Chapter 1

When she was finally certain that Luke Jefferson would never fall in love with her, Raine Stone asked for a divorce and left with Zach Jefferson, their son.

After the divorce, the usually aloof Luke abruptly started trying to win her heart back.

He was no longer as cold as before, and he started to beg for her forgiveness by blocking Raine’s path. During his breaks, he spent time with Zach and prepared all sorts of surprise gifts.

He even protected them and shielded them when a robber tried to stab them, leading to him spending some time close to death’s door.

As Zach begged for them to reunite, Raine finally felt her determination crumble and agreed to get remarried with Luke.

But right after getting remarried, she and Zach were on their way back home when they got into an accident.

They went through more than ten hours of treatment, and Raine came out of it with a kidney gone, while Zach lost his vision.

On the second day of the accident, when Raine and her son were taken past the doctor’s office, she heard a shocking secret.

Chapter 1

“Mr. Jefferson’s staged accident was foolproof. Not even the police found anything wrong with it.”

“Yes. I heard that he staged it because his first love and her son got into an accident. One of them had damaged kidneys and needs a kidney transplant, while the other got his eyes damaged and needs a cornea transplant.

“Only Miss Stone and her son are a match, so Mr. Jefferson asked for a remarriage so that he could sign the donation consent form as their family member. Then, he could get Miss Stone’s kidney and the son’s cornea over. He really loves Miss Lane.”

“Miss Stone is a pitiful soul too. She’s still being kept in the dark, along with her son. She doesn’t even know that Mr. Jefferson is currently keeping Miss Lane in 304.”

Raine felt her blood run cold.

She could not believe it. Luke… had staged that accident?

He had asked for a remarriage for another goal?

She stumbled and pressed a hand against the wall for support before heading for the ward the doctors mentioned.

The door was not shut, and she heard familiar voices from within.

“Luke, you should see Raine and your son.” Helen Lane’s voice was as gentle as a breeze. “No matter what, she’s your wife, and Zach… is your son.”

“No need for that. They’re useless now.” Luke’s voice was terrifyingly cold.

Raine’s breathing stilled.

“I’ll protect them for life to make it up to them.” Then, after a brief pause, his voice gained a hint of gentleness.

“But that’s all. You know that I love you, Helen.”

Helen sighed. “But no matter what, Zach is—”

“I love you and everything associated with you. Your son is more important than he is,” Luke interrupted her and stated firmly.

Raine covered her mouth as her tears spilled down her cheeks.

She had always known that Luke never loved her, but she never expected that he would be cruel toward his own son too.

Luke was childhood friends with Helen.

He was regal and prideful, while she was gentle. Everyone said that they were a match made in heaven.

Meanwhile, Raine was just Luke’s personal assistant.

Over the years, she saw how much he loved and treasured Helen.

He would light up fireworks for her in the city for three days and nights and name all the brands under the company after her name. He would even spend an exorbitant amount of money during an auction to buy all the jewelry there to make her happy.

He loved her to bits.

Unfortunately for him, Helen loved someone else and rejected him before leaving with her first love to get married abroad.

When that happened, Luke spent every day drunk. One time, he mistook Raine for Helen after drinking and slept with her.

After that night, Raine got pregnant. Upon learning about that, Martha, Luke’s mother, immediately had them get married.

During the five years of their marriage, he never looked Raine in the eye.

On the day Zach was born, Luke did not even go into the delivery room.

He even refused to let Zach refer to him as his father.

When Raine asked for a divorce after becoming thoroughly disappointed, Luke suddenly changed.

He started trying to win over her heart and nearly died from a stab wound in order to save her.

As he held her and Zach, he had said softly to them for the first time ever, “I love you. Please forgive me.”

Zach had been so happy that he could sleep the entire night and hugged her neck as he whispered, “Mom, Dad said that he loves us. Why don’t we forgive him?”

She relented, because she really thought that his feelings had changed.

But it had all been lies.

He had only married her again in order to stage the accident so that he could legally remove her kidney and Zach’s corneas.

Zach had arrived beside her, and he started trembling violently.

He had heard it too!

“Mom… Did Dad really take my corneas?” Zach asked with a choked-up voice.

That question stabbed into Raine’s heart like needles.

She remembered the day of the accident. Luke had carried the blood-drenched Zach into the hospital while crying at the top of his lungs.

She could also recall the sight of him pleading for the doctors to save his eyes.

It had all been an act!

Raine could no longer control herself. She picked Zach up and ran into the emergency stairwell before she cried like a baby in the darkness.

“Zach, that’s not your father. He won’t ever be your father again. I’ll leave with you, far, far away. Let’s get new identities and start anew, just like the superhero movies you love.

“We’ll make sure that Luke can’t find us again, okay?”

Zach hugged her neck tightly as he continued trembling. “Could superheroes… get new eyes?”

Raine’s tears fell on Zach’s crown. “Yes. I swear that I’ll make you see again.”

As she looked out the window, a crazed plan formed in her heart.

Since he loved Helen so much, then she was going to make him watch as both she and Zach “died” at her hands.

Chapter 2

After returning to the ward, Raine took out her phone and made a call to Fake Death Services so that they could get two corpses ready.

When they asked her when she wanted them, Raine flipped through the calendar. The moment she saw Zach’s birthday marked on the calendar, she said, “On the 19th of April, twenty days from now.”

The night before, Luke had promised to throw a birthday party for Zach to celebrate him turning five.

If that were the case, then she was going to die with Zach during the grand party.

Once she had everything settled, Raine calmed her heart and regained her rationality.

Luke never showed up again. He only sent his secretary over to say that he had contacted ophthalmologists to see whether they could help Zach see again.

Both Raine and Zach knew that it was just another lie. After all, he had remained in Helen’s ward and never left.

On the day she was supposed to be discharged, Raine got the paperwork ready, and Luke showed up, much to her surprise.

He held a bouquet of flowers and a toy racecar while saying that these were gifts for them.

He thought that they would accept them happily, but their reactions were cold.

“I’m allergic to pollen and can’t touch fresh flowers.”

“I can’t see anymore. I don’t need racecars again.”

Luke’s hands froze midair.

“I wasn’t being considerate enough and picked the wrong gifts. I’ll have my secretary prepare them again. What do you like?

“Jewelry or transformers? What about the newest Hermes handbags?

“Chocolates? Snacks?”

While on the way back, he listed many things, as if he really wanted to make it up to them, but Raine knew that everything he said was things that Helen and her son liked. She often saw Helen posting those gifts on her Instagram.

Despite being married for five years, Luke did not know what his wife and son liked but still pretended to be a good husband and father.

Raine had no desire to keep up the act with him. “We don’t need anything. Just tell us what you want.”

Luke had not been expecting her to react that way and was stunned.

After staying silent for a few seconds, he said, “It’s nothing big. Helen got a divorce and came back with her son.

“She can’t find a place to stay for the time being, and I’ve let them move into our house for a while. They’ll move out next month.”

So, all those gifts were in preparation for this.

Raine sneered mockingly.

He had already brought them back? Why bother asking for their opinion, then?

As she stared at the villa right before her, she grunted and said nothing else.

Upon seeing her agree, the last bit of worry in Luke’s heart vanished.

He opened the car door and walked over to Helen with a gentle expression on his face. When John, Helen’s son, ran over to him, he smiled and hugged him.

The three of them laughed and talked as they walked into the villa, and they looked like a happy family of three.

After she went in with Zach, Raine saw Helen wiping sweat off of John’s brow with a napkin while she grumbled, “You’re covered in sweat because of all that soccer you’ve been playing.”

Luke simply patted John’s hair affectionately. “Children should be livelier.”

John puffed his chest out and said smugly, “Luke’s right. It’s better for me to go out and play instead of staying at home all the time like a certain blind idiot.”

Upon hearing that, Zach ducked his head and teared up.

Raine’s heart ached, and she covered Zach’s ears as her eyes shone with pity.

Then, she picked Zach up and prepared to leave, but Helen called out to her.

“Miss Stone, Luke should have told you about me and John staying here for the time being. I know that you and Zach got hurt during the accident.

“Don’t worry. I’ll keep an eye out on John so that he doesn’t disturb your rest and give you trouble.”

Even so, she could not hide the smugness in her voice. It made Raine’s heart clench, and she struggled to breathe.

She did not want to say even a single thing and ducked her head to suppress all her rage and despair.

As she headed upstairs, she heard Luke speaking gently.

“Helen, this is you and John’s home. To me, they’re the outsiders. You don’t need to care about them.”

The bedroom door slammed shut.

Raine had spent all her strength at that point and slumped down on the floor with Zach in her arms.

As she clenched her aching heart, she could not stop her tears from falling.

Chapter 3

After putting Zach to sleep, Raine went downstairs to get the medicine the doctors had prescribed for her.

But the very moment she reached the first floor, a marble hit her head, and a bump instantly formed.

She hissed in pain and saw John standing on the second floor while throwing things downstairs.

He threw cups, music boxes, and toy cars at her until her body was covered in bruises. It hurt so much that she winced and covered her head as she squatted down.

“What are you doing?!”

When he saw how pathetic she looked, John tilted his head up and said smugly.

“Having fun. You’re the stupid one for not knowing how to dodge. If you get hurt, it’s because you deserve it!”

Raine whipped her head up in shock, and her voice was filled with rage.

“Hasn’t your mother taught you not to throw things at people?”

John huffed and was about to shoot a snide comment back, but he heard footsteps fast approaching behind him.

He immediately forced himself to cry and threw himself into Luke’s arms.

“Luke, I accidentally hit Raine, and she yelled at me!”

Luke’s expression instantly turned sour.

“John was just joking with you. Did you really have to blow this out of proportion and pick on a kid?”

As she listened to him yell at her, she covered her bleeding head and found the situation ridiculous. “He’s the reason why I’m covered in wounds right now, and you think I’m bullying him?”

Luke turned around and saw the wounds on her body. He frowned.

When he spoke next, his tone was gentler, but he was still siding with John.

“He didn’t do it on purpose. Those are just minor wounds, anyway. Put some ointment on them and stop kicking up a fuss about it.”

He then leaned down to wipe away John’s tears before bringing him back into his room.

As she watched the door shut, Raine gritted her teeth and clenched her fists.

After taking a few deep breaths, she was finally able to suppress her raging emotions. Once she grabbed her medicine, she went into the kitchen.

She made sure she got the exact dosage right and was just about to go upstairs when she heard a loud sound outside, followed by loud cries.

That sounded like trouble. Raine’s eyelids twitched.

She rushed out of the kitchen and saw that John had come down again. He had fallen in the living room and was crying nonstop.

Zach was clutching the railing tightly. His tear-stricken face was full of panic as he kept calling out to her.

In the next second, Helen ran out while shouting in panic and shoved Zach down the stairs.

Raine could not stop her in time and could only watch as Zach fell from the stairs and started bleeding from the forehead.

“Zach!”

Blood gushed out and stained the floor and Raine’s hands red.

She picked up her unconscious son and was overwhelmed with panic. Her voice was filled with helplessness and anguish.

“Call the ambulance! I’m right here, Zach, wake up!”

Luke had rushed over, but before he could figure out what had happened, John started accusing Zach.

“Luke, Zach woke up, and I tried helping him down the stairs, but he pushed me down! It hurts so much!”

Helen also started crying as she turned to Raine.

“Raine, if you don’t like us here, just say so. Why did you tell your son to hurt mine? You’re a mother too.

“How could you be so cruel?”

Helen and John’s complaints caused anger to burn in Luke’s heart. When he looked at Raine, his expression was dark as a thundercloud.

“Is this how you raised your son, Raine? I brought Helen and John back. If you don’t like it, then get angry at me.

“Don’t pick on a five-year-old!”

Raine applied pressure to Zach’s bleeding wound and felt her heart shatter at Luke’s accusations.

With teary eyes, she turned to Luke and yelled at him hysterically.

“Zach can’t see, so how could he push someone down the stairs?!

“You didn’t see it happen, so why are you pushing all the blame on your own son?! You refused to listen to your own son, and you won’t even check the security cameras!”

Luke was furious at that point and thought that Raine was being unreasonable, so he became even angrier.

“That’s enough! John is only five. Why would he lie?! The truth is stronger than any explanation you can give.

“I don’t want to listen to your stupid excuses anymore! Since you can’t teach him well, I will!”

He then snapped at the butler. “Since Zach injured our guest, whip him twenty times!”

Upon hearing that, Raine was stunned and looked up in disbelief.

“Zach is already so grievously injured! Are you still planning to hit him? Have you forgotten that he’s your son?!”

“He messed up, and he should be punished for that. Even if he’s my son, I won’t tolerate this!”

Chapter 4

Upon hearing his cold words, Raine’s heart plunged into the depths.

She hugged Zach tightly as she watched the butler unroll the whip and snap it.

“No!”

She trembled and bent down to use her body to shield the attack.

The loud snap of the whip kept echoing in the villa. It hurt so much that Raine spasmed, but she refused to step away from Zach.

Her clothes were torn to shreds, and terrifyingly red gashes were left all over her body.

Even so, she bit down on her lips tight. She could taste blood in her mouth, and she groaned in pain.

Blood dripped down, and her vision started turning black.

When the final whip landed, she had spent all her strength and collapsed on the floor.

Before she fainted, the last thing she saw was Luke picking up John and leaving with Helen.

After an unknown amount of time passed, Raine opened her eyes and saw the snow-white ceiling in the hospital.

When she remembered what had happened before she fainted, her mind instantly cleared, and she grabbed a nurse’s hand.

“Where’s my son? Is he okay?”

“Your son’s fine. He’s simply resting from exhaustion. You’re covered in wounds, though. It’s better if you lay down and rest.”

Raine forced her way to her son while enduring the pain. She had heard him calling out to her in her dreams, and her heart was filled with anguish.

As she held Zach’s hand, her voice was filled with regret.

“Zach, I failed to protect you properly, and that’s why you got so badly hurt. I promise that I won’t let you get hurt like this anymore. I’ll definitely leave with you.”

At that moment, Luke walked in with a stormy look on his face.

“Leave? Do you intend to get a divorce again? Zach is blind and young.

“You should be more considerate to him and behave. Stop throwing a tantrum.”

He spoke in such a matter-of-fact manner that anger burned in Raine’s heart.

While staring at Zach’s forehead wound and remembering his blinded eyes, she found the entire situation ridiculous.

She wanted to shoot a snide remark back and ask him exactly who was the culprit behind Zach’s condition.

The words were already at the tip of her tongue, but she simply swallowed it.

If he learned that they knew the truth, he was not going to let them leave so easily.

Besides, as long as Helen was still around, both Raine and Zach would keep getting bullied. They would never get the opportunity to see better days.

Hence, for the sake of Zach’s future, Raine could only suppress her rage. “Of course, I know what Zach needs right now. I don’t intend to get a divorce.”

Of course, she did not mention that she planned to turn him into a widower and also lose his son.

Luke did not think much of her words. When he saw the stained gauze on her back, his voice turned gentler.

“It’s good that you know. Since I promised to take care of you two for life, I won’t go back on my word.”

But Raine knew that no matter what he said, he would forever be biased toward Helen and John.

That was why she simply treated his words as a gust of wind and never responded.

Luke thought that she had heard him and left after putting down the ointment in his hands. “This ointment is for external injuries. Remember to put it on Zach every day so that he doesn’t get a scar.”

After watching him leave, a bitter smile rose on Raine’s lips.

Physical wounds would slowly heal, but what about the wounds of the heart?

Having lost his sight, Zach’s entire life had been ruined. How was anyone supposed to make it up for that?

No one could answer those questions.

Luke never visited again over the course of the next few days.

The nurse who came for the rounds would occasionally tell Raine hospital gossip, though.

“I heard that the one who booked the VIP ward is the president of Jefferson Corporation. His son is pretty handsome, but he’s a handful.

“He sticks to his father every day and asks for stories and racecars. He even wants to be fed.

“Somehow, his father agrees to his every request.

“The boy’s mother is pretty and gentle too. It’s no wonder why she managed to have Mr. Jefferson’s heart so tightly in her hands.

“I heard that Mr. Jefferson would immediately leave to buy whatever snack or jewelry she wants. He dotes on her so much.”

Raine simply listened quietly. She felt nothing.

She simply tucked the sleeping Zach in and tiptoed out of the ward to grab his medicine.

Since she was worried that something would happen to her, she ran all the way to the pharmacy and back. She even ended up panting from it.

Yet at the moment she reached the door, she heard Zach crying.

Raine’s heart sank. She shoved the door open to see John holding an IV needle while stabbing Zach’s hand until it was a bloody mess.

Her mind went blank, and she lost all her rationality. She rushed over and slapped John before shoving him away.

Then, she hugged Zach and wiped away the blood on his hands as her heart ached with pity and regret.

Zach’s cries filled the corridor. The noise quickly lured Luke and Helen over.

When he saw them, John cried and ran over to accuse them of bullying him. “Luke, Mom, I was playing with Zach, but after Raine saw us, she slapped me!”

Luke pulled a long face, and he glared at Raine.

Without even bothering to think, he called the bodyguards over and said coldly, “I’ve already warned you last time.

“Since you refuse to listen, I’m going to teach you a lesson. Since you dared hit a child, you’ll get what you did to him back tenfold!”

Chapter 5

After getting their orders, the bodyguards yanked Raine up and pinned her against the wall.

She glared at Luke with indignance and sorrow as she tried her best to defend herself.

“I only hit him because he stabbed Zach’s hand while I wasn’t around! Look at all the wounds on his hand—”

Slap!

The loud smack interrupted Raine’s words.

Pain coursed through her body, and half her face instantly became swollen. A trail of blood flowed down the corner of her mouth.

The bodyguard hitting her used all his strength and slapped her left cheek as well.

The slaps kept coming, and the burning pain was like a raging sea crashing into her body.

When the bodyguards were done and let go, Raine fell on the floor, seeing stars.

She was in such pain that she practically could not breathe, but she still crawled over to Zach, who had started crying from fright. She spoke to him in a hoarse, broken voice and held his hand gently.

“Don’t be scared, Zach. I’m here. I’ll protect you.”

Luke watched the scene coldly. When he turned to Helen again, his gaze turned gentle. He wiped away her tears and bent down to pick up the sobbing John as he comforted Helen gently.

“Don’t be scared, Helen. As long as I’m here, you won’t suffer.”

Helen held his hand and looked at Raine as she put on a very deliberate sympathetic expression.

“I don’t mind going through a bit of hardship with John, but Zach lost his sight at such a young age, and he’s already so pitiful.

“But Raine isn’t teaching him properly. I pity him as a mother too. Luke, you’re his father. You should be telling Raine to exercise tact when she speaks and acts.

“She can’t be a bad influence on Zach.”

Upon hearing her words and remembering all the recent events, he stared at Raine holding Zach tightly, he said coldly, “Helen is right. With you around, Zach’s life will be ruined.

“Since you can’t be a good mother, stay away from Zach. From today onwards, I’ll take care of him.

“Reflect on your actions in the basement. Once you’ve reflected upon yourself, I’ll let you out.”

Then, Luke told the bodyguards to grab Zach so that he could take the boy with him.

The moment Raine heard that, she regained a bit of clarity in her mind.

She opened her bloodshot eyes wide and did her best to shield Zach.

She was already on the verge of a mental breakdown, so when she spoke, her voice was full of anguish and determination. “You’re not taking Zach with you! He’s my son!

“You’ve never allowed him to call you his father, and he has never acknowledged you as his father! You have no right to teach him, much less take him from me!”

Her accusations made Luke’s expression even darker as he burned in anger.

“He’s a Jefferson, and half my blood flows in his veins. How could I not have the right to teach him? Raine, you’ve gone mad with jealousy!”

While he snapped at her, he motioned the bodyguards to get on with it.

As they tried pulling her away, Raine felt as if her arms were about to be dislocated, and her body was soon covered in bruises.

When the bodyguards saw that she would rather die than let go, they exchanged glances and went to pull Zach.

He could not see anything and kept crying out that he did not want to leave Raine. He raised his thin arms up to fight back.

But he was no match for the adults.

As she watched her son taken away, Raine felt as if her heart had been cut into shreds, and grief filled her every being.

Tears flowed out of her eyes and spilled on her bloody wounds as she kept begging.

“I’m sorry! I’m wrong! Please give Zach back to me!

“He’s my life! I can’t live without him! Please!”

But Luke did not relent. He did not even spare her a single glance and simply left with the crying Zach.

The bodyguards picked up the disheveled, pathetic Raine, dragged her into the car, and brought her back into the villa’s basement.

She could only watch as the door fell shut before her, and she hugged herself feebly. But there was nothing in her arms.

All she could do was bawl in despair and grief. Her cries echoed in the endless darkness without end.

Chapter 6

Time crawled by. At some point, Raine could no longer make any sound, and it became increasingly hard for her to cling to consciousness.

It hurt. A deep sense of weakness filled her body, and her tears ran dry.

She wanted to desperately run away and learn about how Zach was, but she could only remain trapped in the dark basement to suffer.

An unknown amount of time passed, and Raine heard footsteps. She snapped awake.

The butler opened the door to the basement. She lunged at him like she had just seen her savior. Her hoarse voice was filled with helplessness and fear.

“Where’s Zach? How has he been over the past few days? Has he been bullied?

“Is he hurt? Is he crying because he misses me?”

The sight of her haggard face made the butler pity her, and he said haltingly, “You know that Mr. Jefferson is busy, Mrs. Jefferson.

“Miss Lane is the one who has been taking care of Mr. Zach.

“She does nothing wrong on the surface, but Mr. John often bullies Mr. Zach on the pretense of harmless roughhousing.

“Over the past few days, Mr. Zach has been burnt intentionally while eating. When he’s at home, Mr. John trips him and causes him to be covered in wounds. He has also been locked out on the balcony and was exposed to the cold for the entire night.”

When she heard that her son had been tormented for days, Raine’s heart bled.

She pushed her weak body up to leave, but the butler stopped her. “Mrs. Jefferson, the kindergarten had an outing today.

“Miss Lane brought Mr. John to it and dragged Mr. Zach as well. She refused to listen to us no matter what we said.

“She came back half an hour ago, but we didn’t see Mr. John. We were worried that something had happened and came to tell you.”

The news struck Raine like a nuclear bomb.

She trembled violently, and her already pale face became entirely bloodless.

She rushed out and wanted to look for Luke, but the moment she reached the living room, she saw Helen sitting on the couch.

Raine lost her composure as she glared at her.

“Where did you leave my son?”

Helen cast her a glance and said nonchalantly, “Your son wandered off on his own during the outing, and John sprained his ankle. I was in a hurry to come back and treat him, so I didn’t care where Zach went.

“Since you’re so worried about him, slap yourself thirty times. If I’m in a good mood, I’ll tell you which mountain your son went to.”

The smug look on Helen’s face made it clear to Raine that Helen was trying to humiliate her.

But as she remembered the fact that her five-year-old son was blind and alone in the mountains, she was filled with so much anxiety that she did not care about her dignity.

Raine started slapping herself without hesitation as she begged. “I’ll do it. Please just tell me where Zach is!”

The sight of her swollen face and her meek, pathetic behavior satisfied Helen, and she told Raine the address.

Raine scrambled out the door, dashed out, and hailed a cab.

When she reached the mountain, the sun was already setting. Since it was spring, the mountain was covered in lush trees and flowering plants, so she had to search for Zach alone in such an environment.

On the way, she fell plenty of times, and it hurt so much that it felt like all her bones had been broken.

But she did not dare to slow down. While enduring the pain, she kept searching and crying out for Zach’s name.

As the sky turned darker, her fear and despair grew.

Just as she was about to collapse, she heard someone crying, and she followed his cries until she found Zach.

He was sitting by the cliff, and he was just a few steps away from falling a few hundred yards down. At any moment, he could fall.

When she saw this, Raine felt her heart freeze to a stop.

While her nerves were stretched taut, she picked Zach up and brought him to a safe area. By then, her entire body was drenched in sweat.

Zach was crying so hard that his face was flushed red.

“Mom, I just knew you’d save me. I don’t want to stay away from you again. When are we leaving?”

Chapter 7

When she heard Zach’s pleas, Raine’s heart twisted in so much pain that she felt like she was about to die. As she held onto Zach after reuniting with him, she started crying as well.

“Soon, Zach. I’ll leave this place with you very soon and go to a place no one can find. Then, no one could ever hurt you again.”

After successfully calming Zach down, Raine walked another three hours to carry him down.

Her feet were covered in blood and blisters. The leaves had left sharp cuts on her body, and her face was swollen. She looked like she was about to faint in the next second.

Yet, through sheer force of will, she brought Zach back.

When she opened the door to the villa, Raine saw Luke having dinner with Helen and John.

He was peeling shrimp for them and adding seasoning. As he fed the shrimp to Helen, he would patiently pick all the onions and garlic out of it while also coaxing the picky John to eat.

He did not mind the partially eaten snacks Helen and John gave him either. He just ate them all with a smile.

The exhausted and starving Raine watched the three of them act like a happy little family, but her gaze was cold and empty.

She said nothing and wanted to return to her room silently, but Luke snapped at her.

“Didn’t I tell you to stay away from Zach? Where did you take him this time? Why has he ended up this way?”

The audacity of his lecture made all her long-suppressed emotions erupt like a volcano.

“Are you seriously telling me you don’t know whether it’s you or me who caused all those accidents and all these wounds on Zach? He can no longer see, and you still let John burn and trip him!

“When he was left alone on the cliff, no one cared to look for him! If I hadn’t gone and looked, he might not have even made it through the night! You don’t even care about him, so why are you lecturing me?!”

As he listened to her tearful complaints, Luke was stunned. Then, he saw the new wounds on Zach, and he frowned. Just as he was about to say something, Helen mournfully took over the conversation.

“John is young and lively. That’s why he went too far and got Zach hurt, but he didn’t do it on purpose.

“He saw that Zach was alone and wanted to make him happy. When we went on the outing today, he picked flowers for Zach and even twisted his ankle.

“I was just too worried and forgot about Zach.”

With just a few words, she managed to brush the matter over.

Just as Raine expected, Helen managed to catch all of his attention with her words. He leaned down to check John’s injury, and pity rose on his face.

“Why didn’t you tell me that John was hurt? How’s the injury? Does it hurt?

“Let’s go to the hospital now, or I’m going to worry.”

As he fussed over him, he picked up John to hurry to the hospital. He was clearly worried.

After watching him leave, Raine looked down at the exhausted, injured Zach, and her nose stung.

While enduring the pain, Raine took Zach back to his bedroom and carefully treated his wounds.

Even while sleeping, Zach kept calling out to her.

Raine simply patted his back gently. Her eyes shone with tears, and there was only one thought left in her mind: Let time pass faster.

She just wanted it all to end sooner and disappear forever.

Over the next few days, Luke and Helen never returned.

None of that mattered to Raine. While she took care of Zach, she started getting ready to leave.

She split up the assets she got from the first divorce into several batches to donate to poor mountain villages. Then, she left a portion to an account no one else but her knew, so that it could serve as future living expenses for her and Zach.

Aside from that, she also made copies of Zach’s medical report to make his future treatments easier.

Then, she deleted all her posts on social media and all her call records. She left no traces behind.

Chapter 8

By the time she was done, Zach’s birthday arrived.

Raine woke up early that day, put on makeup, put Zach in new clothes, and went to the kitchen to cook him his favorite foods.

He finished everything happily and held Raine’s hand. “Mom, after we leave today, we don’t have to come back anymore, right?”

Raine held his hand and walked out of the villa. When she spoke, there was no hint of lingering affection for the place.

“Yes. We’ll have a new house, and I’ll stay with you for the rest of my life.”

…

Zach’s birthday was to be held on a cruise ship.

Raine boarded the ship with Zach. The ocean breeze blew directly at their faces and ruffled their hair.

As she stared at the boundless ocean, she remembered that Zach loved playing by the beach while he could still see.

He had been envious of other kids his age, because they had their fathers with them to pick up shells, play with them in the sand, and swim with them.

But Zach had always been sensible and never kicked up a fuss. Instead, he would comfort Raine as her heart ached for him.

“They have their dads with them, but I have the best mom with me. I’m much happier than they are!”

When she remembered all the things that happened in the past, a flicker of emotion appeared in Raine’s eyes, and she went into the banquet hall.

Since Luke was the one who had invited the guests, all those who received the invitations showed up.

The guests were gathered together and toasted each other. When they saw Raine and Zach, they only gave them polite nods and never said anything else.

It was an open secret among their circle that Luke did not like Raine and Zach.

She also knew that they were not really here to celebrate his father. Instead, they were here for Luke’s sake and wanted to form closer ties with him.

That was why she remained calm in the face of them ignoring her and giving her the cold shoulder.

The sky slowly turned dark, but Luke never showed up, and the guests’ frustration grew so thick that it filled the entire hall.

Many people lost their patience and went up to her to ask when he was going to arrive.

“He should be busy and will be here later.”

But even after waiting until it was 8 p.m. and the party was about to end, Luke still had not arrived.

The guests seethed and did not want to stay any longer. They started leaving while discussing among themselves.

“I just knew that we’d end up wasting our time coming here. Mr. Jefferson doesn’t care about this son at all. Why would he show up? I wasted my entire night here!”

“Didn’t you hear? Mr. Jefferson has been spending all his time with Miss Lane lately. How could he remember his blind son? His mood would be ruined just looking at the woman and the boy. Why would he celebrate his birthday?”

“That’s right. One’s poor, and the other is blind. Those two are going to end up getting chased out at some point. Miss Lane will end up marrying Mr. Jefferson in the end!”

Raine was already used to all those mocking words after years of being married to Luke.

She did not pay it any mind and simply covered Zach’s ears.

Once all the guests left, she brought Zach to the cake and sang Happy Birthday to him.

While smiling, Zach blew the candles out. Just as he was about to make his wish, they heard a familiar voice at the door.

“Sorry, John had a parent-teacher meeting today, and Luke went with me to the kindergarten. That’s why we’re late. We didn’t delay Zach’s birthday, did we?”

Raine turned and saw Luke walking in while holding John’s hand.

The sight of Helen’s smug face made Raine lower her gaze, and she answered calmly, “You’re not. I’m glad you’re here.”

When he saw that she was not complaining today, Luke handed over Zach’s birthday present, and his voice was much gentler than usual, “Happy Birthday, Zach.”

It was his first birthday present to Zach.

But neither Raine nor Zach took it. Luke was slightly stunned, and his gaze changed.

He kept his hand hanging for a good long while. When his patience almost ran out, John ran over and knocked the present down.

With a loud crash, the stone carving in the box fell on the floor and shattered to pieces.

Luke’s gaze froze for a moment, and Helen quickly voiced a completely insincere apology.

“Oh my, why are you so careless, John? You ruined Zach’s present again!

“Sorry, Zach, I’ll get a new present for you tomorrow. Don’t be sad, okay?”

Chapter 9

When he heard the loud clatter, Zach already knew what had happened.

He tightened his hold over Raine’s hand and shook his head. Despite still sounding so young, his voice was firm.

“No need. I don’t need that present. I won’t be spending my birthdays with any of you anymore either.”

Luke found the words strange, and he thought that there was something off with them.

Just as he was about to ask what Zach meant, John picked up the cake and threw it against Raine and Zach.

Then, he knocked over the birthday portraits, flowers, and champagne in the hall, making the place a whole mess. He even brought his hands up excitedly and started shouting.

“Luke, Mom, this place is so big! Play hide-and-seek with me! Whoever finds me first wins!”

Helen showed no intention of lecturing him. Instead, she grabbed Luke and started playing with John.

As she watched that indulgent look on Luke’s face, Raine boiled with anger.

But just as she was about to say something, her phone suddenly vibrated.

When she unlocked her screen, she saw that it was a message from Fake Death Services.

[Miss Stone, the two fake bodies are ready and have been thrown into the ocean. Once you jump down with your son, we will pick you up in secret and send you away.]

Upon seeing those words, Raine felt a weight being lifted from her shoulders.

She grabbed a napkin and wiped off all the cream on Zach before leaving the banquet hall with him.

Just as she expected, Helen had been paying attention to her movements. When she saw Raine leaving, she gave John a look to tell him to keep Luke occupied before she quietly followed Raine.

The moment she heard the footsteps behind her, Raine brought Zach to the guard rail before turning around to face Helen.

She sneered. “Why did you follow us? Do you want to hurt us again while Luke is distracted?”

Helen did not bother to pretend anymore. As she looked at Raine, her eyes were filled with disdain and scorn.

“Raine, you flatter yourself. Luke only cares about me and John. No matter what we do and how we torture you and your blind son, he will always side with us.”

“Torture? So, you’re admitting that you intentionally told your son to bully Zach?”

As she watched anger color Raine’s face red, Helen nodded smugly. “Of course!

“I’m the one who told John to fall down the stairs and blame Zach for it. I’m also the one who told him to go into Zach’s ward to stab him with a needle. It’s all to teach you a lesson.

“During the days you were locked up, no matter how we bullied that blind idiot, no one dared step in to say a thing! I also left him in the mountains on purpose, and you could do nothing about it.

“Luke doesn’t believe in you at all. You can never win against me!”

Once she heard Helen admit to the truth, Raine felt pity for her son.

She held Zach tightly, and her voice was laced with fury. “I’ve never offended you. Why do you keep hurting us?”

With a sour expression, Helen went right up to them and sneered coldly. “You took what was originally mine, and you deserve to die for that! I’m just getting back all that belongs to me and John.

“As for you two ungrateful idiots, you deserve whatever’s coming for you for standing in my way!”

There were only a few steps between them, and Raine could clearly see the hate and indignation on Helen’s face.

It was about time. Raine cast a subtle glance at the security camera at the front of the ship and said something to intentionally provoke Helen.

“Stole? I’m the one Luke married, and Zach is his biological son. No one can change this fact.

“He also promised to take care of us for life. Even if you and John get his love, it doesn’t matter. In the end, you’re just his mistress, and people will talk bad about you forever!

“As long as we don’t die, Zach will forever be the Jeffersons’ sole heir, and he will inherit Jefferson Corporation in the future. You’re the one who can’t win against me.”

Every single thing Raine said struck Helen where it hurt, and she could no longer keep her cool.

Her face was twisted with jealousy, and she pushed Raine off the ship.

“Die with your son, then!”

Raine did not fight back or call for help. Instead, she smiled and held Zach tightly as they plunged into the ocean.

The night breeze blew, and waves raged to drag Raine and Zach into the sea.

The waves struck the beach, and the ocean was dark. Nothing could be seen.

The large cruise ship also sailed off the beach and blocked everyone’s gaze.

So, no one noticed when a small boat sailed away along the waves before disappearing.