Chapter 2

Later, when she was old enough to go to school, I was able to go back to work, improving our family's quality of life.

Things were getting better and better, so Mark and I discussed having a second child.

When she found out, she secretly started putting birth control pills into our tea.

Later, she even showed up at our workplaces, screaming and causing a huge scene, trying to force us to give up on having a second child.

But we were dead set on having a child of our own.

She didn't succeed that time. She cried, saying she was sorry and would never throw a tantrum again.

The child we had raised by hand was crying so heartbrokenly, that in the end, Mark and I believed her.

Not long after, our son, Leo, was born.

She seemed thrilled, actively feeding him formula, changing his diapers, and even washing his clothes.

She said, "Mom, you worked so hard for me, doing so much. Now it's my turn to help you."

We were so touched that she had grown up and become so sensible.

But we never imagined that a few months later, she would smother our baby boy in his crib.

After Leo was gone, Mark and I aged decades overnight.

Unaware of the truth, even after suffering the unbearable pain of losing a child, we continued to dote on her.

Until she reached adulthood, and her demands became even more outrageous.

When we couldn't afford her lifestyle, she got involved with predatory high-interest loans, from some really shady lenders.

When her creditors came knocking, her first thought wasn't repentance, but our "inheritance."

She said, "Mom, Dad, I know I messed up. This is the last time. If you don't forgive me, I'll just have to die."

Our hearts softened again, and we opened the door, ready to welcome our beloved daughter.

But it wasn't our beloved daughter who walked through that door. It was a hungry wolf.

She behaved for a few days, then tricked Mark into leaving, and then told me the truth about our son's tragic death.

She gesticulated wildly, excitedly telling me how her little brother had struggled, how he had stopped breathing.

"I stood right there next to him, watching his face turn red, until his tiny hands fell limp, and he slowly ran out of air."

"If I could do it again, I'd make him die an even worse death."

I lunged at her, wanting to fight her to the death, but she shoved me down the stairs, and I died a brutal death.

After I died, Mark fell into even deeper despair.

Losing a son in middle age, then a wife in his later years.

He developed suicidal depression, and Ruby used this as an excuse to have him sent to a mental institution.

Not content with that, she also tricked my parents into shouldering massive debts.

And yet, this heartless monster, she lived a life of ease and freedom.