It was the night of my company’s celebration dinner. Suddenly, a notification popped up in the family group chat. An unfamiliar cartoon avatar tagged my husband. “Dad, can I get some cash? I want to buy a new gaming console.” I froze. I checked again. Yes, this was my husband's immediate family chat group. Mark and I had been married for years. We had one daughter, Eleanor. Since when did we have another child? The message was quickly deleted, but I couldn’t just pretend it never happened. Before I could do anything, my husband called me. “Hey, can you believe this? One of my distant relatives’ kids tagged the wrong dad!” His voice was light, casual. I played along, agreeing that kids could be careless. But as soon as the dinner was over, I headed for the parking garage, already on the phone with a private investigator, asking him to look into the owner of that account. 1 The city lights blurred past the car window, but my thoughts were stuck on that single, deleted message. I’ve always been a suspicious person. My motto is, “Better to be safe than sorry, and never let anything slide.” On my social media feed, Mark had just posted an update: “Quality time with my girl, helping her with homework.” It was accompanied by a photo. In the picture, the living room was brightly lit. Eleanor was staring into the camera, her expression blank. On a whim, I zoomed in on the photo. And there, reflected in the dark pools of my daughter’s eyes, was the image of a woman and a young boy. I had never seen them before in my life. Two hours later, I pulled up to my in-laws’ house. It was the weekend, and Mark always took Eleanor to visit them. When I arrived, a strange woman opened the door. The smile on her face froze solid. Her reaction told me everything. I was right. She stammered, her words tumbling over each other. “I… I’m Melissa. I’m just here to visit Mr. and Mrs. Collins.” I didn’t answer. I pushed past her and walked inside. Mark’s voice floated from the living room. “Melissa, who is it?” Melissa, of course, didn’t dare to speak. After a moment of silence, Mark came to see for himself. He saw me standing there, travel-worn and grim, and the air in the hallway instantly became thick and suffocating. I pushed past him and entered the living room. My in-laws had been gathered around a little boy. When they saw me, they both shot to their feet. My mother-in-law’s knee hit the coffee table with a loud thud, but she forced a stiff, unnatural smile onto her face. “Oh, you’re here! Mark said you were busy with work tonight.” “I finished,” I said flatly. My gaze fell on my daughter. Eleanor was sitting alone in a corner of the sofa. The moment she saw me, her eyes welled up and she ran into my arms. “Mommy, you’re finally here.” I held her close, my heart aching. Eleanor was usually such a stoic child; she rarely showed her emotions like this. What had they put her through while I was gone? Melissa had positioned herself next to Mark, looking at me with a pitiful, wronged expression. Mark patted her shoulder reassuringly, then turned to me. “Have you eaten? I can heat something up for you.” “No, thanks.” I was in no mood to eat. My mother-in-law shot a look at her husband, tugging on his sleeve. My father-in-law cleared his throat and put on his sternest face to lecture me. “Look at you, coming in here with a long face, as if we owe you something.” I suddenly laughed. My eyes landed on Melissa. She was looking at me, her hands twisting the hem of her dress. She wore light makeup, a simple, conservative dress, and a knitted cardigan—a classic “good wife” look that was the polar opposite of my style. Mark subtly moved to block my view, reaching for my purse. “Why don’t you go wash up? I’ll get you a glass of warm milk.” I didn’t move. I just looked down at my daughter, who was still clinging to my waist, refusing to let go. Her eyes were red and puffy. She whispered, “Mommy, I want to go home.” “What’s wrong? Did someone bully you?” I stroked her hair, my heart twisting with pain. “I… I don’t like Leo,” she mumbled into my side. At the mention of his name, the little boy who had been engrossed in his video game looked up. That one glance sent a chill down my spine. The resemblance was uncanny. His eyes, his brow—he looked just like Mark. “This child…” My voice was calm, as if I still knew nothing. “He looks like a strong little guy.” The boy looked to be about seven or eight. His narrow eyes stared straight at me, and then he shouted at the top of his lungs, “Daddy, who is this lady? What is she doing in our house?” 2 The color drained from Mark’s face. Melissa frantically clapped a hand over the boy’s mouth, her fingertips trembling. “Kids say the darndest things, don't they… He’s always getting people mixed up.” “Is that so? He seemed pretty sure about that ‘Daddy’ part,” I said, my voice dripping with sarcasm. I led my daughter to the sofa and sat down. My mother-in-law immediately jumped in to smooth things over. “Oh, he’s just a child, he doesn't know any better. The other day, Mr. Henderson from downstairs came to visit, and he called him Daddy, too.” She pressed a freshly peeled orange into my hand. “Here, have some fruit. You must be tired from your trip.” I took it and thanked her politely. Seeing that I wasn’t pressing the issue, Mark visibly relaxed. He came up behind me, ready to give me his usual shoulder rub. I shifted, and his hands met empty air. He froze for a second before forcing a laugh. “This is Melissa, a distant relative. She’s had some trouble back home, so she’s staying with us for a few days…” “A relative?” I offered a segment of the orange to Eleanor. I laughed again, a cold, humorless sound. Mark was the golden boy who had clawed his way out of a poor village. After getting into university, he had cut off all contact with his impoverished relatives. What distant relatives could he possibly have? I voiced the thought aloud. “I don’t remember you having a distant relative named Melissa. Didn't you cut ties with all your family ages ago?” He faltered, his eyes darting away. “She’s… very distant. From my grandmother’s side.” I nodded thoughtfully. Very distant indeed. My in-laws exchanged a look, their eyes glinting with calculation. Suddenly, Melissa pulled Leo in front of me, her voice trembling on the verge of tears. “Sister-in-law, I know I shouldn't be bothering you, but I had no other choice. Leo is sick, he needs money, and I could only turn to Mark…” “Turn to him? To borrow money?” I glanced at her. “No, not… I mean, we’ll pay it back.” She was stumbling over her words. Mark couldn't stand seeing her so submissive and pleading. His jaw tightened. “That’s enough. Who pissed you off today?” I just smiled and stroked Eleanor’s hair. When I had hemorrhaged giving birth to her, Mark had been terrified, his face white as a sheet. He had sworn that for the rest of his life, he would only ever love the two of us. Promises, I thought. Only true in the moment they’re spoken. Mark grabbed Melissa’s arm. “Why don’t you take Leo to the guest room?” “Oh, don’t go,” I said, stopping them. My eyes were fixed on Leo's wrist. He was wearing a small gold bracelet. It looked exactly like the one I had given Eleanor for her birthday last year. The one that had mysteriously disappeared a few months ago. Now I knew where it had gone. Melissa instinctively pulled down Leo’s sleeve to cover it, a move that screamed guilt. “That bracelet looks just like Eleanor’s. What a coincidence,” I said, my voice sharp with irony. Eleanor burrowed deeper into my side. But Leo suddenly wrenched his arm free from his mother’s grasp and pointed at me. “You’re the bad lady who stole my daddy! This bracelet is mine! Everything in this house is mine! I’m not giving you anything!” “Leo!” Melissa shrieked, trying to cover his mouth again. Beads of sweat had formed on Mark’s forehead. My father-in-law slammed his hand on the table with a loud crack. “Sophia! Stop with the passive-aggressive act! It’s just a bracelet! Why are you being so confrontational? My son has provided for you, given you a life of luxury for years. What more could you possibly want? Don’t we, as his parents, have the right to decide what to do with a single gold bracelet?” 3 I didn’t fight with them that night. I didn’t want to scare my daughter. Mark drove me home. The car was silent. He knew I wasn’t easy to fool. The second the car stopped, he started his explanation, his voice laced with a deliberate, placating tone. “Honey, I didn’t handle things well today. My parents are getting old, don’t take what they said to heart. They’re just soft-hearted, they can’t bear to see a child suffer.” “Mm-hmm,” I replied calmly. My placid reaction seemed to surprise him. He clearly hadn't expected me to be so composed. But ultimately, he was relieved. In a corner of the car I couldn’t see, he secretly texted Melissa: [Don’t worry, she won’t find out. Leo is my son, I’ll take care of him.] I saw his little maneuver later that night when I reviewed the car’s security footage. So clever. Before she went to sleep, Eleanor told me something. “Mommy, the last few times Daddy took me to Grandma and Grandpa’s, he left with them and Leo and was gone for a long time.” “Is that so?” My heart clenched. “Yes. And Leo… he just transferred to my class. He’s always bullying me.” As she talked, I learned that my daughter was being tormented at school. She said Leo told the other kids that she had stolen his dad, that she was shameless. She had tried to explain, but no one believed her. She had told Mark about it. But Mark had simply told her that Leo was a good boy and wouldn't bully her. The bullying had made my daughter withdrawn and quiet. I traveled so much for business, I had been home very little these past few months. The time difference when I was abroad made it hard to even talk to her. I hugged my daughter tightly, overwhelmed with guilt. “I’m so sorry, baby. It won’t happen again.” I had thought that by working so hard to give her a head start in life, I was doing what was best for her. But I had completely neglected her emotional well-being. Just then, a message came in from the private investigator. “I found her. Melissa is the woman Mark married in a village ceremony ten years ago…” The more I read, the more my blood ran cold. So I was the other woman? The investigator added one last thing: “I also found that your husband has been making frequent visits to banks and real estate agencies recently. You might want to be careful.” “Okay, thank you for your hard work.” I held my daughter even tighter. In the darkness, my eyes narrowed. I can understand that people change. What I cannot accept is someone daring to plot against me and my daughter. After Eleanor was asleep, I got up and texted my lawyer. “I want to divorce Mark. And I want him to leave with nothing.” Two days later, Eleanor’s school was holding an arts festival. I got her excused for the day and took her to my parents’ house. Mark was visibly relieved. “A little break will do Eleanor good,” he said with a smile. “Oh, by the way, I have something to do later, so I’ll be back late. Don’t wait up for me.” “Okay,” I said, giving him a long, meaningful look. The moment he left, I followed him. As I suspected, he went straight to the school. A wave of hatred washed over me. He had always used the excuse of being too busy to attend any of Eleanor’s school events. But now, for Leo, he had all the time in the world. The auditorium was filled with parents. I put on a mask and found a seat. Before long, I saw Melissa and Leo sitting diagonally from me. She was staring at the stage, where Mark was speaking as a parent representative, her eyes shining with adoration. The principal smiled at Mark. “Mr. Collins, would you mind sharing some of your parenting wisdom with us? Leo has made incredible progress since he transferred here this semester. Could you tell us your secret?” I smirked. Leo’s dad, indeed. Mark smiled and raised the microphone. After a few pleasantries, he looked down at Leo in the audience, his eyes filled with pride. “It’s really not my doing. He’s a smart kid, just a little mischievous. I’m usually busy, but I try to spend as much time with him as I can…” The other parents nodded in approval. But then, a student suddenly shouted, “Whose dad are you, anyway?” 4 The auditorium fell silent. The smile on Mark’s face froze. The little boy, ignoring his parents’ attempts to shush him, stood up. “A few days ago, Eleanor showed me a picture of you and said you were her dad!” Gasps rippled through the crowd. The boy’s parents quickly covered his mouth, laughing nervously and saying he was just a child. The principal tried to smooth things over. “Are Eleanor and Leo siblings?” Mark was about to say yes, when Leo shot to his feet and yelled, “No! I’m not related to that selfish brat! Daddy is mine! She stole my daddy!” The room exploded. “What’s going on? Is Eleanor’s mom the other woman?” “That’s terrible! He’s two-timing them…” I couldn’t imagine how my daughter would feel if she heard this. Thank God she wasn’t here. Mark suddenly beckoned for Melissa and Leo to join him on stage. The three of them stood together, a perfect picture of a happy family. Mark put on a pained expression. “Teachers, parents… I’m ashamed to have to admit this. Sophia, Eleanor’s mother, and I divorced a long time ago. We’ve been living together for our daughter’s sake.” Sitting in the audience, my knuckles turned white. Mark put a protective arm around Melissa. “And Melissa… was my first love.” Their eyes met, sparks flying between them. If I wasn’t one of the parties involved, I might have actually found it romantic. Mark’s voice caught with emotion. “When I went away to college, she stayed behind to take care of my parents. I was always grateful to her. Later, I got the opportunity to study abroad, and we lost touch. I thought she had married someone else. But six months ago, I found out she had waited for me all these years… and that she had given birth to my son.” Melissa just stood there, her head bowed, silent tears streaming down her face. The murmurs in the crowd began to change. “Oh, so that’s the story. They’ve really been through a lot.” “It’s not really Mark’s fault, is it? If he was already divorced from Eleanor’s mom, there’s nothing wrong with getting back together with his first love.” Melissa chose that moment to look up, her eyes red and her voice choked with emotion. “Mark, don't say any more. If it wasn’t for Leo getting sick, I would never have come to bother you. I’m a woman, I understand. Even though you and Sophia are divorced, she wouldn't want me around. She must hate me…” She spoke with such noble restraint. Leo, with the uncanny intuition of a child, started shouting at Mark. “Daddy, don’t be with that bad lady anymore! The other day, she was secretly calling Mommy a gold-digging poor relative!” “Leo, stop it,” Melissa said, grabbing his arm. But her half-hearted attempt only made me look worse. Mark was overcome with protective sympathy. He promised them he would never let them be wronged again. I watched the tragic couple on stage, my stomach churning. When Mark was trying to marry me, he had never mentioned a word about Melissa. Now that he was successful, he suddenly remembered he had a long-lost love? A parent whispered, “That Eleanor’s mom always seemed so aggressive. I can’t believe she’d try to control her ex-husband’s life, too. She has no class.” “Yeah, it’s not like he cheated on her. They’re just rekindling an old flame. What business is it of hers?” Just then, I received a text from my lawyer. [It’s all taken care of. Mark’s illegal transfer of assets has been frozen, and the divorce petition has been filed…] I smiled and turned off my phone. Mark was in the middle of a huge project, planning to invest hundreds of millions. With his assets frozen, that project was dead in the water. Let the show begin. Amidst the noise, I took out the miniature megaphone I had prepared. “Since when am I divorced?”
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