My mother-in-law stated at my two-month-old son’s burial that I was responsible for everything that occurred: “Mom, may I tell you what Grandma used to do with baby brother?” my older daughter shot back in a whisper 
My son was born a few months ago. I have a daughter who is seven years old, so he wasn’t my sole child.
My mother-in-law seemed to go crazy after the kid was born. She visited our home every day, meddled in every aspect, and showed me how to feed, bathe, and put the baby to sleep. I did everything wrong, she said. Furthermore, she would create a fuss, yell, become offended, and attempt to turn her kid against me if I ventured to disagree with her.
My kid occasionally told me things that, at the time, I didn’t take seriously.
— Mom, is Grandma feeding the infant properly?
— Mom, does it bother him that she gives him such a firm hug?
I didn’t listen to a child too much since I was exhausted, agitated, and barely slept for two hours every night.
However…
I was horrified to discover that my son was not breathing when I got up one morning to feed him. His body was lifeless, his skin was chilly, and his lips were blue.
I called for an ambulance and yelled, but it was too late. It was sudden infant death syndrome, according to the doctors. “It occurs,” they stated. It occurs.
The first person to arrive was my mother-in-law. She sobbed more than anyone else and gave her kid a hug as though she had lost a child—not me. I felt nothing, numb, and stood next to them like a shadow.
My mother-in-law abruptly raised her head during the funeral, after the small white coffin had already been placed into the ground, and exclaimed, “My boy is gone because he had a mother like that.”
Her words pierced me like a blade. Even though I already held myself responsible for everything, hearing it from her was intolerable.
My daughter, who was standing next to me at the time, glanced up and whispered softly, “Mom, may I tell you what Grandma did with baby brother?”
Everyone in the room froze in shock
There was utter quiet. I crouched beside my daughter, attempting to decipher her meaning, but she didn’t turn away and went on composedly:
— “Gramma always came and took baby brother when you weren’t home.” “Real children should listen to their grandmother,” she added, adding that he was too devoted to you. She would sometimes deny him food for extended periods of time, claiming that it would strengthen him. She would shake him and cuddle him close if he wept, accusing him of being pampered.
After hesitating for a moment, my daughter continued: “She once covered his mouth with a pillow and told him he needed to ‘learn to be quiet.'” I was afraid and wanted to call you, but she warned me that she would take me away and I would never see you again if I spoke a word. Baby brother coughed for a while after that.
My knees started to give way. Everyone around us became white with amazement, and some of them began to cry. My mother-in-law yelled abruptly, “She’s lying!” as she stood there frozen, her face like stone. She made it up! Why are you listening to her when she is only a child?
However, it was clear that the truth had come out since her hands were quivering, her eyes were darting anxiously, and her voice was trembling. My husband was pale as he stood next to her.
I eventually realized that perhaps she was the one who had taken my son away from me as I just stared at the woman who visited my house every day with her lectures, advice, and feigned concern.
