LOGINAfter my husband topped the wealth rankings, he hired his first love as his personal housekeeper at a high salary. “Quincy, you hail from humble beginnings. I don’t want you embarrassing me in high society, so I specifically brought in Vivian to teach you the rules. From now on, everything you do must be reported to her for approval.” From that moment on, in public, I was the glamorous Mrs. Lane. However, behind closed doors, to even enjoy simple marital moments with my husband I had to write a thousand-word application seeking Vivian’s approval. Then, my adoptive father had a heart attack. I dropped to my knees, begging her to transfer me five hundred thousand dollars. She laughed coldly. “What kind of surgery costs half a million? Stop making excuses to pad your family’s finances.” “This isn’t a small sum. Write a 10,000-word application, and this time it’s denied.” Rage coursed through me, my body trembling uncontrollably as I spun toward Tyler and fell to my knees, begging him to save my father’s life. There wasn’t even a flicker of emotion on his face. “Vivian did nothing wrong. I know you’re still clinging to your old poor habits even after getting rich, but my money doesn’t grow on trees.” “This time, your father’s medical treatment will be put on hold as a lesson. Next time, don’t blame me if he’s kicked out of the VIP ward.” In the end, my adoptive father died on the operating table due to the delay in treatment. Completely disheartened, I finally asked Tyler for a divorce.
View More"Hei, bangun!"
Seorang wanita berusia sekitar tiga puluhan mengguncang putrinya yang masih terlelap dengan kasar.
"Engh…" Anak itu melenguh pelan, matanya mengerjap pelan sebelum akhirnya terbuka. "Ada apa, Bu?" tanyanya sambil mengusap kedua matanya.
"Kemasi barang-barangmu, cepat!" suara ibunya meninggi, terdengar seperti perintah.
"Memangnya kita mau ke mana, Bu?" tanyanya bingung.
Kenapa tiba-tiba disuruh mengemas barang? Apa mereka akan pergi liburan?
Mata gadis kecil itu langsung berbinar. "Apa kita mau pergi liburan, Bu?" tanyanya penuh semangat, wajahnya berubah sumringah.
"Hmm…" Ibunya hanya mengangguk singkat.
Dengan hati riang, anak itu segera turun dari ranjang, melangkah ke arah lemari, dan mengeluarkan tas serta baju-baju yang ingin dibawanya.
"Ibu tunggu di bawah," ujar sang ibu, lalu meninggalkan putrinya yang tengah sibuk membereskan barang-barangnya.
Wanita itu berjalan ke ruang tengah, menghampiri seorang pria yang duduk santai sambil memainkan ponselnya.
"Mobil udah kamu siapin, kan?" tanyanya seraya melingkarkan tangan di leher pria itu dari belakang.
"Udah dong, sayang. Tinggal eksekusi aja," jawab pria itu dengan seringai tipis yang muncul di sudut bibirnya.
***
"Ibu, aku sudah siap!" seru gadis kecil itu sambil menenteng tas berukuran sedang, lalu berlari kecil menghampiri ibunya.
Ia berdiri di sisi ibunya, meraih tangan sang ibu, kemudian mengapitnya erat dengan wajah sedikit takut. Pandangannya tertuju pada pria asing di ruang itu. "Om ini siapa, Bu?" tanyanya ragu.
"Dia teman Ibu. Dia akan ikut liburan sama kita," jawab ibunya singkat.
Pria itu tersenyum, lalu berdiri mendekat. "Halo, kenalin, Om Fajar. Kamu bisa panggil Om begitu. Nama kamu siapa?" ujarnya sembari mengulurkan tangan.
Anak itu menunduk, enggan menyambut. Wajah pria itu terlihat menyeramkan di matanya.
"Raisa, Om," jawabnya lirih.
"Nama yang indah, seperti orangnya," pujinya, lalu tangannya terulur mengusap pelan rambut Raisa.
"Terima kasih, Om…" Raisa berusaha memberanikan diri menatapnya sebentar.
Fajar mengangguk, kemudian kembali berdiri tegap. "Kita berangkat sekarang?"
"Iya, ayo!" sahut sang ibu, menggenggam tangan Raisa dan menariknya menuju pintu.
"Sini, tas kamu biar Om bawain," kata pria itu sambil meraih tas dari tangan Raisa.
"Ibu nggak bawa tas?" tanya Raisa pelan, menyadari hanya dirinya yang menenteng barang. "Apa kita nggak akan menginap, Bu?"
Ia sempat kecewa. Mungkin itu alasannya sang ibu tak membawa apa-apa. Raisa awalnya mengira mereka akan pergi ke vila di puncak, tempat yang selalu jadi tujuan setiap liburan panjang.
"Tas Ibu sudah ada di mobil," jawab sang ibu cepat.
"Benarkah? Jadi kita akan menginap di vila?" tanyanya dengan wajah berbinar.
"Iya," balas ibunya singkat.
Raisa tersenyum lega. Syukurlah, ibunya menepati janji. Ia sudah membayangkan kelinci-kelinci liar di halaman vila yang biasa menemaninya bermain.
Dulu, setiap liburan panjang, ayah dan ibunya selalu mengajaknya ke sana. Mereka biasa menghabiskan waktu seminggu penuh bersama. Tapi kali ini berbeda. Ayahnya sudah tiada. Tiga bulan lalu, ia meninggal dalam sebuah kecelakaan.
"Ayo, ngapain bengong? Masuk!" suara ibunya memecah lamunannya.
"I-iya, Bu!" Raisa segera masuk ke mobil. Pintu dibuka ibunya, dan ia duduk manis di kursi belakang.
Namun, hatinya terasa tak enak. Tadi, sekilas ia sempat melihat bagasi mobil terbuka. Kosong. Tidak ada satu pun tas di sana, padahal ibunya bilang barang-barangnya sudah dimasukkan.
Raisa menelan ludah. Perasaannya makin tidak tenang, apalagi saat menyadari pria itu terus mengamatinya dari spion tengah.
***
"Kamu mau minum sayang?" tanya ibunya sambil menyodorkan sebotol air pada anaknya yang duduk di kursi belakang.
Dengan senang hati Raisa menerimanya. Kebetulan ia memang haus dan lupa membawa minum sendiri.
"Terima kasih, Bu," ucapnya ceria sambil membuka botolnya
Namun, alisnya perlahan mengernyit. Ini apa, ya? Kok baunya aneh? batinnya ketika mencium aroma dari dalam botol. Air itu juga tampak keruh, tidak jernih seperti air biasa.
"Ini air apa, Bu? Baunya beda… warnanya juga agak aneh," tanya Raisa ragu.
"Udah, diminum aja! Jangan banyak tanya. Itu air jahe, Ibu sengaja buat biar badan kamu hangat. Di sanakan dingin!" bentak ibunya, membuat Raisa terdiam.
Raisa langsung ciut. Ia tahu betul kalau ibunya sedang marah. Dengan terpaksa, ia meneguk air itu sedikit demi sedikit.
Sejak tegukan pertama, Raisa sadar rasanya tidak seperti air jahe yang biasa diminumnya. Ada pahit samar yang menusuk lidah. Tapi ketika ibunya menoleh, menatapnya dengan tatapan tajam, Raisa tak berani membantah. Ia memaksa dirinya menelan sampai habis.
"Ini, Bu… sudah habis," ujarnya pelan, menyodorkan botol kosong itu pada ibunya.
"Anak pinter," puji ibunya sambil mengambil botol itu.
Tiga puluh menit kemudian.
"Kok kepalaku pusing, ya?" gumam Raisa sambil memegang kepalanya.
"Kamu kenapa?" tanya ibunya, kali ini dengan suara seolah khawatir.
"Kepalaku… pusing banget. Rasanya sakit," jawab Raisa parau.
"Kamu ngantuk kali. Sudah, tidur saja. Nanti kalau sudah sampai, Ibu bangunin," bujuknya.
Raisa hanya mengangguk lemah. Kepalanya semakin berat, matanya mengantuk luar biasa. Tak lama kemudian tubuh mungilnya terkulai, dan ia pun terlelap tak sanggup lagi menahan rasa kantuknya.
"Gimana, sudah tidur dia?" tanya pria itu sambil melirik lewat spion.
Wanita itu mengangguk, menatap anaknya yang terlelap di kursi belakang. "Udah," ucapnya datar sambil menoleh ke belakang. Di mana anaknya sudah tertidur lelap. Efek obat tidur dosis tinggi yang ia berikan mulai bekerja.
"Kita bawa ke mana dia sekarang?"
"Ke vila. Di belakang vila ada hutan belantara. Kita buang dia di sana," jawabnya dengan seringai tipis yang tersungging di bibirnya
***
Beberapa jam kemudian, mobil berhenti di depan sebuah bangunan besar.
"Ini vilanya?" tanya pria itu.
Wanita itu mengangguk, lalu menyuruh kekasihnya menggendong Raisa yang masih terlelap.
Pria itu melirik sekeliling. "Pantas saja kamu berani bawa anakmu ke sini. Nggak ada warga sama sekali… cuma ada hutan di kanan-kiri."
Hanya vila tua itu yang berdiri sendiri, sepi, tanpa pemukiman. Sunyi membuat bulu kuduknya sedikit meremang.
"Ikut aku!" ujar sang wanita, melangkah ke arah hutan.
Dengan tubuh mungil Raisa dalam gendongannya, mereka menembus pepohonan. Suara ranting patah dan angin menderu tidak membangunkan gadis kecil itu. Obat tidur membuatnya benar-benar tak berdaya.
"Kamu yakin mau ninggalin dia di sini?" tanya pria itu ragu setelah menurunkan Raisa dan menyandarkannya pada sebuah pohon besar di tengah hutan.
"Yakinlah. Biar dia dimakan hewan buas di sini."
Pria itu terkekeh gelisah. "Hahaha… gila kamu ini. Dia anakmu sendiri loh. Kamu yakin tega?"
Wanita itu mendengus dingin. "Kalau aku nggak yakin, nggak mungkin aku rencanain ini. Dia memang anakku, tapi buat apa hidup kalau cuma nyusahin? Lebih baik dia mati, dan warisan dari ayahnya bisa jadi milik kita."
Di bibirnya terukir seringai kejam. Baginya, kehadiran Raisa hanyalah beban. Andai dulu tidak ketahuan hamil, ia sudah menyingkirkan anak itu sebelum lahir. Selama ini ia hanya mempertahankannya karena desakan suami. Tapi kini, setelah suaminya tiada, ia merasa bebas melakukan apa pun.
"Kalau begitu ayo pergi, sebelum hewan buas itu datang dan malah melihat kita," desis pria itu.
Tanpa rasa kasihan, keduanya berbalik meninggalkan Raisa yang masih terlelap, sendirian, di hutan gelap itu, tanpa bekal apa pun.
Three days passed, and it was like a storm had passed over my life. Suddenly, things took a turn.Tyler went live, streaming to thousands, holding stacks of evidence. From the beginning, Vivian had deliberately gotten close to him, leading him to believe she still had feelings. She had wormed her way into the Lane’s residence as a personal housekeeper, taken control of my spending, imposed unfair rules forcing me to submit applications for approval, and step by step, caused the deaths of my child and my father.Tears streamed down Tyler’s face as he spoke into the camera. “None of this is Quincy’s fault. She’s the victim here!”“If I could do it over, I would never have trusted Vivian. I would never have let her lies take away my child’s life.”Suddenly, a woman appeared, leaning on a cane in the background of the camera. It was Vivian. Her face twisted in a frightening mix of rage and lunacy.“Tyler! You broke my leg and made it so I can never step foot in the capital city ag
I felt a surge of helplessness. Why, even after I had decided to leave, did these people keep swarming around me like flies?I clicked into the livestream and saw Vivian lying on a hospital bed. Her body was wrapped in bandages. Her left foot was suspended high in the air, clearly immobilized.At that moment, she was a mess of tears and snot, pouring out her pitiful life story to anyone watching.“Hey everyone, I’m just a regular worker. Tyler took notice of me. I have no authority, no way to fight back. I had no choice but to go along with him.”“Mrs. Lane had a miscarriage and can never bear children again, but Tyler wants to use my body to carry on his lineage!”The viewer count skyrocketed, quickly hitting over one hundred thousand. The chat was exploding, with everyone roasting Tyler and me — the so-called clueless, lovesick original wife.[What the heck is up with that CEO? And he actually became the CEO?! Guys, never buying Lane Corp products again! Let that whole company
Tyler looked at me and said, “Quincy, I finally realize you were telling the truth all along. That woman is terrifying. She even tried to replace you and become my wife.”“Is she even worthy of being my wife? She’s nothing but a useless leech. Back when she was with the Linton family, she got her parents into tens of millions of debt by gambling. And now she dares to ruin my life?”“Quincy, I’m not going to be fooled by her. She was only after my money. She never loved me. I deliberately had my assistant spread rumors that the Lane Corporation was about to collapse, and she actually believed it. From that moment on, she completely cut off contact with me.”“A gold-digging woman with no morals like Vivian? You can find a thousand of them on the street. She’s not even worth a single strand of your hair.”I laughed coldly.So the Lane Corporation’s investigative abilities were impressive, after all.As long as he wanted to know the truth, he could uncover everything in no time.How
Ever since I returned from Professor Collin’s house, I locked myself in my room, practicing piano nonstop.Even though I had been practicing steadily over the past few years, I had not competed in a long time. I still did not feel fully confident, so I had to get my skills back to the top tier.There were too many outstanding pianists in the national competition. I was just one among many.Three years ago, I was sure I would make the top three.However, my era was already behind me. Now I had to play it safe, and stay sharp without letting up, even for a moment. Only then would I have a chance to spring a surprise on the other competitors.I never expected that Tyler would actually find my new place.When the doorbell rang, I assumed it was the food delivery I ordered. However, when I opened the door, it was Tyler who was standing there, a weary look on his face.It had only been a few days, but he seemed different.Back then, he had always been immaculate in his suit and tie
Tyler’s hand began to shake violently. He could not even hold onto his phone. It slipped from his grip and crashed to the floor with a loud bang.I looked at Tyler’s face that was frozen in disbelief. His eyes were wide, almost bulging, as though he were desperately waiting for me to say that this






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