Author: Momo Chan

At the wedding, Lucas Thorne’s childhood sweetheart showed up with their child. She knelt on the ground and begged me, “I have a terminal illness, and this child is my only hope.” Lucas asked me to make a choice. Fearing I would refuse, the childhood sweetheart threatened to take her own life to keep the child with him. She cried to Lucas: “I don’t have long to live anyway. If I die now, it will prove that we are innocent.” “The child will forget I was his biological mother, as long as you are happy.” The next second. She waved a knife at herself but was stopped by the security guards I had prepared in advance. I smiled and said: “Don’t die. The wedding is off. It’s best for the child to be raised by his biological parents.” In my previous life, I was forced to become the child’s stepmother. And the death of the childhood sweetheart became an insurmountable chasm between Lucas and me. He even imprisoned me as revenge. Causing me to die of depression. So this time, my life will not be dictated by anyone. 1 “Mia Stone, do you take Lucas Thorne to be your lawfully wedded husband, to have and to hold, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, till death do us part?” These wedding vows are so old-fashioned. I curled my lips and counted down silently in my heart: five, four, three… Lucas whispered to remind me, “Mia, it’s your turn.” Two, one. As the last number fell, two figures, one large and one small, appeared at the church entrance. I turned slowly. We meet again. Chloe Brooks dragged her son, Chase, to me and knelt down without a word. Then she started crying: “Miss Stone, please help me! “This is Lucas’s child, Chase.” The crowd was in an uproar. Chloe hurriedly explained: “Miss Stone, don’t misunderstand. I’m not here to ruin your wedding with Lucas. “I have a terminal illness and won’t live long. This child is my only hope. I hope you can keep him and treat him as your own.” She pushed Chase towards me, “Chase, call her Mom!” Chase glared at me hatefully, “No! She’s not my mom, she’s a bad woman! She stole my dad. Bitch, go die!” Chloe waited until Chase finished cursing before scolding him: “Chase, don’t talk nonsense!” She looked at Lucas with tears in her eyes, “Lucas, hurry up and promise Miss Stone that you don’t love me anymore. “As long as your family of three can be happy, I’m willing to die right now! “I don’t have long to live anyway. dying now can prove that we are innocent.” “The child will forget I was his biological mother, as long as you are happy.” Lucas turned to look at me, “Mia, I’ll listen to you.” “…” The child is so big, dying can’t prove innocence, right? Before I could speak, Chloe suddenly pulled out a fruit knife from behind and raised her hand to stab her stomach. “Miss Stone, if I die now, it will definitely not affect your wedding with Lucas!” This scene was too familiar to me. In my last life, it was like this. Chloe died at my wedding with Lucas. By the time I reacted, I was forced to be Chase’s stepmother. Chase cursed me as a bad woman every day. Lucas hated me deeply, blamed Chloe’s death entirely on me, and even imprisoned me, torturing me daily. I died in that small, dark basement. So in this life, I hired bodyguards in advance. At the same time, let everyone see with their own eyes that this drama was created by Lucas and Chloe, and I am not to blame. The bodyguards on the side were ready to go. The next second they rushed up, one kicked the knife out of Chloe’s hand, and the other pinned her to the ground. I took a step back, pretending to be frightened, “Oh my God! If you want to die, die somewhere else. How could your death here not affect the wedding?” “Forget it.” I shook my head and smiled: “Don’t die. The wedding is off. It’s best for the child to be raised by his biological parents.” 2 After my words fell, the first to react were Lucas’s parents, Arthur Thorne and Sarah Thorne. “Mia, don’t say angry words. The wedding is about to end.” “Don’t worry, even if this child is really Lucas’s, our Thorne family won’t acknowledge him. No one can threaten your status.” I looked at Lucas again. His dark eyes were deep, making it impossible to see what he was thinking. I raised my eyebrows slightly, “Lucas, is this your attitude too?” Lucas opened his thin lips slightly, “I…” “Look how pitiful she is.” I looked at Chloe who was still pinned to the ground, “How much courage does a woman need to make a scene at a wedding for you? She loves you so much, are you really unwilling to give her a wedding?” Lucas looked surprised, “Mia, you…” “This child is also quite pitiful, growing up in a single-parent family. Lucas, you should give him a complete family. After all, he is your own flesh and blood.” Lucas’s tense face finally cracked, “Mia…” I walked up to Chase, bent down and looked into his eyes, “Kid, I returned your dad to you. Don’t say I’m a bad woman anymore.” Chase blinked, “You’re willing to return my dad to me?” I sighed and looked at Chloe on the ground with condemnation, “You too, how can you teach a child these messy things? If you want your child to acknowledge his ancestors, you can just tell me directly. I’ll withdraw. Is it necessary to teach the child to swear and call me a bitch?” Chloe struggled to deny, “I didn’t, I didn’t teach him!” “You didn’t teach him?” I frowned slightly, somewhat disgusted, “Then your child learned these words on his own, which is indeed quite uneducated. You better teach him well.” I looked at Lucas again, “See, a child can’t do without a father. He is still young and should be salvageable. You take him back and educate him well, don’t let people scold your child behind his back for having a mother but no father to teach him.” Lucas’s face was as black as the bottom of a pot. Without looking, he could also feel the strange looks from the relatives and guests present. I walked down to my parents and removed myself from this embarrassing drama. “Mom, Dad, let’s go. This is the Thorne family’s business, and it’s not our place to manage it.” “Let’s go.” My dad maintained his dignity on the surface, but his aura vividly conveyed his anger and displeasure to everyone. Arthur and Sarah walked over quickly, looking anxious and pleading. “Old Stone, the wedding is about to end, we are all family…” My dad snorted coldly: “We haven’t got the marriage certificate yet, so we aren’t family. You have a daughter-in-law and a grandson now, and you still want my daughter to live with their family of three?” “Not a family of three!” Sarah was anxious, losing her usual elegance, and hurriedly called Lucas, “Lucas, what are you doing? Hurry over and clarify!” Her tone carried a hint of reminder, “Say it, say you only like Mia, hurry up!” Lucas swept a cold glance at Chloe, took long strides, and walked towards me confidently. He looked at me solemnly and affectionately, “Mia, rest assured, my wife will only be you, and the mistress of the Thorne family will only be you.” Chloe screamed: “Lucas, you can abandon me, but you can’t abandon our son…” Lucas turned his head slightly, his voice low, “Shut up.” He turned back, “Mia, I’m sorry, it’s my fault for not handling my history cleanly. Rest assured, I will give you an explanation.” The chill and hatred in my heart intertwined and surged continuously. So he also knew he couldn’t break up with me directly now. Because he needed the marriage alliance with me to consolidate his position, and the entire Thorne family needed the pull of our Stone family. So in the last life, he chose to marry me, and only after getting everything he wanted did he start torturing me. Disgusting. I sneered, “A man who doesn’t even want the person he loved deeply and his own flesh and blood? Do you think I would want such a man?” 3 After I left with my parents, those who came to the wedding for our family’s sake naturally left too. It is said that after I left, the wedding scene was desolate. Before Arthur and Sarah could speak, relatives from both the Thorne and Stone families began to complain. “The wedding didn’t happen, and the Stone family is thoroughly offended. What do you say we do?” “Those big shots didn’t give our family any face. Once the Stone family left, they all followed!” “Give our family face? Our family is nothing!” “We finally climbed up to such a big backer as the Stone family, and now it’s all ruined…” … These complaints were like sharp knives, stabbing Lucas all over. He fell out with Chloe on the spot, “Who gave you the courage to make a scene at my wedding? Did I tell you I would solve Chase’s problem? Did you take my words as a breeze past your ears?” Chloe sobbed aggrievedly, “How do I know if you were coaxing me? I got sick, and my biggest worry is Chase. I did this for Chase’s good! “I also told Miss Stone that Chase would treat her as his own mother. I gave her a big son for free, what is she unwilling about?” Relatives of the Thorne and Stone families began to talk all at once. “Lucas, hurry up and coax Mia back.” “What kind of taste do you have to have a child with such a woman.” “Mia is right, this child is just uneducated!” “What does a child know? Those words sounded like they were taught by an adult.” “Miss Chloe, you don’t need to deny it, don’t treat us as fools.” … Chloe became the target of public criticism. In fact, she originally thought Lucas would stand by her side. She grabbed Lucas’s arm, tears streaming down her face, miserable and pitiful, “Lucas, I really just want to fight for a good future for our son…” Lucas flung Chloe’s hand away and roared: “Then why did you teach Chase those words? Now that the Stone family people are driven away, who do I marry? Marry you? Not to mention you have a terminal illness and are dying, even if you weren’t sick, what can you help me with?” Chloe also knew she couldn’t help Lucas even a little bit, lowered her head and cried. “Cry, cry, cry, you only know how to cry!” Lucas was impatient to the extreme, “Stupid and disobedient, Chloe, fortunately you won’t live long, otherwise I would be dragged to death by you!” He pointed at Chloe, “Behave yourself. If you dare to act rashly again, I won’t care about the son.” Glaring at Chloe fiercely, Lucas promised the relatives on both sides: “Don’t worry, I will coax Mia back. She loves me very much and won’t reject me so easily.” 4 I heard all this afterward. At that time, I was crying in my parents’ arms. My parents were furious, comforting me while scolding Lucas. “Mia, don’t cry, this isn’t over!” “My daughter has grown up without suffering any grievances. Who do the Thorne family think they are? Daring to make my daughter suffer in front of so many people, I think they don’t want to live!” But my parents didn’t know, I wasn’t crying because of today’s grievance. In my last life, after Lucas and I got married, Lucas acted in front of me at first. Until I completely let down my guard, the Stone family and the Thorne family united for better development… Lucas got everything he wanted, revealed his true colors, and locked me up. Before I died, I didn’t even see my parents for the last time. I dared not think about how sorrowful they would be seeing my corpse in the last life. I hate Lucas, and I hate myself. It was me who let my parents taste the most extreme pain in this world. I wiped away my tears and drilled out of my mom’s arms, “Mom, Dad, I’m not aggrieved, nor sad. I just feel sorry for making you lose face.” My dad paused, “You cried like this just for that?” My mom also breathed a sigh of relief, “What’s a little loss of face for me and your dad? Don’t cry. “But tell mom the truth, do you… still like Lucas?” I shook my head, “No.” My mom and dad looked at each other and nodded with satisfaction, “Good, our daughter isn’t lovestruck.” “This isn’t being lovestruck. A man with such loose morals simply can’t be wanted.” My dad’s tone was full of disdain. Seemed like there was also a pride in his own super morals. I was still crying, but burst out laughing upon hearing this, then stood up, “I’ll go back to my room to change clothes.” Dragging the huge wedding dress back to the room, I took a shower and removed my makeup first. Just after changing clothes and going downstairs, I saw Lucas. He strode over, stopped at the stairs, and looked up at me. “Mia, I came to apologize to you.” I looked down at him, “What are you apologizing for?” Lucas’s affectionate eyes were full of apology, “I made you suffer. Losing such face at our wedding today, I deserve to die. “But Mia, this was also an accident to me. “The child thing was indeed my fault, but that was a long time ago. Chloe and I broke up long ago.” Hope overflowed from the bottom of his eyes as he tentatively said: “Mia, everyone has history. You won’t break up with me because of a relationship I had a few years ago, right?”

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Discovering my husband’s infidelity was a very small matter. At a dinner with friends, he, who was always aloof, suddenly and actively served food to everyone present. Later. I heard him reciting a line from Roman Holiday in his study. “I have to leave you now. I’m going to that corner there and turn. You must stay in the car and drive away.” Wait, that’s not right. He was reciting, “I have shaken hands with everyone in the receiving line, just to shake yours.” Tsk! 1 Ethan and I both come from small towns in the middle of nowhere. Small-town test-takers. Relying on hellish studying to win in the college entrance exams (SATs/ACTs equivalent), we completed our degrees at top-tier universities. After graduation, we both passed the civil service exams and entered the system. Starting from the grassroots, one step at a time, slowly taking root and extending in the provincial capital where we had no foundation. Now. We have each been promoted to department leaders, have decent social status, bought a car and a house, and our housing provident fund is enough to cover the loan. In short, we achieved success in the secular sense and completed the class jump in mainstream values in the most traditional, fair, and shortcut-free way for Chinese people (or Americans who value hard work). This year, Ethan and I had two more happy events. The first was at the beginning of the year when he was transferred to a leadership position in a state-owned enterprise, and his salary and benefits increased several times. The other thing is that I’m pregnant. Yes, it took 6 years after marriage for me to get pregnant. Ethan is the only son for three generations and has hereditary weak sperm. Basically, after 30, there is no possibility of fertility. Our journey to conceive in the past few years was no easier than settling down and establishing a career. Fortunately, 2 months ago, in the first spring after Ethan turned 30, I finally got pregnant. When we got the report, Ethan, who rarely showed emotion, hugged me. Weeping with joy like a child. 2 Having struggled in this city for many years, we have a few friends who gather regularly. Today was one such occasion. When the dinner started, everyone surrounded Ethan, praising him for being young and promising, saying a vice-director position was just around the corner. Ethan smiled indifferently. In the government office, he was famous for his “pen,” always highly regarded, and had an aloof air about him. “Tiger and his wife are coming today too.” Someone said. Everyone’s faces suddenly looked a bit strange. Tiger is Ethan’s fellow townsman. Two years ago, he made some money as a contractor, but ended up getting addicted to gambling. He not only lost his family property but also became a discredited person (blacklisted for debt). Every time we gather, he drinks himself into a stupor, cursing heaven and earth and social injustice. Last time, he even fought with an old friend and beat him so badly he was hospitalized for half a month. “I asked him to come.” Ethan put down his teacup and said lightly. “After all, we’ve been friends for many years. We can’t stop being friends just because he’s down on his luck.” Seeing his stance, everyone couldn’t say anything more and nodded with embarrassed smiles. I frowned slightly. Not for anything else, but because I’m pregnant. Tiger smokes heavily, one after another without stopping. If I mention it to him, he puts on a sarcastic expression as if I’m “looking down on people.” I wanted to talk to Ethan, but saw his gaze towards the door, seemingly expecting something. Bang! The door was pushed open forcefully. I shuddered. I saw Tiger walking in, cursing. “Charging me twenty bucks for parking, why the hell don’t they just rob me!” He pointed behind him and cursed again, “Ungrateful thing! Every woman helps her own man, only you, bitch, help outsiders!” Behind him, a woman walked in with her head down, faint finger marks on her face. This is Tiger’s wife, Sarah. She looks gentle and virtuous, but unfortunately, she has a bad fate and got stuck with a violent husband like Tiger. “What are you shouting about! Watch it!” Ethan suddenly spoke in a deep voice, sounding very displeased. Upon seeing him, Tiger immediately changed his face, smiling broadly. “Bro, sorry sorry, my bad temper acting up again, not paying attention to the occasion. I’ll punish myself with three drinks later!” Saying this, he sat down carelessly, picking up chopsticks to eat peanuts, ignoring the person behind him. Sarah stood awkwardly by the door. Her hand quietly brushed a lock of hair down, obviously trying to hide her face. Everyone showed sympathy and deliberately looked away to avoid embarrassing her. I sighed and said loudly. “Sarah, come sit down, food will be served soon.” She smiled gratefully at me and walked in to sit next to Tiger. “Thank you, sister-in-law.” After speaking, she looked past me at Ethan next to me and whispered: “Thank you, brother.” Ethan’s face was slightly tense, and he didn’t say anything. During the meal, Tiger started cursing again, smoking and drinking, quickly turning red like a cooked shrimp. Sarah peeled shrimp for him one moment and poured wine for him the next, barely eating anything herself. Just as I was about to tell her to eat more. Ethan suddenly extended his chopsticks and put a piece of fish for Tom, who was hosting the dinner next to him. Tom laughed, “I’m the host today, I should be the one serving you.” “It’s all the same.” Ethan said lightly, then stood up and put a shrimp for the person sitting next. Just like that, following the seating order, he put a chopstick of food or served a bowl of soup for everyone. Everyone present was flattered. “What’s wrong with Brother Ethan today? The sun rose from the west.” “Yeah, we’re really not used to this.” “It must be because sister-in-law is pregnant, Brother Ethan is happy!” “Right right right! That explains it!” I was also a bit surprised, but hearing everyone say this, I felt it was indeed so. Ethan is introverted and not good at expressing himself. My pregnancy is great news for him and his entire family. His parents back in his hometown were even more excited than when they learned he passed the civil service exam. At this moment, I smiled and wanted to tease him a bit. But I saw him raise his eyes slightly, his gaze seemingly inadvertently landing on the front right. I followed his gaze. Sarah lowered her head, drinking soup sip by sip with a spoon. Between the hanging hair, a pair of almond eyes were slightly red. … Ethan just served her a bowl of chicken soup. 3 I work in HR at my unit. When it comes to observing people and interpersonal relationships, I am relatively more experienced and thorough than others. For example, I saw at a glance. Ethan’s abnormal behavior today stemmed from wanting to serve Sarah that bowl of soup. Why would Ethan suddenly care so much about Sarah? I couldn’t help but think back to two months ago. Tiger’s father passed away. As a fellow townsman, Ethan went back to offer condolences and visit his parents by the way. He was gone for 5 days, going and returning with Tiger and his wife. Could something have happened during this period? Professional sensitivity has taught me not to jump to conclusions easily. After all, objectively speaking, Ethan treats me quite well. We met by the artificial lake in college. He was the earliest person to go for morning reading every day. I was second. We are extremely similar. From small places, poor family backgrounds. Three generations of support produced a model of family glory. For all these years, pressure and honor have focused on us, running all the way without daring to slack off even a bit. I felt like I finally found a companion. Like walking alone on the dark ocean floor and discovering I wasn’t alone. I think my significance to him is the same… Regarding the incident at the dinner table during the day. I didn’t say a word. At night, he held me, desire hard to suppress. “Grace, not yet?” “Yeah, not three months yet, wait a bit longer.” He panted heavily, got out of bed, and said helplessly: “I’ll go take a cold shower.” When I was sleeping groggily, he woke me up. He frowned. “Tiger is drunk and smashing things again, I’ll go check.” “Who called you?” I asked. “…His wife. She and the kid were crying on the phone, seems serious.” I checked my phone, past eleven. “Too late, don’t go. If there’s really a problem, she can call the police. Besides, this is their family affair, you aren’t related to them—” “Grace!” Ethan suddenly shouted at me harshly. I was stunned by his shout. His face was full of impatience, a trace of strange irony in his eyes. “When did you become so selfish? Now that your life is good, you just watch your own kind suffer? You know Sarah’s character, would she ask me for help if she had a choice? Grace, aren’t you ashamed of saying such cold words to a friend?” I looked at him in astonishment. As if I didn’t know him. I haven’t quarreled with anyone for a long time. Whether colleagues, family, or Ethan. Long ago, I realized that quarreling doesn’t solve problems; it only turns dialogue into a collision of emotions while gradually losing reason. Even if we quarrel, it is a means, not an end. Anger hurts the body. Hurts one’s own body. At this moment, I closed my eyes and asked him calmly: “My current life is what I struggled for step by step. Why should I feel ashamed because of others’ misfortunes?” Ethan stood by the bed, looking at me coldly. “I’m definitely going today.” I don’t know when Ethan came back at night. When I went to work, his shoes were by the door. The door to the small bedroom was closed tight. I had an organizational review meeting that day. Very important. Couldn’t be dragged down by his emotions. 4 This small dispute was resolved by the evening. When I came home from work, hot food and cut fruit were on the table. And a birthday cake. He came out with a bowl of soup, smiling as if nothing had happened, “Just in time, wash your hands and eat, I made your favorite braised fish in soy sauce.” I lowered my eyes, slowly put my bag on the cabinet by the door, looked up, and smiled too. “Happy birthday.” He laughed. “31, an old man now.” During the meal, he said casually: “Last night I went to scold Tiger and came back. Afraid of waking you up, I slept in the next room.” I nodded and didn’t speak. Getting up after eating, I remembered something, turned and said to him: “I haven’t been sleeping well lately. How about you sleep in the small bedroom for now?” He froze for a moment. “Okay.” For the next period, Ethan and I’s life returned to calm. I was busy with interviews and onboarding processes for new staff at the unit, and he was busy launching a new project at the company. As if nothing had happened. We are both people who prioritize reason over emotion. We weigh the pros and cons in everything we do. I think this is probably the benefit of marrying a rational person. But soon, I found out I was wrong.

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Chapter 1 When I committed the home invasion and robbery, I had just stabbed the man when police cars arrived downstairs. Running away would be the best option now. I had checked the laws; armed robbery and home invasion could carry a life sentence. It didn’t matter. I knew the price I had to pay from the beginning, and I accepted it. I texted my wife, saying the police were here and I was probably going to prison. My wife quickly replied with a voice message. She cried and said, “I’m proud of you.” I glanced at the animal on the floor. He clutched his stomach where I had stabbed him, looking at me in terror. Hearing the sirens downstairs, he said anxiously, “The police are here.” I said, “I see them.” I lifted my foot and kicked him hard in the face! I asked, “Where is the money?” Just then, the police banged on the door outside: “Open up! Police!” A flicker of joy flashed across his face. He hurriedly tried to shout for help, but I covered his mouth and said coldly, “Don’t shout. I’m asking you, where is the money hidden?” He gritted his teeth and said, “I don’t have money. The police are right outside. Kill me in front of them if you have the guts!” I said seriously, “Okay, then I’ll kill you.” I gripped the knife and stabbed down hard! One stab, two stabs, three stabs. He spat blood in pain, seemingly surprised that I actually dared to stab him. He pointed weakly at the sofa. Only then did I let go. He lay on the floor, breathing out more than in; he probably wouldn’t make it. I glanced at him, not caring about him. I once knelt before him, begging him to pay me back. My wife will never know that I knelt right here that day. I said, Mr. CEO, please settle the final payment. My capital chain is broken; my family is about to be ruined. Clearly, he owed me money. I just wanted to collect my debt, but in the end, I was the one kneeling and begging. And him? He looked at me roguishly and said, “I have no money to pay you back. If you want money, I have none; if you want a life, I have one. At worst, you can kill me to settle the debt.” Now, I have fulfilled his wish. Chapter 2 I stabbed the knife into the sofa. As the sofa was cut open, it was full of cash. Estimated to be at least three million dollars. I turned my head and looked at him in the pool of blood. He clutched his wound, painfully spitting blood. Regret was written all over his face now, but it was too late. I don’t understand. Paying debts is a matter of course. When he urgently needed help, I did my best. But when my family was about to be ruined, he sent his children to private schools, indulged in luxury, and cried poverty to me. I can’t figure out why there are so many heartless people in this world. The police banged impatiently on the door outside. I took a bag, counted the money, and took 1.2 million for myself. Yes, there were about three million in front of me, but I took less than half. I knew I might be executed, but I was unwilling to take a penny more of someone else’s money. I just wanted to take back the money that belonged to me. I have been honest and dutiful all my life. I don’t know why I ended up like this. In the beginning, I went to court to file a lawsuit. When I sued, I found out his accounts had long been frozen and emptied because besides me, he had other major creditors. The major creditors sued much earlier than I did and had reached the enforcement stage, enjoying priority rights. But at this stage, he was completely bankrupt. I once asked a lawyer if I could sue together and divide his property proportionately. The lawyer told me no because the other party was already in the execution stage. I really broke down. The debtor pretended to be rich as usual to do business with me while being sued by major creditors. How could I keep up? I also went to the major creditor. I begged them to pity me. My family’s capital chain was broken and really about to collapse. Various penalties would ruin my family. I just wanted to get my money back, but I humbly said to the major creditor: “Boss, I’ve asked around, I know you are very rich. He owes me 1.2 million. I beg you to give me this money first. When my factory survives this difficulty, I will pay you back two million in installments, letting you earn 800,000 for nothing. We can sign a contract. As long as you are willing, my family will work like oxen and horses for you.” Unfortunately, the major creditor rejected me. He said he was not related to me and didn’t trust me. The lawyer told me it was inevitable for them to reject me. In such cases where a deadbeat owes many parties, whoever gets the money depends on their ability. Because everyone is innocent, only ruthless people can get the money back. Yes, I know the major creditor is innocent, but I am innocent too. Everything I did was just to let my family survive. Those who have been in manufacturing know very well that for small factories like ours, once the capital chain breaks, the debts will pile up crazily with no end. The cost of machine downtime, penalties from Party A, final payments and penalties to Party B. He owes me one million, but it will make me bear at least five million in debt for no reason. This is forcing my whole family to death! I know what not paying back the money means for the disaster it will bring to my family. Last night, I humbly begged him to pay back the money because I got news that although he was debt-ridden, his son’s tuition for the private aristocratic school was paid. I knew as soon as I heard it that he definitely still had money. Sadly, when I called, he still told me with that arrogant attitude: no money, only a life. I hung up the phone. My wife was already crying beside me with red eyes. My young daughter didn’t know disaster was imminent for her parents and was still happily playing Elsa with a magic wand outside. At that second, I said blankly, “I really want to kill him.” My wife paused for a moment, then said, “Okay, you go kill him, you go rob the money. I won’t remarry. I will take care of your parents and raise our daughter well.” I said, “Aren’t you afraid I’ll be shot?” My wife cried and said, “I’m not afraid of your death, nor am I afraid of death, but I’m afraid our daughter will die. Are you going to kill him? If you don’t go, I will.” We are honest and dutiful people who haven’t done anything illegal all our lives until we were forced to a dead end. Last night my wife and I didn’t sleep all night. I hugged her, constantly kissing her cheek, constantly saying I love her. She didn’t respond to me, just cried and kissed me. I smoked two packs of cigarettes. For the first time, she didn’t dislike the smell of my smoke but lit cigarettes for me again and again. As if we both sensed it, that was the final parting. Listening to the police knocking on the door, I walked to the window and sighed deeply. This is the sixth floor. I originally broke in through the front door while he was taking out the trash. Now the police are at the door; what should I do? I’m not afraid of prison, I’m not afraid of the death penalty, I’m not even afraid of jumping off the building. I’m just afraid this money won’t reach my wife’s hands. She is at the coffee shop at the entrance of the community, waiting for me to give her the money. I will turn myself in, and she will pay the debts. Just then, the police outside suddenly shouted angrily: “If you don’t open the door, we will force it open and take coercive measures against you! This is my first warning!” The animal on the ground was still spitting blood, not dead yet. He crawled towards the door with difficulty, as if begging the police to open the door quickly and save him. Unfortunately, he didn’t even have the strength to crawl. He just moved slightly and stopped in place, unable to move. The police outside shouted angrily: “Second warning!” I hurriedly messaged my wife, asking her to come under the window quickly. I would throw the money down from the sixth floor. It wouldn’t matter if I got caught by the police then; there would still be time. My wife quickly replied, saying she was coming immediately. I breathed a sigh of relief. But immediately after, I was dumbfounded. When the police finished the third warning, the door suddenly opened! I thought opening the lock would take time, at least a few minutes. But what I never expected was that the locksmith brought by the police opened the door in one second! The moment the door opened, I saw a group of police officers standing at the door. And I was holding a bloody knife in my left hand and a bag of cash in my right. The bailiffs were extremely fast. Seeing the situation, they quickly blocked in front of the judge, drew their guns, and aimed at me! A bailiff shouted at me: “Drop the weapon, squat down! Hands on your head! Or I’ll shoot!” Looking at the dark muzzles, my heart jumped violently. Too fast. Chapter 3 The speed of opening the door far exceeded my expectations. I thought I would be scared, but I wasn’t. My mind was full of: if I die here, what will happen to my wife and child? They are still waiting for this money to save their lives. The judge saw me clearly, and his face instantly turned very pale. He knew me, and I knew him. A few days ago, I went to his office and said, Your Honor, my family is being driven to death, can you allocate some to me first? He said no, everything follows procedures. I told him in breakdown that if my family’s debts were not collected, people would die. At that time, the judge was looking at documents. He pushed up his glasses and told me very seriously that the world doesn’t work by whoever makes the most noise is right. He understood my suffering but had to follow procedures. I forced a smile and said to that judge: “It’s not your fault, don’t blame yourself.” I subconsciously backed away. The bailiffs were nervous at first, but seeing me backing away, they didn’t shoot, instead shouting at me: “Don’t move!” At this moment, every room was too far from me. The closest room to me was a storage room. I had nowhere to go, so I could only rush into the storage room carrying the knife and money, and quickly closed the door. Thank goodness, the door of this storage room could be locked from the inside. Anxious voices sounded outside immediately: “Call an ambulance quickly! And call the police!” I stood panting in the storage room, moved a big box to block the door. After all, their locksmith was really good. I was nervous. Hearing them say call the police, I knew they were probably calling SWAT, CID, or some police department I didn’t know. Ideally, bailiffs don’t have rich handling experience like these police departments; maybe I have a chance to throw the money down. But pessimistically, lack of experience means they are more nervous and more likely to shoot me than other police departments. While I was wondering what to do, the judge’s voice sounded outside: “Put down the knife and come out. You broke the law. Now you can’t escape. The only way out is to surrender.” I smiled bitterly, ignoring the judge’s words. Because I never intended to escape. If you do something wrong, you have to pay the price. I know this principle. So pathetic. I have been upright all my life. I haven’t done anything against conscience. Now I have become a sinner. Seeing I didn’t speak, the judge continued: “Think about your wife and child.” His words reminded me. Yes. It was for my wife and child that I came to this step. I opened a small factory and originally had a happy life. Small factories like ours have large turnovers and low profits. Those who have done manufacturing know that one million can crush you to death. My family’s is the smallest of the small. In my home, two machines, one couple. The house always smells of machine oil. My wife operates the machine. She likes to endure hardship with me, but she also has her girlish demeanor. Her pink bunny sleeve covers were stained with machine oil as she helped me assemble small parts. I operated the lathe, occasionally telling a joke to make her laugh. After laughing, she always kept a straight face and seriously told me not to be distracted again, careful of the machine hurting my hands. We had a very happy life. When we first took this order, she made me a big bowl of noodles. I slurped the noodles while she sat beside me, saying happily how great it was. When the final payment for this order was settled, we could get a loan from the bank to buy you a new lathe with safety guards, so I wouldn’t have to worry about you anymore. I sat on the floor. The first luxurious thing in my life was wiping my tears with banknotes. It hurts so much, this heart. We were dutiful, with only a few simple little dreams. I never thought life would bid farewell to her like this. I said: “Let the police go out. I only talk to you alone.” Thinking he had a chance, the judge hurriedly said: “Okay, I’ll let them all go out. Calm down.” I heard footsteps outside, fading away at first, but later, although the sound became smaller, it remained in place. I knew that was the police pretending to leave but actually marching in place. There were probably people hiding behind the door. Once I unlocked it, the door would be pulled open, and I wouldn’t be able to fly away. The judge tried to make his voice gentle. He said: “I know your family has difficulties too. Doing this is not worth it.” I said: “I’ll just ask you one legal question. Tell me honestly.” He paused and said: “Ask.” I asked: “If I succeed today and return this money to my creditors. I didn’t take a penny more, only took back the money he owed me. Will the court require my creditors to return the payment?” He hurriedly said: “Of course they will. So don’t do stupid things. What you are doing now is meaningless and will only harm yourself!” Chapter 4 I said: “You’re lying to me. It’s all meaningful. When there’s a dispute over this money, although you can demand its return, given that I’ve already committed a crime, and my wife is desperate, she might do the same thing as me. The premise of the rule of law is to maintain stability. You will choose to treat my debt as settled and let the richer major creditors wait until you find the deadbeat’s new assets.” The judge was silent. After a while, he said: “Did some unethical lawyer give you bad advice? What you said is possible, but is it worth risking your own life for?” I said nothing because at this moment, my phone screen lit up. I saw a message from my wife. She said she was downstairs. I looked at the screen, then opened the photo album, looking at my ordinary life. Our wedding, I knelt on one knee and put the ring on her. I also sang a love song. She tried hard to hold back laughter, causing me to hold back laughter too. Our daughter’s first steps, walking unsteadily on the road, calling me daddy, and finally throwing herself into my arms. And when we accompanied our daughter to kindergarten for the first time, to leave a good impression on the teachers, we scrubbed our hands hard with laundry brushes, enduring the pain, trying to wash away the perennial machine oil on our hands. The photos recorded my simple life. I cried and laughed, finally taking a deep breath. Is it worth risking my life for this? I think it’s worth it, very worth it. Have I ever risked my life for anyone in this lifetime? Today is the time for me to risk my life. There were clothes in the storage room. I put them on one by one, hoping the thick layers would stop bullets. Of course, I knew the situation outside. But the people I love are still waiting for me. Though thousands oppose me, I will go. Even if I die nine times, I will not regret it. Besides clothes, I found something good in the storage room: a book, a thick dictionary. I looked at this book; it could only protect one part of my body. Finally, I made a bold decision. Didn’t protect my chest, didn’t protect my stomach, but instead unzipped my pants and placed it on my thigh. I once heard that although police abroad empty their clips to ensure the suspect has no ability to fight back. But domestically, when police have to shoot, they choose to shoot the legs first, also to ensure the suspect cannot fight back. I didn’t know the bailiffs’ experience, only hoping I bet right. Bullets hitting my chest or stomach, I didn’t care. Compared to death, I feared more not being able to escape to the window to throw the money down. I messaged my wife to come under the kitchen window. I checked just now; I was closest to the kitchen. Seeing me silent for a long time, the judge hurriedly said: “I don’t know what other lawyers told you, but trust me, I’m a judge, I’m considering everything for you.” I said: “I can put down the knife and surrender. Do you guarantee they are not there?” The judge replied: “I guarantee you, you can come out boldly. No one will shoot you. Put down the knife, come out with hands on your head.” While talking to the judge, I checked my body protection. Yes, all ready. I said: “I’m coming out.” After getting the judge’s permission, I moved the big box away. I had it all planned. Once I opened the door, I would risk getting shot and rush to the kitchen with the money. As long as this money is thrown downstairs, my mission is over. But when I tried to unlock it, I froze. The door wouldn’t open.

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I found the gilded cage where my husband kept his mistress. I wanted to see what kind of woman could outdo me, what kind of woman could train a man of such discipline and restraint to heel like a lapdog. It wasn’t jealousy. It was pure curiosity. After all, Brian Croft and I had built our empire from nothing. From a cramped studio apartment to a mansion, we’d worked so hard the stress had turned my hair grey overnight. Even after having our son, I didn’t become one of those pampered wives who spent their days at spas and salons. I was still at the factory, juggling my career and my marriage, a master of both. I believed I was in complete control of my life. I rang the doorbell. The door opened. The young woman who answered had a smile that could bloom flowers, her eyes curving into sweet crescents. “You must be Brian’s mother,” she chirped. “It’s so nice to meet you, ma’am.” 1 Even when negotiating contracts worth hundreds of millions, I never let my face betray a single emotion. But hearing her call me ma’am, I couldn’t help but frown. The divorce wasn’t even final, and she was already this eager to meet her future mother-in-law? Some strange impulse made me play along. “Hello.” “Please, come in. My name is Maya.” The first thing I saw upon entering was a massive world map. A thin red string connected photos of them kissing, marking all the places they had traveled together. The pins were dense, covering nearly the entire globe. She noticed my gaze and explained with a smile, “It’s our travel map. He takes me somewhere new every month.” So, Brian’s affair had started much earlier than I thought. She reached out, gently helping me off with my coat and hanging it in a nearby closet. The tea she handed me was the perfect temperature. I surveyed the apartment. A 200-square-meter place in the city center, with renovations of this quality, had to be worth at least five million. “Did he buy this for you?” A blush crept up Maya’s cheeks. “Yes.” “Brian said it was my gift for getting into my PhD program.” In ten years of marriage, he had never celebrated a single holiday with me. Even after we’d made our fortune, he never bought me any expensive gifts. My birthday was marked by a simple cake and a perfunctory “Happy Birthday.” I had always thought it was love evolving into family, that quiet companionship was the truest form of affection. It turns out love doesn’t evolve. It just relocates. Seeing my silence, she fidgeted, then finally worked up the courage to ask, “Ma’am, Brian and I are truly in love. Will you give me your blessing to marry him?” I thought I would feel nothing. But a sharp pang shot through my heart. I heard myself ask, “How did you two get together?” Maya’s face lit up as she told their story. And I finally understood. That year I had a raging fever, and even though we were already millionaires, he had rushed off to meet a client for a paltry ten-thousand-dollar order. It was all because she had said, “I miss you.” “You have no idea, ma’am,” she gushed, “the moment Brian saw me, he said his whole world lit up.” “And he’s so brilliant! He solved a huge technical problem for my father’s company. He said it was an issue that had plagued their industry for years, but he fixed it with just one look.” “So, ma’am? Do you approve?” she asked, her eyes wide with hope. A wry curiosity colored my tone. “And do you know he has a wife?” Maya’s face faltered for a second. She bit her lip. “Brian told me. He said he doesn’t love her at all. She’s just a business partner. There are no feelings involved.” “He said that woman is older than his own aunt, with zero charm. She lives like a man, and her skin is rough and disgusting.” I rubbed the calluses on my palm, formed from hauling sacks of soybeans in the early days of our business. Every night, he used to rub thick hand cream into them, massaging them gently. He used to call me the heroine of our family. “But I guess no man would like a woman like that,” Maya continued. “They’re going to get divorced anyway. I don’t mind, as long as he truly loves me.” The teacup in my hand froze mid-air, trembling slightly. We had met through friends, a case of love at first sight. Brian had told everyone I was the girl of his dreams. He swore he wouldn’t marry me until he’d made enough money for us. We started a tofu business together, never getting a full night’s sleep. The exhaustion turned my hair prematurely grey and etched lines on my face, making me look like I was in my late forties. Once, drunk, he had knelt before me, crying and holding me, apologizing over and over. To keep him from feeling guilty, even when I had no time for beauty treatments, I always made sure to dye my hair. The turmoil in my heart rose and fell, then settled into a calm sea. I had seen her. I had compared. It was never about how much better she was. It was that he had changed. And since he said there were no feelings, then it was time to make that a reality. 2 I was about to answer her. Maya’s phone rang, and she put it on speaker. Brian’s voice, low and tender in a way I’d never heard, came through. “Baby, are you hungry? I got you your favorite chicken noodle soup. I’ll be there in fifteen.” I knew that noodle shop. It had a three-hour line and was clear across the city. I’d mentioned it once when I was home with a sprained ankle, craving something light. He had been sitting by my bed peeling an apple, and hadn’t even looked up. Maya poured on the affection, blowing kisses into the phone. “I love you most, honey!” While they were cooing at each other, I went to the bathroom. The countertop was crowded with more of his toiletries than we had at home. I sent a message to my assistant, telling her to run a complete check on Brian’s financials. He would pay the price for squandering my blood, sweat, and tears on another woman. As I was about to leave the bathroom, I heard Brian’s eager voice at the door. “Look what else I brought you.” Maya gasped. “The sapphire necklace from yesterday!” “I saw you look at it for just a second, so I went back and bought it.” “Well, I have a surprise for you, too!” Maya, playing mysterious, ran to the bathroom door and knocked. “Ma’am, are you done?” I turned off the faucet and opened the door. Maya bounced between us, throwing her arms wide in celebration. “Perfect timing, ma’am is here too! We can all share the wonderful news together.” “My husband got me a sapphire! And I’m giving my husband a baby!” A jolt went through me. I snapped my head up to look at her. After our son, Leo, was born, I had always dreamed of having a daughter. Brian always found an excuse. It turned out he just didn’t want one with me. Brian’s smile was wide, but his eyes traveled over Maya’s head and met mine. His pupils constricted. The smile vanished, as if I were the intruder, the one who had trespassed on their private world. “What are you doing here?” I walked back to my seat, my gaze drifting between them. My silence seemed to provoke him. He pulled Maya behind him protectively. “If you have a problem, take it up with me. Don’t you dare touch her.” Maya looked confused, tugging on his sleeve. “Isn’t she your mother?” Brian froze, then let out a sneer. “My sweet, gullible girl. You’ve got good eyes. She certainly looks old enough.” “Unfortunately, she’s my wife.” Maya’s expression shifted as realization dawned. Her face flushed red and white, her hands flying to her mouth. “Ma’am… no, I mean… Victoria, I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean it like that.” “It’s just… I…” She couldn’t find an excuse, her face turning crimson with panic. Brian wrapped an arm around her, pulling her into an embrace, and barked at me, “Don’t apologize to her.” “Victoria Quinn, get out.” Huddled in his arms, Maya shot me a sly, triumphant look. I finished the last of my tea, grabbed my coat, and walked over to her. “Your request from earlier,” I said calmly. “I approve.” The elevator doors were just about to close when Brian appeared, his hand shooting out to block them. Seeing that I wasn’t screaming or questioning him like I usually would, his expression was complicated, tinged with a panic I couldn’t quite decipher. “Victoria, this is an accident.” “You know this. A pregnant woman can’t be stressed.” “A divorce would be a financial disaster for us. She won’t affect your position.” He knew I treated the factory like my own child. A divorce would split our assets in half. He was threatening me. I knew he wouldn’t let go without a response. I gave a slight nod and waved him away. Brian relaxed. Suddenly, a bag of trash appeared at my feet. “Take this down with you,” he ordered. In the instant before the elevator doors closed, I kicked it out. Did he really think I came here today unprepared? 3 I returned to the office and took out the divorce agreement I’d had prepared long ago. The truth was, the first time I’d caught him in a gray area with another woman, I’d already had a lawyer draft it. Back then, Brian had resorted to self-harm to convince me it would never happen again. Looking at the blood on the floor, my own swelling belly, and our fledgling business, I had made the rational choice to let it go. “Ms. Quinn, they’re here,” my assistant said, knocking on the door. After a round of negotiations, I sold all of my shares in the company. The factory was my baby, but I have no use for something rotten and spoiled. Besides my son, I wanted nothing. My phone alarm went off. It was time to pick up Leo from kindergarten. But when I got there, I saw Brian. Maya was squatting next to my son, holding up a cool superhero lollipop. I had never seen such a joyful expression on Leo’s face. “Leo, who do you like more, Auntie Maya or Mommy?” Maya’s voice was impossibly sweet. Leo giggled and poked her dimple. “Then how about I become your new mommy, and I’ll even give you a little brother to play with, okay?” My son nodded vigorously and stood on his tiptoes to kiss her cheek. Brian scooped Leo up with one arm and took Maya’s hand with the other, leading them across the street. He saw my car and his eyes flicked to the driver’s seat. His gaze rested on my face for only a moment. Then he got them into his car and drove away. I sat there, my mind a complete blank, the air conditioning blasting my face until it was flushed. It took a long time for me to come back to myself. Brian had wanted me to see that. Ever since Leo started kindergarten, he had resisted my affection. I thought it was because I was too strict. Now I knew the real reason. It was clear now that the happy family I thought I controlled was just a phantom I’d created in my own mind. Unfortunately for Brian, he had miscalculated. He thought I would continue to tolerate his behavior for our son’s sake. But nothing, and no one, would stop me from leaving now. When I got home, Leo was playing with a remote-control car Maya had given him. Brian acted as if nothing had happened, wrapping his arms around my waist from behind. “Didn’t you want another daughter?” “I’ll give you one tonight.” His guilty attempt at compensation only disgusted me more. I broke free from his grasp. “You should save it for Maya.” He thought I was still angry and grew more insistent, his hands roaming over me, trying to get a reaction. Usually, after a fight, sex was his way of declaring a truce. This time, there would be no truce. Brian grabbed the back of my neck and pushed me forward. Perhaps it was the proximity, but the familiar, earthy scent of soybeans that always clung to me made him instinctively turn his head away. The more I struggled, the harder he pushed. Thump. My head hit the wall. The world swam. He reflexively cupped the back of my head. His phone rang. A few seconds later, he released me, his face grim. “I’ll respect your wishes,” he sneered. “Saves me from having to take a pill just to get interested in you.” I didn’t have to guess who was calling. Brian changed his clothes, doused himself in cologne, and threw a final command at me as he rushed out the door. “Get over it. And make sure everything is ready for the annual gala next week.” Every year, he loved to make a grand show of handing out employee bonuses in cash. More than once, he’d miscounted, causing disputes. One year, I was robbed on my way back from the bank and ended up in the hospital. Now, he’d drained the company accounts to fund Maya’s lavish lifestyle. There was no money left to prop up his ego. 4 Leo stood by the door, watching me pack my suitcase. I could be ruthless with a man. But facing the son I had carried for nine months, I hesitated. I didn’t have much to pack, but I kept taking things out and putting them back in. It took me over an hour. I knelt in front of him and gently touched his soft cheek. For the first time, he didn’t swat my hand away. “Do you want to come with Mommy?” I asked softly. Leo’s eyes lit up, but then he asked, “Are you leaving? Are you never coming back?” A lump formed in my throat. “Yes, sweetie. Mommy’s not coming back.” “Come with me, okay?” I pulled him into a hug. Leo’s small voice whispered in my ear, “Great! If you leave, I’ll get a pretty mommy!” A tremor ran through me. I slowly released him and stood up. I had planned, even after leaving, to take care of Maya’s illegitimate child, to protect Leo’s inheritance from any future claims. But if this was his choice, why should I bother planning for his future? I stepped past him and walked out without looking back. The moment I landed in the Maldives, my phone started buzzing incessantly. “Ma’am, even if I gave Brian back to you now, he wouldn’t want to go.” “I’ll take good care of him and Leo.” “By the way, I’m having a boy. Brian promised him everything.” The next message was a video. It was Brian at her prenatal check-up. “Honey, put your ear to my belly and listen. The baby can hear us now~” I turned off my phone, my face a blank mask. Brian, this won’t end with a simple divorce. I have a special gift waiting for you at the annual gala. For an entire week, we had no contact. His social media, however, was flooded with at least twenty new photos of him and Maya. At the gala, Brian formally introduced Maya to everyone. His hand rested on the small of her back, his intentions clear. A few senior executives started sucking up. “Well, well, Mr. Croft, you’ve finally come to your senses.” “We never understood what you were doing with that bossy old hag.” “That’s right, Mr. Croft. When’s the wedding?” These were all people I had personally promoted. Brian smiled, his gaze dropping to Maya’s belly. “You’ll all be invited for the baby’s celebration.” They stood there like newlyweds, basking in the congratulations. When someone mentioned me, Brian’s lip curled. “She’ll be here shortly.” It was time for the cash bonus presentation. Brian finally noticed I was gone. He called my phone over and over. “Where is Victoria Quinn?!” The general manager stammered, “Ms. Quinn… we haven’t been able to reach her for a week. And this afternoon, we discovered the company accounts are completely empty.” “We tried calling you so many times, but you didn’t answer.” His voice grew smaller and smaller. Brian’s face darkened with every passing second. Suddenly, the large screen behind the stage flickered to life. A collective gasp went through the crowd. The entire hall fell silent. Brian turned to look, his face a terrifying mask of fury. His phone slipped from his hand and clattered to the floor. 5 On the screen was a video I had pre-recorded. “To all my colleagues, I apologize for addressing you in this manner. Due to Mr. Brian Croft’s unauthorized mortgaging of company shares and his embezzlement of large sums of public funds to purchase real estate, cars, and other luxury items for Ms. Maya, the company’s finances have been depleted. We are unable to pay out your annual bonuses.” The room erupted. Many people were counting on those bonuses to have a good holiday season. The same executives who had been fawning over him just moments before now swarmed him. “Mr. Croft, is what Ms. Quinn said true?” “You spent our bonuses on your mistress?!” Brian’s lips were pressed into a thin, hard line. He said nothing. Beside him, Maya clutched his arm, her smile frozen on her face. The video continued. “As one of the heads of this company, I am deeply ashamed and regretful of this situation.” “Therefore, I have decided to sell all of my shares at a reduced price to ensure you all receive the compensation you have earned.” As I finished speaking, a collective sigh of relief swept through the hall. People were clapping each other on the back. “Thank God for Ms. Quinn!” Brian’s chest heaved, the air around him growing colder, so much so that even Maya shivered beside him. Just as the video ended, a loud, confident voice boomed from the main entrance. “Brian. Long time no see.” “Although tonight, I suppose I should be calling you kid.” Brian looked up and saw our company’s main competitor, Ethan Vance. He was striking in a dark red suit. He strode onto the stage in a few quick steps and playfully took the microphone. “Victoria gave me a great price, all so you fine people could get your bonuses.” “As the new director of this company, I will be restructuring all positions, and that includes yours, Mr. Croft.” Brian’s fists clenched so tightly his knuckles cracked. He could feel the blood pounding in his temples. But hearing Ethan call her Victoria… A strange, suffocating feeling tightened in his chest. Ethan was in his element on stage, his words met with thunderous applause from the audience. He was completely upstaging Brian. The man’s body was rigid, coiled like a spring, ready to leap on stage and punch him. Just then, my assistant ran up and handed him a document. He glanced at it, and his face changed dramatically. He spun on his heel and strode out of the hall, not even sparing a thought for Maya, who was left standing there. “Brian, honey, wait for me!” Maya hurried after him. I put down my wine glass, having watched the entire gala live-streamed. I was very pleased with Ethan’s performance. This was only the first step. I would make sure Brian and Maya ended up with nothing. That night, I slept more soundly than I had in years. I was just blinking myself awake when a face, stubbled and haggard, appeared above me. “Ah!” I clutched the covers to my chest. “How did you get in here?” The man’s eyes were bloodshot, his suit rumpled as if he’d slept in it. He sneered. “How do you think I got in?” He tossed our faded marriage certificate onto the bed. I had expected him to confront me, just not this quickly. He threw a folder in front of me and slammed his fist on the nightstand. “Victoria Quinn, are you serious about this?”

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1 My husband was cheating, and he wanted me to walk away from our marriage with nothing. Heartbroken, I decided to jump off a bridge. I had just climbed over the railing when a voice suddenly spoke from inside my belly: 【Mom! Don’t do it!】 【I’ve been reborn! In my last life, that deadbeat dad kicked us out for his mistress, and then he won eighty million dollars from a lottery ticket he found!】 The news just made me sadder. I was about to let go when the voice piped up again: 【I know the winning numbers for that ticket. We can snatch it from him. You can’t die!】 【But first things first: Deadbeat Dad has a stash of cash hidden in the bedroom ceiling. Let’s grab the money, then we can divorce him!】 My legs stopped shaking. My heart stopped pounding. The first thing I did when I got home was borrow a ladder and start taking apart the ceiling. … I’d run home in tears, so the housekeeper didn’t dare stop me. I locked the bedroom door. I set up the ladder, kicked off my shoes, and glanced down at my slightly rounded belly. “Son, you sure about the location? Your father will be back soon. If we get this wrong, we won’t get a second chance.” A voice, young but full of swagger, echoed in my mind: 【Trust me, Mom! In the last life, this was his favorite spot to hide gold bars.】 【Third panel from the left. Push hard!】 I took a deep breath and climbed the ladder. My hands were trembling. Not from fear, but from excitement. To force me into a divorce, Liam had frozen all my cards. He called it giving me time to “cool off,” but really, he was cutting off my resources to make me submit. And he wanted me to leave with nothing? In his dreams. I pushed hard against the decorative drop-ceiling tile. A cloud of dust rained down, stinging my eyes. But I didn’t have time to rub them. Because my fingers had touched a heavy canvas bag. Damn, it was heavy. I struggled to drag the bag out, nearly losing my balance and falling off the ladder. 【Careful, Mom! A fall like that, and it’s game over for both of us!】 “Don’t jinx it.” With trembling hands, I opened the bag. A golden glint nearly blinded me. It was full of gold bars. I’d never seen this much physical gold in my life. I dug deeper and found a stack of hundred-dollar bills underneath. “How much is in here?” 【About five million. It’s money Deadbeat Dad siphoned from the company behind his partner’s back. It was supposed to be his startup fund to go live it up overseas with that homewrecker.】 【In the last life, you foolishly jumped off that bridge and let those two get away with everything!】 【They used this money to reinvent themselves abroad, then came back as famous entrepreneurs and forgot you ever existed!】 Hearing that, a fire ignited in my chest. Liam, you bastard. I was with you when we were building this from nothing, when we were scraping by on instant noodles. You get rich, and not only do you find a mistress, but you hide a fortune and hope I’ll just die? I took the gold bars out one by one and packed them into a suitcase I’d prepared. “What happens when Liam comes back and finds the money gone?” I worried, staring at the dark hole in the ceiling. If he found out, forget divorce. I might not make it out of this house alive today. 2 【Are you kidding, Mom?】 【Stuff a few of those old books from that box in there to give it some weight, then put the panel back!】 【He won’t open that thing for years. By the time he notices, we’ll be long gone!】 It hit me. Of course. I grabbed a few of the dense, academic books Liam kept on a high shelf to look smart, shoved them into the canvas bag, and placed it back in the ceiling. I carefully clicked the panel back into place. I even wiped away my fingerprints from the edges. When I was done, I sat on the floor, my heart hammering against my ribs like a drum. This was more thrilling than standing on the edge of that bridge. Just then, I heard the front door open downstairs. It was Liam’s impatient voice. “Maria, is that crazy woman back yet?” I froze. 【Mom! Don’t lose your nerve!】 【You’re the victim here. You have to act completely broken, make him think you’ve given up the fight!】 I kicked the suitcase full of gold deep under the bed. Then, I mussed my hair, sat on the edge of the bed, and summoned the despair. The tears came on command. When Liam pushed the door open, he was greeted by the sight of my “utterly defeated” self. A flash of disgust crossed his face. “Not dead yet? I thought you had more backbone.” He loosened his tie, his expression dripping with annoyance. “Since you’re still here, you can sign this.” A set of divorce papers slapped against my face. “If you agree to walk away with nothing, I’ll even pay for you to get rid of the thing in your belly. After all, it’ll be hard for you to remarry with a kid in tow.” Get rid of it? Even the most vicious animals don’t eat their young. How could he say something so monstrous? Hatred grew in my heart like a weed. But I knew this wasn’t the time to let it show. I slowly lifted my head, my eyes vacant. Just as my son taught me, I had to play the part of a woman whose heart was shattered beyond repair. “Liam, after seven years of marriage, are you really going to be this cruel?” My voice was hoarse and trembling. Liam scoffed and lit a cigarette, completely ignoring the fact that I was pregnant. “Hannah, we’re adults. Let’s not make this ugly.” “Jenna’s pregnant. It’s a boy. I need to give them a proper family.” “We don’t even know if yours is a boy or a girl. If it’s a girl, I’d be losing out.” 【Please! I’m your daddy!】 my little ancestor cursed from inside. 【Ignore him, Mom. The idiot doesn’t even know the kid his mistress is carrying isn’t his!】 【It’s her personal trainer’s!】 I almost burst out laughing. I quickly bowed my head, covering my face with my hands as my shoulders shook. To Liam, I was sobbing my heart out. “Fine… I’ll sign.” I looked up, my face streaked with tears, my eyes full of grim resolve. “But I have one condition.” Liam frowned, his eyes narrowing with suspicion. “You want money? Let me tell you, the company has no cash on the books right now. I’m drowning in debt…” “I don’t want money.” I cut him off, my voice tragic. “I just want to take my clothes and some of my personal things.” “I don’t want anything else in this house.” “I want to make a clean break from you.” Liam was stunned. He clearly hadn’t expected me to be so agreeable. A flicker of delight crossed his face before he quickly suppressed it. “Fine. Glad you’ve got some sense.” “Pack your things and get out tonight. We’ll go to the courthouse first thing in the morning.” With that, he turned and left, as if looking at me for a second longer would bring him bad luck. The moment the door closed, I wiped away my tears. I dragged the suitcase out from under the bed. I covered the gold with a layer of old clothes and threw in some cheap toiletries. Then I wheeled the suitcase out, ready for a quick exit. Liam was on the sofa, video-chatting with Jenna, his voice dripping with a tenderness I hadn’t heard in years. When he saw me, he stood up and walked over. “Hold on. Open it. I want to make sure you didn’t take anything you shouldn’t have.” 3 My heart leaped into my throat. For a second, I debated whether I should just knock him out and run. But when Liam saw my clothes, he just curled his lip in disdain. “Is that all you’re taking? This junk? You sure you don’t want to look again? Don’t say I never gave you a chance.” I gave him a pitiful smile. “No, thank you. Everything in this house… is tainted.” Liam’s face darkened. “Get out! Just get out!” I pushed the heavy suitcase out of the door that I once thought was the entrance to my forever home. The moment I was out of the complex, I hailed a cab and went straight to a five-star hotel downtown. 【Nice one, Mom!】 【That scumbag is probably still dreaming about all his money. His face when he finds that empty ceiling is going to be priceless.】 【But we have to hurry, Mom.】 【After you get the divorce finalized tomorrow, we have to buy that lottery ticket!】 【Eighty million dollars is waiting!】 I sat in the back of the cab, watching the city lights blur past. The knot of resentment that had been strangling me for so long finally started to loosen. Liam, you think you got rid of a washed-up housewife. You have no idea you just kicked your personal cash cow out the door. That night, in a luxury suite, I ordered a seafood feast I never would have dreamed of affording before. As I devoured a king crab leg, my son filled me in on the gossip from his past life. Apparently, after I’d died by suicide, Liam hadn’t shed a single tear. Instead, he released a statement saying I’d had mental health issues. He used my death to craft a public persona of a devoted, grieving husband, and his company’s stock soared. The mistress, Jenna, used my life insurance payout to buy limited-edition handbags. They even had my ashes scattered over some random, godforsaken mountain. Hearing this, I crushed the crab leg in my hand. “Son, I will get revenge for you. I swear it.” 【You bet! And Mom, there’s going to be a big show at the courthouse tomorrow.】 【Jenna will definitely be there to gloat.】 【You have to hold back. Whatever you do, don’t hit her.】 【Because… all her designer stuff is fake. The color will rub off if you touch it, and then she’ll try to sue us for damages.】 I snorted with laughter. This kid was even more savage than I was. The next morning, at the courthouse. Liam was practically glowing, his hair slicked back with gel. Clinging to his arm was Jenna. Her pregnant belly was on full display in a tight dress, as if to make sure everyone knew. Seeing me standing there alone, Jenna covered her mouth and giggled. “Oh, dear. You look terrible. Did you have nowhere to stay last night? Sleep under a bridge?” Liam patted her on the butt, feigning concern. “Don’t say that. You’ll upset Hannah and she’ll go jump off another one.” Then he turned to me with a condescending look. “You have your papers? Let’s get this over with. I have to get back to the office.” 4 I ignored them and walked straight inside. Sign, stamp, collect the certificate. I was completely silent and cooperative through the entire process. The moment the divorce decree was in his hand, Liam let out a huge sigh of relief, as if he’d just shed a massive burden. As we walked out, Jenna deliberately kissed him right in front of me. “We’re finally free, honey! Let’s go celebrate!” Liam wrapped an arm around her, pinching her cheek affectionately. “Whatever you want, sweetheart.” Then he turned to me, pulled a few crisp hundred-dollar bills from his wallet, and threw them on the ground. “Here. For the cab. Don’t say I have no heart.” The bills fluttered to the pavement, mocking my powerlessness. People around us started to stare and whisper. I bent down. A triumphant smirk spread across Liam and Jenna’s faces. They thought I was going to pick up the money. Instead, I just retied my shoelace. When I stood up, I planted my foot on the bills and ground them into the dirty concrete. “Keep it, Liam. You might need it for your medical bills.” “You have a dark cloud hanging over you. I sense a great disaster in your future.” Liam’s face turned green with rage. “Hannah! Don’t push your luck!” Jenna shrieked, “Who are you cursing?” I just smiled coldly, hailed a cab, and left them standing there. In the car, my palms were sweating. “Son, what if he finds out the stuff in the ceiling is gone?” 【So what if he does?】 【The divorce is final, and the asset division agreement is signed.】 【It says in black and white that personal belongings are not to be shared.】 【Those gold bars are your ‘personal belongings.’ Does he have any proof they were his?】 【That was his secret stash, money he couldn’t legally account for! You think he’s going to call the cops and admit to embezzling company assets?】 I slapped my thigh. He was right! Liam was completely screwed. He had to eat this loss. Now, for the most important part: the lottery ticket. Following my son’s instructions, I went to a nondescript convenience store on the outskirts of the city. “Five quick picks, please.” 【No! Mom! Not quick picks!】 【I’ll give you the numbers, write them down!】 【05, 12, 19, 26, 31, and the power numbers, 08, 14.】 I quickly corrected myself. “Sorry, I’d like to choose my own numbers.” Holding that thin slip of paper, I felt it burn hotter than the bag of gold. Eighty million dollars. If this hit, I’d be set for life. “Son, are you sure about this?” 【Positive! In the last life, the winner was a homeless man. He bought a bottle of booze, got drunk, and lost the ticket. Deadbeat Dad found it and claimed the prize.】 【This time, we’re cutting him off at the pass!】 Just as excitement surged through me, the ticket was snatched from my hand. I looked up. It was Liam.

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The night Joseph Merton was crowned the youngest astrophysicist of his generation, he didn’t give an acceptance speech. Instead, he confessed his love to a girl named Clara Leigh. “There are only two constants in my universe,” he said. “Physics, and her.” But for me, the girl in question, the grand declaration barely stirred a ripple in my heart. I booked a flight to another country, planning to never see him again. No one knew that this was my fifth life. It was the fifth time I had heard his confession, and the fourth time I had lived through his betrayal. This time, I decided to push him toward the woman destined to be the true love of his life—the one who wasn’t supposed to appear for another three years. 1 Crystal chandeliers cast a brilliant, fractured light across the hall. The red carpet stretched out before me, flanked by opulent bouquets of flowers. At the center of the stage, Joseph’s eyes were shining with an adoration I knew all too well. “Clara,” he began, his voice amplified throughout the grand hall, “the atoms of the universe are never truly destroyed. And we… we will be together for eternity.” The room erupted. Thunderous applause and envious gazes crashed over me in a wave. I forced the corners of my mouth into a smile, but my expression felt like a mask of ice. Across the sea of people, Joseph’s gaze was a tender caress. He grinned and raised his award toward me. “I want to share this honor with you. Not just for this moment, but for the rest of our lives.” He was radiant, a man at the pinnacle of his world. He moved through the clamoring crowd, his eyes locked on mine. “I love you,” he murmured, his voice finally close enough for only me to hear. I flinched, taking an involuntary step back. In my mind, a chorus of ghosts began to speak. The first Joseph: “I’ve fallen in love with her. Clara, thank you for everything.” The second Joseph: “I’m sorry. Ava needs me.” The Joseph standing before me now reached out, pulling me into a hug that felt like a cage. “Marry me,” he whispered against my hair. The third Joseph: He shoved me away, his face a mask of cold fury. “Let’s get a divorce.” A tremor ran through me, and I wrenched myself from his embrace. “If I say yes,” I began, my voice hollow, “you’ll only end up hating me for it.” He mistook my words for a test of his resolve. His gaze burned with intensity. “Clara, for the rest of my life, I will only be captivated by you.” But just a minute ago, in a life that had ended in a sterile hospital room, the fourth Joseph had told me with chilling finality: “Clara, I’m done with you. If there’s a next life, I only want to love Ava.” The people around us began to chant, their voices blurring together. “Say yes! Say yes! Say yes!” Joseph’s tall frame slowly lowered before me, his left knee touching the ground. “This is the most important question I will ever ask.” He looked nervous, his hand trembling slightly as he pulled out a ring box. “Will you marry me?” “Please, just let me go, will you?” a different Joseph, from a different lifetime, had once begged me. But not yet. We hadn’t reached that point yet, where we would claw at each other like mortal enemies, our faces twisted with hate. Right now, we were still the golden couple, the envy of our circle. Our last breakup deserved to be a clean one. My face was a numb mask as I gave a stiff nod. “I will.” I had answered him with sincerity four times before. I had fought with every fiber of my being to hold onto the genuine love he felt in this exact moment. But every single time, I had failed, my efforts ending in tragedy, only to be reborn at this same starting line. I was tired. I didn’t want to walk that path again. Joseph carefully slid the ring onto my finger, a triumphant smile spreading across his face. A tide of affection rose in his amber eyes. But when he looked up, he met my gaze, and it was the gaze of a complete stranger. The moment our eyes met, his breath hitched, almost imperceptibly. 2 Joseph scrambled to his feet, his hands gripping my shoulders. I kept my head down, a statue of unwilling compliance. Finally, he settled for second best, pressing a soft kiss to my forehead. In the car on the way home, he cast a sideways glance at me. “Is my little ostrich still sulking about the pajamas from last night?” The casual intimacy in his voice caught me off guard for a second. In this timeline, at this moment, our biggest fight was over something so trivial. A cool breeze rushed through the half-open window. The silhouettes of trees and guardrails blurred and receded, time rewinding at a dizzying pace. Now I remembered. I had bought a matching set of pink couple’s pajamas, hoping he would wear them with me. He’d refused. Said he hated the color. I had been hurt. It was just for wearing around the house. My frustration wasn’t about the pajamas, but about his unwillingness to bend, even for something so small. Joseph leaned over and wrapped his arms around me. “Babe, that color is just too bright. I wouldn’t feel comfortable. How about we exchange them for black ones? They’re cool, and they’ll make your skin look even paler.” But three years from now, to make Ava Mills happy, he would put on a bright pink Hello Kitty hoodie. “Alright, alright, I’ll wear it for you,” his ghost-voice would say. “Anything for my little princess. But in exchange, tonight…” I clenched my fists, a bitter smile touching my lips. Love could not withstand comparison. The moment you start comparing, you’ve already lost. Utterly and completely. “I’ll return the pajamas,” I said, gently pushing him away. I smoothed the sleeve of my dress, my voice soft. “I’m starting to understand. What you want should always be the priority.” And so now, I would bring Ava to him ahead of schedule. 3 “Let’s visit our old university,” I suggested. Ava was a freshman there right now. Joseph blinked, then a look of relief washed over his face. He gave me a placating smile. “Of course. Whatever my future wife wants.” A faint curve touched my lips, but my eyes were devoid of warmth. The first time, I was the one who met Ava first. She was a new intern at my company, the big boss’s niece. She had a talent for creating chaos. She lost a colleague’s expense report, unilaterally altered a finalized project proposal, and once, while cat-sitting, fed the cat grapes. The cat went into acute kidney failure and didn’t make it. I had complained to Joseph about every single incident. I thought he would share my disdain and keep his distance. Then came the day she borrowed my car to deliver a file and ended up in a fender bender. I was at my wit’s end with her. I asked Joseph to handle the insurance claim and damages. That one time was all it took. They added each other as contacts. In their chat history, she asked him for help fixing her computer, revising her proposals, choosing a topic for her graduation thesis… Their connection grew quietly, nurtured by her constant requests and his need to be needed. And just like that, they drifted together. Sometimes, I couldn’t help but wonder. Was I too independent? Was it because I rarely showed vulnerability or asked for help that I pushed him toward Ava, who needed him, who looked up to him, who created messes for him to clean up? I had meticulously avoided every single opportunity for them to meet. But it was as if they were fated, their love an inevitable conclusion. 4 On the main path of the campus, a young Ava Mills walked right into my line of sight, as if summoned. I calmly sent Joseph away on an errand. Then, I walked toward her. This time, I didn’t raise my hand to slap her. Instead, I bumped her shoulder. And then, I stumbled, falling dramatically to the ground. My phone flew from my hand, crashing onto the pavement with a sickening crack. The screen spiderwebbed into a thousand pieces. Ava’s eyes widened in shock. “Oh my god, I am so sorry! I was just talking to my friend, I wasn’t looking where I was going. Are you okay? I’ll pay for the phone, I’m so, so sorry!” She frantically took all the blame, her panic genuine. Perhaps it was that almost foolish brand of kindness that made Joseph fall for her so completely. A moment later, Joseph was there, his hand enclosing mine. “How could you be so careless?” I watched him like a spectator at a play, my gaze cool and detached. His attention was entirely on me; he hadn’t spared Ava a single glance. But Ava was staring, her eyes fixed on the way he was helping me up. “Who… who are you to her?” she asked abruptly. It was an absurd question. We were wearing matching couple’s watches on our intertwined wrists. But she had to ask, as if she couldn’t accept the obvious answer, clinging to a sliver of hope that she might hear a denial. Joseph, completely focused on me, brushed the dust from my clothes. He replied to her politely, “I’m her fiancé.” A sudden laugh escaped me. “We’re not married yet,” I said, my voice light. Then I turned to the girl. “Sweetheart, if you like him… feel free to shoot your shot.” Ava’s eyes instantly turned red. I couldn’t tell if it was because of Joseph’s answer or my mocking words. She looked down, stammering, “Ma’am, your phone is broken… I just wanted to get his contact info so I can pay you back. Please… don’t get the wrong idea.” Joseph’s brow furrowed. “Clara, what are you talking about? She’s just a kid. It was an accident, and she’s already apologized. How could you say something so flippant and embarrass her?” So soon. The protectiveness was already showing. I raised an eyebrow at him and smiled. “It was just a joke.” He was still displeased. “It was disrespectful. She’s a student. Forget about the payment. I’ll buy you a new phone. Don’t give her a hard time.” I looked down at the tips of my shoes, my voice soft but firm. “Add her, Joseph. Don’t fight destiny.” Ava eagerly held out her phone. “Mr. Merton, I can afford to pay. Just because I’m a student doesn’t mean you should have to cover my mistakes. That would be… bad for my values.” Joseph was silent for a moment. Finally, with the crisp chime of a notification, he added her as a contact. 5 Ava stared at him, her eyes shining with an unconcealable joy. “My name is Ava Mills,” she said, her voice clear and bright, as if making a formal declaration. I placed a hand over my heart. There was no pain. In the past, this scene would have driven me mad. But now, I felt nothing but a profound calm. I could even manage a friendly, easy smile, my eyes curving as I met Joseph’s gaze when he instinctively looked back at me. We went home. Joseph wouldn’t let it go. “Clara, what did you mean by ‘shoot your shot’? Was that really a joke? I still can’t believe you would say something like that to a girl you just met.” A sudden surge of rage washed over me. I swept my arm out, knocking the water glass beside him to the floor. The porcelain shattered, the sound sharp and hopeless, like the final state of our relationship—a complete mess. “Clara, what the hell are you doing?” I flinched, my shoulders hunching reflexively. He had yelled at me like that, with that exact booming volume, so many times before. I was afraid of it. But in the next instant, he was on one knee before me, his hands gently cradling my foot. “Does it hurt?” His thumb carefully wiped away a tiny bead of blood from a small cut. “I just… I feel like you don’t care about me anymore.” He looked up at me, his jaw tight, his eyes filled with a potent mix of pain, regret, and a pleading that was almost desperate. “Don’t punish me by hurting yourself. I can’t take it.” His eyes reddened, and my heart gave a sudden, sharp pang. This. This was why I could never let go. I had tried so many things to save him. In the first life, after discovering his affair, I screamed and cursed him. In the second, I subtly maneuvered to keep him and Ava from ever meeting. In the third, I poked holes in the condoms and got pregnant on purpose. In the fourth, I threw myself in front of him, taking a knife that was meant for him. But none of it worked. He always fell in love with Ava. He grew tired of talking to me. He avoided my touch. In the end, even the sound of my breathing seemed to irritate him. In every life, faced with his disgust, I would fall apart. “Joseph, you promised you would love me forever!” But he would just stare at me, his expression cold as I broke down. “You’re pathetic, Clara. Utterly pathetic.” I would glare at him through tear-swollen eyes and curse him with all the venom I could muster. “Anyone who betrays a heart like mine deserves to die a horrible death!” But the one who died, again and again, was me. First life: suicide by slitting my wrists, driven by depression. Second life: hit by a drunk driver, my mind too clouded with grief to react. Third life: bled out from a miscarriage. Fourth life: died from post-operative complications. My heart clenched, and suddenly the world tilted. I was being lifted into Joseph’s warm embrace. He held me securely, one arm around my back, the other under my knees. My head rested near his neck, just above his heart. He gently placed me on the sofa and retrieved the first-aid kit. He meticulously disinfected the tiny scratch, then lifted my ankle and blew softly on the wound. We were so close. So intimate. And that was why his eventual coldness was so unbearable. His touch was gentle as he carefully applied a cartoon-themed bandage to the cut. “If you’re still angry, just hit me, okay?” He didn’t know yet. Some wounds, the ones etched into your soul, could never be healed by a simple bandage. “I’m sorry,” I said. “That was impulsive. It won’t happen again.” I had already seen the future. I knew this love of his, so intense right now, would evaporate like morning dew. 6 Our wedding date drew closer. The changes in Joseph began to surface, small at first. One morning at breakfast, I stood up to get more coffee. He quickly turned his phone screen off and placed it face down on the table. I had seen this scene four times before. It was painfully familiar. One evening, he abruptly left, claiming he had to work late. At the same time, a new message popped up on his still-logged-in laptop. A message he had just sent: “Don’t be scared. I’m on my way.” The message above it was a voice note from Ava: “Joseph… I think someone is following me…” I calmly began packing away all of my out-of-season clothes and mailed them to my parents’ house. When Joseph returned, he was holding a stuffed animal. He handed it to me, his gesture a little stiff. “Saw this on the way home… thought it was cute… so I bought it.” Like an audience member who already knew the entire plot, I accepted it with a knowing smile. Then, I quietly moved all the gifts I had ever given him into a cardboard box in the corner. A few days later, another request from Ava arrived. “Joseph, there’s this guy who won’t stop harassing me, no matter how many times I turn him down. Could you please, please pretend to be my boyfriend? I thought about it, and you’re the only person I know who could pull it off. You’re so outstanding and impressive, if he sees you, he’ll actually believe me and give up.” Soon after, I saw her post online. “Happily taken. Please keep your distance.” The photo showed her holding a bouquet of flowers, her head resting intimately on Joseph’s shoulder, her smile radiant. I raised an eyebrow and booked a one-way ticket to Norway for myself. Later, on the collar of one of his white dress shirts, I found the faint, tell-tale smudge of red lipstick. I acted as if I hadn’t seen it and tossed the shirt into the laundry. This was child’s play. In previous lives, I had received bed photos from Ava and found her lace panties in the inner pocket of his suit jacket. Those were the kinds of provocations designed to stab you straight through the heart. I didn’t expect the lipstick to be so high-quality that it wouldn’t wash out. Joseph stared at the lingering stain, his expression dark. I quickly tried to cover for him. “Maybe… maybe I smudged it by accident?” “You haven’t even hugged me lately.” His voice was low, heavy with a suppressed accusation. “You’ve been so cold to me.” My face was a blank canvas. I replied with the same practiced excuses he used to give me. “I’ve just been really tired.” “Babe… are you getting cold feet about the wedding?” he asked, his voice laced with anxiety as I stood before the mirror in my wedding dress. He looked at my emotionless reflection, his own face etched with worry. He was about to say more, but his phone rang, shattering the moment. Ava’s tear-choked voice came clearly through the receiver. “Joseph… my roommate and I got into a fight… she accidentally stabbed me…” “The dean wants me to call my parents, but I don’t want them to worry. Can you… can you come and stay with me for a bit?” Joseph’s tension was palpable. “Is it serious?” He hesitated, looking at me. “Clara, I…” On the other end of the line, Ava must have heard my name. “Is… is she there with you? Please, don’t get the wrong idea. I really had no one else to turn to. You’re such a good person, please don’t fight because of me.” Her voice sounded incredibly weak. “Never mind, I’ll just call my parents…” Joseph removed the groom’s boutonnière from his lapel. “I’ll just go check on her. I’ll be back soon. Can you handle things here for a bit?” The ceremony was about to begin, and he was ready to abandon his bride and all our guests to run to another woman’s side. It was my cue to make a graceful exit. To finally let fate have its way. “Okay,” I said, not even looking up. My fingers were already flying across my phone screen, changing my flight to today. “We’ll talk properly later,” he said. “No need.” My voice was too quiet. He was in too much of a hurry. He didn’t hear me, and he didn’t look back. I turned, walked onto the stage, and picked up the microphone. “I’m sorry, everyone. The wedding is cancelled.” I rushed home and packed my few remaining clothes into a suitcase. Then I picked up the cardboard box full of memories. The box went into the dumpster. The suitcase went to the airport. There were no goodbyes. Without a backward glance, I walked down the jet bridge.

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The day Finnian Blackwood forced the divorce papers on me, I was bound to the Dare-to-Die System. The System’s voice echoed in my head: “Slap him across the face and tell him to get lost.” I trembled. Finn was a ruthless man. If I dared to stand between him and his first love, he would tear me apart without a second thought. But the System’s threat was more immediate: “If you don’t follow the dare, you will die. Now.” I had no choice. I swung my hand back and slapped him. My heart hammered in my chest. I turned and fled the house before he could react. Then the System issued its next command: Vandalize the police car parked on the corner. I was certain the System was trying to get me killed. But it was only after I smashed the cruiser’s side mirror that I understood. The life the System wanted me to risk wasn’t my own. 1 I stared at the police car, my mind reeling. “No way. That’s a crime!” “Take the dare, or you die,” the voice in my head repeated, cold and unyielding. I hadn’t believed it at first. The voice had appeared out of nowhere half an hour ago, informing me that I was the tragic heroine of a novel designed for heartbreak. According to the System, after Finn’s childhood sweetheart, Sienna Vance, returned to the country, I would be kicked to the curb. I was destined for a series of heart-wrenching abuses—forced blood donations, having a kidney stolen—before being left to a gang of thugs and dying a miserable death. A shiver went down my spine. Sienna had returned last month. And this month, Finn had started staying out late. He’d stare right through me, lost in thought. I found a lipstick in his coat pocket that wasn’t mine. He started taking his calls in another room. I knew this sham of a marriage was over. Today, he’d handed me the divorce papers. “Sienna won’t see me,” he’d said, his voice flat. “She says it’s improper now that I’m married. You know her health is fragile. She can’t be left alone.” “Isla, just sign the papers.” I scanned the document. There was no mention of any assets for me. My own savings were long gone, spent during the two years I supported Finn while he rebuilt his empire from scratch. For the past few years, he’d insisted I stay home, embarrassed by my humble origins. If he threw me out now, I wouldn’t have enough money for dinner. I had wanted to reason with him, but the System had commanded me to slap him instead. Everyone knew the new Finn Blackwood was a ruthless shark who’d clawed his way back from bankruptcy. That slap was a literal death wish. “Smash it! Now!” the System urged. Terrified that the System’s predictions would come true, I grabbed a loose brick from the pavement and brought it down hard on the cruiser’s side mirror. With a sickening crunch, the mirror shattered and fell to the ground. An alarm blared. Three officers burst out from around the corner. I immediately raised my hands, ready to surrender. They cuffed me and took me to the precinct. In the interrogation room, an officer held up my blood test results. “No alcohol, no drugs. Mentally stable. So why’d you smash a police car? Do you have any idea what you’ve done?” I recited the lines the System fed me. “I know exactly what I was doing. It was deliberate.” A young female officer looked at me, exasperated. “What’s wrong with you? Bad breakup?” “Not a breakup,” I said honestly. “A divorce.” The thought of prison food made my eyes well up with tears. The officer cleared her throat. “Full restitution for damages, a $1,000 fine, and ten days in detention. Call your family. And don’t do it again.” I dutifully handed over my bank cards, but each one was declined. Finn was already teaching me a lesson. The officers told me to call a family member. I tried Finn’s number ten times. No answer. On the eleventh try, I discovered he had blocked me. The female officer used the precinct’s landline. The moment she said my name, Finn cut her off. His voice, which had once been so gentle, was now like ice shards. “Isla? Call me again when she’s dead.” The officers exchanged uneasy glances. The female officer checked my records again. The file read: Orphan. Her expression hardened. “Take her to the holding cells.” The ten days passed faster than I expected. I was too busy with mandatory “re-education” programs to think much about Finn. When I got my phone back, it was flooded with missed calls from Finn and his assistant. I called him back. “Where the hell are you?” he snarled. “The file from my office drawer—where did you hide it?!” 2 I blinked, confused. “What file?” “You have thirty minutes to bring it back,” he seethed. “If you don’t, I’m calling the cops. Isla, don’t you dare test my patience.” I was completely lost. I looked at the female officer beside me. She had heard everything and held out her hand for my phone. She took it and spoke in a stern, official tone. “Mr. Blackwood, your wife was just released from detention and still has an outstanding fine. If you’d like to file a report, you can come directly to the precinct.” To my shock, Finn let out a cold laugh. “Isla, I’m not in the mood for your games.” He hung up. I didn’t know what was going on, but the officers told me to wait while they contacted Finn to come and pay the fine. Half an hour later, Finn stormed in, his face a thundercloud. He was grilling the officer. “Are you telling me she’s been in here for the last ten days? She hasn’t gone anywhere?” “Believe what you want,” the officer snapped. “Just pay the fine.” On the way to his office, I pieced together the story from Finn’s conversation with his assistant. Yesterday, the tender proposal in his drawer had vanished. It was for the company’s biggest and most confidential project of the year. Finn had the only final copy. The bid was due tomorrow. “A file that important has no backup?” I asked. The assistant whispered, “Ms. Vance accidentally spilled water on Mr. Blackwood’s laptop. The hard drive is completely fried.” Finn’s voice was a low warning. “Sienna already feels terrible about it. She’s sensitive. You are not to mention this in front of her.” The entire office was in a state of panic, everyone scrambling. The only person who was relaxed was Sienna, who was sitting in Finn’s chair, casually browsing the internet. When she saw me, she strode over with a bright smile. “Finn, you found Isla! Did you get the file back?” She took his hand and gave it a little swing. “I told you she was just angry and took it to get back at you. You can stop worrying about the bid now.” Finn’s expression was strange. He said nothing. Sienna’s smile faltered. Her gaze shifted to me. “Isla, you didn’t… lose the file, did you?” When I didn’t answer, her brow furrowed. “Isla, I heard Finn asked for a divorce. I know he was wrong, and you must be upset. But you shouldn’t have taken the company’s documents. So many people worked hard on that.” She changed her tone to one of gentle persuasion. “Just give it back. I’ve already talked to Finn. He won’t press charges.” “She didn’t take it,” Finn ground out. Sienna looked stunned. “How is that possible…?” Just then, the System issued a new command. “Slap her. Now!” How could I possibly touch Finn’s precious darling? But then, it clicked. The System had made me smash the police car to create a perfect alibi. It wasn’t trying to hurt me. Understanding dawned. I put every ounce of strength I had into my arm and swung, slapping Sienna hard across the face. “Such an act!” I spat out the lines the System provided. “Who do you think you are, sticking your nose in other people’s business? If you’re so concerned, maybe you should start by keeping your eyes off married men! You knew I couldn’t have the file, so you deliberately fanned the flames. I bet you’re the one who stole it!” The air froze. Sienna clutched her cheek, her eyes wide with disbelief. “You…” I slapped her again. “‘You’ what?! Don’t talk to me. I don’t converse with morally bankrupt homewreckers. It’s disgusting.” “Isla, are you insane?” Finn finally reacted, grabbing my wrist. Following the System’s next directive, I snatched the water glass from his desk and threw its contents in his face. The hot liquid drenched him. Finn froze. 3 He stared at me as if I were a complete stranger. “What’s happened to you? If I had known you were this unreasonable, back then I…” “If I had known you were no better than a public toilet,” I cut him off, “I never would have saved you!” Years ago, when the Blackwood family went bankrupt, Finn’s father had jumped from a skyscraper, and his mother had followed. His creditors had broken his leg and thrown him into the sea. I was a girl from a small coastal town, out on my fishing boat, and I pulled him from the water. I thought two lonely people could at least find some warmth in each other. But Sienna’s return had turned our eight-year marriage into a joke. The System’s spoilers and interventions had thrown my world into chaos. For the first time, looking at the drenched, pathetic man before me, I regretted saving him. Suddenly, Sienna shrieked. She stumbled, clutching the desk for support. “Finn, I feel dizzy.” Without even wiping the water from his face, Finn turned and swept her up into his arms. He didn’t spare me a single glance as he carried her to the sofa. I turned to leave, but he stopped me. “She fainted because of you. Don’t you move!” He buzzed his private doctor. After listening to Finn’s instructions, the doctor wiped a bead of sweat from his forehead. “Mr. Blackwood, while Mrs. Blackwood and Ms. Vance both have Type A blood, anemia doesn’t necessarily require a transfusion. And even if it did, we could…” “That’s too much trouble,” Finn’s voice was glacial. “Isla laid a hand on her. She can damn well take responsibility. Just draw her blood.” “Don’t just stand there,” the System prompted. “It’s time for a dare.” I pinched my palm, then threw open the office door. “Urgently seeking Type A blood!” I yelled to the stunned employees outside. “Ten thousand dollars a pint!” I turned back to meet Finn’s shocked gaze. “What, you’re not willing to part with a little cash?” People began to gather. “Mr. Blackwood, ma’am, I’m Type A! I even have my donor card. Is it really ten thousand a pint?” I smiled. “Mr. Blackwood is very anxious to save Ms. Vance. The more, the merrier.” With that, I pushed through the crowd and went home. Following the System’s guidance, I spent the afternoon drafting a new divorce agreement. Finn came home at two in the morning. He smelled of lilies. He had forgotten I was allergic. He picked up my version of the agreement and let out a series of derisive snorts. “Isla, are you out of your mind? Demanding I leave with nothing?” He tossed a form on the table in front of me. An organ donation consent form. “No more tricks. Either you sign this, or I’ll have someone sign it for you.” I opened it. It was for my kidney, of course. Finn started scribbling changes on my divorce agreement. “Sienna’s having some health issues. Help her, and consider it helping me. As a thank you, I’ll give you a million dollars.” He stared at me coldly. “Don’t be so greedy. It makes me wonder if you had ulterior motives for saving me all those years ago.” Perhaps he was overconfident. He went into the master bedroom to sleep, leaving me in the living room. A cold wind blew in from the window, chilling me to the bone. Following the System’s instructions, I went into the study and turned on the computer. Finn’s social media password was easy to guess: the date Sienna left the country. He had, after all, once tattooed those numbers on his ankle. I took a picture of the organ donation form and posted it online. The caption read: Seeking a matching kidney. One million dollars. Serious inquiries only. Below, I listed Finn’s personal phone number.

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On the eve of the New Year, a firework dart, tipped with barbs, pierced my shoulder and lodged itself in my body. Before they could rush me into surgery, the doctor looked at the two men who had hurried in with me and asked for a family member to sign the consent forms. Both of them lunged for the pen, nearly coming to blows. One was my husband. The other was my brother. “I’ll sign,” my husband, Scott, said, “but only if you agree to a sham divorce first. Willow was terrified tonight. A divorce certificate will calm her down.” “Sign it or don’t. I’ll do it,” my brother, Chris, snapped back. “Fine,” Scott retorted, “but you have to promise that when Evelyn wakes up, she won’t press charges over the arrow. It was just a girl who couldn’t handle being yelled at. She didn’t mean to do it.” A weak, bitter laugh escaped my lips. With the last of my strength, I motioned the doctor closer. “Don’t save me.” Whether I lived or died… it didn’t matter anymore. … The argument in front of the emergency room doors raged on, but it wasn’t about who should sign as next of kin. It wasn’t about the fact that I was in critical condition and needed immediate surgery. Scott Vance and Chris Shay stood on either side of my gurney, each man blocking one of the wheels, preventing it from moving forward. We were inches from the operating room, but it might as well have been a world away. The arrow, armed with five barbed hooks at its tip, had entered through my right shoulder and traveled horizontally across my body. The tip was now resting perilously close to my heart on the left side. The doctor was sweating profusely, knowing better than anyone what every passing second meant for me. He tried to intervene, but a single glare from the two of them silenced him. This was the Vance family’s hospital, after all. No one would dare overstep. In his hand, Scott held a divorce agreement. In his, Chris held a legal waiver, a promise not to press charges. Each man was desperate to shove his pen into my still-conscious hand, competing to see who could get my signature first. They were eager to run back and report their success to the “traumatized” little girl, Willow. Staring at the two documents shoved in my face, I managed a breathless smile. I asked them a completely nonsensical question. “Tonight, you threw a party for Willow to celebrate 148 days since you met her. Why… why did it have to be today?” A day earlier, a day later—it would have been just another meaningless number to them. So why today? With the arrow still inside me, every word was an agony. But I was deceiving myself. One last gamble. Just one more. Maybe one of them would remember what today was. Scott remained silent. Chris’s fist tightened and relaxed at his side, his impatience a palpable force. “We just wanted to make Willow happy. It’s that simple. Can you stop wasting time? What’s the point of this?” The raucous laughter from that party, the blinding colored lights, the adoring smiles on my husband’s and my brother’s faces—that was the fuse that had lit my rage. I had crashed the party, shattering the joyful atmosphere. Everyone had called me a lunatic. Scott and Chris had shielded Willow behind them. “If you’re going to be crazy, go do it at home! Don’t embarrass us here!” I had looked only at Willow’s triumphant face. “You did this on purpose, didn’t you? You’re disgusting.” In front of the two men, her expression shifted seamlessly into one of profound sorrow. “Why… why does my sister have to say such cruel things to me? Is it so wrong to want to be with the people I love?” The two men she had just claimed as her own blushed. “I thought I finally had a family! Why does she still hate me so much? Why?” And then, under the guise of an emotional breakdown, she had fired the firework dart at me. Even as the arrow pierced my flesh, Scott had pinned my arms down, terrified I would lash out and hurt his precious darling. He had stared at me, his eyes filled with a deep, chilling disappointment. “Why?” he’d asked. “How did you become this person? You’re vile.” As they were loading me onto the stretcher, Willow had insisted on seeing me. She had leaned in close, her voice a triumphant whisper in my ear. “Sister, you know what today is, don’t you? I’m celebrating for you. It’s the one-year anniversary of your and Scott’s baby’s death. Too bad they don’t remember. Only I do. You should thank me, really.” Unable to lift my hands, I had lunged forward and bitten her ear. For that, Scott had nearly crushed my jaw. And now, it was the reason they both felt so justified in forcing these papers on me. I deserved this. It’s almost funny. Willow, my long-lost twin sister, had only recently been found. Snatched at birth by an enemy of the family, our parents had spent their lives searching for her. That unresolved grief had ultimately led to their early deaths. On their deathbeds, they had made my brother and me swear an oath. If we ever found her, we would spend our lives making it up to her. And I had intended to. When we found Willow, I believed she had suffered too much. I was ready to give her everything. But from the moment she saw me, she was hostile. At first, Scott noticed it. Whenever I tried to bring him to my family home, he would resist, needing to be coaxed and placated. When he saw Willow, he wouldn’t even spare her a glance. “Babe,” he’d say, “I’m not going to be nice to someone who isn’t nice to my girl.” Chris was always caught in the middle, awkwardly trying to smooth things over. But somewhere along the line, it had changed. “Evelyn,” Scott had said one day, “Chris and I are taking Willow to Disneyland for a few days. You’ve been so many times, why don’t you just stay home? You know how sensitive she is. She thinks you don’t like her. Maybe you’ve been too harsh. She won’t have any fun if you’re there. Chris feels the same way, he was just afraid you’d be upset, so he asked me to tell you.” Then later: “I don’t understand you. This should be a happy thing, having your sister back, but you act like you wish she’d never been found. If Willow hadn’t told me, I would never have known you were bullying her in private, telling her to go back where she came from. I’m leaving. You need to think about what you’ve done.” He had left, his eyes filled with disappointment. I had held my tongue. I didn’t demand a confrontation, didn’t ask when, exactly, I had ever bullied her. Let it go, I told myself. Don’t ruin the mood. Just endure it. I remembered the oath my parents had made me take alone. Your sister has suffered. You’ve had twenty more years of happiness than she has. You have to be good to her. Otherwise, we’ll never forgive you, even in heaven. So I let her have her way. Until the day I found her in bed with Scott. The blood rushed to my head, and the world spun. I was blind with rage. I slapped her. In return, I received a slap from Scott, and another from Chris, who had rushed in after me. Chris was furious. “Willow told me you were tormenting her behind my back, forbidding her from getting close to me. I didn’t believe her. I guess you’re finally showing your true colors. She suffered for over twenty years, and when she finally comes home, she has to deal with a sister like you. Evelyn, do you think Mom and Dad are proud of you right now? If I could choose, I’d wish it was you who was taken all those years ago!” I stood frozen, tears streaming down my face. Scott held Willow, comforting her gently. He glanced at my tears, his expression cold. “Stop crying. Willow isn’t crying, so why should you? It’s not surprising that I fell for her. She’s a wonderful person. What you and I had was just a product of growing up together, an illusion. If you were the one who was taken and then returned, I would never have fallen for someone so vile. So don’t blame Willow. It’s not her fault. I should be grateful I’ve finally seen who you really are.” Looking at the victorious glint in Willow’s eyes, I suddenly understood. She didn’t love Scott or Chris. She just hated me. She hated that she was the one who was taken, that I had enjoyed a life of privilege she was denied. My pain was her pleasure. And the guilt the world felt for her was her ultimate weapon. I didn’t even have the right to fight back. And so, on that day, I lost my husband and my brother. If it weren’t for tonight, I probably would never have seen them fight over me again. Once, they fought over who got to spend time with me. Now, they fought over which paper I should sign first so they could run back and comfort Willow. At that moment, both of their phones rang simultaneously. “Scott… Chris…” It was Willow, her voice choked with tears. “I’m so scared. The blood… it got all over me, and I can’t wash it off…” “When they were putting my sister on the stretcher, I wanted to come with you, but… but she said that as soon as she’s okay, she’s going to kill me. What do I do? I really didn’t mean it. I’m so worried about her…” She sobbed and whimpered, then forced a brave tone for the two men on the other end, who were no doubt dying to fly back to her side. “Sometimes I think my sister is so lucky. She has both of you caring about her so much. I have nothing. And any little thing I do get, she forces me to give it back.” “It’s okay, you don’t have to rush back. I’ll be fine on my own…” “I’m going to go find a hundred of those firework darts, the kind I accidentally hurt her with. She said when she gets better, she wants to shoot all of them at me. As long as it makes her feel better, I’ll do anything.” By the time the call ended, Scott’s and Chris’s faces were black with rage. Chris was the first to snap. He suddenly lunged forward and wrapped his hands around my neck. “Why? Why are you like this?” he hissed, his face contorted. “Why can’t you just accept her? It was an accident! A hundred arrows? Are you trying to kill her? Evelyn, how could you be my sister? How could our family produce someone so rotten?!” The pressure was immense. His movement jostled the arrow inside me. The barbs and hooks twisted in my flesh. It probably wasn’t a normal firework dart at all. I choked, spitting up blood. Scott finally intervened, grabbing Chris’s arm. “Calm down. Are you trying to kill her?” My heart, already turned to ash, flickered with a faint, secret hope. Maybe… maybe he couldn’t bear to see me die. “If you kill her now, who’s going to sign the papers?” Scott continued, his voice cold. “Are you going to forget about comforting Willow? If Evelyn dies now, Willow will blame herself for the rest of her life. Do you want her to live with that shadow forever?” Once Chris was pacified, Scott finally spared me a glance. I was still coughing up blood, the crimson staining half my face. The gurgling in my throat made it impossible to breathe without triggering another agonizing movement of the arrow. He frowned, his tone chilling. “That’s enough. Stop the act. Do you have a blood pack hidden in your mouth? I was with Willow when she chose those fireworks. They’re soft and thin. She’s a kind girl; she specifically had them custom-made so they wouldn’t hurt anyone. The impact must have just pushed it into your shoulder. It’s a flesh wound, nothing more. There’s no need to be so dramatic. Chris and I aren’t idiots.” I froze, even forgetting to cough. He mistook my shock for being caught in a lie. He sighed. For the first time since I’d caught him with Willow, he spoke to me in a gentle, coaxing tone. “Alright, this is just a temporary divorce to appease Willow. Sign the papers, and after you do, Chris and I promise we’ll take you to Sunhaven for a few days, just like you wanted.” With a nod from Scott, Chris reluctantly agreed. When I finally spoke, my voice was a raw, rasping sound, filled with utter despair. “You think… you think we were going to Sunhaven… for a vacation?” I thought if they remembered Sunhaven, they would remember why I had been begging them to go with me. They would remember why the sight of their smiling faces at that party had made me snap. Our daughter, Rosie, had been born frail and sickly. She couldn’t tolerate the cold. Sunhaven was warm year-round. In the three years of her life, we had spent more than half our time there. In the end, she hadn’t made it. She had left us, and I had cried until I fainted, over and over again. We decided to bury her in Sunhaven. At her grave, both Scott and Chris had wept and sworn they would come back every year on the anniversary of her death to be with her. 148 days. A laughable 148 days. And on the first anniversary of her death, they had forgotten everything. When a heart dies, there’s nothing left to say, nothing left to ask. I let out a long breath. I didn’t want to see them anymore. Let them leave. Words were useless now. I slowly raised my hand. “I’ll sign both.” Chris, barely concealing his excitement, shoved the pen into my hand. My left hand was the only part of me with any feeling left, and I signed slowly. But just as I was about to complete the last stroke of my name, I felt the barbs inside me begin to spin violently. The pen clattered to the floor. The pain was so intense that my body began to convulse. A spray of blood erupted from my mouth, covering both agreements, obscuring the text completely. Scott and Chris stared, stunned. Chris was the first to react. “Damn it! You did that on purpose, didn’t you? You ruined the papers just to spite us!” He raised his hand to strike me again. Just then, his phone rang. It was Willow. “Scott! Chris! Help me! A group of men… they have me cornered in an alley! They said… they said my sister sent them to teach me a lesson…” Panic seized them both. Even Scott, who had maintained a sliver of composure, let out a curse and kicked my gurney over. “So this was your plan all along! Wasting time so they could get to her!” “Evelyn Shay, if anything happens to Willow, I will make you pay with your life!” He turned to the hospital staff. “Tell everyone, let her lie here and play her games. She likes bleeding, right? For every cut anyone makes on her, I’ll pay a million dollars. But if anyone dares to treat her or bandage her wounds, they’ll have to answer to both the Vance and the Shay families!”

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It was New Year’s Eve, and the whole family was outside setting off fireworks. The trouble started with a single, simple act: I handed a sparkler to Gina, my younger daughter, just because she was standing closer to me. That was all it took for Aria, my older daughter, to snap every remaining sparkler in the box. She pointed a trembling finger at Gina and screamed, “Go on, play with it! You always have to have everything! Why don’t you just drop dead?” Then the tears came, a wrenching, theatrical sob as she turned on my husband and me. “Why didn’t you give it to me first? Why are you always so unfair? I don’t want you as my parents anymore!” Before we could react, she bolted, running out of the yard and into the night. We couldn’t catch her. We called the police, then spent three agonizing days and nights driving through every street, searching for her. When we finally found her at the police station, she was putting on another show, wailing that she refused to come home with us. “I don’t want parents who play favorites! I’m not going back!” I looked at her, my voice eerily calm. “Aria, are you sure about that?” Her crying hitched for a second. “Because if you don’t want us anymore,” I continued, “then we… don’t want you either.” 1 Aria froze. Then, the crying erupted again, louder and more desperate than before. A young policewoman rushed over to mediate. “Ma’am, she’s just a child. Don’t be so hard on her.” I wasn’t being hard on her. I was just tired. So incredibly tired. By my count, this was the twenty-eighth time Aria had run away from home. It was always over something trivial, some perceived slight that no one else would even notice. If I served Gina a slightly larger portion of casserole at dinner, Aria would throw a fit. She would meticulously pick apart her food, counting every single piece of scrambled egg on her plate. If Gina accidentally got one more, it was a catastrophe. She’d snatch her sister’s plate and scrape the entire meal into the trash. “If you’re going to be unfair,” she’d snarl, “then nobody gets to eat!” To keep the peace, we actually bought a food scale. Every meal was portioned out to the gram, a ridiculous ritual to prove our impartiality. It wasn’t just food. It was everything. Clothes, shoes, toys… Aria always had to have the first pick. If she didn’t get what she wanted, she’d run. We couldn’t discipline her. We couldn’t even scold her. A single sharp word and she’d have one leg over the windowsill, threatening to jump. My husband, David, and I tried talking to her, reasoning with her, but it always devolved into hysterical screaming about how we favored her sister. Then she’d run outside without her shoes, telling anyone who would listen that we didn’t want her anymore now that we had a second child, that we were so cruel we wouldn’t even give her shoes. We could never explain. All we could do was endure the whispers and the judgment, and gently coax her back home. But this time, the twenty-eighth time, was different. I felt a profound, bone-deep exhaustion. Her screams were like a bomb that had finally obliterated the last of my patience. David, however, still had some left. He sighed, kneeling in front of Aria, his voice soft and placating. “Sweetheart, it’s all our fault. Please, just come home with us.” At the sight of her father’s surrender, a flicker of triumph crossed her face. I knew that look. It was the look she got when she knew she had us wrapped around her finger. And now, the demands would begin. “Fine, I’ll come back,” she said, sniffing. “But you have to agree to a few things.” “Anything,” David said instantly. “You name it, we’ll get it for you.” “I want that new laptop we saw, and the new Nintendo Switch from the mall. You have to buy them for me.” “And,” she paused, her lower lip jutting out, “you have to send Gina to live with Grandma. I don’t want to live with her anymore. I hate her!” “…Aria, honey, Gina is your sister. You can’t just send her away.” The moment she was denied, Aria shoved David away. “She is not my sister! Did you even ask for my permission before you had her?” She was winding up for another tantrum. David, flustered and desperate, shot me a helpless look. What do we do? he mouthed. I took a deep breath, pulled him up from the floor, and faced our daughter. “Aria, you’re twelve years old. You’re not a little kid anymore.” My voice was steady, devoid of the emotion she fed on. “You and Gina are both our daughters. We are not sending Gina away. No matter how much you scream or cry, it is not going to happen. So, are you coming home with us or not? If not, we’re leaving.” With that, I grabbed David’s arm and walked toward the door. 2 One step. Two steps. Three. We were almost at the precinct door when Aria’s voice cut through the air. “Fine! Don’t send her away!” she yelled. “But you’re taking me to buy the laptop and the Switch. Right now!” She ordered us around as if we owed her, her tone dripping with entitlement. But in the end, we gave in. We took her to the mall and bought her everything she wanted. By the time we finally got home, it was late. Gina heard the door open and came pattering down the stairs. The moment she saw Aria, she shrank back, her voice a small, timid whisper. “Hi, Aria.” Aria didn’t even glance at her. “Who said you could call me that? Get away from me.” “Don’t talk to your sister like that,” I warned. “You two are family, not enemies.” Aria shot me a look of pure contempt. “I never asked for a sister. She’s a little freeloader you and Dad made because you got horny and couldn’t be bothered to use a condom. What’s that got to do with me?” “Aria!” David’s voice was sharp with shock. “Where did you learn to talk like that?” He sighed, rubbing his temples in exhaustion. “We’re a family, Aria. Can’t you please stop talking like we’re at war?” Aria just sneered. “It’s your fault for playing favorites. If you can’t treat two kids equally, why have them in the first place?” In that moment, I was so tired I could barely breathe. “Aria,” I said, my voice low. “Do you really want to know why we have two children in this house? I’ll tell you right now—” “Sarah, don’t!” The words died in my throat as David grabbed my arm, his grip tight. He was always the patient one, the peacemaker. “Aria, Gina,” he said, trying to smooth things over. “Let’s just put this behind us. Can you two please try to get along from now on? Mom and I swear, we will love you both exactly the same. No favorites.” Gina nodded immediately, her eyes wide and earnest. “I promise, Daddy.” Aria let out a derisive snort. “Yeah, right. She’s the baby. You’ll always take her side.” I fought back a wave of irritation. “Then what do you want us to do, Aria?” She shot a venomous glare at Gina. “I already told you. Send her to Grandma’s house! I want you to love only me!” My voice rose despite myself. “Aria, I just told you, that is not going to happen!” A sly, calculating look crossed her face. She folded her arms. “Oh, it’s not? Then I’ll just go on a hunger strike.” She looked so sure of herself, so utterly convinced that we would fold, just like always. Without another word, she spun around and stomped up the stairs, slamming her bedroom door with a deafening bang that shook the whole house. Gina flinched, her small body trembling. After a moment, she hesitantly reached for my hand. “Mommy,” she whispered, her eyes filling with tears, “I don’t want to go to Grandma’s. And I don’t want Aria to starve…” The sight of her tears made my heart ache. I knelt and gently wiped them away. “Gina, honey, this is not your fault. And don’t worry, Mom and Dad will never, ever send you away.” “…But what about Aria?” I sighed, a cold weariness settling over me. We had coddled her for too long. “This time,” I said, my voice hard, “no one is going to give in to her.” 3 On the first day of Aria’s hunger strike, David couldn’t hold out. He snuck upstairs with a plate of her favorite food: sweet and sour ribs and fried chicken. Aria didn’t even look up. She simply swiped the plate off his hands, sending it crashing to the floor. “I don’t need your fake kindness! Get out!” The moment I heard the crash, I stormed into the room and pulled David out. “She’s not eating? Then let her starve,” I told him firmly. “From now on, we are not going to interfere. Aria’s behavior is getting more and more extreme. If we keep giving in, she’s going to do something truly terrible one day. This time, you will not indulge her. Do you understand me?” David looked torn, but after a long, hard look from me, he finally nodded. On the second day, we didn’t bring her any food. Realizing we were serious, she started making a racket upstairs. We heard the distinct sound of glass shattering. In the past, I would have run up, terrified she had hurt herself. This time, I steeled myself and ignored it. “Don’t look up,” I told Gina and David at the dinner table. “Just keep eating.” Sure enough, late that night, after we had all gone to our rooms, I heard faint footsteps creaking on the stairs. Aria, driven by hunger, was sneaking down to the kitchen. She quietly opened the fridge, grabbed a bag of bread, and started stuffing it into her mouth like a starved animal. I had been waiting. I walked out of my bedroom and flipped on the kitchen light. She jumped, dropping the bread on the floor. Caught in the act, her bravado vanished, replaced by a flush of embarrassment. I sighed. Seeing how thin she looked already, a pang of pity shot through me. I went to the microwave and pulled out the plate of food I had saved for her. “Can we please stop this?” I said softly. “Just eat.” This time, she didn’t fight. She sat down and cleaned the plate. I reached out and stroked her hair. “Aria, I promise you, I love you so, so much. Even with a sister, that love hasn’t changed. Deep down, you know that, don’t you?” My voice was pleading. “So please, can you stop all this? I’m begging you.” Aria swallowed the last piece of rib, set down her fork, and walked back to her room without a word. The next morning, the hunger strike was over. She came downstairs and ate breakfast with us. I carefully divided the food, using the scale to ensure her portion was identical to Gina’s down to the last gram. The meal was silent. Then, Gina spoke up, her voice small. “Aria… do you want to walk home from school together today?” Aria was quiet for a long moment. Then, looking down at her plate, she mumbled, “Okay.” A huge wave of relief washed over me. I thought, finally, we had turned a corner. I had no idea the real nightmare was just beginning. 4 David and I went to our respective offices. The moment I walked into mine, I felt a chill crawl up my spine. It felt like dozens of eyes were on me, but whenever I turned to look, they would dart away. It wasn’t just the stares. It was the whispers, quiet as buzzing mosquitoes, that stopped the moment I got near. Holding my breath, I strained to listen. They were talking about me. “…I can’t believe it. Sarah seems so normal, but she’s abusing her own daughter at home…” “I heard she favors the younger one and starves the older one. The poor girl went two whole days without food. It’s monstrous!” “If you can’t love both your kids equally, you shouldn’t have a second one. That poor child is so unlucky to have her for a mother.” My heart hammered against my ribs. I felt dizzy. When did I ever starve Aria? And how did they know what was happening in my house? I pulled aside Kate, a colleague I was friendly with, and asked her what was going on. She looked uncomfortable but finally mumbled, “Sarah, I’ll send you something on your phone. Just… take a look.” I fumbled with my phone, my hands shaking. It was a video. And the little girl in it… was Aria. She had secretly live-streamed from her bedroom the night before. Kate had sent me a recording. In the video, Aria’s hair was a mess, and she was wearing an old pair of pajamas she’d outgrown two years ago. The small, worn-out clothes made her look even more pitiful and neglected. She looked into the camera, her eyes brimming with tears. “Hi everyone,” she whispered weakly. “My mom hasn’t let me eat for two days. Right now, she and my dad and my sister are downstairs eating ribs and fried chicken. I’m so hungry… I barely have the strength to talk…” “Ever since they had my sister, they don’t love me anymore,” she sobbed. “They want to send me to my grandma’s house in the country, pull me out of school, and make me work in a factory in a few years… then marry me off to some man to save up for my sister’s future!” Her crying intensified. She held up our family photo, making sure the viewers got a good look at the faces of her “evil” parents. The comments in the chat were flying by, a torrent of outrage. 【PARENTS LIKE THAT SHOULD BURN IN HELL. UNFAIR PARENTS ARE THE WORST!】 【How could anyone be cruel to such a sweet little girl? This is heartbreaking.】 【Sweetie, you should cut ties with them. We’ll adopt you!】 Watching the video, the world went dark around me. With the last ounce of my composure, I memorized the username and ID from the video. I immediately searched for it on the social media platform. When I saw the account’s main page, my blood ran cold. It was a secret account Aria had been running for months. Post after post detailed how her parents favored her little sister. The comments were filled with sympathy for this poor, unloved girl. Several users had even offered to adopt her. My finger trembled as I scrolled up. The latest post was about the hunger strike. She had twisted the story, turning her self-imposed strike into us deliberately starving her. She painted herself as a tragic victim. At the end of the post, she had asked her followers a question: 【What should I do about my parents who play favorites?】 The top-liked comment read: 【Why don’t you just make your sister disappear?】 Aria had replied: 【How do I do that?】 The user responded: 【Push her down the stairs, poison her food… there are plenty of ways.】 Some of the replies under that comment told the user not to give a child such horrible ideas. But others agreed. 【With parents that biased, the sister is probably a spoiled brat who bullies her. I say teach her a lesson!】 I kept scrolling down, my heart pounding in my throat. And then I saw it. A reply from Aria, posted just ten minutes ago. 【Okay then, I’ll give it a try!】 A cold dread washed over me. I glanced at the clock. School was already out. And this morning, Gina had asked Aria to walk home with her… My heart leaped into my throat. Work was forgotten. I called David, who was still at his office. “Something’s wrong. Get home now!”

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At the gala of powerful Alistair Sterling, my world collapsed. Laura Coy, my husband Tim’s true love, stood sobbing, accusing my brother Leo of assault. The elite whispered, “Laura was Sterling’s chosen fiancée. That White boy is out of control!” Respecting our family ties, Sterling ordered Leo to marry Laura instead of pressing charges. But Tim enacted his own justice: before everyone, he shattered Leo’s legs with a chair, telling me, “We must appease the Sterlings, or they’ll ruin our family.” Months later, Laura had a baby boy. Leo, wheelchair-bound, screamed his innocence, but no one believed him. Desperate, he took the infant to demand a public paternity test. As he left, Tim struck him from behind with a vase. I screamed, but Tim choked me, hissing, “Think of the scandal and the baby.” Carrying our child, I died. I awoke again at the Sterling gala. This time, I tied my brother up and locked him in a storage room. Yet Laura Coy was still weeping, still claiming she’d been assaulted. … Laura stood there, wrapped only in Tim’s suit jacket, with suspicious red marks blooming across her exposed shoulders and legs. She hid her face, her sobs echoing with practiced misery. “I’ve disgraced Mr. Sterling’s trust! I can’t bear to live!” she cried, lurching toward one of the marble pillars as if to end her own life. “Tim, don’t stop me! Just let me die!” Several society matrons rushed to restrain her, their faces a mixture of pity for her and disgust for me. Their glares were like daggers. “Has Leo White completely lost his mind? Did he pick up these disgusting habits overseas?” “His family has a little prestige, sure, but to touch someone the Sterlings have chosen? He’s spitting in the face of the most powerful man in the city!” “Miss Coy was supposed to marry the Sterling heir next month. This has ruined everything!” I glanced at my husband, Tim Thorne, who was shielding Laura, his eyes burning with fury as he stared at me. I fought back the bitter, knowing smile that threatened to curve my lips. Pushing through the crowd, I walked straight up to Laura. “Miss Coy,” I said, my voice cutting through her performance. “Look at me. Are you absolutely certain the man who did this to you was my brother?” Laura flinched, her weeping growing more frantic. “Miss White, I know you love your brother, but how could any woman lie about something like this? I just… I don’t want to live anymore!” She struggled again, a damsel in deep distress, held back by the gentle hands of the other women. Tim strode forward and yanked me aside, his grip so tight it felt like my wrist would snap. His face was thunderous, his eyes blazing. “Elara, your brother commits a disgusting, animalistic act, and instead of dragging him here to apologize, you come to intimidate his victim?” His voice was a low, furious growl. “Your father’s legacy, his good name—you and your brother are dragging it through the mud!” The pain in my wrist was sharp, but the cold laughter in my heart was sharper. Half an hour ago, I personally bound and gagged Leo and secured the storage room with three separate locks. Did he magically teleport back here to assault Laura? I met Tim’s furious gaze without flinching. “Tim, are you sure? Are you absolutely certain it was my brother who did this?” His jaw tightened. “I saw him with my own eyes, Elara! I saw that bastard putting his hands all over Laura! I knocked him out myself to save her. You think I don’t recognize my own brother-in-law?” A sliver of doubt pierced my resolve. Tim’s certainty was unsettling. Had Leo somehow escaped? “Mrs. Thorne, how long are you going to bully this poor girl?” a prominent matriarch snapped at me, her voice dripping with condescension. “You are the wife of the Thorne Corporation heir! You should be protecting your husband’s family name, not defending the trash in yours. You are unfit to be the lady of the Thorne house!” “Or what?” another chimed in. “Do you want Tim to just look the other way while you and your delinquent brother drive Miss Coy to her death?” Tim shot me a venomous look. “Elara, stop embarrassing yourself!” I let out a cold, humorless laugh, my gaze sweeping over the self-righteous faces of the city’s elite, all of them eager to join the chorus. “It seems that no matter what really happened tonight, all the filth was destined to be thrown at my brother.” “You!” Laura looked as if I had struck her. Fresh tears rolled down her cheeks, making her look exquisitely fragile. She bit her lip, her voice trembling. “I have always lived an honorable life. I never wanted to climb the social ladder! And now you’re calling me a shameless, conniving woman?” “Fine! If the White family refuses to take responsibility, then I’ll die right here and sever all ties to this world!” She spun and ran toward the floor-to-ceiling windows, only to be caught and soothed by the gaggle of women. “Miss Coy, don’t do something so foolish!” “It’s all that vile White boy’s fault!” “You’ve suffered so much! You can’t let that animal get what he wants!” While they comforted her, they shot me looks of pure loathing. “She was supposed to be marrying the Sterling heir, for God’s sake.” “The Whites run a decent business, but do they really think they’re in the same league? Why would a woman like Miss Coy need to frame them with her own reputation?” Tim pulled me closer, his grip still bruising, his expression shifting to one of feigned concern. “Elara, stop this,” he murmured, loud enough for others to hear his “reasonableness.” “Just have Leo agree to marry Laura. Issue a public apology, offer compensation.” “If this goes to court,” he whispered, for my ears only, “an assault charge alone will land him in prison for at least a decade. White Industries’ stock will plummet. How will you answer to your board then?” Last time, that mask of his had fooled me completely. I believed Leo had made a drunken mistake. Consumed by guilt, I handed over a major White Industries project to the Coy family as an apology and treated Laura like a queen. And in return, she gave birth to another man’s child seven and a half months later and destroyed my entire family. A wave of nausea churned in my stomach. I ripped my arm from his grasp. “You want my family to welcome Laura Coy into our home under a cloud of lies? In your dreams!” The warmth vanished from Tim’s face, replaced by a chillingly familiar darkness. Before he could respond, Laura’s father, Mr. Coy, stormed into the room, his face a mask of fury. Without a word, he marched up to his daughter and struck her, a sharp, ringing slap that sent her stumbling to the floor, blood trickling from her lip. “You are still making a scene in a place like this!” he roared. “Get home, now! I’ll book you a flight. Go die abroad for all I care, just stop shaming our family!” Two bodyguards moved to grab Laura. “You don’t have to touch me,” she sobbed. She snatched a fruit knife from a nearby table and, without hesitation, slashed it across her wrist. The room erupted in chaos. There were screams, people rushing to stop her, and others grabbing me, their voices shrill with accusation. “Mrs. Thorne! Are you just going to stand there and watch?” “If it wasn’t for your degenerate brother, would she be driven to this?” “Can your family live with themselves?” I watched the melodrama unfold, my face a cold, impassive mask. I saw the glint in Laura’s eyes as she pressed the blade deeper. It wasn’t the look of someone who wanted to die. It was the look of someone certain of victory. Blood welled up, crimson and stark against her pale skin. The matrons shrieked. “My God! The White family is driving her to her death!” Tim’s face went white. He lunged forward, wrenching the knife from her hand. “Doctor! Get the family doctor in here, now!” He quickly undid his tie and wrapped it tightly around her bleeding wrist. Surrounded by a worried crowd, Laura lay back, her eyes fluttering weakly. Her gaze flickered toward me, and in that fleeting moment, I saw it again: not despair, but triumph. Once Laura was safely settled in a quiet corner, Tim stormed toward me, his eyes terrifyingly dark. “Elara White!” he roared, and his hand flew up, striking me across the face with brutal force. The slap echoed through the ballroom. The impact sent me staggering backward, and I fell, my head cracking against the sharp corner of a marble table. A searing pain shot through my skull as blood trickled down my temple. My cheek was on fire, my ear ringing, and my vision swam with black spots. Tim stood over me, his finger pointed at my face, his eyes filled with a venomous hatred. “You are such a vicious bitch. You had to push her to the brink of death just to feel satisfied, didn’t you? I, Tim Thorne, do not have a wife as evil as you. We’re getting a divorce. Today!” The crowd murmured in agreement. Some even looked pleased. “Mr. Thorne is right! A wife with no sense of right and wrong is a curse!” “Like brother, like sister. He’s a thug, so what does that make her? I bet she was sleeping around before she got married!” “Mr. Thorne and Miss Coy are so unlucky to have run into these two psychopaths!” The vicious words rained down on me. They looked at me as if I were a murderer, one step away from being pelted with rotten fruit. I swallowed the metallic taste of blood in my mouth and pushed myself up from the floor, my head throbbing. I faced them all. “You need to catch them red-handed,” I said, my voice shaking but clear. “Which one of you actually saw my brother assault Laura Coy?” A stunned silence fell over the room. Tim broke it with a cold laugh. “I see you won’t give up until you’re faced with irrefutable proof!” He spun around and strode to a dark corner of the ballroom where two bodyguards stood watch over a bulky, black sack. He bent down, untied the rope, and reached inside. With a flourish, he pulled out a custom-made men’s lapel pin, exquisitely crafted and engraved with a small, stylized “V.” He held it up for everyone to see. “Recognize this? This was a coming-of-age gift for Leo White from his family. It is a one-of-a-kind design! No one else in the world has one!” His eyes were like daggers as he threw the pin at me. It clattered at my feet. “Elara White, what do you have to say now?” My heart plummeted. A cold sweat broke out on my back. The pin… it was the one Leo was wearing tonight. Did someone let him out of the storage room after I left? No, that’s impossible. I told the guards not to move. Mr. Coy spat in my direction. “The evidence is right in front of you! Are you still going to deny it?” I clenched my jaw and met Tim’s gaze, a bitter smile on my lips. “This is all very strange, isn’t it? My brother and I have only been back in the country for a short time. We keep to ourselves. But today, of all days, the one day I specifically told him to stick by his brother-in-law and learn the ropes, this happens.” I raised my voice, letting the accusation hang in the air. “I want to know who was really with Laura Coy tonight, and who is trying to frame my brother and my family for their own filthy secrets!” “You’re talking nonsense!” Tim roared, a flicker of panic in his eyes that he couldn’t quite conceal. Several of his friends rushed to hold him back, afraid he would lose control completely. The crowd shook their heads, their disapproval now aimed at me. “Elara! You’ve lost your mind! You’d slander your own husband to protect that animal of a brother?” “She’s completely shameless! She’s trying to drag the Thorne family down with her!” A few of the older women who had known my family for years tried to reason with me. “Elara, dear, just stop. Apologize to Tim. There’s still a chance to fix this.” I shook them off. “Apologize? I’ve done nothing wrong!” Someone in the crowd muttered, “Tim and Laura were childhood sweethearts. If they were meant to be, they would have married years ago. Why would she get involved with him now?” The comment was like a tiny spark in a dry field. The mood in the room shifted. The looks directed at Tim and Laura were no longer just sympathetic; they were questioning, speculative. One of the women tugged at my arm, her voice urgent. “You foolish girl! Your family is in the wrong here! If you keep this up and the police get involved, what will happen when they arrest your brother?” An image from my past life flashed before my eyes: Leo, wasting away in a hospital bed, his legs rotting, his spirit broken. He had been the brightest star of White Industries, reduced to a cripple who couldn’t even walk. The despair in his eyes as he faded away was a wound in my soul that would never heal. I pulled my arm free. Better to go down fighting tonight than to be slowly tortured to death later. I lifted my chin. “Since we can’t agree, then let’s call the police. Let them handle it!” My voice rang out, silencing the room. “If my brother, Leo White, truly did something so monstrous, then whether he goes to prison, pays a fine, or faces a firing squad, he deserves it! The White family will not harbor a monster!” Laura trembled, her eyes darting nervously toward Tim.

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