Chapter 1

"Babe, I went through hell to find this pain-transfer system. It's the only way to save Maia. I'm asking you to make this sacrifice."The familiar voice was right in my ear. Bruno Howell was staring at me with loving eyes, waiting for me to agree.Looking at this two-faced man, I felt my teeth itch with hatred. In my last life, he'd done the same thing. When our daughter, Maia Howell, was in the ICU, Bruno acted as if he were dying of a stroke and got hospitalized, too. Right before surgery, when I was panicked and out of ideas, he pushed the system on me and said it was the only way to save Maia.I had bound myself to the system to save her. And look how that had ended.I sneered at Bruno and asked, "Maia isn't only my responsibility. Why should I be the one to bind?"Bruno didn't expect me to refuse. After all, I had quit a great corporate regional manager job to take care of Maia, and I had treated her like my whole world. I couldn't stand to see her suffer.He quickly recov

Chapter 2

I had just stepped out of the pig farm when Maia called. She was sniffling into the phone, crying that she missed me and begging me to come back to her."Mom, I feel awful. Can you come and see me? I'm sorry. I know you're already exhausted, and I shouldn't cling to you like this, but I really miss you. I don't wanna be away from you."I'm in so much pain. Am I going to die? I haven't even had the chance to look after you yet. I don't wanna die. I just wanna stay with you forever and make you happy."Hearing her sound so considerate and grown-up, I drew in a deep breath, but my chest felt as if it were full of needles.I had raised Maia for more than ten years. She had been a collodion baby, born with skin so thin and fragile that every movement risked tearing it open, making it rot and ooze.I had looked after her as if she were made of glass. When she was a baby and couldn't drink from a bottle, I fed her with a straw, drop by drop. When she grew older and cried all night in pai

Chapter 3

I had no idea what exactly I was supposed to owe Maia for.And there was no way I was about to hand over everything I had worked for and walk away empty-handed.But once the system was in place, Maia acted as if she'd already won. Even though her body was still covered in festering sores, she checked herself out of the hospital, strutting around as if she'd been miraculously cured.Meanwhile, Claire and Bruno weren't even pretending anymore. She moved straight into his hospital room, and the two of them acted as if they were married—cuddling, laughing, and playing house in the ward as if it were some kind of honeymoon suite.They were so busy living in their little bubble that they completely forgot about Maia. On her very first day out, she went riding her bike, crashed, and tore up her skin even worse.If this had been before, I would've freaked out, rushing to bandage her up and scolding her for doing something so reckless.But now? Hah. If she wanted to ruin herself, I wasn't

Chapter 4

With a knife pressed to my throat, I signed the papers, "agreeing" to hand over the house and the car to Maia.After that, the family of three headed out laughing, off to toast their victory. Before leaving, they ordered me to pack my bags and clear out immediately.I moved through the house in a fog, picking through my things. But instead of packing to leave, I started tossing everything belonging to Bruno and Maia straight into the trash.For years, Maia had been stuck in bed, and every little thing she owned had been carefully chosen by me. I had even saved the baby bottle she used as a newborn.Back then, I honestly believed I was the happiest mother alive. My daughter might've been sick, but she'd survived under my care, and I thought we had a bright future ahead.Looking at it now, I realized just how completely I'd been fooled all these years.When I finished clearing out their belongings, the house felt lighter, almost fresh. I was already picturing a new layout when I he

Chapter 5

"What's happening? Did you do this?"Claire clutched Maia in a panic, pressing hard on her lower stomach to try to stop the bleeding. But Maia was like a burst balloon—no matter how hard Claire pushed, the blood kept pouring out.Maia's skin was turning ghostly white, and she was seconds from blacking out when the ambulance finally arrived.Just before they loaded her inside, Bruno yanked me into the back of the van. "You witch! What did you do to Maia? You're not leaving until you tell me the truth!"He was way off. Why would I skip out on a scene this entertaining?At the hospital, the doctor stormed out of the exam room, furious at Bruno and Claire. "What kind of parents are you? She's just a teenager, but she's been pregnant so many times that her uterus is destroyed. She's hemorrhaging. Forget about kids in the future—she might not even survive this time!"Bruno and Claire just stood there, stunned. Finally, Bruno shuffled over to me, his face twisted with rage. "Andrea, I k

Chapter 6

"Why should I pay for this?" I asked, my tone flat.The doctor shot me a glare full of disgust. "You're her mother! If you don't pay, who will? What kind of mom lets her kid die while worrying about money?"I ignored the jab and answered calmly, "That girl is the child my husband had with his mistress. He threw away my real daughter and tricked me into raising her for over ten years. Do you really think I should foot the bill for her surgery?"The doctor froze, scratching the back of his head after hearing that.He mumbled an apology, then stormed off to try getting the money from Bruno and Claire instead.But those two were already tearing into each other. When they heard how much it cost, neither moved to pay.Bruno turned red and snapped at Claire. "You've been sneaking around for years. Who even knows if Maia's mine? And now you want my money for you and your kid? Dream on!"Claire broke down, tears and mascara streaking her face. "Maia is your daughter! And now I'm stuck wi

Chapter 7

I laughed in disbelief. "That's your way of begging? If I didn't know better, I would've thought you were bossing me around!"I turned down their ridiculous request without hesitation and even dropped a secret on them."Cell phones were already around over ten years ago. When Bruno dumped my daughter, someone passing by caught it on video and called the cops. But Bruno covered his tracks so well that they couldn't identify him, and the case went nowhere. My daughter ended up in a children's home and grew up to be a sweet, healthy girl."Bruno froze. "You found her?" he blurted.I nodded, and his beady eyes darted around before he forced a fake smile. "Now that she's back and Maia's dying, our family can finally be whole again. I swear I'll never hurt you or our daughter again. We can have a good life together."I just stared at him, torn between disgust and disbelief.Their shamelessness honestly defied logic.I couldn't stand another second of it. Ignoring Bruno and Claire's cr

All Chapters of The Pain-Transfer System: Chapter 1 - Chapter 7