Chapter 3

Just like that, I was shoved out of the Evans Estate by my own husband and son.

I watched Nina laugh through her tears as the three of them walked arm in arm into the villa. They looked like a real family from behind.

I just stood there and watched. Until the tears in my eyes dried up.

I wandered the streets with nowhere to go.

The world was so big, and there wasn't a single corner in it for me.

After my parents died, my whole world shrank down to Richard. After Michael was born, I was trapped inside the Evans Estate, day after day, until I forgot where home was supposed to be. So I just held on to Richard and Michael.

Richard never needed me.

And Michael, once he was old enough to think for himself, didn't need me either.

But I stubbornly convinced myself that they did.

Now I finally understood. Richard didn't love me. Michael didn't love me. They only loved Nina.

And why wouldn't they? Nina was beautiful, fashionable, well-educated.

I was just a woman who never went to college, covered in dust and invisible.

My phone rang. Richard's number. I stared at the familiar digits for a long time before I finally picked up.

Laughter and chatter poured through the speaker from the other end.

My heart sank, but I wasn't about to sit there and wait to be yelled at for ruining their good time.

I was about to hang up when Nina's voice floated through.

"Richard, is it really safe to leave Ms. Grant out there alone? She's just a woman by herself. What if something happens? You know how sensitive she is. What if she does something drastic?"

Then Richard's voice, calm and dismissive. "Nina, you're too kind for your own good.

"Lauren? Thick-skinned as they come. She'd never do anything drastic.

"You don't know the half of it. When she was 17, a bunch of thugs cornered her, and she just spread her legs for them. If I hadn't shown up, she probably would've gone home with the lot of them."

Everything went white.

A deafening roar filled my ears, drowning out everything except the sound of Richard's voice.

"Even if she got assaulted, she'd be just fine. Trust me."

I hung up, numb, and tilted my face toward the sky, trying to keep the tears from falling.

But the sun was too bright, and the tears wouldn't stop.

I would never forget that day. Those drunk thugs had pinned me down, ripped my clothes off, and pressed a fruit knife to my skin to make me submit.

Survival came first. That was all I could think of.

My parents had always told me that no matter what happened, staying alive was the only thing that mattered.

Just when I thought there was no escape, Richard appeared out of nowhere like some kind of guardian angel. And the love I already carried for him exploded into something all-consuming.

But ten years later, that same Richard, that same man who saved me, was casually telling another woman about the worst day of my life, his voice dripping with mockery.

Through the blur of tears, I noticed a massive poster across the street. It was covered in lush, vibrant green, and it felt like it was reaching out to pull me in.

The moment I signed the immigration application, my mind went completely blank.

A week later, I had my citizenship card and a plane ticket to Valdoris.

I stared at my bare ring finger for a long time. Then I blocked Richard and Michael on everything.

I was on my way to the airport when the housekeeper called.

His voice was polite on the surface, but I could hear the disdain underneath. "Ma'am, you left your keys at home. Would you like me to leave the door unlocked for you?"

They hadn't even noticed I was gone. An entire week, and not one of them realized I wasn't there.

I let out a hollow laugh. "No need. What kind of divorced woman still lives at her ex-husband's house?"