Chapter 1 · He Begged For My Love When I Was Gone

On her third birthday, my daughter Earlene Stout took a terrible fall from up high and slipped into a coma.

My husband Kurt Stout pulled out all the stops, hiring the top medical team to perform surgery on her.

After a grueling day and night of rescue efforts, she still succumbed on the operating table to massive blood loss.

I cried myself into a faint, and when I came to, Kurt was nowhere in sight.

I got up to look for him, only to overhear him talking with his old flame in the hospital stairwell.

"Kurt, I never thought extracting just a little bone marrow from that kid would kill her. You've given up so much to save our baby."

Kurt pulled her into a tender embrace.

"You went through hell under all that pressure to have our child for me—how could I ever betray that?

"Our baby is the real heir to the Stout family legacy. The one my wife had dying like this... it couldn't have worked out better."

I'd always thought I had the perfect marriage and a happy family.

Little did I know the ugly truth hiding underneath was so vile and corrupt.

Well, this home, this man—I wanted no part of any of it...

"You always know how to sweet-talk me. If your wife has another kid, wouldn't our baby have a rival then?" Lina said coquettishly.

"Don't you remember that saffron I gave you before?

"I instructed the servants to slip a little into her daily food. She's been drinking it for three years now—she'll never have another child," Kurt said with a smug grin.

I clapped a hand over my mouth in horror, suddenly recalling the time Kurt had taken me for that medical checkup.

The doctor told me I couldn't get pregnant again, and I'd assumed it was from complications during Earlene's birth.

But it was all his doing!

Lina's face lit up, and she happily looped her arm through his, pressing close.

"You're so thoughtful about our baby. Even if I can't be your wife, I'm happy to put up with this for his sake.

"I've been so worried about the baby's health—you haven't touched me in forever.

"Now that he's had the bone marrow transplant and the doctor's saying he's recovering nicely, don't you think we should celebrate?"

Lina's tone grew increasingly flirtatious.

Kurt showed not a shred of grief over Earlene's fresh death.

His voice came out low and raspy.

"You little wildcat, we're in a hospital..."

I couldn't stand to hear any more. Overwhelmed with rage and grief, I turned and fled.

I staggered down to the morgue, where I stared at Earlene's lifeless body in the cold storage drawer.

Kneeling before her, I broke down in sobs.

Just this morning, she'd hugged me tight and begged for a pretty doll as her birthday gift.

Even as she tumbled down the stairs, she was screaming "Mommy!" at the top of her lungs.

I didn't know how long I wept, but eventually, the suffocating sobs left me gasping for air, and I blacked out again.

When I came to this time, Kurt was perched on the edge of the bed, gazing at me with phony concern.

"Honey, you're finally awake."

He took my hand, his tender facade turning my stomach.

I spotted the split on his lip right away—it was still bleeding.

Feigning ignorance, I asked, "What happened to your mouth?"

He hesitated, touching his lip as if it jogged his memory, then casually replied, "After Earlene passed, I got all worked up and it just split."

I sneered to myself—this had nothing to do with stress.

It was obviously a bite from his little wildcat.

Kurt went on, "Don't worry about me. You're the one I'm most concerned about right now.

"You never know what comes first—an accident or tomorrow. After all this, I just want to cherish you even more."

In the past, his smooth talk might have fooled me into believing his love ran that deep.

Noticing my silence, Kurt gently stroked my hair.

"There's something I haven't told you yet.

"Honey, given your condition, you can't get pregnant anymore.

"I was thinking we could adopt from the orphanage the Stout family supports. There's this baby who was born with a serious illness, but he's had a bone marrow transplant and is on the mend now.

"Why don't we bring him home?"

The excitement flickering in his eyes was hard to miss—he was probably dying to legitimize his bastard child with a spot in the Stout family.

"Our daughter's body is still in the morgue, and you're already eager to bring in another kid?"

My words carried a double edge, but he missed it entirely.

Kurt's face fell in disappointment.

"Honey, I'm not blaming you for not being able to have more children, but you don't seem to care that the Stout family needs an heir."

Staring at Kurt in front of me—someone so familiar yet now utterly unrecognizable—I clenched my fists until my nails dug into my palms, drawing blood.

Chapter 1

On her third birthday, my daughter Earlene Stout took a terrible fall from up high and slipped into a coma.

My husband Kurt Stout pulled out all the stops, hiring the top medical team to perform surgery on her.

After a grueling day and night of rescue efforts, she still succumbed on the operating table to massive blood loss.

I cried myself into a faint, and when I came to, Kurt was nowhere in sight.

I got up to look for him, only to overhear him talking with his old flame in the hospital stairwell.

"Kurt, I never thought extracting just a little bone marrow from that kid would kill her. You've given up so much to save our baby."

Kurt pulled her into a tender embrace.

"You went through hell under all that pressure to have our child for me—how could I ever betray that?

"Our baby is the real heir to the Stout family legacy. The one my wife had dying like this... it couldn't have worked out better."

I'd always thought I had the perfect marriage and a happy family.

Little did I know the ugly truth hiding underneath was so vile and corrupt.

Well, this home, this man—I wanted no part of any of it...

"You always know how to sweet-talk me. If your wife has another kid, wouldn't our baby have a rival then?" Lina said coquettishly.

"Don't you remember that saffron I gave you before?

"I instructed the servants to slip a little into her daily food. She's been drinking it for three years now—she'll never have another child," Kurt said with a smug grin.

I clapped a hand over my mouth in horror, suddenly recalling the time Kurt had taken me for that medical checkup.

The doctor told me I couldn't get pregnant again, and I'd assumed it was from complications during Earlene's birth.

But it was all his doing!

Lina's face lit up, and she happily looped her arm through his, pressing close.

"You're so thoughtful about our baby. Even if I can't be your wife, I'm happy to put up with this for his sake.

"I've been so worried about the baby's health—you haven't touched me in forever.

"Now that he's had the bone marrow transplant and the doctor's saying he's recovering nicely, don't you think we should celebrate?"

Lina's tone grew increasingly flirtatious.

Kurt showed not a shred of grief over Earlene's fresh death.

His voice came out low and raspy.

"You little wildcat, we're in a hospital..."

I couldn't stand to hear any more. Overwhelmed with rage and grief, I turned and fled.

I staggered down to the morgue, where I stared at Earlene's lifeless body in the cold storage drawer.

Kneeling before her, I broke down in sobs.

Just this morning, she'd hugged me tight and begged for a pretty doll as her birthday gift.

Even as she tumbled down the stairs, she was screaming "Mommy!" at the top of her lungs.

I didn't know how long I wept, but eventually, the suffocating sobs left me gasping for air, and I blacked out again.

When I came to this time, Kurt was perched on the edge of the bed, gazing at me with phony concern.

"Honey, you're finally awake."

He took my hand, his tender facade turning my stomach.

I spotted the split on his lip right away—it was still bleeding.

Feigning ignorance, I asked, "What happened to your mouth?"

He hesitated, touching his lip as if it jogged his memory, then casually replied, "After Earlene passed, I got all worked up and it just split."

I sneered to myself—this had nothing to do with stress.

It was obviously a bite from his little wildcat.

Kurt went on, "Don't worry about me. You're the one I'm most concerned about right now.

"You never know what comes first—an accident or tomorrow. After all this, I just want to cherish you even more."

In the past, his smooth talk might have fooled me into believing his love ran that deep.

Noticing my silence, Kurt gently stroked my hair.

"There's something I haven't told you yet.

"Honey, given your condition, you can't get pregnant anymore.

"I was thinking we could adopt from the orphanage the Stout family supports. There's this baby who was born with a serious illness, but he's had a bone marrow transplant and is on the mend now.

"Why don't we bring him home?"

The excitement flickering in his eyes was hard to miss—he was probably dying to legitimize his bastard child with a spot in the Stout family.

"Our daughter's body is still in the morgue, and you're already eager to bring in another kid?"

My words carried a double edge, but he missed it entirely.

Kurt's face fell in disappointment.

"Honey, I'm not blaming you for not being able to have more children, but you don't seem to care that the Stout family needs an heir."

Staring at Kurt in front of me—someone so familiar yet now utterly unrecognizable—I clenched my fists until my nails dug into my palms, drawing blood.