Embarrassed at being proven wrong, Rowena exploded in anger at Jenny. "He's your husband, Jenny, not your servant! His mother's gone. How can you ask him to organize someone else's mother's birthday party?"

Jenny sounded confused. "Wasn't Mrs. Hudson seriously ill? Where did she go?"

I didn't want to stir up trouble when I only had a few days left to stick around.

"She went back to her hometown for a while," I said vaguely, changing the subject as I accepted the task to handle the birthday party.

Jenny didn't bother asking more questions. She seemed satisfied that I didn't argue. "Good that you know your place. Once Mrs. Hudson is feeling better, I'll throw her a birthday party and make sure she has her moment too."

She still didn't know that Mom was dead.

In seven days, I would be gone. There would never be a future for us anymore.

…

Just as I was about to head home, Jenny sent me an address and told me to come over.

I thought she wanted to discuss the birthday party. But the moment I pushed open the door to the private room, the only thing waiting for me was a glass of wine thrown straight at my face.

Jenny spat, "So that's why you agreed to organize the party so quickly. Turns out you took money from Mom. It's been seven years, Caleb. I thought you'd learned your lesson by now. Guess a leopard really can't change its spots."

Jackson handed me a tissue, then started putting on a show by slapping himself. "I shouldn't have brought it up. Now you two are fighting because of me. It's my fault! Please don't blame Caleb, Jenny. If anyone should be punished, it should be me!"

Jenny grabbed his hand, looking worried as she rubbed his cheek that wasn't even red. "Don't hit yourself. It hurts me to see that. Besides, you didn't do anything wrong. If it weren't for you, I wouldn't even know that Caleb had the nerve to ask Mom for money.

"Tell me, what reward do you want, sweetheart?"

Jackson rested his chin on his hand and contemplated long and hard. "You've already bought me a Lamborghini, and you gave me that lakeside villa. With the way you're always showering me with gifts, you've spoiled me so much I barely want anything anymore.

"Right now, I just feel like having those apple pies we always get from that shop on the east side of town. Why don't we have Caleb pick some up for us? It's about 20 miles away, though. You don't have a car, right? I could lend you mine."

Jackson held out a set of car keys toward me, but Jenny snatched them away.

"You think you deserve to drive?" she spat. "Walk there and get them. It's only 20 miles. Don't tell me you can't even do that."

I nodded quietly, saying nothing.

The other young women in the private room stared wide-eyed before bursting into laughter. "You really know how to have fun, Jenny. Don't worry. We'll help you keep an eye on him!"

Jenny clearly hadn't expected me to agree so readily. She could only swallow back the words she was about to fire back and studied me closely.

Something about me these past two days felt different.

In the past, whenever Jenny punished me, I would argue back fiercely and accuse her of being unreasonable. But today, I was unnaturally quiet, like someone who had lost his soul.

She raised her eyebrows and snorted coldly. "Seven years and he still hasn't learned his lesson. You girls must've gone easy on him before this. I'm watching him myself this time."

Jenny's car followed behind me as I limped forward step by step. We passed through the busy streets and turned into an alley.

Suddenly, the car behind me stopped.

Seeing the sweat pouring down my face, Jenny scoffed. "Stay right there and wait. Jackson suddenly wanted some street tacos. We'll keep going after we're done eating."

The two of them walked side by side toward a street vendor, laughing and chatting happily.

I remembered how, back when Jenny and I hadn't fallen out yet, I once suggested grabbing some street food.

But she frowned in disgust. "It'll be humiliating if word gets out that the Shelton family's son-in-law eats street food, Caleb. Don't embarrass the Sheltons."

Because of Jenny's words, I had to take lessons on dining etiquette every day.

But when it came to Jackson, who didn't know how to cut steak, not only did she ask the restaurant to cut them for him, she even complained to the manager and demanded that the steaks be served pre-cut from now on.

Now, dressed in a custom outfit worth hundreds of thousands, Jenny was eating greasy street food fed by Jackson while flies buzzed everywhere around them.

It turned out she did have a down-to-earth side after all. It just wasn't meant for me.

The sun blazed overhead, and my knees had long since gone numb from the pain.

A wave of dizziness hit me, and I lost consciousness almost immediately.

…

When I woke up again, I was already in a hospital bed. My pant leg had been rolled up. My feet had been treated and wrapped in bandages.

Jenny sat beside the bed. She scooped up a spoonful of chicken soup, blew on it to cool it down, then held it up to my mouth.

She complained, "The doctor said you fainted from malnutrition. You're so stubborn. I told you to go vegan, but couldn't you at least sneak something decent to eat? Look how weak you've gotten!

"Mom told me about the money on the card. It was meant for your mom's medical bills. I've also checked your account. You barely spent any of it. Can't you speak for yourself? Why didn't you explain?

"And these injuries on your feet… How did they get worse instead of better?"

I raised my eyebrows and glanced at Jenny.

Wasn't she the one who had Jackson pass along the message that I was to hike up to the mountaintop to pray daily as punishment? And now she was asking why the injuries had gotten worse?

This woman really did change her tune whenever it suited her.

As for explaining, I had done enough of that over the years. She just never believed me.

Jenny sighed when she saw me staying silent. "Try not to worry too much about your mom's condition. I'm still looking for a heart donor. I'll make sure she gets better."

But Mom was gone. She didn't need a heart anymore.

I lowered my head and said nothing.

Jenny glanced at me again and spoke carefully, "The police caught Jackson driving drunk. They're suspending his license. Since you have a license and no car, why don't you take the blame for him? Just name your price."

Mom had died because of that accident, and now she wanted me to take the fall for the person responsible?

I pushed away the bowl of soup Jenny had offered and said, "Let's end this, Jenny."

She had been waiting for me to name a price, but froze at my words. "End this? What do you mean?"

I replied calmly, "Didn't you say I only cared about your money? You've been tired of me for a long time anyway. We can go our separate ways, and I won't be in your way anymore."

Thinking I was just throwing a tantrum, Jenny sneered. "You were the one begging to marry into my family back then. Now you're trying to end things to force me to give in? If you're so bold, why don't you just ask for a divorce instead?"

She slammed the bowl onto the table and stormed out.

I didn't ask for a divorce because our marriage had been fake from the start. But I didn't bother explaining much since I'd be leaving soon anyway.

Soon after, I drifted into a hazy sleep.

…

By the time I woke up again, Jackson had come to visit with a gift bag in his hand. He said coldly, "I heard Jenny asked you to take the fall for me. Guess she really does love me."

I closed my eyes, not bothering to respond.

Jackson chuckled. "I never thought someone as greedy as you would actually turn it down. Your relationship with your mom is truly envious. She agreed to transfer hospitals because of you, you know."

I turned to him sharply. "There's no way Mom would listen to you. What did you do?"

Jackson looked completely unbothered as he smiled casually. "Nothing much. I just showed her the videos of you being forced to hike and of you eating out of a dog bowl. I told her you were living like that because of her, and she agreed to the transfer right away.

"We even arranged it so the power outage would be the signal for her to kill herself. She suffocated herself with her own hands in return for your freedom, Caleb. And you're still planning to stay loyal to Jenny?"

Anger surged within me. Unable to hold it in any longer, I yanked the IV needle out of my arm, got out of bed, and slapped Jackson across the face.

"You bastard!" I grabbed his collar and raised my fist to hit him again.

Just then, Jenny came back with some takeout. Seeing what happened, she rushed between us and shoved me hard.

With how weak I was, I slammed into the edge of the bed and collapsed onto the floor.

Jackson clutched at Jenny's sleeve, covering his face as he choked out, "Don't blame him, Jenny. It's all my fault. Since he's jealous of your past relationship, and seeing my face looking so much like my cousin's disgusted him so much, I'll just stay out of his way from now on."

I struggled to get up, trying to explain, "Jenny, my mom—"

Jenny's heart broke the moment she saw the red handprint on Jackson's cheek. With reddening eyes, she slapped me before I could finish.

She yelled, "Caleb! Not only did you drive Ian away, but you're so jealous that you can't even tolerate his cousin? And now you're even trying to use your sick mother as an excuse to get sympathy?"

Jessy angrily grabbed my wrist and forced my hand toward my own face. "Since you like slapping people so much, then stay here and slap yourself. Don't stop until you've slapped yourself a thousand times."

She then left with Jackson, loudly calling for doctors the whole way, as if he had suffered some life-threatening injury.

This time, Jenny left two rows of burly bodyguards behind to watch me. If I didn't slap myself, or if it wasn't loud enough, they would do it for me.

By the time both sides of my cheeks were swollen, Rowena finally rushed in. "Stop! That's enough!"

But the lead bodyguard reached out to stop her. "This is Ms. Shelton's order, Mrs. Shelton. Please don't make things difficult for us."

"Have you lost your mind, Jenny?"

Panicked, Rowena tried calling Jenny, but the line stayed busy.

Only after I had finished slapping myself a thousand times, leaving my cheeks bloody, did the bodyguards finally leave.

My hand kept moving out of numb habit. Just as it was about to land on my face, Rowena grabbed my wrist.

She choked out, "Forget the seven days. Just leave today, Caleb. The helicopter is waiting on the hospital roof. Take your mother's remains and go. Don't ever come back."

Rowena carefully placed Mom's urn in my hands, along with a framed photo of her.

Looking at Mom's gentle smile in the photo, I couldn't stop thinking about how the human body has such a strong survival instinct. And yet she had suffocated herself to death with her own hands.

She had chosen death willingly, all to give me my freedom.

Unable to hold back any longer, I hugged the urn and broke down sobbing.

…

Jenny spent the next three days drinking and partying wildly. Only then did she realize that I—her husband, who never missed his morning and night texts to her—hadn't contacted her in a long time.

She went to the hospital, only to learn that I had been discharged three days earlier. She rushed back home, yet the house was empty.

Growing irritated, Jenny recalled the 99 missed calls from Rowena. Assuming I must have run to her mother to complain, she rushed back to the Shelton residence, fuming.

But just as Jenny reached the door, she heard Jackson's mocking voice from inside.

"The one who jilted Jenny right before the wedding was Ian, Mrs. Shelton. There's no need to be so hostile toward me. Now that Caleb's mother is dead, he'll be gone for good. I'll be your future son-in-law, so we should really learn to get along.

"After all, I've been kind enough to keep your little secret—the whole thing about how you staged that car accident to force Caleb to marry into the family—from Jenny all these years."

Jenny froze just as she was about to knock, her phone slipping from her hand and falling to the floor.