Chapter 2

The next time I woke up, my once-round belly was flat.

My younger sister, June Sullivan, was sitting at my bedside, her eyes teary. She had rushed over to the hospital the moment she heard.

"May, while you were unconscious, Neil secretly swapped your baby with Serena's. That bastard! But I swapped them back while they were off registering the birth. It's a good thing you called me over to keep watch, or we would have spent our entire lives living in the dark!"

When I unwound the swaddling clothes and saw my son for the first time, tears flowed uncontrollably down my face. In my previous life, I'd spent my entire existence helping Serena raise her child, never once seeing my own son.

So, this was my actual child.

Just as I was about to breastfeed him, the ward door slammed open, and Neil stormed into the room. When he saw me holding our son, he slapped me heavily across the face.

My stomach dropped. I didn't think he'd realize that I'd swapped the baby back so soon.

Contrary to my expectations, however, Neil bellowed angrily, "May Sullivan, you jealous bitch! You'd even harm your own sister-in-law! That shove of yours caused her to lose her child! That was Liam's child she was carrying! You've ended his family line!"

I covered my stinging cheek and sneered inwardly. So, Neil and Serena's plan was to take advantage of the situation to gaslight me and force me down the same path as my previous life.

Unfortunately for them, their plan would fall through.

Wiping away her tears, Serena leaned in close to my bedside and said in a choked voice, "Nobody's at fault. I'm just unlucky. May, from today onward, I'll treat your son as my own and help you raise him well."

As she spoke, she reached out to pick my son up.

June shielded the child and me, then slapped Serena hard across the face. "You're right—you're an unlucky person, so stay away! Don't spread your bad luck to May!" she snapped.

Serena's hand froze in midair, her face turning pale with shock.

Seeing this, Neil glared furiously at June and me. "Your older sister caused the death of Serena's child! She isn't even holding you two accountable for it, yet you dare to hit her?" he yelled at June.

He lunged forward to rip my son away from me. June stubbornly threw her body in front of him to bar his way. "Neil Fischer, you bastard! Don't touch my nephew, or I'll get Mom and Dad to deal with you!"

Neil's steel mill was only staying afloat thanks to my parents' financial support. He hated it when people used that card against him, so he immediately exploded with anger.

"Not only am I going to touch him, but I also intend to give him to Serena as compensation for her child's death! Let go!"

When Neil tried to forcefully pry my hands away, I bit his arm in a fit of desperation.

Seeing this, June went wild with rage and clawed at Neil frantically. "Let go! Don't hurt May!"

Incensed, Neil let go of me and kicked June.

I rushed over to check on her, but she pushed me away. "Call for a doctor first! Protect the child!" she cried out.

I let go of her with teary eyes and, with my son shielded in my embrace, rushed to the doorway to shout for a doctor.

"Help! He's trying to take my son away!"

A doctor arrived on scene in response to my cries.

I quickly tried to ask for help, but to my surprise, the doctor actually nodded and bowed toward Neil.

"What's going on, Mr. Fischer?" he asked.

Neil replied, "My wife is suffering from postpartum psychosis. She's colluding with her younger sister to harm the child. Do you have any sedatives on hand? Sedate her quickly!"

"I'm not psychotic!" I yelled.

Before the words had fully left my mouth, the doctor pinned my struggling body down to the bed, a syringe already in hand.

June was so angry that she lunged forward to pull the doctor off me, but she was similarly pinned down and sedated by the doctor's accompanying security guards.

As my muscles and nerves gradually went numb, my hands hung limply at my sides. All I could do was glare fixedly at Neil.

Neil was wholly unaffected. He scooped up my child and handed him to Serena.

"Don't worry. I'll help you get whatever you want," he told her.

Serena's tear-streaked face instantly melted into a smile. On the other hand, tears were streaming uncontrollably down my face.

The equipment at Neil's steel mill was outdated, and his business should've gone bankrupt ages ago. I was the one who had begged my parents to use their retirement funds to upgrade his machinery and hire workers. I was the one who had asked June to use her connections to bring in clients. It was entirely due to my family's sacrifices that his business had finally taken off.

Neil had once knelt before me and swore that he would repay me in the future and ensure that I led a great life. Yet here he was, abusing his power as plant manager to steal my child away.

Serena and Neil cradled my baby in their arms, cooing playfully at him as they discussed potential names.

Just then, Neil's assistant—James Clark—called from outside the door, "Mr. Fischer, the car is ready and waiting. Will you be heading home now?"

Serena smiled shyly. "I'm just a widower. I couldn't possibly have such nice things."

Neil's gaze was filled with distress. "You've suffered so much for my… for Liam's sake, so it's only right that I treat you well."

As he spoke, he helped Serena down the stairs. It was only after he was halfway there that he remembered that I was still lying there, sedated.

"Oh, right. Fetch May back in a wooden cart, so she doesn't embarrass me any further out here!"

By the time I was wheeled home in the bumpy wooden cart, the sedative's effects had worn off.

I stood on shaky legs and opened the front gate, only to see Serena unbuttoning her top and breastfeeding my child right in front of Neil.

Neil was staring fixedly at Serena's bare chest. When the creak of the gate interrupted them, he glanced over at me, his expression twisting into annoyance.

"You should feel blessed that Serena's willing to help you raise your child. You should respect her and be grateful toward her from now on. Don't make me regret marrying you!" he yelled.

As soon as the words left his mouth, Serena suddenly cried out, "This isn't my son!"