To shield his childhood sweetheart
who committed murder, my
husband chose to divorce me.
Chapter 1
My world ended when Mom died.
It was Jason, with his constant care, who
pulled me back from the brink.
I clung to him like he was my only lifeline, so
when he proposed, I said yes without a
second thought.
Before I knew it, we were expecting.
But the joy didn’t last long, because disaster
struck again.
r
I miscarried.
Jason didn’t blame me, but I couldn’t shake
the guilt.
For a month after leaving the hospital, I was a
mess, until I accidentally overheard him
talking to a friend.
“Isn’t Lily coming back? The one who killed
someone back then? Aren’t you worried your
wife will find out something?”
“Ashley’s too dumb to figure anything out!”
“If it wasn’t to keep her quiet, so she wouldn’t
go after Lily, I’d never have married her!”
<
Learning the truth about my mother’s death.
felt like falling into a frozen lake.
Five years ago, when Mom was working as a
housekeeper for the He family, I met their
son, Jason, the first time I visited.
He fell for me hard, but I was too scared to
reciprocate for a whole year.
Just when we were getting somewhere, Mom
died.
They said it was an accident, a fall down the
stairs.
Losing her hit me so hard I was barely
functioning.
Jason stepped up, handled everything, and
L
Back then, his eyes were full of tenderness,
promising to take care of me forever.
So, I walked right into this charade he built to
protect Lily.
The meeting, the affection, the rescue…
It was all a lie.
I have to get out of here, away from Jason,
that monster!
Only by leaving can I avenge my mother!
In two minutes, I made my decision, and I was
pulling up the “Fake My Death” service page.
A customer service rep responded almost
Г
“Ms. Ashley, here is the final plan for your
fake death and cosmetic surgery package.”
“The fake death will be staged as a house fire
caused by faulty wiring. Please be at the
designated location in two weeks.”
Just then, Jason came in from the patio,
having finished his phone call.
He saw me standing in the living room and
paused.
“When did you get out here?”
I forced a smile, then dabbed at my red eyes.
“Just now. I was trying to put in eye drops,
but I kept messing it up. I was going to ask
He seemed relieved, and guided me to the
couch, me still weak from the miscarriage.
“Lily’s flying back the day after tomorrow. I
have to pick her up from the airport.”
Hearing Lily’s name made me freeze.
“Do you have to go?”
Jason looked annoyed.
“What? Are you gonna start controlling what I
do now?”
“The day after tomorrow is Mom’s memorial.”
I interrupted him, laying it all out there.
Maybe he felt guilty about Mom’s death.
く
Even after I miscarried and he stopped
pretending, he never missed her memorial.
“I’m sorry, I promised Lily.”
He looked away, avoiding my gaze, like he
really felt bad.
I didn’t say anything, and just got up and left.
Two days later, Jason, wanting to impress
Lily, sent the driver to the airport early.
By the time I got back from the cemetery,
riding three different buses, he’d already
brought Lily home.
“Ashley, five years, and you still look as
pathetic as your housekeeper mom.”
く
Looking at the woman who killed my mother,
my blood was boiling.
I glared at Lily.
“You may dress the part, but you have no
manners. I guess no one taught you any…”
“Slap!”
Before I could finish, Jason stormed over and
slapped me across the face.
“Ashley, what the hell are you saying! Lily’s
parents just died overseas, that’s why she’s
back. How can you say that to her!”
Jason’s voice was shaking with anger.
く
I just felt numb.
“What about me? Is she the only one who’s
lost someone?”
Jason froze, realizing how messed up that
sounded.
But he still chose Lily’s side.
Chapter 2
“Your mom’s been gone for ages. Lily’s
parents just died a month ago. It’s not the
same!”
“Besides, have some empathy! Why would
you bring up her pain? Apologize now!”
I couldn’t believe what I was hearing.
Г
He knew Lily was responsible for Mom’s
death, yet he was scolding me for snapping
at her.
His obsession with Lily had warped his sense
of right and wrong.
“If you want me to apologize, she can
apologize to my mother first.”
With that, I ignored their shocked faces and
stormed back to the bedroom.
I was shaking, and I couldn’t stop myself from
fantasizing about strangling Lily.
It wasn’t until Jason knocked on the door that
I finally calmed down.
“Why are you being so dramatic today
<
“Why are you being so dramatic today! Go
make dinner. Lily’s hungry!”
I couldn’t let Jason see anything was wrong,
so I forced myself to regain my composure.
But as I stepped out of the room, I overheard
Lily talking about my miscarriage.
“Jason, if Ashley knew you planned the
miscarriage, wouldn’t she be upset?”
“Upset? What can she do? She feels so guilty
about it! That’s why she puts up with
everything.”
Jason said dismissively, running his fingers
through Lily’s hair.
“Aren’t you going to have kids with her?”
く
“Someone like her? Just thinking about it
disgusts me. There’s no way I’m having kids
with her!”
Jason spat out the words with such venom
that I felt like my heart was being ripped
apart.
He knew how much I wanted that baby, my
own flesh and blood, especially after losing
Mom.
He acted so devastated when I miscarried.
But it was all an act.
I hated Jason already, and didn’t want
anything to do with him.
But that unborn child was also my baby. how
<
Jason’s hatred for me was so deep that he
didn’t even spare his own child.
Another debt was now between Jason and
- me.
The day after Lily moved in, she fired the
housekeeper, Mrs. Jones, saying I could do
the job myself.
Jason didn’t care, letting her do whatever she
wanted to torment me.
I gritted my teeth and endured, telling myself
it would all be over soon.
But my patience only made Lily worse.
One evening, while I was making dinner, Lily
く
strolled down from the second floor.
She waved a small wooden box at me.
It was my mother’s keepsake box.
I lunged for it, and in the scuffle, Lily accidentally bumped her arm.
