Chapter 3

Milena and her mother still brought John and his son back.

Milena's mother protected her precious grandson.

"As long as I'm here, Mark is my grandson. I won't let anyone bully him."

Her gaze kept glancing at me, full of vigilance.

Hearing this, a trace of smugness flashed in Mark's eyes.

Gone was his earlier unease. He puffed out his chest.

"Mr. Jeff, don't worry, I won't take your place."

"I just hope my son can stay by his mother's side instead of bearing the stigma of being illegitimate."

I pulled at the corner of my mouth with a mocking smile.

"That stigma isn't unfair. No matter what, it won't change."

Mark's face went pale. Then he looked at Milena with a wounded expression.

Milena frowned.

"Jeff, where are your manners?"

Her cold words made my heart tremble.

My hands hanging at my sides clenched powerlessly, then loosened. My voice was hoarse.

"Five years ago, I said there wouldn't be a second time..."

Milena squeezed her son's palm and answered carelessly.

"Didn't I already give you the divorce agreement? I agreed to divorce. I'm not stopping you."

"But you seem to have forgotten I'm still carrying your child."

Her hand rested on her swollen belly.

"Jeff, I just want to bring Mark back. He's only a five-year-old child. He can't live without his mother."

"Can you not be so petty? Besides, wouldn't it be good for our child to have an older brother?"

She didn't seem to think she'd done anything wrong.

Her nonchalant words shattered the last hope in my heart.

Before I could say anything else, she told me.

"Mom and I have discussed it. We're planning to hold a banquet next week."

"To have Mark acknowledge you as his father. That way, people won't gossip anymore."

I suppressed the sadness in my heart. I never expected she'd already thought of this.

"I won't agree."

Milena laughed coldly.

"Fine. Then I'll go to the hospital right now for an induced abortion."

I looked up sharply and roared.

"Are you insane?! The baby's not even eight months yet!"

Milena's expression was calm, but her words were brutally cruel.

"I'm the child's mother. I have that right. Once born, it's a child. Before birth, it's just a lump of flesh."

"Think carefully—either let Mark acknowledge you as his father, or I go to the hospital for an induced abortion."

After dropping these words, Milena left with John and his son.

For a long stretch of time, we had no contact.

She didn't come home either.

Perhaps because everything was out in the open now, Milena's rarely-updated social media started posting frequently.

Mostly photos of her with John and his son.

Even the captions were suggestive, as if they were the real family of three.

After friends saw her posts, they called one after another to ask.

"Jeff, who is that person? That child looks so much like her, could it be..."

"And who's that man?"

Faced with my friends' questions, I had no mood to answer.

Only those who knew about the incident five years ago advised me.

"Are you and Milena having relationship problems? I told you five years ago you shouldn't have forgiven her."

"If there's a first time, there will be countless more."

I smiled bitterly. What everyone else could see clearly.

Only I was this stupid.