"This is the last time. But you have to leave me two million. I need to go abroad for treatment."
I'd also made up my mind to accept the company's overseas assignment. Once the treatment was done, I wouldn't come back for a while.
After all these years of being bled dry, plus this eight million, it would be more than enough to repay the debt of being raised.
But the second Ethel heard my terms, she exploded. "Like hell! Every last cent of that ten million is mine. You don't get a single dollar!"
"She's right," my father chimed in. "You're only helping your sister pay off a fraction. How is that any different from not helping at all? Besides, you're already wrecked. That kind of damage doesn't heal. No point throwing money away on a lost cause."
"Help your sister now," my mother added, "and her children will take care of you when you're old. Wipe your chin, change your bedpan, the whole deal. All you're doing is spending a little money for a lifetime of returns. Isn't that a good trade?"
I watched their mouths open and close, every word dressed up like concern, every word a blade twisting between my ribs.