Chapter 3

I stood rooted to the spot, frozen, unable to react for a long time.

That child, whom Ryan and I had adopted from the orphanage, that child I had loved for five years and treated as my own, was actually Ryan and Chloe's biological son?

Countless images flooded my mind uncontrollably.

When I tutored Leo with his homework, he would cry over math problems. I patiently explained it five times, but he would tear up his notebook, yelling, "Mommy's explanations are impossible to understand."

When Ryan came home, he'd only read the formula once, and Leo would instantly grasp it, cuddling into Ryan's arms and making a face at me. "Daddy is a hundred times smarter than you."

When I told Leo bedtime stories, he would always wake up startled and say, "Mommy, your voice is annoying."

But when Ryan occasionally told him a story, even if it was about something Leo wasn't interested in, he would fall asleep peacefully.

I chuckled self-deprecatingly. My efforts to please, my endless patience, it had all been one-sided.

The child I had loved for five years actually had his own biological mother.

That's why everything I did was wrong in his eyes, everything I did annoyed him.

"Chloe is so smart, keeping Leo right under Maya's nose."

Ryan's soul floated in the air, his voice full of triumph.

"Maya, that woman, is just too soft-hearted. She's raised Leo for five years, she's definitely grown attached. She probably won't even get married again."

"When she's old, won't the Thompson family's house, cars, and savings all go to Leo?"

"Then Leo can bring Chloe over, mother and son reunited. I can rest easy in the afterlife."

He floated around, his tone even lighter.

"So what if she temporarily takes back the apartment?"

"All these things will eventually belong to Leo anyway. Maya is an outsider. At most, she's just taking advantage for a few extra years."

Chloe's face flushed. Her previous meek and pitiful demeanor vanished, replaced by seething anger in her eyes. "Maya, do you have to be so ruthless?"

"Ryan just passed away, and you're already rushing to kick me out? It's just an apartment, do you have to be so petty?"

"Aren't you afraid Leo will blame you if he finds out? Last time I took Leo to buy candy, he even said he liked me more! Do you, his mother, get that kind of treatment?"

Hearing her words, I didn't get angry; I actually smiled.

She had reminded me. The most important thing now was to deal with Leo.

I glanced at her flushed face, ignoring her provocations, and turned to Attorney Sarah. "Proceed as planned. If the apartment isn't empty in three days, file the lawsuit."

Chloe froze, her bravado immediately diminishing, but she still stiffened her neck and yelled, "You wouldn't dare! If Leo asks about me, how will you explain it?"

I completely ignored her, walked straight downstairs, and dialed the foster care agency.

"Hello, is this the Sunshine Foster Care Agency? This is Maya, Leo's foster mother."

"There's an update. I've found Leo's birth mother. According to regulations, I can no longer maintain legal custody. I'll bring the child over this afternoon to complete the paperwork."