Chapter 3

This silver necklace wasn't even worth as much as the gold one hanging around the dog's neck.

The way they humiliated me was both clever and ruthless.

Madeline was animatedly sharing funny stories about Candy, as if she hadn't noticed at all how off I was feeling.

Her expression was pure and innocent, her voice gentle and sweet. She embodied innocence and cruelty all at once, with flawless ease.

At dinner, I swallowed my pride and just went through the motions, pretending everything was fine.

Madeline cheerfully picked up a piece of cake and put it on my plate. "Sophie, you love sweet stuff, right? I made this myself. It's super tasty."

She always played the perfect hostess, making sure everyone adored her.

"Thanks," I replied politely, but to me, the cake was just tasteless.

After dinner, Madeline piped up and wanted to show everyone some clips she'd filmed before.

As she pulled out her tablet from her bag, I caught a flash of smugness in her eyes.

The video played scenes of her and Garth out and about together, having a blast wherever they went.

I watched the frames roll by. Every single one was from the time when Garth was supposed to have lost his memory.

In every shot, they were both grinning from ear to ear, like they were showing off just how out of place I was.

The video suddenly cut to a shot during Madeline's narration—there I was, standing outside the office building.

I was chatting with a male coworker, and thanks to her careful editing, it looked almost suggestive.

My heart dropped. So, she did have an agenda after all.

"Oh no!" Madeline scrambled to shut off the video, pretending to be flustered. "Oops, I didn't mean to film that part…"

She gave me a cautious look, and as I watched her fake panic, it suddenly hit me that she'd set this up from the very beginning.

My mother-in-law's face instantly darkened. "Sophie, what's going on here?"

"That's just a coworker from my department. We were just talking about work," I explained.

"Work?" Garth scoffed. "You two were standing way too close. What kind of job needs you whispering like that?"

"I swear, it's just the camera angle and editing in that video..." I tried to explain, feeling desperate.

"No wonder you haven't been making a fuss these past few months when I wasn't home," Garth said, his voice dripping with sarcasm. "You were probably hoping I'd stay away, huh? I thought you were waiting for me to get my memory back, but turns out you were just flirting with some other guy."

Madeline jumped in, all innocent. "Garth, don't get mad. I was just messing around with the camera, didn't mean to get that on film..."

"Madeline, don't defend her," Garth barked, slamming his fist down on the table. The cup went flying, and boiling coffee spilled all over my hand.

I yelped in pain. "Are you out of your mind?! I never cheated on you!"

"Still trying to talk your way out of it?" Garth snapped, grabbing my arm.

I instinctively backed away, and before I knew it, Madeline was suddenly right behind me.

"Garth!" she let out a shriek.

I turned and saw her doubled over on the floor, clutching her stomach.

Garth immediately let go of me and rushed over to help her. "Madeline, what's wrong?"

"I... Sophie pushed me," Madeline whimpered, her voice trembling. "My stomach hurts so bad."

I yelled, "I didn't push her!"

Garth's eyes went fierce and menacing. He shoved me aside. "How dare you hurt Madeline!"

I was slammed into the wall, and my vision went black.

When I finally opened my eyes again, I was lying in a hospital bed.

"She's awake," the nurse said, walking in with some test results. "We need to talk about your miscarriage."

"Miscarriage?" I was stunned.

"Yes, you were three months pregnant. But because of the trauma, you lost the baby." The nurse's eyes were full of sympathy.

I gently touched my belly, tears silently streaming down my face.

Turned out I was pregnant. A tiny life had come and gone from inside me, and I never even knew it was there.

The door was suddenly pushed open, and Garth and Madeline walked in together.

Seeing them all cozy together, I felt a wave of nausea wash over me.