Chapter 2

I searched through all of Samuel’s things in the house.

In the end, I found a hidden compartment in his study. Inside, there was a phone and a stack of documents.

The phone’s password was neither my birthday nor the day we met. It was Stella’s birthday.

Inside the phone were clear records of every money transfer.

For 1,095 days, there were thousands of transactions. Each one was proof of his love for Stella and the lies he told me.

[Babe, I’m willing to have a fake marriage with her for you. The pardon letter is hidden under her mom’s cremation certificate. Did I do a good job? Babe, will you reward me?]

When I saw that message, it felt like lightning had struck me.

I dug frantically through the thick stack of documents in the compartment. When I saw that piece of paper, I could not hold myself up anymore and sank to the floor.

On the back of my mother’s cremation certificate, there was a copy of the pardon letter!

Samuel had used my name to help the woman who killed my mother escape punishment.

My hands trembled. I did not even dare to touch that piece of paper.

How heartless did he have to be to put those two things together?

At that moment, it felt like thousands of needles pierced through me. The pain was so deep I could not even make a sound.

His messages kept stabbing at my nerves.

[Babe, are you enjoying your vacation? Even though I have a fake marriage with her, my heart is always yours. You’re not with me right now. Can you reward me by sending me a photo of yourself?]

[Babe, I just invested thirty million more into your overseas company. All the money I make is yours. Can you give me just a little more of your love?]

…

He showed Stella endless devotion and pathetic humility. He was like a little dog trapped in the dark, begging desperately for warmth. His twisted and obsessive need to own her cut into my heart like a dull knife with every word.

So, Stella had faced no punishment whatsoever.

My enemy had been living like a queen for the past three years. Even in prison, everyone had placed her on a pedestal.

I kept wiping away my tears again and again until my heart squeezed so hard that I felt physically sick and almost threw up, my phone suddenly buzzed.

It was Samuel.

[Babe, I’m not coming home today. You’re pregnant, so make sure you get plenty of rest. Don’t worry about me.]

[I’ve left some soup for you in the thermal pot in the kitchen. Make sure to drink it. Love you. Wait for me to come home.]

My eyes shifted between the phone, the pardon letter, and the cremation certificate.

How evil did someone have to be to live such a double life?

He gave all his passion to his crush and acted like a caring husband to his wife.

Samuel, which one was the real you?

I let out a bitter laugh as tears fell down my face. Scenes from the past three years ran through my mind. I saw my mother’s tragic death. I saw Samuel holding out his hand to me in the rain. Everything kept switching back and forth in my head.

In the end, my gaze stopped on the pardon letter signed under my name as her family.

I could not hold it in any longer.

“Ugh!”

I ran into the bathroom and threw up into the toilet. I made a complete mess.

At the same time, my phone kept buzzing.

Stella sent me photos of the hotel. She sent me a picture of the night sky they were looking at together.

[He’s not coming home tonight. Poor thing, can you guess what we’re going to do?]

I kept a blank face. I unlocked my phone and called the hospital.

“Hi, I want to book an abortion appointment.”