Chapter 2

I held Carla's hand as we walked up to the school gate.

Carla shoved the trophy into my arms. "Mom, did I get you in trouble?"

"No," I said.

She stared at me. "Don't lie to me."

I put the trophy into my tote bag. "When have I ever lied to you?"

Carla said, "You've lied to me a lot. You said he'd come, that he was busy, that he cared about me."

The air at the school gate was thick with heat, and the stand selling cold treats by the road was packed with students.

I looked at her sunburned nose and couldn't say a word.

Just then, Shane's call finally came through.

I answered.

His first words weren't about Carla, and he didn't even try to explain the photo.

He was clearly holding back his anger. "Serena, how are you even raising her?"

Carla heard him. She looked away, her gaze drifting to the other side of the street.

I asked, "Where are you?"

Shane snapped, "Why does it matter where I am? Carla told everyone I was dead. Do you even realize how much this is going to mess things up for me?"

"You're at Pinnacle Academy," I said.

There was a brief silence on the other end.

Shane asked, "Are you following me?"

I watched the cars go by and said, "Shane, you said you had an emergency at the hospital today."

He shot back, "Vanessa's son had a parent-teacher conference too, and she couldn't handle it by herself. What's the big deal if I went to help her?"

"Your daughter only had her mom there."

"Weren't you there? You always manage just fine."

I held the phone, not saying a word.

Shane's voice grew even harsher. "Put Carla on the phone. She owes me an apology."

Carla turned and reached for the phone.

She said, "Dr. Preston, weren't you the first to leave? If you're supposed to be dead, how are you calling me?"

I heard the sound of a cup slamming onto the table on the other end.

"Carla, say that again," Shane warned.

Carla said, "I can make an announcement to the whole school tomorrow and tell everyone my dad's not dead. He acts like someone else's kid is his real child."

I took the phone back and hung up.

Shane called again almost immediately.

I turned off my phone.

Carla looked at me and asked, "Mom, do you ever regret it?"

I asked, "Regret what?"

"Marrying him."

I slung the tote bag over my shoulder. "I used to."

"What about now?"

"Now? I'm too busy for regrets."

When we got home, my mother-in-law, Rosemary Bowman, was already sitting in the living room.

She had a glass of cold coffee next to her, hadn't even bothered to take off her shoes, and her expression was colder than the frozen meat in the fridge.

Shane's sister, Maya Preston, was standing by the window, scrolling through her phone. When she saw us walk in, she let out a mocking laugh.

"Well, look who's back. Our little genius. Ace the exams and then curse your own dad to death," Maya mocked.

Rosemary slammed her hand on the table. "Carla, come here."

Carla stood by the door, not moving an inch.

I changed my shoes and put the trophy on the shelf. "Rosemary, Carla's exhausted today."

Rosemary pointed at me. "Shut up. I don't need a daughter-in-law like you. What have you been telling Carla about Shane? That he's dead? Are you hoping he's dead or what?"

I said, "Carla said that herself."

Maya jumped in right away. "What does a kid know? She must've picked that up from the adults. Serena, that's low. Even if you can't keep your husband, don't drag your kid into your mess."

Carla's face went pale.

I pulled her behind me. "Maya, say whatever you want about me, but leave Carla out of it."

Maya shoved her phone in my face. "Take a look for yourself. The family group chat is blowing up. Uncle Gideon's asking if something happened to Shane.

"Aunt Alina's wondering why no one told her about the funeral. How are we supposed to recover from this embarrassment?"

I glanced at the screen.

The group chat was blowing up with notifications.

Someone had posted a video of Carla. Others were asking what was going on, and some were being sarcastic, saying I looked all sweet and innocent, but I had a pretty cold heart.

Rosemary shot to her feet. "Record a video right now. Have Carla explain she was making things up, and say Shane missed the event because he was out saving lives."

Carla gritted her teeth. "That's not true. He wasn't saving anyone."

Rosemary raised her hand to strike.

I caught her wrist mid-swing.

She was stunned, her arm suspended in the air.

I said, "Keep your hands off her."

She jabbed her finger at my nose with her other hand. "Are you out of your mind? You eat our food, live in our house, and now you dare to lay a hand on me?"

I looked around this place.

I was the one who picked out the paint for these walls, and I was the one who scrubbed the kitchen clean, sometimes until midnight.

Shane stopped giving me his paycheck after our second year of marriage. Half the mortgage was from the dollars I scraped together, one by one, running my bakery.

I said, "How many times has Shane even paid the mortgage?"

Rosemary was taken aback.

Maya sneered. "You run some shabby little bakery and actually think you matter? This house is in Shane's name."

Carla suddenly spoke up. "I've got proof of the mortgage payments."

The living room went dead silent.

Maya frowned. "Where'd you get that?"

Carla said, "I see Mom sends the money every month."