The Earrings My Husband Swore He’d Never Seen

Escalating the Situation and a Twist of Fate

The next morning, I tried to talk to Nisha again, but she wouldn’t open the door. When I saw Tariq in the parking lot, I walked right up to him and demanded my earrings back, saying, “You have until tonight.” He laughed in my face and denied everything.

That’s when I knew this was no longer a polite neighbor dispute. I called my mother-in-law, who was furious. She said those earrings had been in her family for over 60 years and that she would make sure Tariq regretted his actions if he didn’t return them.

Later that day, my husband and I waited for Nisha by the elevator. We confronted her, and I calmly said, “I know my husband made a stupid mistake. But you’re wearing stolen property. This can get messy.” Nisha froze and whispered, “I didn’t know they were stolen. He said he bought them.” She finally agreed to “look” for them. An hour later, she came to our door and handed me the earrings, saying, “Please don’t get the police involved.”

I was relieved to have them back, but something about the situation still bothered me. Why did she give them back so easily? Where did the velvet box go? The answer came three days later.

I saw Nisha crying in the lobby. Tariq had vanished in the middle of the night, taking all her valuables with him. She confessed that she had suspected the earrings weren’t really his to give, but she had kept them anyway because she liked them.

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