My daughter, Wendy Lawson, was a rising star in the piano world.

But on the day of the piano competition grand finals, someone locked her in a restroom. She was so shaken she missed her chance at the championship.

I checked the CCTV footage and found out exactly who was behind it. I was ready to file a formal complaint for malicious sabotage.

But my husband stepped in and shut me down cold.

“It was just a squabble between two kids. If you report Theresa’s sister, I’ll make sure Wendy doesn’t even get second place!”

I was so furious my whole body trembled. I never imagined Phillip would go this far to bully his own daughter to protect his secretary’s sister!

Just then, Wendy held onto my hand as she fought back tears.

“Mom, I don’t want the championship anymore… and I don’t want Dad either.”

I tightened my grip around her small hand.

“All right. If you do not want him, then I do not want him either!”

After confirming the new job offer with the school board, I began drafting the divorce agreement.

That was when Phillip Lawson came home carrying a cake.

“Wendy, come take a look! Guess what tasty treat Daddy has brought for you?”

However, the usually well-behaved Wendy did not happily run over to him like she normally did. She only spared him a glance before quietly returning to her homework.

Phillip was unfazed. He strolled over with a broad smile and gently pinched her cheek.

“I know. Are you upset because you didn’t win first place? It’s alright. You’re still young. There will be plenty more competitions like this in the future, and you’ll get that trophy one day.”

I saw the disappointment on our daughter’s face and the way she bit down hard on her lip. I stepped forward and shoved Phillip away.

“That’s enough. Do you really think Wendy’s too young to understand the vile threat you made?”

Both my daughter and I remembered exactly what he had said back then. “If you dare report it, I’ll make sure Wendy doesn’t even get second place!”

Phillip frowned and looked at me in disagreement.

“Danielle, are you seriously still holding onto that? It was just a squabble between two kids. I stopped you from reporting it to protect the children’s reputation. What good would it have done to blow it out of proportion?”

I stared into his eyes.

“A squabble between two kids?

“Do you know how badly Wendy was shaking when I carried her out of the restroom? That was intentional harm. Do you understand?!”

The children’s competition was still ongoing when my daughter suddenly went missing.

After searching everywhere, I finally found her huddled up in the corner of a restroom and trembling.

I broke down in tears, but her father was backstage. He was all smiles as he cheered on his secretary’s younger sister.

Phillip’s brow furrowed deeply as he looked at me.

“Wendy is the most popular child there; all eyes were on her. Who’d go out of their way to target her? Besides, the other kids don’t even know her. They are just children. Who would intentionally hurt her?

“I know she worked hard for this. Maybe she just couldn’t handle the pressure when it was her turn. She didn’t win, and I never blamed her. She can try harder next time. Why must you insist on finding excuses for her? Theresa’s little sister is only ten. Do you really believe she bullied Wendy?”

I saw that he was not going to listen. I was about to speak again when someone suddenly knocked on the door. I forced myself to calm down and went to open it.

“Oh, you must be Mrs. Lawson. Hello, I am Mr. Lawson’s secretary, Theresa Young.”

Theresa extended her hand with a smile.

I stared at her coldly but made no move to shake her hand.

Phillip pulled me aside with a tense expression. His tone softened noticeably when he laid eyes on Theresa.

“What brought you here?”

Theresa tucked a lock of hair behind her ear and pulled out an exquisite little box.

“This is for you, Mr. Lawson.”

His smile turned gentle. “A gift? What for?”

“You gave my sister such an expensive piano. I thought I should return the gesture.”

The word “piano” made my eyes snap toward the corner of the living room.

I had returned home in a rush, so I had not noticed that the corner where the piano should have been was completely empty.

I was shocked. “Where is the piano?”

Phillip glanced at me casually.

“Theresa’s sister liked it, so I gifted it to her.”

The moment he said that, I saw Wendy’s eyes well up with tears.

She was so well-behaved. She did not even cry; she just bit her lip hard.

That piano had been with her for ten years. And Phillip had just given it away because “Theresa’s sister liked it.”

Seeing the indifference on his face, I snapped.

“Phillip, are you out of your mind? How could you just give away our daughter’s things like that?!”

Theresa acted nervous and said, “Oh dear… I didn’t realize you hadn’t agreed to it, Mrs. Lawson. I shouldn’t have let my sister accept it.”

I glared at her. “You’re right, I never agreed to it. Return the piano.”

Phillip frowned.

“Danielle, must you always blow everything out of proportion? It’s just a piano. I will buy Wendy a new one tomorrow. Okay?”

Theresa quickly tried to calm him down. “Please, Mr. Lawson, don’t be angry. If your wife is unhappy with the decision, I’ll bring the piano back tomorrow.”

He clenched his jaw. “No need. It’s just a piano. Do you think I can’t afford to give one away? I’ll go and buy a new one right now.”

With that, he stormed out the door. Theresa shot me a quick glance and hurried after him.

The door slammed shut behind them, and my face was drained of all color. Bitterness and disappointment rose in waves through my chest.

Phillip had brought up Theresa in front of me many times.

He said she was a gentle girl. Every time he saw her, he was reminded of the spirited and radiant girl I used to be at eighteen.

That was why he always gave her a little extra attention.

I had once believed Phillip was someone who knew his boundaries.

What I did not expect was that he would defend her over and over, even argue with me over her.

And this time round, he had let Theresa’s sister hurt our daughter. He even gave away our daughter’s most treasured possession.

I had never been so disappointed. Stroking Wendy’s sad face, I looked down at the divorce agreement on the table.

I thought to myself, ‘Phillip, this time, I am not just divorcing you. I will make you pay back every single thing you owe me and my daughter!’

…

The next day, after dropping Wendy off at school, I found the piano competition staff and successfully retrieved the CCTV footage of her being locked inside the restroom.

Clutching the USB drive tightly, I let out a cold laugh.

Then, I gathered all the documentation from the proposals I had helped draft for Phillip’s company.

Everyone thought he was a genius in the business world. But they never knew every single proposal he presented had been carefully crafted, word by word, by me.

I wanted to see just how far he would get without me!

By the time I finished all this, it was already afternoon.

I slipped the divorce agreement into a folder and allowed myself a brief moment of rest.

But right then, I received a call from an unknown number.

“Hello, are you Wendy Lawson’s mother? Your daughter has been injured. Please come to the hospital right away!”

“What?”

My eyes widened in shock. I hailed a cab and rushed straight to the hospital.

When I finally burst into the room, I saw Wendy sitting at the edge of the bed with her right hand in a cast. Her little face was tense and drawn.

Standing in front of her were none other than Theresa and her sister, Cecilia Young.

The moment Wendy saw me, the tension on her face melted away.

“Mom.”

She threw herself into my arms. Her voice was trembling, and she was on the verge of sobbing.

I gently stroked her hair as my heart ached for her. Then, I looked up at Theresa with a frown.

“Explain yourself.”

I had already learned the full extent of Wendy’s injuries on my way here.

It was a fracture. She would recover fully with three months of rest.

What mattered most was getting to the bottom of this.

Theresa stood with her arms crossed. Her behavior was completely different from the respectful and polite demeanor she had displayed the night before.

“It was Mr. Lawson who told me to pick Wendy up early. He said he wanted to buy her a couple of new outfits.”

I kept my expression cold. “Then how exactly did my daughter get hurt?”

Theresa rubbed her nose as guilt was written all over her face.

“She lost her balance when leaving the school gates and fell down the steps…”

“That’s not true!”

Wendy interrupted furiously, “It was Cecilia! She pushed me down!”

Cecilia pouted. “Serves you right for not carrying my backpack!”

I gave Cecilia a cold and sweeping glance. She snorted disdainfully.

Theresa tried to smooth things over, “It’s just a small squabble between kids. Nothing serious.”

I let out a sharp laugh. “Theresa, you have absolutely no shame. Your sister could not beat my daughter in the competition, so she resorted to dirty tricks. Now, you’ve actually allowed her to hurt my daughter, and you have the audacity to brush it off as ‘a small squabble between kids’? Do you think I am as blind as Phillip?”

Perhaps my words were too blunt because Theresa’s expression stiffened.

Cecilia stared at me with wide eyes. “Who do you think you are? How dare you insult my sister like that?”

My gaze turned cold. “You’re just as vicious. You’re going to grow up to become an even worse human being.”

“I will kill you!”

Cecilia lunged at me with her leg raised. But Wendy responded faster than I did. She kicked Cecilia squarely in the stomach. Cecilia stumbled back again and again until she landed hard on the floor.

Right at that moment, the door to the ward swung open.

Phillip stepped in with a tense expression. He walked right over to help Cecilia off the floor and turned to scold Wendy.

“Who said kicking people was okay?”

…

Wendy was still a young child after all. She quickly lowered her leg. She looked like she had been wronged. She said, “She… She was going to hit Mom first.”

Cecilia looked up at Phillip and burst into tears.

“I just wanted to check on her injury! But she hit me without warning… Did I really do something wrong?”

“You’re lying! You were going to hit my mom!”

“Enough.”

Phillip cut her off as he was clearly annoyed. “Wendy, you’re still lying? Even now?”

Wendy froze at the accusation. She was saddened, and her eyes were filled with confusion.

Phillip then turned his glare toward me.

“Danielle, what have you been teaching her? No wonder she lies so easily now. The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree. Can you please set a good example?”

I stared at Phillip coldly. Maybe I was too angry to feel any more pain.

If Wendy had not been in the room, I would have slapped him.

“Wendy and I are your family. Our daughter has a fractured bone, and instead of protecting us or caring for her, you’re defending another woman? You’re not just blind and deaf; you’re completely brainless!”

“You…”

Theresa quickly stepped in. “Mr. Lawson, please don’t get upset. As for Mrs. Lawson… maybe she just misunderstood our relationship. She might be jealous. Maybe she took it out on my sister. It’s nothing serious. Please don’t let us sisters come between you.”

Phillip looked at me with visible disappointment. His tone was full of rage.

“If you weren’t such a big bully, would I have needed to defend them? I’m done. I really have nothing more to say to you. But if you keep being this controlling and toxic, you’re going to ruin Wendy.”

With that, he turned and walked out.

Theresa gave a smug little smile.

“Danielle, the last time my sister locked your daughter in the restroom, I simply had to lie to Mr. Lawson, and he believed your daughter just got cold feet. It was just some childish drama.”

She sneered at me. “And today, I didn’t even have to say anything. He immediately took my side. That is the second lesson my sister has taught you. You need to understand that Mr. Lawson is in love with me now.”