Chapter 1

Inside the house, Chloe clung to Arthur's arm. She looked at me and started acting again. "Lilith, once I'm well, I promise you, Arthur will come back to you. He's the light of my life. I can't live without him."

I looked at her coldly.

"So you keep faking your illness to make him divorce me. Is that it?"

"I'm not faking. If you don't believe me, then I'll just die." Chloe gave me a hurt look. Then she suddenly let go of Arthur and ran toward the open window.

"Chloe!" Arthur shouted and rushed after her.

He pulled her into his arms. Then he turned on me, his eyes cold and accusing.

"Lilith, Chloe is suffering. How can you be so heartless? You'll be punished for this."

Chloe pounded her chest and cried, "No, it's all my fault! I shouldn't be so greedy and keep you all to myself, but I really can't live without you!"

Arthur immediately softened. "Sweetheart, none of this is your fault. I'll stay with you forever."

Hearing that, Chloe finally buried her face in his chest, looking satisfied.

I stood there without moving. Arthur immediately snapped at me, "Lilith, what are you standing there for? Sign it. Stop upsetting Chloe!"

At last, I saw the truth. Chloe would always come first in Arthur's heart.

Once, that truth would have broken my heart.

But this time, I picked up the pen and signed the divorce papers: Lilith Spencer.

As soon as Chloe saw my signature, the grief in her eyes vanished. She looked triumphant and greedy instead.

"Arthur, will you take wedding photos with me? I'm scared that one day I'll get so sick that I'll forget your face."

"Of course, sweetheart." Arthur gently wiped away her tears. "Any wish you have, I'll make it happen."

The air was thick with tension.

My friend Simon Hale finally spoke up, "Arthur, this is insane! You just divorced Lilith, and now you're going to take wedding photos with your stepsister?"

Arthur frowned and turned to me.

"Lilith, I'd like you to be the reasonable one here. They're just photos. I'm not actually going to marry her."

The way he kept defending Chloe made me sick.

The first time Chloe threatened suicide to make Arthur divorce me, he had snapped at her, "I will never leave the woman I love."

But afterward, he held me, apologized, and begged me to understand. In the end, he chose to divorce me to keep Chloe calm.

I loved him, so I stupidly agreed. Then it happened a second time. And a third.

He spent more and more time with Chloe, and paid less and less attention to me.

Once, I found Chloe lying in his bed wearing my nightgown. Before I could even say anything, she started screaming and crying.

He quickly comforted her. Then he turned on me.

"Lilith! Chloe had a nightmare! I comforted her all night. Nothing happened! Can you stop being so unreasonable?! I've been exhausted lately. Just stop provoking her, all right?"

I saw the pain in his bloodshot eyes and swallowed my anger and disgust.

But everything changed last month.

I was rushed to the emergency room after a car accident, covered in blood.

The doctors needed my emergency contact before they could operate.

I called Arthur and asked him to come to the hospital.

He sounded annoyed when he answered, "Chloe's in a terrible state right now. She needs me. You're so strong. Can't you look after yourself?"

That was the day I stopped loving Arthur.