amelias sports car screeched to a halt.

She stepped out, frowning at the ambulance. "Who called them? Having an ambulance outside my house is so bad for PR!"

She walked over and glared at me. "You called them for your mother, didn't you?"

"Julian was just playing a little joke to blow off some steam. Why are you making such a big deal out of it?"

"Its not like shes actually that fragile."

"If shes really that weak, she wouldn't have lived much longer anyway!"

Hearing Amelia say this, Julian looked even more smug.

He smiled and told his assistant, "Liam and these doctors really want to see the old lady. Go on, drag her out."

The assistant was fast. Within two minutes, he dragged Mary out of the front door and threw her onto the grass like a sack of potatoes.

The paramedics tried to run forward, but Amelia stepped in front of them. "Let me see if she actually needs help first."

She walked toward the limp body on the grass with disgust.

But the moment she saw the womans face, all the color drained from her cheeks, and she froze.