My Dog Bunny Told Me Their Secret

When I pushed open the lottery shop's glass door, the wind brought the sharp chill of early autumn straight to my face. I was clutching that crumpled lottery ticket, my heart pounding like there was a rabbit trapped inside—I could barely even walk straight. In my fifty-six years, I've never seen this much money. Thinking about how my son James Liebes still owes three hundred thousand on his mortgage, and my daughter-in-law Jasmine Laurie always blabbing about school district houses, plus not having to dip into my retirement pension every month to help out anymore, I couldn't help but smirk. When I got downstairs at the residential complex, I spotted my golden retriever Bunny squatting by the building entrance from a distance. I brought him home the year my husband, Lucas Liebes, passed away. He's been with me for five years now, even more reliable than my own son. I quickened my steps and walked over, intending to pat its head, but suddenly a voice echoed in my mind: "Mom, why are you getting back so late? James and Jasmine hid a lottery ticket and even said they'd lie to you, pretending they didn't win, not giving you a single dime." I froze where I stood, thinking maybe I was too excited and had misheard. Bunny looked up at me, gently wagging its tail against my pant leg, and that voice spoke again: "Really, just now Mrs. Cruise said Mom's the easiest to fool, so they can keep making you their free nanny." Quinn Cruise is Jasmine's mom; she's been living at my place for almost half a year now. Every day, all she does is watching TV and nitpicking at me, and she hasn't spent a single cent. I tightened my grip on the lottery ticket. I forced down the panic inside and followed Bunny upstairs. As soon as I pushed the door open, I heard laughter coming from the living room. James was slouched on the sofa messing with his phone, Jasmine was leaning next to him cracking sunflower seeds, and Quinn was holding a gold bracelet, swinging it back and forth. "Mom's back?" Jasmine glanced up at me, her eyes a little evasive. I put the grocery bag down by the entrance, pretending to be casual as I asked, "I just heard from the neighbors downstairs that someone won a huge jackpot recently. Have you guys heard about it?" James didn't even look up: "Not interested, it's all a scam." Quinn put down the gold bracelet, smiling as she said, "Riley, come on. A windfall like that is a pipe dream for ordinary folks like us. We need to keep our feet on the ground and be content with what we have." I looked at the gold bracelet on her wrist and suddenly remembered what Bunny said about the "lottery ticket"—it was like a sharp sting in my chest. "What if someone in our family won the lottery?" I stared into James's eyes. "Like, what if we won 10 million?" The laughter in the living room suddenly stopped. Jasmine straightened up, her face turning a bit sour. "Mom, did someone feed you nonsense?" "I was just asking." I tried to keep my tone calm. "If we really did win, how would the money be split?" James finally put down his phone and frowned at me. "Mom, since when did you get so greedy? Isn't the family's money enough for you?" "Greedy?" I looked at him, my heart sinking halfway, "I worked my ass off raising you, sold my house to help with your down payment, and my retirement pension goes toward the household every month. And now, when I ask about the lottery win, I'm called greedy?" Jasmine immediately stood up and defended James, "Mom, you can't say it like that. The two of us have a lot of pressure too. We have to pay the mortgage and raise the kid. You're an old person — can't you show a little understanding?" I looked at them, tears almost falling, "I understand you — but who understands me? Your mother lives here, doesn't pay a dime, and I have to take care of her every day. Why don't you say anything about her?" Quinn's face darkened: "Riley, what do you mean by that? My daughter's family is also my family. So what if I live here? Your son's willing to welcome me, what's it to you?" I looked at James. "James, tell me, did you win 10 million? Planning to keep it from me and not give me a single cent?" James' face turned pale under my questioning, but he grit his teeth and shouted, "Mom! Stop making trouble out of thin air! Whatever lottery, I think you're just losing your mind! Don't become a shameless old woman!" Those four words, "a shameless old woman," struck my heart like a whip, making it ache fiercely. Clutching that legit 50 million lottery ticket in my pocket, I suddenly felt like the money in my hands was burning up.