For the last seven years, I (29F) have been married to my husband, Harry. I enjoy everything about our marriage, except for his relationship with his sister, Kayla, who brings all the negativity into our life. Now, don’t get me wrong; when I initially met Kayla, I loved her, but with time, I rapidly changed my view. She is poisonous, manipulative, and deeply negative.
Knowing the kind of person she is, I have worked hard over the years to be on her good side. But it was never enough. When Harry and I were just meeting and falling in love, his parents were quite encouraging, but Kayla always treated me coldly. She would always bring up Harry’s exes for no apparent reason whenever I was present, reminding him of how well they were doing and suggesting how he could get in touch with them. When Harry asked her to stop, she would get enraged and start mocking me, claiming I was jealous and that Harry shouldn’t be with someone like me.
Her treatment of me got even worse as soon as Harry and I were engaged. As we revealed our engagement to the family, everyone started applauding, but I observed Kayla was quiet. Then, startling everyone, she sprang up from her chair and left. Later, she called Harry, sobbing and yelling about how she didn’t value receiving the news with everyone else, as she felt she was the closest to him and deserved to be the first to know.
She stayed involved in all the wedding preparations, though her criticism reached a whole new level as she freely expressed her unhappiness with my decisions. One day, Kayla overheard me talking about the centerpieces with my future mother-in-law. She started to make fun of me right away, stating how my decision had “no class” and how this was why she wanted her brother to wed someone better. For me, that was the tipping point. I lost control and made it plain to her that she was no longer invited to our wedding. Shocked, Kayla was infuriated. She grudgingly texted me a sincere apology later, which I saw and left on read.
She did attend our wedding in the end. Everyone, including the guests, seemed to have no issue following the pink tones and pastels chosen for the theme, but Kayla arrived looking as though she were attending a funeral: a black, floor-length gown with a veil. We were stunned. She visited everyone, sharing her “grief” at losing her brother to another woman. When her non-stop scene-making persisted, my mother-in-law and father-in-law ultimately ordered her to leave.
The Escalation
Ever since that day, I have avoided her. When I delivered my son, Nate, I forbade Kayla from being anywhere near him. My husband’s parents had my back.
Two years ago, Kayla suffered a miscarriage with her then-boyfriend, Jamie, and it totally shattered her. Given our status as parents, Harry and I felt bad for her. We chose to be somewhat more lenient, welcoming her to our house so she could connect with our son. She looked to have changed at first, but with time, she returned to her former self, constantly talking about how difficult her life is and blaming others for her problems.
She chose to get married this year and invited everyone except us. When we questioned her, she began to explain how she wouldn’t let me come since I would “cause a disturbance” at her wedding. She deliberately brought up how she had dressed in all black for our wedding, and now she was worried I might do the same. Outraged, and after discussing it with his parents, Harry decided to let Kayla know they would neither be attending the wedding nor would they pay for it. This brought Kayla to tears, and she began to blame me. Later, she contacted me to apologize and asked for forgiveness, as her parents were still not paying for her wedding. I wanted to move forward from the past, so I forgave her.
Not even six months later, Kayla appeared at our door, grumbling about her marriage failing. We let her stay with us, where she would spend endless hours venting about her husband, Jamie. They appeared to be struggling to conceive, and Kayla was obviously blaming him for everything.
She became hyper-focused on our lives. For instance, every morning before heading to work, I visit the gym. When I’m running late, I occasionally grab my work clothes so I may shower and change there. Kayla observed this and would have many questions, including why I was bathing at the gym. I didn’t give it much thought.
Then, at lunch one day, my mother-in-law was telling us about a friend who was divorcing her husband and getting half his assets after learning about his adultery. Kayla stopped her abruptly to ask my husband whether he and I had signed a prenup. We paused to stare at her.
My husband told her straightforwardly that since we both made good money, we felt no need for a prenup. Kayla snorted and began to say that he could be blindsided any day and that “cheats abound today.” Her statements offended me, so I asked her to clarify what she meant. Kayla then began to remark how I was obviously meeting someone, as I was usually carrying a change of clothing everywhere, and that as Harry’s sister, it was her obligation to warn her brother.
She continued to emphasize how she was only trying to be there for her brother and began to joke if our son, Nate, was indeed Harry’s son, since he “didn’t quite look like him.”
I swear, I had never seen my husband this enraged in my life. Looking Kayla squarely in the eye, he informed her that she was not a mother yet, as she did not deserve to be one, and that her miscarried child would be better off in Paradise than with someone like her.
Reduced to tears, Kayla began to wail, expecting comfort from Jamie, who was seated right next to her. But he never spoke. My husband continued, telling her she was a shameless person trying to ruin everything, a loser doing nothing all day while her husband worked non-stop. He said that since she was plainly projecting, she should focus on her own marriage instead of pointing fingers at me.
After that day, we barred her from everything.
The Birthday Party
We last spoke with her a year ago. Two months ago, I discovered I was pregnant. This was quite unexpected, and my husband and I were blessed to welcome another family member. We decided to let everyone know on my husband’s birthday.
His parents were throwing a great celebration in their lawn, and our close friends and relatives were invited. Kayla chose to show her face after hearing about this from others. She came to hug Harry, telling him how much she had missed him and how sorry she was. She looked at me, then apologized, informing me she had been attending therapy and came to see how inappropriate her behavior was. Though I disagreed, I nodded, as I wanted to be polite.
When it came time to cut the cake, Harry spoke movingly about how he thought he was the luckiest man on Earth. His remarks made me flush with delight. Then, Harry and I decided to let everyone know our fantastic news. Grinning, we said we were having a baby. Everyone paused to consider before yelling in delight.
Kayla was the one sore thumb that stood out. She seemed stunned, her mood changed, and she simply turned away from us, appearing irritated.
Later, as I was calmly waiting for my husband to bring me a meal, Kayla approached me, beaming. She said that she personally wanted to offer me dinner since she was so excited about my pregnancy. She handed me a dish, saying she wanted to make it up to me for all the times she had been nasty. I nodded and politely accepted.
I was ready to start digging in when I fortunately found she had put shrimp on my dish. I am quite allergic to shrimp, so I was surprised Kayla even brought me this. Disappointed, I shook my head and got up to get my own lunch.
Jamie approached me at that point to wish me well on my pregnancy. After a little conversation, he asked me why I hadn’t been eating. I pointed out how Kayla had served me shrimp, probably by error. Since he enjoyed eating shrimp, he told me he could have this dish and I could get a fresh plate for myself. He reassured me not to worry and removed the dish from my hands. I nodded, grinned, then turned aside.
Not even five minutes later, Jamie began to puke and wretch. Concerned, everyone stopped eating and watched him stagger. Harry and Kayla hurried towards him. Jamie gestured at his plate, then at his throat. Our eyes grew wide as we realized what he had eaten had made him sick. Jamie passed out. Everyone gasped. Kayla hurried over to examine his dish, and her eyes grew shocked. She turned to stare at me and inquired whether I had handed her husband my plate. I nodded. Someone called for an ambulance, and he was hurried to the hospital. Through all of this, Kayla was sobbing non-stop and staring angrily at me.
We were told later on that Jamie had been poisoned. Knowing that the plate belonged originally to me, I nearly passed out.
The Aftermath and Updates
I sat down with Harry and his parents over dinner to let them know what had happened, including how Kayla had handed me a plate of prawns and Jamie had unintentionally consumed it. Their shock and incredulity reflected my own. Harry’s face transformed from uncertainty to rage.
Being the pragmatic woman she is, my mother-in-law suggested right away that we look at the security camera footage. The truth was indisputable. The video showed Kayla presenting the poisoned plate to me, and then what happened to cause Jamie’s suffering.
My in-laws opted to forward this material to the police. Since Jamie was the one who had to lodge charges against Kayla, my father-in-law and my husband visited him after he recovered.
It has been a month since my previous update. Kayla was detained. After seeing the proof, she admitted everything right away and did not even dispute the claims. Once Jamie recovered, he not only chose to press charges but also sought a divorce. As it happens, Kayla is pregnant herself. She tried to control her parents by telling them they should bail her out for the benefit of their grandchild. Her father strongly advised her, nevertheless, that she should at last learn to own her actions and that they were done coddling her.
Eight months have passed. Kayla is a prisoner now. She came out guilty on the allegations. My in-laws told me how Kayla came clean to the court, admitting to years of jealousy. She had always dreamed of one of her best friends marrying my husband. She became jealous when we announced our pregnancy at the party, as she was also going to reveal her own. She felt we stole her opportunity to shine. She became so enraged that she mixed a little bit of rat poison with my supper. She said she wanted me to wind up in the hospital but never wanted to physically harm the baby or myself. The judge didn’t buy it.
Jamie is also at last free, since she has also effectively divorced him. We have seen him over the months and keep including him in our family events.
Regarding Harry and myself, our family now boasts a baby daughter. Her presence has warmed and lit our life, despite the shadows of the past. Being a big brother makes our son, Nate, very happy, and he has been loving and caring toward his little sister.