Six hours. She had spent six whole hours with Kevin—kissing him, or doing God knows what—before finally remembering to look for me. That’s the most ridiculous excuse I’ve I ever heard.  

“I wasn’t feeling well, so I went home. Forgot to tell you,” I said offhandedly. Maybe all this time living with her—and her endless lies—had rubbed off on me. I could now toss out excuses without blinking.

Still, the unease on her face didn’t fade. Annette climbed into bed and snuggled against me, clutching my arm as if afraid I might vanish.

“Next time, don’t forget to tell me, okay?” she whispered. “You always have to let me know where you are or I’ll worry and if you ever disappear, I’ll turn over every single stone in the city until I find you.”

I closed my eyes, offering no reply. In three days, she would never find me again.

The next morning, perhaps out of guilt, Annette had a Patek Philippe delivered to the house.

“I’m sorry about last night. Please don’t be angry, okay?” she said softly, holding out the watch box like a peace offering.

I opened it briefly, then set it aside. “I’m not angry,” I told her, retrieving another box I had already prepared. “This is the gift I got for our anniversary. But you can’t open it until two days from now.”

Originally, I had planned on giving her a necklace—custom-made by an international jewelry designer. But the day I caught her cheating, I threw it away. Instead, I slipped off the wedding ring I had never once removed from my finger and placed it inside.

That would be the only thing I left her.

Annette accepted the box, curiosity flickering in her eyes.

“But Honey, our anniversary was yesterday. Why make me wait two more days?”

I gave her a faint smile. “Because it’s very special. It’ll surprise you even more if you open it then.”

Her eyes sparkled with anticipation.

“Alright then,” she said eagerly. “I’ll do exactly as you say.”

The words had barely left her lips when the doorbell rang. She went to open it—only to find Kevin standing there, his face glowing with barely contained joy.

For a heartbeat, she froze. Then quickly, she grabbed his arm and dragged him toward the garden.

“Honey, Kevin’s here to discuss an important report about the company. I’ll take him to the garden so we can discuss about it and you can enjoy you breakfast without interruptions.”

From the upstairs window, I watched Kevin pull Annette into his arms.

But Annette shoved him away furiously, her face clouded with rage.

“Have you lost your mind?” she hissed. “Didn’t I tell you not to come to my house? If Easton suspects anything between us, I won’t let you off!” 

Kevin’s eyes reddened as he pulled a folded document from his bag and thrust it into her “I know I shouldn’t have come, but… I got your medical report. It says you’re pregnant.” He paused. “We did it rough last night, and the doctor said the fetus isn’t stable in the early weeks or their development. I’m scarred, Annette. I don’t want anything to happen to our baby.”

He placed his palm gently on Annette’s lower abdomen. “And it’s going to be our first child.”

The words slammed into me like a fist. My body froze. Annette is pregnant?

When we had first married, she told me she never wanted children—that a baby would steal our attention from each other, dilute the love we shared. She had begged me to keep our marriage pure, undivided, just us and I, blinded by what I thought was her devotion, agreed.

Now I understood.

She never wanted my child. But she had no problem letting another man put his child inside her.

Annette’s eyes widened in shock when she first glanced at the paper. Then, slowly, her brows relaxed, and a tender smile spread across her face as her hand drifted protectively to her stomach.

“Nine weeks? I really need to start taking better care of myself,” she murmured lovingly.

Then she turned to him with gentle determination.

“Go wait for me in the car. I want you to take me to the prenatal checkup. Don’t worry, I won’t let anything happen to this baby.”

Kevin finally broke into a grin, leaning in to kiss her. Annette’s eyes darkened, and she pulled him closer by the back of his head, taking control of the kiss.

They tangled for a long moment before she finally pushed him away, her voice dripping with mock coyness.

“Even while I’m pregnant, you can’t keep your hands off me? There’s a baby in here now. Go wait in the car.”

She turned, straightening her clothes, and headed back toward the house. I hurried downstairs and slipped into my seat at the dining table, as though I had never left.

Strangely, relief washed over me. Thank God there were no children between us. That meant I could walk away from all this without leaving any blood ties behind.

The moment Annette opened the door, her familiar apologetic smile appeared.

“Darling, there’s an urgent issue with the company. I have to head out of town on short notice, and it might take a few days to sort out. You don’t mind being alone for a while, do you? I’ll bring you back a little something.”

I nodded silently.

Seeing no sign of suspicion in my expression, she relaxed, kissed me on the cheek, and left.

I watched her departing figure, then glanced at the calendar on the wall. Two more days, I thought. Two more days and I’d be gone. Perhaps this had been our last moment together.

That afternoon, a message arrived on my phone.

An ultrasound image.

[Annette is carrying my child. Our first child. You useless old man, do her a favor and divorce her already. Make room for me.]

The number was unfamiliar, but I knew instantly it was Kevin.

Now that Annette was pregnant, he clearly felt bold enough to stake his claim.

But I had already decided to leave. My heart toward Annette was already ashes. Staring at that scan stirred not the faintest ripple inside me. 

As she had said, Annette didn't come home for the next two days.

I used that time to quietly erase myself from the house. Every trace of me. What could be donated, I donated; what could be burned, I burned. Only the barest essentials were packed neatly for my new life in the lab.

On the morning of my departure, I rose early, zipped my suitcase, and waited for the lab’s car to arrive.

Just as I reached for my phone to ask how long they’d be, another message popped up. From Kevin again.

A photo. Annette in a wedding gown, halfway through makeup.

[Annette and I are getting married today. She promised to give me and the baby our rightful place. This wedding is just the beginning.

[No wonder she’s been on the phone in secret these past days—she was planning this surprise for me. She said everything has to be the best, even on such short notice, because she wants me to be the happiest groom and soon-to-be father in the world.]

[Don’t be surprised if she comes home with divorce papers in her hand. If you want to hold on to any shred of dignity, you’d better leave that mansion now. Because from this day on, I—the true man of the house—will claim what’s mine.]

This time, I replied.

[Congratulations. You will soon get everything you wished for.]

The car arrived just as I hit send. I picked up my luggage and climbed in.

At a red light, a commotion outside caught my attention.

“Oh my God, who’s getting married?”

“Wow, Look at the cars!”

“What a wedding, so extravagant!” 

The passersby exclaimed.

Instinctively, I turned my head.

There she was. Annette, in her white gown, sitting in the back of a Maybach. Her eyes were full of tenderness as she adjusted Kevin’s tie.

And then—her gaze lifted. Our eyes met through the glass. Hers widened with sheer panic.

The next second, my phone rang.