Chapter 2

I took a deep breath, crumpled up the printed loss estimate, and tossed it into the trash.

"Whatever, I'll let it go," I said.

Just as Logan's face broke into a smile, I added, "If my work isn't important to you, fine. The company is sending me abroad for training. I'm leaving tomorrow for three months."

Sasha's hand froze as she was unwrapping a candy for Jayden. She looked up at me, her face full of panic.

"Three months? Who's going to pick up Jayden? Who's going to cook for him and help him with his homework? I just paid for a whole year of yoga classes, and it cost me tens of thousands," she blurted out.

She didn't care why I was leaving. All she cared about was losing her free babysitter.

I looked at her, sneering. "You're his mom. Figure it out yourself."

Logan and Sasha clearly didn't take me seriously.

To them, I was nothing more than a weak, money-grinding person. Even if I get mad, a few words of flattery or guilt, and I would back down.

I started packing my bags in the evening.

Logan leaned against the doorframe, eating chips, crumbs scattering all over the floor.

"Come on, Julie, enough with the act. Are you really packing now? Women are always so extra. This is just your way of getting out of work, isn't it?" Logan scoffed.

He spat out a piece of a chip, and it landed right onto my suitcase.

I ignored him and kept folding my coats into the suitcase.

Sasha came over with her phone, shoving the screen in my face.

"Julie, since you're heading to Crestwyn anyway, could you buy a few things for me? I want these two Hermès bags, and they have to be the ones with gold hardware. And this La Mer set. It's way overpriced at home," she said.

I glanced at her shopping list. The total was over 30 thousand dollars.

I stopped what I was doing and looked up at her. "Where's the money?"

Sasha froze, like I'd just said something totally crazy.

"Julie, seriously? We're family. What's the big deal about getting me a few gifts? You earn a lot, and it won't cost you too much. Come on, Logan has already agreed," she said.

Logan said right away, "Yeah, Julie. Sasha is your sister-in-law. Why are you being so petty with family? Don't make things awkward between us."

Petty? Over the years, I'd bought Sasha a car, paid off her credit cards, and covered Jayden's tuition. Altogether, that was enough to buy a nice apartment in a mid-sized city.

How dare he call me petty?

I pulled out my phone and quietly turned on the recording.

"Logan, since we're talking about money, where did the 15 thousand in our family account go? I remember that was supposed to be for bills and insurance," I said.

Logan's eyes darted away. "Oh, well, our friend got sick and needed money urgently, so I lent it to him. You know, you can't say no to a friend."

He was lying. I'd already checked the bank records. That money was clearly transferred to Sasha to pay off her credit card bill from last month.

I didn't call him out on it. I just nodded. "Since you lent it out, there's no money left. The company is covering all my expenses for this trip, so I won't be bringing much cash."

I pulled out a grocery card from my wallet and tossed it onto the table. It had a 600-dollar limit.

"Here. Don't spend it all in one go," I said.

Logan's face darkened instantly. He snatched up the card, looked at it like it was trash, then reached for my bag, trying to grab my main card.

"600 dollars? Seriously? Jayden's got tutoring, Sasha needs her skincare, and we still have to eat. What's this supposed to cover? Just leave your salary card here," he snapped.

I clamped down on his wrist, my gaze sharp and icy. "Not enough for you, huh?"

I snatched the card back and, right in front of him, cracked it clean in two between my fingers. "Guess you're not getting a single cent now."

Logan exploded, raising his hand as if to strike, but the cold in my eyes made him back off.

Just then, Jayden came barreling in, wrapped himself around my leg, kicking and flailing.

He yelled, "I want Haagen-Dazs. Aunt Julie, if you don't buy it for me, I'm gonna beat you."

Every kick from his filthy sneakers left another smudge on my suit pants.

Normally, I'd crouch down and try to soothe him, or just give in and take him out for ice cream, but this time, I grabbed him by the back of his collar and hauled him out of the room.

"Go ask your mom. I'm not your mom, and I don't have any money," I said.

Outside, Jayden's heart-wrenching wails and Sasha's shrill screams filled the air.

I locked the door, put on my headphones, and finally, the world went quiet.