Chapter 1

When I found out about the photos—intimate ones of my husband and his first love, sent to me by her—I was so consumed by rage that I took my own life.

I believed that once I was gone, my husband and son would beg for my forgiveness at my grave.

Instead of feeling any remorse, they callously tossed my body under a bridge to feed stray dogs.

The very next day, my husband brought his first love home, saying, "It would have been better if that old hag had died sooner."

As my spirit lingered in the air, I regretted my choice and couldn't bring myself to fade away.

When I finally opened my eyes, I found the sleeping pills in my hand and realized I had been given a second chance.

This time, I was determined not to foolishly sacrifice myself to fulfill the wishes of my scummy husband and son.

*****

I didn't hesitate and poured every last sleeping pill down the drain.

My phone kept lighting up with new messages.

[It's not just Hector who wants you dead. Even your beloved son can't wait to call me 'Mom' instead.]

Sherry didn't stop at words. She even sent me several photos.

In the photos, she and Hector were swapping saliva in every way imaginable.

"Disgusting!" I snapped, gagging uncontrollably in the bathroom.

In my previous life, Hector's emotional abuse had already left me drowning in depression and battling severe insomnia.

With Sherry's nasty messages and pictures, it was like getting punched when I was already down.

Like a madwoman, I asked Hector in the family group chat. [Do you even love me anymore?

[If you don't come home tonight and keep hanging out with that bitch, I swear I'll kill myself!]

I thought threatening him with my own life might make him care.

But my crazed outbursts and threats only got me booted from the family group chat by Hector.

Even my own son messaged me in private, saying I was just embarrassing myself.

At that moment, the whole world abandoned me.

With all hope lost, I swallowed two months' worth of sleeping pills.

Before I died, I endured unbearable pain.

It felt as if my organs were being torn apart. I wanted to cry out for help, but I lay there, rigid and unable to move.

When Hector glanced at my corpse, he just spat out one word. "Disgusting."

My son Jerome just clapped like it was a party, totally unfazed. "Awesome! Sherry can finally be my new mom."

No dramatic grave-side sobbing, no father and son begging for forgiveness.

The only ones left in true misery were my middle-aged parents, devastated by their daughter's death.

Regret tore me up inside.

Now that I had been given a second shot, I was never wasting another ounce of my heart on that man again.

I was going to live for myself.

The door slammed open, and Hector came home with Sherry.

Sherry looked genuinely startled to see me standing there so alive.

I said to Hector with a cold stare, "Since you're back, let's talk about our divorce. Right here, right now."

Hector shot me a mocking look. "So you finally realized playing the martyr gets you nowhere, and now you're throwing the divorce trump card at me? Cute."

He said it like he was actually hoping I'd just drop dead right in front of him.

But I was done feeling hopeless because of him.

I shot him a cold smirk and said, "Cut the crap. Sign the divorce papers."

For once, Hector was speechless.

He only feared me bringing up divorce because my family's money was the reason his company was still riding high.

The money I brought into our marriage was enough to turn his company around overnight, pulling it back from the brink.

I truly believed Hector married me and started a family with me because he loved me.

No matter how many people whispered that he was just a social climber, living off my family's money, I brushed it all off.

I thought if I just kept being patient and considerate, Hector would love me more and more.

But I could never compete with the woman he'd always pined for, especially after she came back from abroad.

The day Hector swaggered in with Sherry, I hit my breaking point. I asked Sherry to leave, or I'd divorce him.

But Hector just ruffled my hair like I was a well-trained dog, not even taking me seriously.

"Be a good girl. I'm exhausted from work. If you still love me, don't make trouble," he said.

Before I could even calm down, he brought Sherry right to me.

"Sherry hates staying at hotels, so I'm having her live here for a while. Make sure you look after her," he ordered.

Even if I wanted to protest, I just couldn't get the words out.

I just wanted Hector to see how much I loved him.

The more I bent over backwards for Sherry, the more she pushed her luck and took advantage.

She wouldn't even look at the guest rooms. She just had to pick the master bedroom Hector and I shared.

"Carol, you're so generous. You won't mind, will you?" Sherry said.

Of course I cared.

I glared at her and didn't hesitate to say no. "There are plenty of guest rooms for you. Why do you have to stay in the master bedroom, the one I share with my husband?"

It was a perfectly reasonable question, but Sherry burst into tears.

Then she ran straight to Hector, sobbing her heart out, claiming I was bullying her.

Hector slapped me hard across the face and then froze me out with silent treatment for an entire month.

Whether we were at home or out in public, he treated me like I was invisible. He wouldn't even look at me, let alone talk to me.

He even told Jerome to treat me the same way, making my own son ignore me too.

That was when my depression got worse. I was pushed to the brink by their cruelty.

But even then, I still wiped away my tears and defended him in front of my parents.

"He's just emotionally stunted. This is the way he loves people," I said.

"Just watch. I'll be the last one standing by his side," I added.

All because I couldn't let go of my stupid pride, I ended up throwing my whole life away for nothing.

This time, I was done fighting Sherry for the Mrs. Harris title.

I gave Hector a cold stare.

"I'm not bluffing. I really want a divorce," I said.

My emotionless, collected attitude made both Sherry and Hector stare at me in disbelief.

But Hector wasn't fazed at all. He chuckled with smug satisfaction.

"Carol, haven't you forgotten? Just last night, you were bawling, saying you couldn't possibly survive without me," he snarked.

"I know this whole divorce thing is just you fishing for my attention. Look, I came home, didn't I? So why don't you cool it for once?" he added.

Then he reminded me. "Don't forget that term on the marriage contract you voluntarily signed. Whoever asks for a divorce walks away with nothing."

Back when I was blindly obsessed with Hector, I made that promise.

It was also my foolish way of trying to make him stay.

But Hector used that promise like a leash. He paraded around with Sherry right in front of me, never once mentioning divorce—not even after driving me to the edge.

So when Hector laughed off my demand for a divorce like it was nothing, I couldn't say I was surprised.

After all, for almost ten years straight, I'd spent every single day clinging to Hector, telling him over and over how crazy in love I was and how I just couldn't live without him.

One time, when I completely lost it and yelled about wanting a divorce, Hector agreed.

But the moment he actually agreed, I practically went insane. I begged him to forget I'd ever said something so stupid.

Then again, it was a good thing Hector didn't take me seriously.

I could start secretly planning the divorce and figure out how to split the assets.

Meanwhile, I'd collect enough proof of Hector's cheating.

Once I dropped that divorce bomb again, he'd be caught off guard.

That would be when I got to watch Hector go from king of the world straight to rock bottom, groveling at my feet and begging for mercy.