The moment I saw the diagnosis, my mind went blank. The doctor said I had late-stage colon cancer and needed immediate surgery, or I might only have a few months to live. “Colon cancer treatment is incredibly expensive. I advise you to start gathering funds as soon as possible.” The doctor’s words echoed in my ears, and hot tears streamed down my face. I was only thirty. So young. I didn’t want to die. I was still reeling when my husband, Kevin, called, pulling me out of my daze. “Sarah, do you know what time it is? My mom’s practically starving to death. Why aren’t you home cooking?” The moment I answered, his accusations came pouring out. “My mom already has a huge problem with you being infertile, and now that she’s finally here, can’t you at least be a good wife and take care of her?” “I have colon cancer,” I choked out, tears still flowing. “It’s late-stage. I’m dying.” But Kevin seemed not to hear me, continuing his relentless barrage. “Just get back here and cook for my mom! What’s this colon cancer nonsense? It’s not April Fool’s Day!” His harsh words shattered the fragile calm I’d finally managed to achieve. Sensing my uncontrollable sobs, his tone softened, as if he was explaining himself. “Honey, my mom was listening just now! I might have been a bit harsh, I’m sorry. I’m outside now, so don’t be mad. She’s my mom, after all. She’s getting old, and she just wants grandkids. It’s hard for me to defy her.” He paused, then continued. “Don’t worry, she’s leaving soon. Once she’s gone, I’ll make it up to you! I’ll take you out for a fancy dinner!” Kevin was usually incredibly cheap; he’d rather eat at home than ever go out. “No, that’s not it. I’m not lying.” I took a deep breath, trying to calm myself. “Kevin, the doctor just told me I have colon cancer. I might not have much time left.” After a brief silence, Kevin started asking for details. “Late-stage colon cancer. The doctor said I need surgery right away, or I might only have a few months to live.” I wiped away my tears and began to explain my plan. “I’m so scared. The doctor said it could be very expensive, so I plan to use all our savings for treatment.” 2 Kevin and I were college sweethearts. We’d been through a lot, on-again, off-again. Besides being a bit stingy, he seemed like a dream guy. When we got married, I told him I wanted to focus on my career before having kids, and he supported me for years, even facing pressure from his parents. That’s why, despite his mom constantly giving me a hard time, I still tried to appease her. But I never expected Kevin’s next response to send a chill down my spine. “Colon cancer, late-stage. Sarah, I just looked up colon cancer. That disease is incurable. No matter how much money you spend, it won’t get better. Why don’t you just give up on treatment?” “What did you say?” “Don’t blame me for being heartless. Colon cancer is incurable. Spending money on treatment will just leave us with nothing and you still gone. It’s better to give up early, leave the money for family, and everyone’s happy.” If I’d initially doubted if I’d misheard him, Kevin’s words now hit me like a sledgehammer. “Colon cancer, it’s a type of cancer. My colleague’s mom had stomach cancer, spent a million bucks, and died two months later. It left them broke, and now their kid can’t even afford tutoring.” “If you insist on treatment, then let’s just get a divorce now! I don’t want to go through all that treatment with you just to end up losing everything!” Coming back to reality, Kevin was still rambling, urging me to give up treatment. My heart completely died. When Kevin was sick before, I nursed him day and night until he recovered. And now… “Give up treatment? Leave the money for family? Everyone’s happy?” “I think you, you scumbag, just want my money! Everyone knows how cheap and selfish you are. How could I have been so blind, to only now see what a heartless jerk you are? I must have been crazy to choose you!” “Divorce? Fine, let’s do it! Right now!” After screaming, I furiously hung up the phone. My adoptive parents always favored my sister, Tiffany, so in my eyes, Kevin was my closest person. He’d always been so good to me. When we were dating, if I wanted a milkshake, he’d run all over town, rain or shine, to get it for me. When I was sick, he’d stay by my bedside day and night. Even now, with his mom constantly giving me a hard time about kids, he’d subtly support me. It wasn’t until I got home, and his mother, Karen’s, torrent of abuse washed over me, that I understood how flimsy Kevin’s “love” really was. “Sarah Evans, do you think you’re some heiress from a wealthy family? Not home till this late? I’m practically starving to death!” “A daughter-in-law who doesn’t respect her mother-in-law like you would have been divorced in my day. And after three years of marriage, you still won’t have kids! How could I have been so blind to let a jinx like you into my house?” I thought, given the bond Kevin and I shared from college through marriage, he’d comfort me and help me figure things out. But his reaction made me feel like a clown, ridiculed by everyone. 2 3 “You have hands and feet, can’t you cook for yourself? Besides, your darling son gets off work at five. Why don’t you make him cook for you?” Unlike my usual meekness, I flung my bag onto the sofa. “Sarah Evans, do you have any semblance of a wife? How dare you speak to your mother-in-law like that?” Kevin’s sister, Stacy, poked her head out of the kitchen, scolding me. “You haven’t forgotten the Williams Family Rules, have you? You’re supposed to speak to your mother-in-law softly. With that shrewish behavior just now, if my brother hadn’t insisted on you, I would have never agreed to let you in!” When I married Kevin, Stacy dragged me into an all-night lesson on the “Williams Family Rules.” In short, it was an ancient, patriarchal book. Everything from needing male heirs to speaking softly to your mother-in-law was covered. “You’re going to make yourselves a laughingstock, still spouting ‘Williams Family Rules’ after all these years! In modern times, people like you should just be laughed out of existence! Oh, wait, Stacy, you weren’t even around back then, were you?” I retorted, raising an eyebrow. “Sarah Evans, let’s get a divorce. You have colon cancer, and you don’t respect our family rules. Our humble home can’t accommodate such a great goddess like you.” Kevin walked out of the bedroom, speaking with a righteous air. He’d never openly defended me when his mom treated me badly. Instead, he’d tell me, “If I defended you in front of my mom, how heartbroken would she be? Honey, you’re in my heart, I stand with you.” Now, it seemed like typical manipulative BS. “Colon cancer?” Karen and Stacy blurted out in unison. Karen shot me a disgusted glance, then waved her hand dismissively. “Sarah, I always told you not to be so harsh with your words. You didn’t listen, and now look, you poisoned yourself right into colon cancer!” Stacy kept glancing at me, her eyes betraying undisguised contempt. “Sarah Evans, we’ve been married for three years. Let’s part amicably. The only joint asset is this house. After the divorce, I’ll take seventy percent, and you’ll take thirty.” Kevin exchanged a look with the two of them, and they immediately started smiling at me, as if hiding a bigger secret. I stared blankly at Kevin, unable to understand him. At our engagement party, I’d witnessed his family’s traditionalist views. But back then, I foolishly thought Kevin was different. In reality, people are products of their environment; it’s impossible to completely escape one’s upbringing. And Kevin, his surroundings had completely corrupted him. “Once the cooling-off period is over, we’re getting a divorce immediately!” I tossed out, then slammed the door. I’d barely walked a few steps when I got a call from the hospital. “Hello, Ms. Sarah Evans? We’re very sorry, but it was our intern’s first day. You actually don’t have colon cancer. It was a misdiagnosis. You have appendicitis.” 4 After hanging up, I felt like I was on an emotional rollercoaster. One moment, I was heartbroken that someone close to me had abandoned me. The next, I was overjoyed that fate had opened my eyes to the true nature of that scumbag. A jerk who abandons a woman will always do it again, or he never will. Instead of fantasizing about changing a scumbag, it’s better to cut him out of your life completely. Humming, I skipped all the way home. Even though my relationship with my adoptive parents wasn’t great, I still needed to tell them about the divorce. I didn’t expect them to look at me with suspicious eyes when I walked in. “Mom, Dad, I’m divorcing Kevin.” I didn’t mince words. The moment I spoke, Kevin walked out of the bedroom, supporting my sister, Tiffany. “Dad, why don’t I take Tiffany to her prenatal appointment? You and Mom are getting old, it’s not convenient. Besides, I’m about to marry…” Tiffany looked sweet and charming, leaning against Kevin with a radiant smile. If you didn’t know they were sister and brother-in-law, they’d look like a picture-perfect couple. I felt both amused and angry. Tiffany was already eagerly picking up my discarded trash? Seeing my displeasure, Tiffany pouted. “Sister, I’m pregnant with Kevin’s baby. And you’re practically half-dead from late-stage colon cancer. How could you give my brother-in-law a child? I’m just thinking about him!” She patted her not-yet-showing belly, her eyes never leaving me. I smiled, turning to look at my adoptive parents. “And you two? What do you think?” My adoptive parents couldn’t possibly have been unaware of Kevin and Tiffany’s affair. The only possibility was that they didn’t care about me. They didn’t care if this hurt me at all. They would only endlessly indulge their biological daughter. My adoptive dad scratched his head, looking clueless, but his words were anything but. “Sarah, you’re divorcing Kevin anyway. Who Kevin chooses to be with, that’s his freedom.” And my adoptive mom was even more blunt. “Sarah Evans, you’re late-stage colon cancer anyway, you’re going to die soon, so don’t bother your sister anymore!” I remembered how I worried they’d be heartbroken if I, their "black-haired child," died before them, their "white-haired parents." It felt so ironic now. “Sarah Evans, you should stay away from home in the future. Don’t bring bad luck to the baby in my belly. And don’t think Mom and Dad will pay for your treatment later. Getting colon cancer is what you deserve!” Tiffany rolled her eyes, indignant. But Kevin, beside her, whispered something in her ear. She immediately nodded, straightening up. “Sarah Evans, you need to sign a disownment agreement with us. From now on, your life, death, and old age have nothing to do with us. Don’t expect us to give you any money either!” My gaze moved between Kevin and Tiffany. Then, I smiled leisurely. A scumbag and a manipulative woman—they were perfect for each other, truly a match made in hell. “You’re committing infidelity, aren’t you? What do you think your colleagues and the judge will say about your reputation and your money?” I stared at Kevin with interest, then shifted my gaze to my adoptive parents. “As for disowning me, Mom and Dad, is that what you truly want?” My adoptive dad’s scalp tingled under my stare. He shuffled back a few steps, hiding behind my adoptive mom. My adoptive mom, meanwhile, puffed up like an old hen ready for a fight, her posture aggressive. “Sarah Evans, do you have no shame? You’re so young and you got colon cancer, and you haven’t even honored us yet, but you’re already thinking of spending all our money? How could I have an ungrateful daughter like you?!” “Fine, then. Let’s cut ties. From now on, we’ll have nothing to do with each other!” Even though I knew I wasn’t their biological daughter, hearing them abandon me because of a single sentence from Tiffany still made my heart ache. Bitterness, sadness, and sorrow mixed together, a bitter cocktail of emotions. Walking aimlessly down the street, I called the billionaire. “Sarah, your mom and I are coming to pick you up right away. Just stay put for a bit!”
? Continue the story here ?? ? Download the "MotoNovel" app ? search for "392509", and watch the full series ✨! #MotoNovel