I came home from a business trip to find the Mercedes in the garage with half a tank of gas missing.
I asked my fiancé, Gabriel Chavez. He said he didn't know anything about it.
I was about to call building management when Gabriel's younger brother posted on social media.
In the photo, he was joyriding along the Ring Expressway with his girlfriend.
In my car.
"A six-figure ride. Nothing special."
Gabriel had liked the post. So had both his parents.
I stared at it for a few seconds in silence.
Then I liked it too, and left a comment.
"If this happens again,"
"I'm calling the police."
……
Less than ten minutes later, Eliana Chavez called.
"Patsy Simmons, what exactly was that comment supposed to mean?"
"Do you have any idea what you've done? Because of what you wrote, Christian Chavez got into a huge fight with his girlfriend. The poor girl said your family steals cars. She's mortified!"
I held the phone steady, my voice even.
"Mrs. Chavez, I bought that car myself. Christian never asked me if he could use it. He took it without permission."
A beat of silence on her end, then her voice came back hotter than before. "Took it without permission? Why do you have to make it sound so ugly?"
"Christian is your future brother-in-law! He saw the car sitting in the garage and took his girlfriend for a spin. It's not like he wasn't going to bring it back."
"And then you go and threaten to call the police under his post for the whole world to see? Who exactly are you trying to scare?"
"I was stating a fact," I said. "If it happens again, I will call the police."
"You—" She sucked in a breath, her voice shooting up several octaves. "Patsy, let me put this bluntly. You have no parents. You're about to marry into our family."
"What's yours is the Chavez family's. We're all one family, and you're nickel-and-diming us like this? How do you think that makes Gabriel feel?"
"How do you expect us to treat you?"
Whatever warmth I still held for these people vanished right then.
So that was how they saw it. The car I bought with my own money had been penciled into the Chavez family ledger a long time ago.
And it wasn't just the car.
"Mrs. Chavez." My voice went cold. "I haven't married Gabriel yet. But even if I had, my personal property cannot be touched by anyone without my consent."
"That is my line."
She shrieked. "What kind of attitude is that?"
I didn't wait for her to finish. I hung up.
The living room went quiet.
I sat on the couch, staring at the bouquet on the coffee table. The flowers were starting to wilt.
I'd bought them the week before, right before my trip, planning to swap them for fresh ones when I got back.
Now everything in this room irritated me.
Just past noon, the lock clicked.
Gabriel pushed the door open, changed his shoes, and walked into the living room.
His face was blank, but I knew he was in a bad mood.
He always did the same thing when he was upset: avoid eye contact, sit down first, then sigh.
"You're back?" I spoke first.
He didn't answer. He set his briefcase on the coffee table.
Sank into the couch, and only then turned to look at me. "What you said to my mom. Don't you think that was a bit much?"
"What did I say?"
"You said you'd call the police." He looked at me like he genuinely couldn't understand. "Patsy, that's my brother. He's not a thief."
"He drove my car without telling me." I measured every word. "I came home, found half the gas gone, asked you about it, and you said you didn't know."
"If I hadn't checked social media, I still wouldn't know who took it."
Gabriel was quiet for a few seconds, as if processing what I'd said.
Then he sighed, his tone softening. "I know Christian was wrong, but that comment really was too much."
"He just started seeing this girl. She saw your threat about calling the police and felt humiliated. They nearly broke up over it."
