Chapter 2

But when Delaney reached out to help me, I instinctively pulled away. Her eyes flickered with panic as she carefully asked, "Max, what's wrong?"

I stared at her, wondering just how much sincerity lay behind those anxious eyes. "It's nothing. I was out in the sun earlier, so I feel a little dizzy."

She helped me over to the couch and looked at the bruises on my knees with a gaze full of concern. For a moment, I almost wondered if there really had been some error in the courthouse records.

Delaney stiffened for a moment. Then, she dropped her gaze, unable to look at me. "Don't you have Colin's sports day at kindergarten this afternoon? You should've just let the lawyer handle the reissuance of the marriage certificate. It's a small matter, after all."

I forced a smile that looked worse than crying. "Okay."

After they left the house, I made a phone call. "I accept the organization's assignment. I will proceed to Veyrn Rift."

"Are you sure about this, Maxwell? You should think it through."

"I'm certain."

"Very well. Arrangements shall be made for you in two days' time."

After hanging up, I looked around the home that Delaney and I had built together over the past five years. A wave of desolation washed over me.

I packed up my belongings and took out all the photos we had taken together over the years, along with the love letters she had written me.

From the age of ten to 25, from when we were still students to when we got married, those photos and words, once brimming with love, were consumed by flames until nothing remained.

The flickering firelight illuminated my tear-streaked face.

All of a sudden, my phone rang. One look at my phone told me that it was Colin's homeroom teacher.

"Hello, Mr. Carrington. The sports day is about to start. Are you on your way?"

"I'm sorry. I'll be right there."

When I finally reached the kindergarten and rushed to the field, the sight before me chilled me to the bone.

Delaney and Tristan were holding Colin between them, playing a game of tug-of-war. The three of them were laughing, blissfully happy.

Delaney had never been interested in events like this before.

Colin was the first to notice me. His happy face scrunched up in displeasure. "Why are you so late? You can leave now. I have Mommy and Mr. Prescott, and that's enough."

Then, when the two of them noticed me, Tristan dropped to his knees and began slapping himself before I could even demand an explanation. "Please don't blame Laney for this, Max. I just really missed her and wanted to see her. I'm sorry."

Delaney quickly grabbed his hand, pain evident in her eyes. When she looked up at me, however, her gaze was ice-cold.

"You were the one who showed up late," she spat. "If it weren't for Tristan, Colin would have been mocked by his classmates for not having a father. You should be thanking him!"

Even Colin stood protectively in front of him. "You're not fit to be my father. I want Mr. Prescott to be my father!"

They shielded Tristan behind them, united against me, their sharp words hurting me immensely.

"Didn't you delete all his contact information?" I asked. "How did you two meet?"

Delaney panicked instantly, stammering, "We… we just happened to run into each other. Tris works nearby."

It was a terrible excuse, but I no longer cared.

Perhaps sensing my dark expression, she softened her tone and reached for my hand. "Let's join the next event together."

But Colin still looked at me with pure disdain. In the end, it was only after some coaxing from Tristan that he reluctantly agreed.

So it turned out that five years of living together couldn't compare to a few words from an outsider.

The next event was a game of tossing and catching bean bags. Colin's face lit up with excitement, but I felt a vague sense of unease.

Sure enough, the moment the game began, Colin hurled the bean bag straight at me. What should have been a soft bean bag felt unnaturally hard, sending a sharp pain through me.

The final bean bag came straight for my head. With a loud thud, warm liquid trickled down from my temple.

Screams erupted all around me.