Chapter 1

After I was diagnosed with brain cancer, I discovered two things.

One, my marriage certificate with Richard was fake.

Two, the son I had raised for six years also knew—and he actually wanted someone else to be his mom.

Only then did I finally realize that everything I had sacrificed in the seven years of my marriage—casting away my family and my name—had all been a complete joke.

Before I decided to disappear from their lives for good, I did three things.

Firstly, I canceled the seventh anniversary dinner I had planned a month ago, left my son's kindergarten group chat, and quit all the health groups I had joined for the two of them.

Secondly, I spoke to my doctor, took a stress test, got specialty drugs, and made sure my health wouldn't stop me from making it overseas.

Thirdly, I finally called my older brother after seven years of no contact. I told him that there was only pain after marrying so far away from home. I had been utterly wrong, and now, I wanted nothing more than to go home.

-

"Mrs. Shaw, your brain tumor is already pressing on your nerves. You need to make a decision soon."

The doctor's words echoed in the sterile hospital hallway.

Maria shuddered, clutching the creased test results in her hands. She had been suffering from headaches, nausea, and nosebleeds lately. At first, she thought it was just due to staying up late and that it was a mild sickness.

A checkup at the hospital, however, revealed the nightmarish truth.

The doctor told her she had to choose a treatment plan as soon as possible.

A surgery would give her a fifty-fifty shot at survival, or she could choose a more conservative treatment through medicine and chemotherapy. She would lose her hair, but it might let her live a few more years.

Maria was terrified of betting on that fifty percent chance. She had always been afraid of needles, let alone lying on a cold operating table just to gamble with her life.

But if she didn't choose surgery, the tumor would grow, and the pain would only worsen until her last breath.

She closed her eyes and thought of her husband, Richard.

They had been married for seven years. She loved him, and she wanted many more years together with him. And there was their son, her little Jonathan, so bright and clever. Thinking of the two people she loved most, Maria found her courage.

She got up and walked into the doctor's office.

"I've decided. Schedule the surgery," she said.

The doctor looked serious. "There's only a fifty percent chance of success. Aren't you scared?"

Maria smiled. "No. I believe my husband and son will be there for me. As long as I have them, I'm not afraid."

The doctor nodded. "Alright, I'll schedule you for surgery in a month."

Maria left the hospital, excited to go home and get support from her husband and child.

The house staff told her Richard wasn't home and was at the company.

Maria hurried to the office and arrived outside the CEO's office. Before she could set foot inside, a man's voice reached her ears.

"Richie, wouldn't your wife be angry if she knew you made Eleanor your secretary?"

Maria froze. Through the crack of the door, she could see that the speaker was Richard's friend, Trent.

Eleanor… Eleanor Cooper.

Maria knew that name well. Richard's old flame, the woman he had secretly never let go of for over a decade.

Richard sat at his desk, looking downward, his shirt collar slightly open and sleeves half-rolled. He looked somewhat cold and aloof.

In an annoyed tone, he snapped, "What happens in my company isn't for you to pry into."

Trent shrugged and smirked. "Regardless, the reason I called Maria your wife was because of you. Everyone knows your marriage to her is just a sham. I mean, I was the one who forged the marriage certificate you two took that day. Haha!"

Maria froze, her face as white as a sheet.

What did she just hear?

Richard and her… Was their marriage a sham…?

Richard, facing away from the door, completely missed the fact that someone was standing outside.

"Why don't you just leave Maria now that Eleanor's back? Honestly, if Maria hadn't kept pestering you, if she hadn't gotten pregnant after you got drunk and slept with her, you never would have faked a marriage just to give the kid a proper status. You broke Eleanor's heart. She's only willing to come back now," Trent said.

Maria almost stopped breathing. Her blood pressure spiked as she fought the urge to throw up.

That night at the bar, Trent was there too. He knew she didn't drug Richard. The truth was, Richard had been set up by a rival company. Maria had volunteered to go to the hotel with Richard to help him.

Why was Trent pushing all the blame on her?

Trent chuckled and continued, "So, when are you giving Eleanor a proper status? If it weren't for her heart disease, she never would've left, and Maria would've never had her chance. The spot as Mrs. Shaw should've been Eleanor's from the start!"

Richard glanced up unamused, a glare of warning in his cold eyes. "I have a son with Maria."

Maria could barely stand, shaking all over. She couldn't take it anymore and rushed to the bathroom, missing whatever Richard said next.

She threw up hard—she couldn't tell if it was because of the truth that disgusted her, or if her illness was flaring up.

An employee saw her, startled, and handed her paper towels.

Maria took them, eyes red, managing a sickly smile. "Thanks. Please don't tell Richard I was here."

She stumbled out, wandering the streets like a walking corpse, remembering when she had first met Richard.

Seven years ago, Maria was a renowned designer abroad, managing her older brother Willow's jewelry business. She and Richard belonged to two different worlds.

However, during a business trip, her dress suddenly tore just as she exited a hotel. Just when her dress was going to be completely ripped apart, Richard got out of his Maybach and handed her his perfectly pressed jacket.

"Tie it around your waist," he said.

It was only five words, but it saved her from panicking and getting embarrassed in an unfamiliar environment.

Maria looked up at his handsome face and immediately fell for him.

After that, Maria couldn't forget Richard. She went to her older brother Willow, making excuses so they would end up working together, all to pursue Richard. Even after knowing Richard was still very much in love with his first love—whom he couldn't forget, and who left without saying goodbye—Maria pressed on and didn't give up.

One night, an accident led to Maria and Richard sleeping together. She got pregnant, and it seemed natural to get married.

Maria remembered asking him on their wedding night why he married her, since she never forced him to take responsibility.

For the first time, Richard had really looked at her and said, "I wanted to give you and the baby a home."

With just that one sentence, Maria gave up everything for her marriage to take care of her husband and son. Her brother objected to giving up her career and her life abroad, but she didn't care.

Now, after so long… She realized her marriage had never even existed.

Richard never saw her as his wife. For seven years, he had just played pretend, all the while thinking of someone else.

Maria's heart bled, thinking how she had been a joke from the very start.

She made up her mind.

If she survived the surgery, she would take Jonathan and leave. Richard could marry whoever he wanted.

Thinking of her son, Maria found her strength again and rushed home. As she went upstairs, she overheard her son Jonathan talking to the housekeeper.

"Do you think Mom would be sad if she knew her marriage to Dad was fake?"

Maria's eyes opened wide.

The butler, Mr. Graham, smiled gently. "Well, there's nothing you can do. You know your father doesn't love your mother."

Jonathan pouted. "Honestly, I don't like Mom either. I like Eleanor more. She's so nice. Whenever Mom drops me off at Dad's office, Eleanor gives me treats and toys. Mom just complains about snacks being unhealthy and makes me study. She's so annoying! I wish Eleanor would marry Dad."

Maria's hands clenched into fists, her heart aching so badly that she almost fainted.

Even the son she had carried for nine months and raised with all her heart was just as cold as Richard!

Now, every happy memory of a loving family felt like a cruel joke.

Maria recalled her brother's warnings—he warned her not to marry far from home, fearing she would get hurt. She should have listened. If he ever found out what Richard had done and how Jonathan treated her, he would probably come running with a machete in his hand.

Blinking away the tears in her eyes, Maria headed downstairs.

The hope that had given her the strength to choose surgery for her husband and son was shattered.

Once she was in the living room, she picked up her phone and made a call.

"Willow…? I'm getting a divorce. Can you come get me and take me home?"