Chapter 3

Daisy Lee POV

When Nathan Reed came home, I was sitting on the couch with no expression on my face.

“Honey, I’m home.”

Nathan smiled gently, holding a delicate fruit platter in his hand.

“The institute gave out employee perks today, a premium fruit platter, and I brought it back especially for you to try.”

My gaze fell on the fruit platter.

The cantaloupe pieces were cut in uneven sizes, and several strawberries were obviously soft and wilted.

This was not a store-cut, sealed platter; it was leftovers pieced together.

A sour ache surged into my nose, because he had not been like this before.

When I was pregnant, my morning sickness was terrible, and Nathan ran across half the city at three in the morning to buy me fruit and vegetable juice.

When my feet were so swollen I could not wear shoes, he crouched on the floor and massaged them for half an hour at a time.

He never missed a single prenatal appointment, and once, when the doctor said the baby’s position was not quite right, his eyes turned red on the spot.

Back then, I had believed I had married the right person.

Even when stretch marks crawled across my belly, and even when I tore and hemorrhaged so badly during childbirth that I nearly did not make it off the operating table, I still thought I was happy.

But now, as I looked at the face of the man beside me, he suddenly felt unbearably unfamiliar.

My tone was extremely calm. “My videos were posted online.”

Nathan’s face stiffened, but he quickly returned to normal.

Fake anger rose on his face. “What videos? Who posted them?”

“They were recorded by the bedroom camera, the one you installed two weeks ago.”

Nathan raised his voice. “Are you saying the camera was hacked? Don’t be scared, I’ll make sure you get justice!”

“I already called the police,” I said.

Nathan opened his mouth, but he could not say a word.

In the end, he only pulled me into his arms. “That’s good. Don’t be scared, your husband is here for everything.”

I closed my eyes, and it felt like a dull knife was grinding against my heart.

I knew I could not alert him now, because I had to collect evidence before I could sue for divorce.

After calming down for a while, I got up and went to Linda’s room to get the baby.

When I pushed open the door, the baby was lying in the crib, sleeping quietly.

I walked over, but no matter what I did, I could not wake the baby.

The baby’s little face was flushed an abnormal red, and her breathing was shallow and slow.

My heart dropped. “What’s wrong with the baby? Why won’t she wake up?”

Linda was watching TV and did not even lift her head. “She cried too hard this afternoon and gave me a headache, so I fed her a little alcohol, and now she’s sleeping just fine.”

The string in my mind snapped.

I practically roared, “You fed the baby alcohol?! She isn’t even a month old!”

Linda waved dismissively. “Stop making such a fuss. We all raised kids like this back then. It helps them sleep better.”

I could not listen anymore and scooped the baby up.

“Nathan Reed! Your mother fed the baby alcohol! Drive us to the hospital right now!”

Nathan’s face changed when he heard that, and he grabbed the car keys and rushed downstairs.

The car started, and I held the baby while my whole body shook uncontrollably.

The baby was still sleeping heavily, her little mouth faintly purple, and her breathing grew weaker and weaker.

Nathan stepped on the gas and ran two red lights in a row.

Just as the car picked up speed, his phone rang.

The car’s Bluetooth connected automatically, and a woman’s sweet, crying voice filled the entire cabin.

“Professor Reed, help me—I’m so scared!”

The voice stopped abruptly, and the call disconnected.

Nathan froze for a second, then instinctively jerked the steering wheel hard.

The car instantly turned around.

I was thrown against the car door and looked up in disbelief. “What are you doing? Why are you turning around?”

“I have to go over there,” Nathan said tightly, flooring the gas pedal.

“Nathan Reed! Do you know your daughter has alcohol poisoning? She needs emergency care!”

“Something happened over there too!” Nathan roared.

All the blood in my body turned cold.

Holding back tears, I yanked open the car door, and Nathan slammed on the brakes.

I ran out of the car with the baby in my arms.

Nathan stuck his head out of the window as if he wanted to say something, but his phone rang again.

He glanced at the caller ID, then sped away with one hard press of the gas.

I stood there as raindrops smashed onto me and onto the baby’s burning little face.

I looked down at the child in my arms, and her lips had already turned blue.

I could only reach out to hail a cab, but it was rush hour, and the rain was pouring.

One taxi after another sped past, and no one paid any attention to me.

Helpless, I held the baby and ran forward, but my foot slipped, and I fell heavily to the ground.

The fall made my vision go black, and rain mixed with tears until my face was soaked, but I still protected the baby tightly in my arms.

Luckily, a kind person found me and took me to the nearest children’s hospital.

The baby was sent to emergency care, and I stood frozen, staring hard at the doors of the resuscitation room.

I did not know how long had passed before the doors opened.

The doctor came out with a grave expression.

“The child has acute liver failure and needs immediate surgery.”

My legs went weak, and I collapsed straight to the floor.