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.