The weight of betrayal, when combined with the complications of inheritance and responsibility, may be nearly unbearable. This is the example of a woman who, following the death of her husband, finds herself in a difficult and unexpected situation.
She explained what happened.
My husband died nearly three years ago, leaving me to raise our eight-year-old child alone. Since his death, I’ve discovered facts about him that would have ended our marriage if he had been alive.
A process server came seeking for him around six weeks ago, armed with a court order to submit his DNA for paternity testing. I handed him the death certificate and sent him on his way.
Not long after, a woman showed up at my house with a toddler, claiming it was my late husband’s son. Is it? I’m not sure, and I honestly don’t care. The infant resembles him, but he is so little that he must have been born shortly before my husband di3d.
I informed her that he had died and sent her to his gravesite. Almost soon, she started demanding ‘her portion’ of his estate. I couldn’t help but laugh and tell her that half of nothing was nothing, and she was free to take it.
Where I may be perceived as the bad guy is that, while there was no estate, there were assets that avoided probate. One of them was a rental property provided to us by his parents, which we were deeded as joint tenants with survivorship rights. He di3d, and it became mine.
I have since sold the property, and the proceeds will go toward our child’s college education. Legally, I’m covered—I’ve already spoken with my attorney. While I feel sympathy for this youngster, my priority is my own.
People stood on her side.
- “You were not a jerk. And for what it’s worth, that’s not a terribly uncommon scam for some reason. If you still have the papers, I’d look into if they were even legitimate.” O***Vegetable / Reddit
- “I would have said, ‘He died with a ton of debt. Let me get your info, so I can transfer half of it to you.’ She would be out of there so fast!” New_Standard_8609 / Reddit
- “You need to focus on your child and your finances. The property legally belongs to you, and there’s no proof your late husband was the father of the other child. Your priority is your own child’s future.” Trick-Measurement-20 / Reddit
- “Unless she has a way to prove paternity, you have ZERO obligations to her or her affair baby. Even if he is, the rental property was in your name, so it was not your husband’s to give away. Remember, she chose to wreck your house. I would not open the door for her.” mi_nombre_es_ricardo / Reddit
- “Don’t even give a second of thought about this again. Just tell yourself, ‘It was just a scam.’ And never talk to that person again, get a restraining order if it comes to it. Having said that, if you ever are served with papers (i.e. an actual lawsuit has been filed) then lawyer up immediately and vigorously defend yourself.” Apprehensive-Care20z / Reddit
- “It’s between your late hubby and his baby momma. You received sole possession of all assets upon his death, and you owe nothing to the baby momma. She should have informed him she was pregnant with his child while he was alive if she knew. Why did she wait 3 years to come forward?” Funny247365 / Reddit
Though the moral and ethical dimensions of her decision may spark debate, they reflect a universal truth: moving forward frequently necessitates making difficult, deeply personal decisions.
