On the day of my seventh wedding anniversary, my husband's lover gave my son a pet cat.

My pregnancy made me allergic to cat fur, and rashes appeared all over my body. Sensing that it might lead to a miscarriage, I told my son to return the cat.

"I'm keeping it!" my five-year-old son, Zachary, protested. He pushed me and said, "I hate having you as my mom! I want Aunt Lynn to be my mom!"

My husband, Quinton Locke, tore into me. "Why did you have to develop an allergy now, out of all times? Is your jealousy blinding you to the point where you won't even consider your son's feelings? You're being unreasonable!"

He took Zachary and left with the cat. They had eschewed me in favor of Lynn Shelbert, Quinton's lover, the apple of his eye.

I collapsed to the ground, watching as blood began to soak my pants. At that moment, I knew I had suffered a miscarriage.

I felt an unimaginable pain while I was in the hospital.

My husband and son traveled with Lynn, resembling a happy family of three.

Lynn sent me a message.

[Do you know why Quinton married you even though he's hopelessly in love with me? Well, I wanted a son and a daughter, but I didn't want to bear the risks that come with pregnancy. It's a shame you miscarried.]

Despair engulfed me that very instant.

I hired a lawyer to prepare the divorce papers and flew back to my hometown.

My sole wish was never to see Quinton and Zachary again. Yet, six years later, they showed up at my bakery.

They looked alike and turned customers' heads in the store, but my heart was in deep pain when I saw them.

After my miscarriage six years ago, the first person I called was Quinton.

I was not expecting him to give up on his darling and return to me. All I wanted was to hear some words of comfort from him.

Quinton lamented, "What a pity. Lynn was looking forward to having a daughter."

I broke down and asked him, "Did you marry me so that I could become your baby factory?"

"I was only telling you that Lynn wanted a daughter. What did that have to do with making you my baby factory? For god's sake, quit throwing these hissy fits like some psychopathic lunatic, Mabel!"

Quinton hung up right away.

He dictated my emotions and loved power plays in our relationship. My life revolved around him because he had control over me. He would never lower himself to explain his words and actions to me, let alone offer comfort.

Back then, I was teetering on the brink of utter collapse. I phoned him repeatedly, but my calls went unanswered.

I then decided to call Zachary's smartwatch, which had a function that could receive calls.

"Zachary! Will you come with me if your dad and I get a divorce?"

Staying in such a troubled marriage was like walking on thin ice.

Zachary, in his shrill voice, said, "No! I want to be with Dad! And I don't want you coming to see me all the time after you're both divorced. Aunt Lynn won't like to have you around."

My husband only cared about his lover, and the boy who spent nine months in my womb prioritized his father's mistress instead of his mother.

At that moment, I had nothing to live for anymore.

"Ma'am? Ma'am! I want to order a chocolate cake, please!"

I finally snapped to my senses after one of my customers asked to order a cake.

Before I could say anything, Quinton said, "Get your cake somewhere else. From this day onward, her business is now closed."

After the customers left, Quinton hung up the Closed sign.

"Do you know how long Zachary and I have been looking for you? You've opened a bakery without my permission, but I'll let that slide. Please refrain from doing anything that brings down your status as Mrs. Locke. I despise it."

Quinton was still the same—a high and mighty man who made decisions for my life without considering my feelings.

Suppressing my anger, I said, "But I'm no longer Mrs. Locke. We divorced six years ago. My current family greatly supports my decision to open a bakery!"

Quinton frowned. "Lying is rather pointless, don't you think? Why would you marry someone else and have their children when you still care deeply about me and Zachary?"

His anger prompted Zachary to step in and say, "Mom, please don't argue with Dad. Come home with us. We didn't expect you to leave and disappear for six years. We've been searching a long time for you, and we miss you!"

Zachary looked at me with such an affectionate expression. There were no traces of his disgust toward me when he was five.

Alas, I could no longer love that son of mine. "I have a new family. Please don't bother me anymore!"

"More lies! When will it stop? Did you forget that you stayed with Zachary day in and day out after you gave birth to him? Why aren't you doing the same with your other child?" Quinton said impatiently.

"Meet me before three o'clock tomorrow afternoon. If you don't show up, your chance to re-assume your status as Mrs. Locke will be gone."

Quinton told me the location of the hotel where they were staying and left with Zachary.

I never considered returning to a life with them, so the thought of accepting his offer did not cross my mind.

The next day, I went out at five in the evening to pick up my son Harry from the airport. He had spent a couple of days at my sister-in-law's place and flew home from abroad alone without an adult accompanying him.

Half a month had passed since I last saw him, so I already missed him dearly.

However, as soon as I arrived at the airport, I ran into Quinton and Zachary. They both had sullen expressions, but their faces lit up immediately when they saw me.

"Mom! I knew you would come! Are those tarts for me? Thank you for these!" Zachary eagerly snatched the box from my hand.

Quinton said coldly, "I told you the deadline was before three o'clock. Do you know what time it is right now? You should learn a thing or two from Lynn when it comes to timeliness!"

Their unceasing offensive remarks could stir anger even in someone as good-tempered as I was.

"The tarts are for my son. I'm here at the airport to pick him up. This has nothing to do with you."

Quinton and Zachary looked at me with an expression that had equal parts sympathy and disdain, like I was making a fool of myself trying to cover a lie.

I had faced that double act plenty of times in the past. It was what drove me to psychological collapse.

All of a sudden, my son rushed toward me. Their arrogance and self-righteousness made them look like clowns.

"Mom! I've missed you so much!" Harry's eyes sparkled as he hugged me.

I carried him up and kissed his cheek. "I've missed you too. The tarts I brought you were contaminated. Is it okay to make more for you when I get home?"

"Sure thing, Mom. You're the best!"

Quinton stared at me gloomily when he saw the scene before him, while Zachary's face went pale as he held the box of tarts in his hand.

Their composure was starting to crack.

With Harry in my arms, I was in no mood to pay attention to them and immediately started walking away.

I thought I had put that episode behind me, but half a day later, Quinton and Zachary showed up at my bakery again.

Quinton pointed at Harry and said, "He doesn't look like you. Did you adopt him on purpose to piss me off?"

"Stop thinking so highly of yourself. Harry takes after his dad's appearance."

They were both getting on my nerves, like a stain that could not be rubbed off.

"I don't believe you!" Quinton said.

Zachary said, "We've asked other people. All of them said they'd never seen your husband. You're telling us that you're married because you want to make me and Dad angry, right?"

I loathed to discover they had investigated me, so I told them the truth. "My husband is Jacob Ferrin, the movie star. We decided to get married secretly because he didn't want me to be harassed by the media and his fans."

Quinton sneered. "Why would Jacob fall for you? If you want to lie, at least make it believable."

In his eyes, I had been and always would be a nobody. He believed that I should be honored to be chosen by him and that I should plan my life around him.

I had no interest in continuing those meaningless arguments.

The time was nine, meaning it was closing time for my bakery. I turned off everything and brought Harry out of the store.

Zachary chased after me. "Mom, I know I was a bad child, and I apologize for that. Can you please come back with us?"

Quinton also came and said, "Don't beg her like that! I'm not asking you to be as generous and compliant as Lynn's been, Mabel, but don't act so pretentious! I'm giving you a chance here. You're better off taking it."

I said, "Oh, definitely. You're spot on there. Lynn is the best at everything. So, I decided to remove myself from the picture so the three of you can live happily ever after. Don't ever show up in front of me, okay?"

Quinton frowned. "I was with Lynn for half a year after you and I divorced. But I found that I wasn't used to being with her. My life was miserable, and we weren't compatible. You're still the best for me."

"Oh, so you're coming to me because you're not comfortable being married to someone else? Quinton, what makes you think I spent these past six years waiting for you?"

Seeing them made me nauseous, and I wanted to leave with Harry, but Quinton lifted me by force.

"That's enough, Mabel. You've got to know when to stop playing hard to get! I have a meeting tomorrow and can't waste my time with you. Come home with me now!"

"Let me go!" I struggled, unable to break free. I was seething with rage when he forced me into the car.

At long last, Jacob arrived. "No one is playing hard to get with you! My wife has told you plenty of times that she's married! Can't you understand simple English, idiot?"

Jacob rushed over angrily. He kicked Quinton and pulled me out of the car. I huddled in his embrace, feeling weak in the knees as tears welled up in my eyes.

I was just so angry!

During my marriage to Quinton, I became so severely depressed that I had to take medication. Years had passed since our divorce, and yet they still found their way to me so they could make my life difficult again!

Jacob picked up a crying Harry and comforted him. Then, he put a candy in my mouth to calm me down. "Don't get angry at them. They're not worth it."

"Jacob Ferrin? You can possibly be married to him, right?" Quinton got up from the ground. He still seemed in disbelief even though Jacob had already shown up.

Jacob embraced me and said sarcastically, "Did you think she would wait for a two-timing scumbag like you to change your mind? I bet you found out that your lover wasn't half as good as you imagined and decided that you wanted to take Mabel back. I should let you suffer for that."

"But she spent all those years trying to win my heart. She only had eyes for me! Why would she change her mind and marry you?" Quinton asked.

"You were a horrible person, yet her love for you came from the heart. That said, she was not obligated to be bound to you for the rest of her life. There's no reason for her to," Jacob replied sharply. He was never one to hold back when speaking to other people.

Quinton had no comeback for that comment, and his expression turned ugly.

Zachary's face turned ashen, too. "Mom… Does this mean you no longer want to be with me and Dad?"

"That's right, kid!" Jacob said.

"She doesn't want to live with two horrible human beings anymore! You're an ungrateful little child who belittles my wife along with your scumbag father. Both of you told her to get lost, so she did as she was told! Now you show up and play the victim again! How much more do you want to piss us off?"

Zachary was a young boy who had yet to be scolded so harshly.

Red-faced from the embarrassment, he looked at me as if he wanted me to intercede for him.

He was the one who preferred to have Lynn as his mother six years ago. He was the reason I had a miscarriage, and that incident left me incredibly heartbroken. It was reason enough for me not to side with him.

I became so angry that I called the police right away.

After all, what Quinton did to me earlier could constitute attempted kidnapping. However, since the consequences were not serious, they were only let off with a stern warning.

Quinton and Zachary were not happy with what I did. They wanted to talk to me alone, but I vehemently refused.

"You'll regret it!" Quinton warned glumly.

I held Harry's hand and ignored them. Then, we left with Jacob.

I had just arrived home when I found out that some slanderous news about Jacob had gone viral all over the internet.

[Jacob harassed multiple actresses.]

[Jacob demeans his co-workers on set.]

[Jacob exposed: he sleeps with his fans!]

[Jacob's plastic surgery!]

[Jacob is a bottom for willing buyers!]

Those headlines were seen all over the internet.

In less than half an hour, several brands endorsed by Jacob called him to terminate the contracts. Whatever roles in upcoming projects that had been previously agreed upon were suddenly unavailable, and he was replaced with another in all the films that were already halfway through filming.

Jacob's manager phoned him anxiously, but Jacob refused to cooperate.

The manager called me. "Ma'am! You and I have known each other for a while now, so I'll just cut to the chase. You know who did this, right? Mr. Locke phoned me and said he'd restore Jacob's image as long as you'd agree to return to him!"

I clutched the phone tightly, and my voice shook as I asked, "And what if I don't?"

"Then Jacob will be condemned by everyone! He came from an ordinary family and struggled to achieve all he has today. If Mr. Locke insists on destroying Jacob, not even the earnings Jacob has saved so hard over the years will be enough to pay for all this!"

I hung up the phone. I felt a similar feeling of powerlessness to six years ago.

Quinton's personality was so much worse than I had imagined.

I received another call from the hospital.

"Hello, Ms. Reave. There's been a change in Dr. Rucker's schedule. The surgery, due to be done in half a month, will have to be postponed."

"How long will it take?"

"I can't give you an exact date at the moment."

By then, I had the urge to smash my phone against the wall.

Harry had a congenital heart disease, the condition of which had been worsening in recent years. Jacob and I spent a lot of time and effort to schedule an appointment for Dr. Rucker's surgery.

Even though I could afford to wait, Harry had no such luxury.

Since Jacob was busy dealing with the mess at work, I did not want to cause him more trouble. My chest tightened, and I felt my eyes teared up.

Then, Quinton called me. His tone was as condescending as usual. "If you want to help your husband and save your son, be at Room 1362 of the Richwave Hotel in an hour."