Chapter 1
After nearly drowning and losing my memory, I ended up marrying someone else.
On my way to a prenatal checkup, a little girl in a school uniform suddenly blocked my path.
She scrunched up her little face, sounding totally annoyed.
"Dad told me to take you home," she said.
"Mrs. Summers has already forgiven you. How much longer are you going to keep making a scene?"
I figured she must've mistaken me for someone else, so I just went along and took her home.
At the front gate of the mansion, a man with a cold, stern face was waiting.
When he saw me, he froze for a second, then strode over and grabbed my arm, his grip tight and unforgiving.
"Charlotte, so you actually dared to come back?" he said.
I pulled away in a panic and hurriedly called my husband.
"Lucas, I just ran into some strange people. They keep saying I'm this kid's mom."
Before I could finish, the man snatched my phone and smashed it hard onto the ground.
He closed in on me, his face cold and unyielding.
"So what if you took the blame for Vivian and spent two years behind bars?" he said, his tone icy.
"She's so weak, so what if you had to suffer a little for her?" he sneered.
*****
The shattered screen was still glowing.
On the other end, Lucas Harrison was frantically calling my name, his voice thick with panic.
I lunged for the phone, desperate to grab it back.
But David Reed shoved me aside, his shoe crushing the screen and snuffing out Lucas Harrison's voice for good.
"Stop pretending," he said coldly.
"After you got out of prison, you jumped out of the car and ran off, and Vivian spent a whole year feeling guilty because of you."
"When you see her, you'd better get down on your knees and apologize."
Every word he said made my temples throb with pain.
He was a total stranger, but when he clamped down on my wrist, my body just started shaking on its own.
I tried to back away as far as I could.
"Let go of me! I don't even know you!" I shouted.
"Charlotte!" David Reed dragged me sharply into his arms, his voice low and seething with fury.
He held me tight, anger simmering just beneath the surface.
"After all those years in prison, you can't even recognize your own husband and daughter?" he growled.
The fear was so thick I could barely breathe.
I opened my mouth to call for help, but just then, a woman in a silk nightgown stepped out of the mansion.
She called out softly, her voice gentle and delicate.
"Charlotte, you're finally back," she said.
"Emily's been with me all these years. She's still young, and sometimes she says things that come out wrong, but please don't blame her."
Emily immediately threw herself into her arms.
"Mrs. Summers, I don't want this bad woman to come back!" Emily cried.
"She killed Uncle Henry and ran away, leaving me behind. She doesn't deserve to be my mom!"
Her words hit me like a punch, making my head throb so hard I thought it might split open.
Vivian, her eyes rimmed with tears, came closer and tried to take my hand. I pulled back in a panic, shaking her off.
She gasped and slumped softly into David Reed's arms.
David Reed's face turned icy.
"You just got back and you're already bullying her?" he snapped.
"I didn't!" I protested.
"You're still lying!" he barked.
Emily snatched a crystal ornament from by the door and slammed it into my forehead.
A blinding pain erupted in my skull.
Warm blood trickled down my cheek.
David Reed looked panicked, but he still made sure Vivian was steady first.
"Vivian, did you get hurt?" he asked, his voice tight with worry.
Vivian shook her head and quickly grabbed a tissue to wipe the blood from my face.
"David, don't blame Emily," she said softly.
"All these years Charlotte was gone, Emily's come to see me as her real mom."
Vivian kept soothing me with her words, but her fingers pressed down hard on my wound, like she was doing it on purpose.
I flinched away, the pain making me pull back fast.
"Don't touch me!" I snapped.
David Reed yanked me, his patience clearly running out.
"Get inside," he said, his voice cold and commanding.
"You're acting unstable right now. Don't freak out the kid."
He hauled me into the living room, giving me no chance to resist.
The walls were lined with family photos of the three of them.
David had his arm around Vivian, while Emily was nestled between them, grinning from ear to ear.
There were photos from spring to winter, but not a single one included me.
Vivian gently bandaged my wound, her voice soft as she explained.
"After you went to prison, I took care of David and Emily for you," she said gently.
"Don't get the wrong idea, I never tried to take your place."
I stared at the silk nightgown she was wearing, then glanced over at David Reed.
"You say I'm his wife," I said, my voice trembling.
"Then why did I end up taking the fall for you and going to prison?"
David Reed's impatience grew even more obvious.