Chapter 1

When our son was critically ill, my husband, Liam, stole all my savings for his lover.

"Sarah, you're a doctor. You know this child won't live past three. Why waste money on treatment? Better to invest in Jasmine."

Three years later, he and Jasmine showed up in front of me in a beat-up old car.

When he saw our son not only alive but having won an international programming contest, Liam burst into arrogant laughter.

"Sarah, I can't believe the kid's still alive! For his sake, I've decided to give you a complete family. You can be our housekeeper from now on, take care of the child and Jasmine."

I smiled. He didn't know I had been reborn.

This time, I wouldn't let them bully me.

I immediately called my current husband.

"There's a crazy man trying to take our son!"

My husband's voice was tense. "Send me your location. I want to see who's audacious enough to try that."

"Sarah, don't push your luck!"

Liam's face was a mask of oily impatience as he yanked open my car door, blocking me from closing it.

Beside him stood Jasmine, wearing a faded knock-off Chanel suit, yet holding herself stiffly, gazing at me with an expression of feigned pity.

"Sarah, Liam really had a hard time abroad these past three years. Don't make a scene. We're just trying to give Noah a complete family."

The company parking lot was busy. Many colleagues craned their necks, whispering and pointing at me.

Reborn, facing this scene again, my heart still throbbed with a familiar ache.

In my previous life, this was where they pushed me to my breaking point. I'd cried hysterically, clutching my son, becoming the laughingstock of the entire company.

Liam had publicly slapped me, calling me an ungrateful wretch who only held him back.

But this time, I wouldn't.

Noah, nestled in my arms, looked up. His tiny brows were furrowed tightly. He wasn't like most three-year-olds. His eyes held a calm beyond his years.

"Mommy, who are these people? They look so weird."

That innocent remark instantly drained the color from Liam and Jasmine's faces.

Liam glared at Noah, the greed in his eyes almost spilling over.

"I'm your dad! Look at you, so sharp, just like I was when I was little!"

He reached out to pinch Noah's cheek, but I quickly pulled him away.

I stared at him coldly, like a pathetic clown.

"Liam, have you forgotten what kind of child you abandoned three years ago?"

My voice wasn't loud, but it cut clearly into his ears.

"He was hooked up to tubes, doctors said he wouldn't live past three months, he even needed a machine to breathe."

"Now look at my son-healthy, lively, intelligent. When you abandoned him, did you ever think you deserved to be his father?"

Liam's expression froze. He clearly hadn't expected me to so calmly expose his past.

The chatter among my colleagues grew louder.

"Oh my god, Liam has a son? I thought he broke up with Sarah years ago to go abroad with Jasmine for further studies."

"That kid looks so smart, not at all like he was ever sick."

"Sarah is so strong, raising a child alone for three years. It must have been incredibly difficult."