My Husband, Alex Gordon, was called several times by our son, but always left it hung up.

“Dad, Mom is bleeding a lot. Can you come back soon?”

A string of voices was sent over and there was finally a reply.

“Call me when your mother’s really dead and I’ll come to collect her body.”

Alex probably never imagined that I wouldn’t make it through. His cruel words became reality. I disappeared, just as he had predicted, but in the end, he was the one left behind, pleading with me not to go, begging me not to leave him alone.

——

I fell onto the bed in my bedroom clutching the wound in my heart, the large swaths of red that kept welling up on my white shirt frightening my son, Kevin.

He reached out and pressed his hand tightly over my heart, his voice choking out of his mouth as he comforted me with.

“Mom, let me give you a heal, so you won’t get any pain...”

I reached out my clean left hand to caress my son's tearful face, wanting him not to cry but not being able to make a sound with trembling lips.

“Mommy, I'll turn on the video for Daddy, he will definitely come back to save you.”

Kevin took the phone from my hand but he suddenly realized that he didn't know how to turn it on.

“Mom, help me open the phone, I'll open the video for Dad.”

Kevin’s sobs came in broken, jagged fragments, his voice barely forming coherent words. I gritted my teeth, enduring the sharp pain as my wound tugged, and turned on the phone.

When Kevin saw the familiar avatar appear on the screen, his sobbing slowly began to calm. For a long moment, he sat there, taking shallow breaths, then, over and over, he opened the video to Alex, desperate for some connection, some comfort amidst the chaos.

Once, twice, three times, Kevin's video was hung up. His red eyes were full of tears, reaching out to hold my pale, powerless hand and kept shaking his head. Yeah, however, he was only five years old and he simply didn't know what to do.

The bitterness inside kept spreading to my heart. I wanted to reach out and rub Kevin's short hair, but I didn't have the strength either.

“Mommy, Daddy isn’t answering the video. I’ll send him a voice message,” the little one whimpered, his words trembling as sobs gathered in his throat.

It took him a long time to piece the words together before finally, in a fragile voice, he managed, “Daddy, Mommy is bleeding a lot. Can you come back soon?”

A string of voice was sent over and Alex finally replied, “Why are you listening to your mom? Lying to me with her, aren't you!”

Kevin froze listening to the grumpy voice on the screen, his whole body froze in place. Picking up his cell phone again, he stumbled and sent another voice over.

“I'm not lying, Dad. Mom is really bleeding a lot. Save her, okay?”

Kevin’s pleading tone echoed in my ears, each word tightening the knot of pain in my chest. Hot tears streamed down my face, but Alex’s words cut through everything else.

“Isabel, isn’t it enough that you’ve caused a scene by yourself? Now you’ve even taught Kevin to join in. Don’t you think you’ve humiliated us enough already?”

Alex's questionable words were like poison quenching my wounds again, making me struggle every second in a sea of fire and knives.

Since when did we actually get so tired of being together?

Kevin looked at my struggling and agonizing appearance. How could he not hold back the tears in his eyes? He reddened his eyes and wailed.

“Dad, I beg you, save Mom, okay? Please save mom….”

Kevin cried for a long time, but I caught a glimpse of the red exclamation mark next to this message he sent.

I looked at Kevin hugging his cell phone and snuggling beside me as he cried his heart out, wanting so much to hold him in my arms and comfort him gently.

But my voice couldn't even make a sound, my trembling hands could no longer lift. Meanwhile, Kevin was crying so hard, but there was no one to coax him anymore.

My hands kept lifting, only to fall back to the floor, over and over, until all strength left my body. The bright light on the ceiling slowly dimmed, fading into darkness.

In that moment, I knew—my Kevin would grow up without a mother.

The thug who had burst in had driven the knife deep into my heart, freezing my age at twenty-eight, forever.

Waking up again was when I heard a rustling sound coming from the trash can in the living room.

I looked around for Kevin, only to find him standing by the trash can in the living room rummaging around.

“I'm so hungry. Is there anything else to eat? Mommy must be hungry too. I am going to find food for Mommy.”

I covered my mouth, the tears raging in my eyes could no longer be restrained, reaching out to hug Kevin, wanting to take him to the kitchen to get some bread, only to realize that I was nothing more than a soul body at this point in time and couldn't hug Kevin one more time.

“Kevin, you can't eat anything from the trash, look at the bread on the refrigerator in the kitchen.”

I reached out and pointed in the direction, but Kevin turned a deaf ear as he finally rummaged through the floor of the trash can to find a rotten orange.

I tried to reach out and stop him from eating it, but he was so hungry as he peeled the skin off and stuffed the rotten half into his mouth, leaving the good half in front of me and…

“Mommy, look! This is still edible! I saved the good one for you. Eat it, okay? You haven't been sleeping well.”

Kevin called out to me over and over again, but my body was cold. The blood raging in my heart had dried up by now.

Kevin reached out his little hand and touched my head.

“Mommy, you're cold. But aren't you too cold? I will cover you with the quilt, so you won't be cold, okay?”

Kevin's tiny body walked slowly on the bed, dragging a quilt from the closet to cover my body.

I followed him with red eyes, watching as he dragged the quilt to cover my entire body bit by bit.

A sudden creak from outside the door startled Kevin who was busy with his work and his tear-stained face finally brought some color to it.

“Dad, is it you who's back?”

Outside, Alex heard the sound and looked at Kevin who still had orange juice on the corner of his lips.

“Daddy has a company reunion today. Where's your mom? How did she make you like this?”

Alex's heart was a mess, looking at the clothes on Kevin's body were full of the smell of the trash can.

“Isabel, didn’t I already tell you to come back from your business trip so we could all be together for the company’s team-building event? You and Kevin were supposed to be there. Why are you still not satisfied?”

Alex's furious voice came out, scaring Kevin.

“If you don't come out, you'll never go to the company again in the future!”

My heart felt as if it had been slashed open by a sharp knife and a wave of pain raged through me.

We had been married for ten years. Silently, I had supported him, helping to grow his tiny, two-person company into what it had become. Staff came and went in waves, most unaware that Alex was even married.

I knew the truth behind his plan to organize the company group event—it wasn’t just for work. He was taking them to the beach, the very place Katie had always dreamed of going.

That's why I opened my mouth to him and asked if Kevin and I could go together as family members.

"What a pain," Alex snapped. "You said you wanted to go, but you’re still not ready. If you don’t want to go, just forget it!"

His frustration hit like a slap, sharp and dismissive, as if my hesitation meant nothing.

The exclusive cell phone ringtone set by Alex rang and it was as if his irritated mind was instantly soothed.

Meanwhile, Kevin stood frozen in place, his face was already white because he was so hungry, he timidly held his two small hands and raised his eyes to look at Alex.

“Daddy, I'm hungry ......”

“Find your mom when you're hungry!”

Kevin looked down and reached out to tug on Alex's pant leg.

“Dad, but mom is so cold. Can you give me something to eat?”

Kevin's supplicating voice carried the slightest hint of aggression. I looked at him at a loss for words, but my outstretched hand pounced.

“Alex, Katie is asthmatic again. Can you take us to the hospital? There's no medicine at home.”

Across the phone, Leona Swift, carried a crying voice, her tone still carried a few moments of trepidation.

Alex’s expression shifted, a sudden nervousness washing over his face. He answered the phone while fumbling to open the door, his voice hurried yet warm, still trying to offer comfort.

“Leona, don't be anxious, I'll go now.”

Kevin watched Alex leave and flew after him. His bare little feet stepped on a glass ball on the ground and fell to the ground in a flash, knocking a big red patch on her forehead.

“Kevin, Mommy will blow you, okay?”

I reached out and tried to cup his face, but I couldn't touch it and even the breath I exhaled with force didn't rattle a bit.

I watched Kevin slowly get up. His small hands rubbing his eyes as he endured the pain in his head and slowly opened the bedroom doorknob.

“Mommy, it hurts. Mommy, please help me.”

Kevin whimpered, wiping tears from his eyes with his small hands, slowly crawling into bed, lifting the covers and coming up to me.

Kevin cried for a long time until he lost her strength, breathing evenly as he slept beside me.

“Leona, I don't feel comfortable with you living in that kind of place with a child.”

Alex opened the door and I saw him bring both Leona and her daughter through the door together.

Kevin heard the sound and tiptoed out of the bed, pushing open the bedroom door he saw Alex was holding Leona's daughter, Katie.

“Alex, it's not appropriate for me to bring Katie to live here, right? Let's go back to the rental house.”

“No need. You're my sister. Besides, it's just a room. Isabel wouldn't dare say anything.”

Leona hooked her lips and smiled, while Katie hugged Alex's neck and kissed him on the cheek.

“Thank you, Daddy! I know you’re the best! Always!”

Alex softly laughed, with a few compliments on his lips.

“You’re a very nice kid, Katie.”

Then he looked at Leona, saying, “You've taught your child really well.”

Hearing that, I was sour inside, then turning my head to look at Kevin with drooping eyes, waiting for a long time before he took a step, walking forward. The bruise on his head had already changed color, a huge piece of black and blue. It looked a little appalling.

Kevin walked over to Alex's side and spoke with a smile, saying, “Dad, I'm hungry. Can you give me something to eat?”

I looked at Alex. The aggression that was churning inside me completely turned into anger at this moment.

“Alex, do you know that Kevin is also your child?! He's been starving for two days and nights!”

Katie was placed on the ground by Alex. She raised her eyes to look at the large black bruise on Kevin's head and instantly wailed and cried out.

“Daddy, I'm so scared! Is he a monster? I’m scared! I don't want to live here! Daddy, please take me away from here!”

When Leona saw this scene, the corner of her lips hooked up in an undetectable arc.

Kevin reached out and tugged on Alex's pants leg, pursing his lips tightly not knowing what to do.

“Dirty and smelly, how in the world did Isabel bring you up?!”

I watched in despair as Alex kicked the standing Kevin away and my little boy landed hard on the floor like a leather ball that had lost its support.

“Alex, are you out of your mind?!” I demanded, my voice trembling with anguish. “You can hate me all you want, but why are you doing this to Kevin?!”

I followed Alex's back and watched as he reached out to open the bedroom door, which still had blood spattered on it from when that murderer killed me.

“What on earth are you so upset about?!” Alex shot back, his frustration clear. “You were the one who said you’d go to the group building and then didn’t show up. What a pain in the ass!”

My heart lifted as I watched him reach out and about to push the door open.

Was he finally going to find out?