When the Scapegoat Walks Away

"The funeral service has already started, Jenny. Where are you?" Rowena Smith took my phone and called my wife, Jenny Shelton, during my mother's funeral.

But the person who answered the call was a man. "Jenny was up late last night, Mrs. Shelton. She's still asleep. I'll let her know when she wakes up."

"How could she not attend her own mother-in-law's funeral?" Rowena snapped, her hands planted on her hips.

She then ended the call in a fit of anger. "I'm sorry, Caleb. I spoiled her too much."

Jenny hated my guts. I had never expected her to come, so there was nothing for me to feel upset about.

I pulled out the agreement I had signed back then—the one that made me a scapegoat—and handed it to Rowena. I calmly said, "The seven-year term is up, Mrs. Shelton. My marriage certificate with Jenny is fake as well. I'm going to—"

Anticipating my words, she wiped her tears and cut me off. "I thought your mother would finally recover when Jenny found a matching heart for her. I didn't expect that even then, she still couldn't make it…

"Caleb, Jenny might have been at fault, but the forensic report confirmed the cause of your mother's death. It wasn't a medical accident caused by a power outage, but suicide."

Rowena continued, "For the sake of how hard Jenny worked to find a donor match for your mother, could you give her another chance?"

Suicide? How could Mom bear to commit suicide when she hadn't even seen me start a family yet?

I knew this was just an excuse to defend her daughter, and I couldn't be bothered to argue. "Thank you for helping me back then," I said. "But Jenny doesn't need me anymore. You can let me go, right?"

Rowena sighed and slipped a gold-embossed card into my hand.

"Since you've made up your mind, I won't stop you. But there are still seven days left before our agreement ends. Give her some time to process it."

I'd already endured seven years. Seven more days wouldn't make any difference.

I pushed the card back. "You've already given me more than enough. I can't take this money."

Rowena stuffed the card into my pocket and patted my hand. In a sincere tone, she said, "Jenny and I would've fallen out a long time ago if you hadn't taken the fall for me back then. This one billion dollars is just a small token of my gratitude.

"Caleb… I'm begging you. Please keep the secret for me."

It turned out this was hush money.

I knew Rowena wouldn't feel at ease if I refused it. I could only accept it with a bitter smile.

Back then, Jenny had ignored her family's objections and threatened suicide just to marry her first love.

But right before the wedding, he eloped overseas with a wealthy woman.

Afraid Jenny wouldn't be able to handle the blow, Rowena paid me to put on an act. She tampered with Jenny's car and arranged for me to save her, using that as an excuse for me to marry into the family.