Chapter 1

When I brought my third boyfriend, Lewis Dawson, back home to meet my mother, Florence Winters, I specifically told him not to eat the food she'd made.

But Lewis only patted my head in an unbothered manner.

"Maybe the two previous incidents were just a coincidence? Don't overthink it, Ariel. We don't want to hurt your mother's feelings," he said.

He then disregarded my objections and ate the food Mom served him at the dining table.

My heart clenched tightly as I silently counted down from three.

Sure enough, Lewis' expression shifted drastically the moment I counted to one. He dashed out of the house and onto the road.

An oncoming truck ran over him as the driver failed to brake in time.

I fell to my knees on the asphalt, trembling uncontrollably as I wailed in pain.

Even as the sunlight shone on me, I felt cold to my bones.

A second later, I turned to look behind me, as if sensing something.

I saw Mom standing on our balcony, watching everything unfold as if it was of no consequence to her—as if it had been a stranger who died and not my boyfriend.

I ran back home hysterically under the onlookers' baffled gazes.

"What the hell did you put in Lewis' food? Did you curse him or was it just poison? Why can't you just let me be happy for once? Is it because you don't have a husband of your own? Is that why you can't bear to see me happy with a man?" I asked, feeling helpless.

These were just idle rumors our neighbors spread. But my mind was in complete shambles, and I couldn't care less.

A complicated look flashed in Mom's eyes.

"I had nothing to do with Lewis' death," she said coldly before returning to her room.

I clenched my hands into fists and watched as our neighbors gathered outside by the road, pointing at our house and gossiping among themselves.

I then called the police without hesitation.

The police officers took Mom away with stern looks on their faces. They even sent the food Lewis had eaten to the forensics examiner for professional testing.

But the results only baffled me further—there was nothing in the food.

Mom sat in the police station, where she was interviewed by reporters who'd hurried over after hearing the news.

But no matter how much they tried to get an answer from Mom, she only ever responded by saying she had nothing to do with what happened.

As a result, the entire case grew increasingly perplexing and unclear.

When someone leaked what happened online, my family became a daily spectacle for hundreds of people. The netizens' comments grew more and more outrageous too.

"What kind of food could the deceased have eaten that made him want to kill himself?"

"I'd seriously pay a high price to buy some for my ex!"

…

Mom and I looked at one another as we sat trapped at home.

She sighed as she looked at my reddened, swollen eyes.

"Why are you doing this, Ariel? Do you actually think I was the one who killed your boyfriends?" Mom asked.

"Who else could it have been? Nothing else had happened. The only suspicious thing is the food you gave them!" I cried. "Mom, please just tell me the truth. I keep seeing Lewis in my dreams. It's driving me mad…"

I fell to my knees as tears blurred my vision.

Mom didn't use to be like this. She'd changed drastically after my 17th birthday.

Not only had she stopped smiling as much, but she'd also grown hostile toward any and all men who tried to get close to me.

Yet I couldn't bring myself to believe that Mom might actually just hate seeing me happy…

Mom got to her feet helplessly and went to my bedroom. After some time, she returned with two large suitcases and pushed them toward me.

"If you have so little faith in me, then go. From now on, consider me dead to you," Mom said.