Chapter 2

As soon as Robert said those words, two security guards stepped forward to seize Lucy.

I shielded Lucy with all my strength. "Robert, if you dare touch her, I'll divorce you!"

He hesitated for a moment, but Becca suddenly spoke up, her voice quivering with urgency.

"Robert, the babies… Something's wrong with their breathing! We need to get them to the hospital!"

His face drained of color. Shoving me aside, he bolted toward the babies in her arms.

I took the chance to pull Lucy behind me as I watched his retreating back with a chill creeping into my heart.

So this was how it was—in his eyes, the twins were worth far more than his own wife and daughter.

"I'm taking Becca and the children to the hospital first. And as for divorce, don't even think about it. As long as you acknowledge Becca and the twins, you'll remain the only Mrs. Langer. Audrey, my patience has limits. Don't push me further."

After they left, the banquet hall filled with a swell of murmurs.

"Tsk, tsk… the Langer family's drama is better than any TV show. The legitimate wife can't beat the mistress, and even her daughter has to suffer for it."

"Exactly. Looks like Audrey is about to lose everything. Once a man has a new love and an heir, the old one is forgotten."

Lucy glanced up at me, her young eyes tinged with worry.

"Mom… does Daddy not want us anymore? It's my fault for making him angry. Please don't fight with Daddy because of me. If you divorce, I won't have a daddy…"

My throat tightened. I pulled her into my arms and murmured, "It's alright, Lucy… you'll have a new daddy someday."

But in my mind, the past came rushing back unbidden.

Robert and I had dated for three years, then married for eight. He had always treated me like his queen.

After Lucy's birth, I was left with complications that made me unable to conceive again. When his dad demanded we divorce, it was Robert who endured ninety-nine lashes of the Langer family's punishment to keep our marriage.

That night of the charity gala, he swore to me, "It was all an accident. I've had my lawyer handle it."

But a month later, when he returned from a business trip, one button was missing from his shirt. He claimed it had been torn off during a meeting.

Soon after, I found a sonogram in his phone, dated exactly one month after the charity gala.

When I confronted him, his gaze darted away. "It's a business partner's child. I was just holding on to it for them."

From then on, his business trips became frequent. He even missed our daughter's birthday.

Until that one trip, when he just happened to be on the same ill-fated cruise as Becca.

"Mom, my knee hurts…"

Her tearful voice yanked me back to the present.

I looked at the beads of blood welling on her scraped skin, then remembered the fury in Robert's eyes when he shoved her.

Suddenly, the eight years of our marriage felt like a surreal, absurd dream.

He had already broken every vow he once made.

During the three months I left home with Lucy after our fight about Becca, he never once sent anyone to look for us.

Cradling my daughter, I pulled out my phone and sent him the divorce papers I'd prepared long ago.

[Sign it. Other than Lucy, I want nothing.]

Then, I dialed a number I had long kept blocked.

A deep, steady voice answered, "Audrey, I'm so happy you've finally decided to call."