Chapter 2

A month later, David was finally able to get out of bed and walk again.

Three months after that, he had mostly recovered and started working from home.

During that whole time, I helped him with his physical therapy every single day. I cooked meals tailored to his recovery and did everything I could to get him back on his feet.

But he never once brought up remarrying.

His excuse was that we still hadn't bought the new house, and he didn't want all our effort to go to waste.

On top of that, his hospital stay had cost a fortune, so they no longer had enough for the down payment.

Six months later, I dropped Emily off at preschool and came home to find the house stripped bare. Everything of value was gone.

I thought we'd been robbed. I went to the property management office and pulled the security footage, but it wasn't a burglar. It was David and Natasha. They had taken everything.

I called them over and over, but no one picked up.

I had no idea what was happening. I sat in the empty house all day, staring at the walls, and nearly forgot to pick Emily up from school.

I didn't want her to see any of this, so I drove her straight to my parents' house.

For days, I couldn't reach David or Natasha.

Then, a week later, a lawyer showed up at my door. He told me to move out.

The house had already been sold.

Now I stood face to face with the two of them, watching their little performance of a loving mother and devoted son. This time, I wasn't backing down.

I smiled and said, "I don't mind the hassle. How about we transfer the house into my name first, and then we can go file for the divorce?"

Natasha blurted out, "Absolutely not!"

I tilted my head. "Why not? It's just a formality, right? Besides, I've been married into this family for years, and David has never bought me a single thing. This house is marital property anyway. Think of it as making one of my dreams come true."

I leaned in closer to David and laced my fingers through his. "This way, I can brag to all my friends about how much you love me. Right, honey?" I beamed at him like a woman madly in love.

When we got married, we had been out of college for only 2 years. We kept everything simple. There was no wedding ring, no honeymoon, not even a wedding dress.

David forced a smile and said, "Sarah, I'm sorry. I've been neglecting you. Tomorrow, I'll take you to pick out a ring. And as for the house, after the divorce, I'll put the new villa in your name. How does that sound?"

Tomorrow. Right. He'd sweet-talk me into signing the divorce papers today, and by tomorrow, he wouldn't remember a word of this.

I glanced at my phone and said, "It's getting late. I need to go pick up Emily."

Natasha kept shooting David desperate looks from across the room.

She couldn't wait to push me out the door so she could welcome his mistress in.

But she had no idea what that woman would do to them after her precious son had his stroke.

Did they really think I'd play the fool again in this lifetime?

David grabbed my arm and said, "Babe, it's still early! Look, it's only eight thirty."

I pulled my hand free and said, "No. Emily needs to be in bed by nine."

David leaned in close, his breath warm against my ear, and whispered, "Babe, I'll call your dad and ask if Emily can stay over tonight. Then it's just you and me. A little alone time."

In my past life, I would've melted at those words.

But now, all I felt was a chill running through me.

Why were they in such a rush?

What had I ever done wrong? I had stood by David when he had nothing. I had helped him climb to a senior executive position at a publicly traded company, pulling in over 500 thousand dollars a year. And I had thrown away my own life to do it.

In my last life, after they forced me out of this house, I moved back in with my parents.

I couldn't understand how I'd ended up with nothing.

Then I collapsed. The doctors found breast cancer, and it was already stage four.

A few months later, I was gone, leaving my five-year-old Emily behind.

The bitterness of it still burned in my chest.