Chapter 1
Trying for a second baby, my husband, Osbert Foster, couldn't keep his hands off me every night.
He whispered, "Astrid, let's have a baby girl..."
The day we found out I was pregnant, he lit up the whole city with fireworks just to celebrate.
But when I was four months pregnant, a total stranger slapped me across the face in the middle of the mall.
"You shameless homewrecker, I finally caught you," she snapped.
She glared at my barely showing bump, her eyes burning with hostility.
"You already had an illegitimate kid, and now you want another?" she mocked.
I instinctively shielded my belly, my voice trembling as I said, "What are you talking about? I'm married!"
Before I could get another word out, the crowd started gossiping and shooting me dirty looks.
"Oh my god, this homewrecker's got some serious guts. If I were her, I'd never dare show my face in public," someone scoffed.
"Please, you gotta be shameless to be a homewrecker, right?" another person snarked.
Ignoring the burning pain on my cheek, I hurried to explain, "No, I'm not a homewrecker! I'm legally married to my husband. We have a marriage certificate."
People around us started giving the crazy woman suspicious looks.
She shouted, "Your husband is Osbert Foster, right? I've been married to him for seven whole years.
"I'm warning you, stay away from Osbert, or I won't let you off."
With that, she spat at me and stormed off.
Not caring about the gossip swirling around me, I grabbed my baby, Jordan Foster, and headed straight for Foster Group.
On the way, I couldn't stop replaying that crazy woman's meltdown in my head.
I was still shaken, and I knew I had to demand answers from Osbert.
I didn't even make it past the front doors of Foster Group before the security guard stopped me.
"Ma'am, who are you here to see?" he asked, his eyes flicking to my belly and his voice getting a little gentler.
It didn't surprise me that he didn't recognize me. Even though I'd been married to Osbert for five years, we'd always kept our marriage under wraps.
But at that moment, with everything going on, I couldn't care less about keeping things secret.
"Look, I'm Osbert Foster's wife. I need to see him. It's urgent!" I blurted out, clutching Jordan's hand.
The security guard raised an eyebrow, giving me a look of obvious disdain.
"Well, isn't that something. Osbert's wife just came and took him away," he said.
Stunned, I blurted, "Where did they go?"
The guard hesitated for a moment, then finally gave me the address.
On the way to the restaurant, Jordan clung to my hand like he was afraid I'd disappear.
"Mommy, does Daddy not want us anymore?" he asked, his voice trembling.
I looked down and saw his eyes brimming with tears.
I quickly reassured him, "No way, honey. Daddy loves you the most."
When we got to the restaurant, Osbert was nowhere in sight, but I ran into the woman who'd slapped me.
She let out an annoyed tsk when she saw me.
"The management here must be a joke. Looks like they'll let just anybody in," she sneered.
I wasn't about to waste my time arguing with her. I just wanted answers.
"Miss, you say you've been married to Osbert for seven years. Can you prove it?" I pressed.
She let out a cold laugh, pulled a red marriage certificate from her bag, and tossed it at me.
She sneered, "Take a good look. This is the real deal.
"Osbert faked your marriage certificate."
I shot her a stunned look and quickly picked up the certificate.
It was Osbert and Helen Foster's marriage certificate, and the date was seven years ago.
My whole body went cold, like ice was running through my veins.
I wondered if I was really the homewrecker.
"You shameless bitch. How dare you show up here?" Helen spat, shoving me roughly.
Jordan stepped in front of me, his voice trembling but fierce. "Don't you dare hurt my mom!"
I couldn't even bring myself to care about Helen. Holding Jordan's hand, I walked out of the restaurant in a daze.
I had no idea how I made it home. It felt like my whole world had just collapsed in an instant.
"Astrid, what's wrong? You've been crying ever since you got back." My mom's worried voice snapped me out of my daze.
I broke down and told her everything that had happened today.
She already had health problems and couldn't take the shock. She fainted right there.
"Mom, what's wrong?" I cried out, my voice shaking with panic.
I rushed her to the hospital, but it was already too late. The stress was too much for her heart, and she didn't make it.
Crying my eyes out, I called Osbert.
As soon as he picked up, he said in a rush, "Astrid, I'm in a meeting. Whatever it is, we'll talk later."
Before I could even get a word out, he hung up on me.
The next second, my phone lit up with a text from a number I didn't recognize.
It read: [Did Osbert tell you he's in a meeting? He's actually here with me, keeping me company while I get my nails done.]
It was from Helen.
I shot her a reply right away. [Whatever's going on between us, please, just make Osbert call me back.
[My mom liked Osbert the most before she passed. Please, just let him see her one last time.]
Her reply came back almost instantly.
Helen: [Osbert said, "Her mom's death has nothing to do with us. Just send her straight to the crematorium and get it over with."]
Despair crashed over me as I sank to the floor. I wanted to cry out, but the grief was so suffocating that not a single sound came out.