Chapter 2

The moment I stepped out of the hospital's sliding glass doors, a sleek black town car screeched to a halt right in front of me.

The door flew open, and a woman dressed in an innocent white silk dress practically tumbled out, her face pale with worry.

Nicole.

She froze when she caught sight of me, then rushed forward with a look of frantic concern. "Serena! How is Mia doing? Julian called me in tears, saying there was a terrible accident."

I stared at the woman who had haunted my marriage for ten years.

Over the past decade, I had taken the fall for her mistakes more times than I could count. I had fought with Julian until my voice cracked, all because of her.

Looking at her fragile, porcelain face made my stomach turn.

"She won't die."

Leaving those three words behind, I moved to step around her.

Nicole suddenly reached out and clamped her fingers around my wrist, tears welling in her eyes.

"Serena, please! I know you’ve always misunderstood my connection with Julian, but Mia is what matters right now! Saving her life comes first! You're her mother—how could you possibly turn your back and leave?!"

She kept her voice low, but it carried effortlessly through the open plaza, perfectly pitched for the gathering crowd.

Her specialty had always been playing the gentle victim, framing words in a way that effortlessly turned everyone against me.

Sure enough, an elderly woman walking past stopped dead in her tracks, glaring at me with disgust. "What kind of mother are you? Your child is in the ICU, and you're storming off looking like a storm cloud?!"

Nicole quickly turned toward the woman, speaking in a breathless, pleading tone. "Ma'am, please don't say that! Serena... she has her reasons, I'm sure of it."

The more saintly and understanding she acted, the more monstrous I appeared.

Irritated beyond measure, I jerked my wrist out of her grip. "Get your hands off me. If you're so desperate to play mommy, go right ahead."

Nicole swayed theatrically, stumbling and dropping to her knees on the pavement as tears rolled down her cheeks. "I'm sorry, Serena... I didn't mean to upset you..."

Just then, Julian burst through the hospital entrance. The moment he saw Nicole crumpled on the concrete, he rushed forward and placed himself between us, shielding her completely.

He glared at me, his hand reaching out to grab my collar. "Serena! Have you lost your damn mind?! I signed your papers! Why are you still lashing out at her?!"

I sidestepped his reach, pulled my pistol from my coat, and leveled it straight between his eyes. "Touch me, and you'll find out what a bullet tastes like."

Julian's face flushed crimson, but he slowly raised both hands and took a cautious half-step back.

His mother hurried out behind him. The instant she spotted Nicole, it was as if she had found her savior. She fell to her knees and grabbed Nicole's hands tightly.

"My poor angel, thank God you're here! Go inside and save Mia! That heartless witch abandoned her! You're the only hope we have left!"

Nicole patted the older woman's shoulder soothingly, glancing up at Julian with a tearful expression. "Julian, please don't be too hard on Serena. I'm sure she didn't mean it..."

The three of them stood huddled together, looking for all the world like a real, devoted family.

And I was merely the venomous intruder, standing on the outside looking in.

Watching them, I realized my entire ten-year marriage had been an elaborate, sickening joke.

Without another word, I hailed a passing cab and slipped into the backseat.

As the car pulled away, I glanced into the rearview mirror. Julian was wrapping an arm around Nicole's shoulders, while his mother wiped away her tears.

When I got home, I immediately began packing my things.

I had purchased this penthouse under my own name before we married. Over the past decade, I tried to fill it with love and make it a home, but in the end, not an ounce of warmth remained.

That night, my phone rang. It was my mother. The second I swiped to answer, a barrage of vicious insults exploded through the speaker.

"Serena! Have you completely lost your mind?! Mia was in a devastating car crash, and you picked that exact moment to ambush Julian with divorce papers at the hospital?! You have humiliated our entire family!"

"Mom, listen to me—" I started, trying to explain.

"Don't you dare call me Mom! I didn't raise a cold-hearted demon!" her shrill voice barked. "Julian already called us! How could you stoop so low and exploit your own daughter's life just to blackmail him into a divorce?!"

I gripped the phone tightly, unable to get another word in.

"You get your ass to that hospital this instant! You apologize to Julian and tear up those divorce papers!"

The line went dead.

I looked at the black screen, feeling the last traces of warmth drain from my chest.

Ten years ago, when I gave birth, I nearly bled to death on the table.

Yet they all conveniently forgot who caused that hemorrhage in the first place.

I opened my messaging app, typed out a brief text, hit send, and set the phone aside.