Chapter 1

After five years of secretly crushing on William, I drank a spiked glass of wine one night with him and ended up pregnant with his child.

To my surprise, William didn't even try to deny it. He went ahead and married me.

But when our eldest son turned five, he was diagnosed with a serious illness and died unexpectedly.

William was always there to comfort me, and even went to church to pray that we could be blessed with a healthy child.

When our second son just turned five, I took him for a check-up right away.

The doctor confirmed he was perfectly healthy, with no sign of any illness at all.

With this great news, I couldn't wait to tell William.

But before I could, I overheard his first love, Ruby, say to him, "Liam's healthy now. Why not use his kidney for our child? This time, nothing will go wrong, I promise."

William wrapped his arms around Ruby, gazing at her with deep affection.

He said, "That's right. The second one won't end up dying on the operating table like the eldest did.

"And even if the second can't survive, Vivian can just have another one: a third, a fourth."

So that was the truth: William had turned our first child into a sacrifice, an offering to appease his beloved Ruby.

My heart sank into an icy abyss. Liam grabbed my hand, his face full of terror. "Mommy, am I going to die too?" he whispered.

I pressed my hand over his mouth in a panic, scooped him up, and hurried back to our room.

After closing the door, I slumped down against it, collapsing to the floor in tears.

Liam clung to my hand. His voice was trembling as he asked, "Mommy, am I going to die?"

The fear etched on his face brought back memories of my first child in an instant.

He was just five years old, clutching the doctor's report William had handed him, and with innocent eyes, he asked me, "Mommy, am I going to die?"

Back then, William pulled both of us close, reassuring us with absolute certainty.

He said, "Don't worry. I'll find the best doctors. There's no way our son will die."

I trusted William, watching helplessly as he took our first son away.

But after a week, all that was left was a cold, lifeless urn.

William said, "Our son couldn't survive such a big operation. He lost too much blood.

"You know he inherited my rare blood type. We just couldn't find a match in time. That's why he didn't make it through the surgery."

William's grief-stricken face made me never suspect a thing.

I hated myself for not being able to see my first son one last time.

But it never crossed my mind that all along, this was a scheme William had orchestrated for Ruby.

My mind was in chaos when William came knocking at the door.

"Vivian, I heard you took Liam to the hospital today?" William said.

I quickly wiped away my tears, swallowing my anger as I slipped him the test report.

"Yeah, the doctor said our son is perfectly healthy. No hereditary problems whatsoever," I replied.

A flicker of annoyance flashed in William's eyes.

I feigned confusion.

"Our son's perfectly healthy. Why do you seem so upset?" I asked.

William quickly hid his real feelings and flashed a cheerful smile.

"Of course. No one's happier than me," he said.

He hugged me, acting all excited, and teased softly in my ear, "So, maybe it's time for baby number three?"

I forced a bitter smile.

"You really still want to have another baby with me?" I asked.

William kissed my temple.

"Of course I do. I love you, and I want us to have a whole bunch of kids together," he said.

The look in William's eyes was so tender, so full of love that for a second, I honestly couldn't tell if it was real or just another act.

William let go of me while I was still in shock, then turned around to pick up Liam.

He said, "Liam's fifth birthday is coming soon. I'll take him on a cruise trip this year.

"Liam, I am taking you out for some fun. Are you happy?"

Liam just started bawling out of nowhere.

He shrank away from William and dove straight into my arms.

He cried, "Mommy, I don't want to go."

William's face instantly darkened.

The scheming and coldness in his eyes hit me hard, making my heart sink.

I couldn't help but shiver.

I tried to hide my fear, clutching Liam tighter.

"He's still just a kid. He wouldn't really have fun on a trip anyway. No need to make a big deal out of it. Let's just celebrate at home this year," I said.

The pretense on William's face disappeared just like that.

He walked out of the room without saying a word.

Through the door, I could just make out Ruby and William having a heated argument over the phone.

Ruby snapped, "William, I told you to get those test results ready ages ago. If she figures it out now, our whole plan goes down the drain.

"You know our kid is in end-stage kidney failure, and Liam's the only match."

I pressed my hand over my mouth, stifling my sobs.

So this was the man I had wasted fifteen years loving.

I made up my mind right then and there. I wasn't going to just sit around and wait for disaster to strike.

Over the next few days, I quietly started plotting an escape for Liam and me.

But before I knew it, Liam's birthday was here.

That day, I made up my mind: I wasn't going to let Liam out of my sight for even a second.

But then, William showed up with Ruby in tow.

William said to Liam, "Ruby came all the way here just to celebrate your birthday."