2

He was holding a rabbit doll in his hand—the very one I had once sewn for him, stitch by stitch.

But now, the entire body of the rabbit had been maliciously cut up beyond recognition.

With trembling hands, I looked at Cameron.

Was this really the child I had nearly died giving birth to?

But he hadn’t always been like this.

He used to call me “Mom” so sweetly, and would even help me with housework like a grown-up.

I didn’t know when everything began to change.

He began to resent my increasingly haggard appearance from caring for him.

He pointed at my nose and said, “You’re so ugly now, no wonder Dad doesn’t even want to come see you!”

A sharp pain pierced my heart, as if someone had stabbed e with a dagger.

Cameron held the doll and glared at me impatiently.

“What are you spacing out for? Hurry up and fix it!”

I looked deeply into his eyes and calmly told him, “Go ask Joanna to fix it for you.”

With that, I walked toward the balcony, intending to get some new clothes.

But in the next second, I heard the distinct click of the balcony door being locked.

My heart skipped a beat in alarm as I banged on the door, shouting desperately, “Cameron, open the door!”

But Cameron only scoffed coldly and then pulled the curtains shut, ignoring my cries of despair.

The cold night wind was harsh, and my soaked clothes clung to my skin, making me shiver uncontrollably.

My heart, too, had turned completely cold.

I curled up in the corner, trying to find a sliver of warmth.

But just then, I heard a woman’s moan.

“Oh stop, do you really like this outfit that much?”

“Laura is right next door—you’re not even worried she might come out and see us?”

Jack laughed breathlessly and said flirtatiously, “Relax, with Cameron out there, how would she have time to care about us? Besides, we’ve been apart for so many years—don’t you miss me?”

The sounds of their passion filled my ears, and I finally couldn’t take it anymore and coughed up a mouthful of blood.

That night, their room burned with heat and lust.

And I, out on the balcony, was chilled to the bone by the wind and betrayal.

It wasn’t until the next day at noon, when I was nearly dehydrated, that Jack finally found me.

He quickly wrapped me in his coat, seeing how weak I had become, and for the first time, he scolded Cameron with a stern face, “Cameron, who told you to do this?”

Cameron pouted her lips. “She refused to fix my doll.”

“You still can’t do something like this!”

Cameron huffed and casually grabbed Joanna’s hand, running off.

Jack sighed and held my hand to comfort me.

“Laura, Cameron thinks Joanna is you now. Everything he does is because he loves you. You have to understand him. And no matter what, I will always stand by your side.”

His eyes were full of tenderness and sincerity, as if he still loved me deeply.

If it weren’t for that bright red mark on his neck, I might’ve actually believed him.

I turned my head away—I didn’t want to look at him anymore.

Seeing my attitude, Jack lost his temper.

“Laura, this constant drama is getting old.”

I smiled. “Oh really? Then I’ll keep it up just for fun.”

“Childish behavior!”

Jack slammed the door behind him.

The loud sound made my temples throb with pain.

I lay on the sofa for a while, slowly recovering, before getting up and heading to the hospital.

I needed to buy my medication.

3

To me, the artificial eye had always felt like it didn’t belong to me—it would throb with unbearable pain every few days.

The doctor told me there was a special medication that might help stabilize my condition.

Otherwise, if things continued like this, I wouldn’t live past six months.

But I had long since become the dutiful housewife for love, and nearly all the financial power was in Jack’s hands.

Yet I still didn’t want to die.

So I picked up my phone and called him.

But the line was always busy.

Until the last time—he directly declined the call.

I smiled and told the doctor, “Forget it.”

When I left the hospital, my phone had run out of battery and turned itself off, and the sky had begun to pour with rain.

Due to the heavy rain, my vision was limited with only one good eye.

But I could still vaguely make out the father and son celebrating Joanna’s new life at a dessert shop.

They smeared cream on each other’s faces, looking as happy as something out of a romantic drama.

Yet they had always said they hated sweets.

Rain trickled down my hair, and I let out a bitter laugh.

So it wasn’t that they didn’t eat sweet food, it was just that the person who could make them enjoy sweet food... wasn’t me.

After being soaked in the rain, I came home and immediately developed a high fever.

The artificial eye, after all, was not a natural organ, and it often caused me so much discomfort I couldn’t sleep at night.

But now, because of the fever, I drifted into a dazed sleep.

I hadn’t slept for long when someone woke me up.

Jack brought me a small box of cake.

“Here, a strawberry cake from me and Cameron—you used to love it, didn’t you?”

It was the typical tactic of the carrot and the stick.

I looked into his eyes and said calmly, “I did, but not anymore.”

Jack frowned. “Laura, what exactly are you trying to say?”

I told him.

“Jack, I need 60 thousand dollars.”

Clearly not expecting such a sudden request, Jack looked a little stunned.

But before I could respond, Joanna playfully raised her hand.

“I know why! It’s because a brand just released a new handbag that costs exactly 60 thousand! Laura must want to buy it.”

“You’re throwing a tantrum just for a bag? Laura, you’re really being immature.”

Jack’s gaze was full of mockery.

“So all this drama lately has been about buying a bag? Laura, since when did you become so vain and materialistic?”

Cameron yelled from the side, “Daddy, why is she using our money?”

The three of them condemned me righteously, and I let out a mocking laugh.

‘Yeah... a bag.’

All they knew was that 60 thousand dollars could buy a handbag.

What they didn’t know was that 60 thousand dollars... was also the money that could save my life.

Joanna walked over with a smile, intentionally fanning the flames.

“Oh come on, don’t be so harsh. Laura is an orphan, she never had a mother to teach her manners. Picking up some bad habits is totally normal.”

At the mention of my mother, my brain didn’t even have time to process—it acted on instinct.

I slapped her across the face.

Joanna let out a shriek and collapsed into Jack’s arms.

Jack was instantly furious and pointed at me, shouting viciously, “Laura, apologize! Or else, don’t even think about getting that money!”

It felt like someone was squeezing my heart—so tightly that I could barely breathe.

Burning with fever, I propped myself up and looked at the man I had loved for seven years.

His appearance had barely changed over the years, but his heart... had become unrecognizable.

At that moment, I didn’t want the money anymore.

I didn’t want him or Cameron either.

4

After leaving the prepared divorce agreement behind, I began packing my things.

I didn’t have much—besides what Joanna had already thrown away, the most important item was my mother’s urn.

Just then, Joanna entered the room, her high heels clicking against the floor.

With the Jack and Cameron out of the house, she no longer pretended to be gentle and kind.

Instead, her face turned sharp and vicious.

“Well, looks like the stray dog finally knows when to leave.”

“Since you’re already going, how about I tell you a little secret?”

She smiled and leaned close to my ear.

“That cornea of yours... was actually given to me.”

My fingers froze in place, and Joanna looked even more smug.

“Surprised? Your husband and son teamed up to deceive you, all for me.”

“To be honest, Laura, if I ended up like you, I’d have bashed my own head in already.”

She tore open my deepest wound without mercy, and though I remained expressionless, my fingers were digging into my palm.

Seeing that I wasn’t breaking down in despair, Joanna seemed a little disappointed.

Her eyes shifted to the urn in my hands.

I instinctively held it tighter, but she lunged forward to grab it.

The next second, the urn I treasured like my life was shattered in the struggle.

“No!”

All strength drained from my body as I crumpled to the floor, sobbing over the scattered, snowy ashes.

The emotions I had tried to suppress finally burst free.

I raised my hand, ready to slap Joanna.

Joanna screamed and fell dramatically into Jack’s arms.

Before I could react, a powerful shove knocked me to the floor.

My hand landed on broken shards, and blood poured out.

Jack’s face darkened. “Do you have a death wish, Laura?”

I ignored the pain and shouted at him through gnashed teeth, “That was my mother’s ashes!”

“So what? The dead will never be more important than the living!”

My eyes widened in disbelief.

Before my mother passed, the one she spoke of most was him.

How could he say something like that?

Before I could react again, Cameron, seeing Joanna’s pitiful expression, flew into a rage.

He grabbed a broom and swept up all the ashes, then opened the window and flung them out.

I scrambled forward, trying to stop him, but it was too late.

I could only watch, helplessly, as my mother’s ashes scattered with the wind.

It felt as if every bone in my body had been broken—I collapsed to the floor, my eyes empty and unfocused.

The child I had carried for 9 months had become a blade piercing my heart.

The overwhelming grief and despair nearly tore me apart—I collapsed, pain nearly causing me to faint.

Seeing my pale face, Jack rushed forward in a panic—but Joanna quickly clung to his arm.

“Jack, Laura is just trying to trick you.”

“She’s afraid of being punished, so she’s pretending to be sick to get sympathy. Think about it. When she donated her cornea, her body was perfectly fine.”

With just one sentence, Jack’s gaze turned cold again.

“That’s right. If Joanna hadn’t reminded me, I would’ve fallen for it. All these years, I must’ve spoiled you too much. Now you’ve picked up all these bad habits. Let me help you fix them today!”

With that, he grabbed my arm and dragged me toward the bathroom.

My body scraped across the floor—I was in so much pain I couldn’t even scream.

My eyes felt like they were being eaten by ants, the pain was excruciating.

Curled up in despair, I could hear Jack outside, gently coaxing Joanna in his arms.

Cameron chimed in too, cheering, “Mom, did you see how she looked just now? So funny.”

Outside, they turned my suffering into a joke to amuse Joanna.

And inside, I endured wave after wave of pain.

Until my vision blurred and I could barely stay conscious, I smelled the harsh stench of gasoline.

The next second, flames roared to life.

The fire consumed me mercilessly, my eyes burning and stinging as I rolled on the ground, screaming in agony.

But the firefighters were able to pull me out of the fire.

And just before I lost consciousness, I made one final request.

“If Jack asks about me... tell him I’m dead.”