When the broke campus heartthrob confessed to my best friend for the tenth time, she pointed at me. "Elara's poor too. You two would be perfect together." He looked at me. The dead eyes flickered to life. Ten years later, he hit the Forbes list. The first thing he did was thank me for standing by him. Everyone knew he spoiled me rotten. Until he saw Jade pole dancing at a club. Turns out her rich husband had gone bankrupt and blown his brains out. Silas slid the divorce papers across the table. "If I hadn't married you, she could've come to me." We had our first fight in ten years. He froze my bank accounts. I'd rather die than sign. Then Mom's condition turned critical. He wouldn't give me a dime. I watched her die. Dad shoved me to the ground, tears streaming down his face. "Why did you fight him? If you hadn't fought, your mother would be alive! The wrong person died. Why are you still breathing?" My brother Alex stared at me, eyes red and raw. My five years old son Leo tugged at my sleeve, sobbing. "Where's Grandma? Where is she? Why didn't you save her, Mommy?" That night, Silas smirked at me. "How much longer are you planning to insist?" I handed him the signed papers. I was done insisting. I was going to find Mom. ...... When I pushed the signed papers in front of him, his hand went rigid, cigarette still between his fingers. He didn't even notice the ash burning his skin. "Being obedient for once?" "Yeah." He leaned in close. "What's your game? Just say it." "I'm going to find Mom." Silas laughed. "What, transferring her to a new hospital?" I froze. Shock rippled across my face. "Your mother's condition—only the hospital I set up can treat it. Where are you moving her?" He... didn't know Mom was dead. A bitter smile ghosted across my lips. "Don't worry about it." I stood up and dragged my suitcase over. I didn't own much. One suitcase wasn't even half full. After all this fighting, I'd sold almost everything valuable. Still couldn't scrape together Mom's surgery fees. Maybe Dad was right. I killed her. Time to pay for it. I opened the door. A hand clamped around my throat. Slammed me against the wall. "Playing games?" Silas towered over me. "You wouldn't sign for months. Now you're so easy about it. What, gonna do something to Jade the second you walk out?" Always like this. He always assumed the worst of me. I used to smash things around the house just to remind him I'd been his wife for nearly a decade. But now I smiled. "Kill me. Perfect. You'll be a widower. Marriage over." His hand jerked back like my skin'd burned him. He stared at me, disbelief written across his face. I didn't flinch. He spat out "Psycho" and walked away. I found a cheap apartment. I'd been stockpiling sleeping pills for months. Swallow them all, and I'd leave quietly. I stared at the gray branches outside the window. Smiled faintly. Twisted the cap off the bottle. A crash. My hand jerked. The bottle hit the floor. Pills scattered everywhere. Silas grabbed my arm, his grip bruising. A cold smirk twisted his mouth. "I knew you gave in too easy. You're going after Jade, aren't you?" Before I could speak, he dragged me out. The car stopped in an empty lot on the outskirts. He yanked me out and threw me at Jade's feet. Her sequined mini skirt barely covered anything. Bruises covered her arms and legs. She glared at me through red-rimmed eyes. "Elara, I may have fallen on hard times, but I still have morals. I never tried to wreck your marriage. Why did you have those animals kidnap me and humiliate me? If Silas hadn't shown up in time, they would've killed me!" I looked at the strangers surrounding us. "I didn't do this." "Still lying?" Silas grabbed my jaw. "These guys already said you hired them. What, you think Jade set herself up?" Jade shot the thugs a quick look. They broke into exaggerated sobs. "Mrs. Cross! You can't just back out now!" "Yeah, Mrs. Cross! You said you'd cover for us if anything went wrong!" "You called her a whore! Said there'd be no consequences! If we'd known she was Mr. Cross's woman, we never would've touched her!" Jade whimpered softly. Silas's grip on my jaw tightened until I thought the bone would crack. "Keep lying, and you can forget about your mother's medical bills. Forever."
I stared at him, eyes burning. Then I laughed. "My mother? She's dead. What bills?" Silas's pupils contracted. The next second, his palm cracked across my face. "You'll say anything now just to deny your crime, won't you?" Jade suddenly spoke up. "Elara, Silas might have problems with you, but he's never taken it out on your mom. Even I know he set up a medical account for her. He puts in hundreds of thousands of dollars every month." I went still. Slowly looked up at Silas. His expression was ice-cold. Same as always. A man like him would never give Mom hundreds of thousands of dollars a month. If he had, she wouldn't be dead. They were both lying. Threatening me with a fake account to force the divorce. Lying... Silas's voice was arctic. "Gonna keep denying it?" I took a deep breath. "What do you want?" "Get on your knees. Apologize to her." "Oh, there's no need, we used to be frie—" Before Jade could finish, I dropped to my knees. Pressed my forehead to the ground. "I'm sorry." Silas stared at me like I'd grown a second head. I stood up. Dusted off my knees. "If that's all, I'm leaving." The pills at the rental were still waiting. "Stop." A knife clattered onto the table. Silas's voice was flat. "Jade got hurt because of you. An apology doesn't cut it." I turned back. He sneered. "She got cut. So will you." Jade clutched her scratched arm, eyes welling with tears. "Fine." Dying was the goal anyway. I picked up the knife. Drove it straight toward my heart. "ELARA!" A hand clamped around mine, gripping the blade. Silas fought against my strength. I stared into his eyes. The tip inched closer to my chest. "ELARA!" I held the handle. He held my hand. "You want your kid in an orphanage? Then go ahead. Do it!" I froze.
"I'm not raising that bastard, Elara." My mouth opened. Blood trickled from the corner of my lips. "You—" He cut me off. "If you really wanna die, take the brat with you. Looking at his face—looks just like yours—makes me sick." Right. Silas hated me. So he'd hate Leo too. If I died, no one would protect Leo. Silas might even hurt him. I yanked the knife out. Coughed up blood and stumbled. He caught me. The last thing I heard before I blacked out was his voice, sharp with panic. "Ambulance! Get a fucking ambulance!" When I woke up, I was in a VIP room. Silas sneered down at me. "Getting smarter with your tricks. Even faking suicide now." I looked at him. His lip curled. "Jade was right. You should've been an actress." He left. I lay alone in the white room. Stared at the ceiling. Pressed my hand to my chest. That afternoon, I knocked on my brother's door. Mom's photo still sat on the table. On the couch lay the unfinished scarf she'd been knitting for him. Winter was coming. She'd wanted him to wear it. When Alex saw me, he moved to slam the door. I shoved my hand into the gap. "I need to ask you something." He turned his head away. I stepped inside. He sat on the couch and lit a cigarette. He never smoked. Never drank. After Mom died, he did both. "I'm sorry. I should've listened to you from the start." He exhaled smoke. Said nothing. "I shouldn't have held on for those ten years. I shouldn't have fought with you and Dad over Silas. I should've let Jade have him when you first said so. I'm sorry." My brother laughed bitterly. "Sorry? Will sorry bring Mom back?" My throat closed. He stared at me. "You were so obsessed with keeping him, Mom died because of you." The last words came through clenched teeth. "Why do I have a sister like you?" I lowered my head, voice shaking. "But... I'm begging you. Take care of Leo." He went still. "I'm not asking you to love him like your own. Just... don't let anyone hurt him." My brother stared at me. Then laughed coldly. "What, guilt-tripping me now?" I said nothing. "Leo's unlucky to have a mother like you." "Please." "Get out." "Please—" "GET OUT!" An ashtray shattered at my feet. "Get out! Don't stand there and disrespect Mom's memory!" I turned. Mom's photo smiled gently at me from the table. I knelt. Pressed my forehead to the floor. Stood. Knelt again in front of Alex. "Please." I left without looking back at his shocked face. Outside, I'd already reached the car when his voice rang out. "Don't ever come back! Go die wherever you want! Don't tell anyone you're my sister! This family doesn't have a sister like you!" I gripped the steering wheel. Tears slid down my cheeks. It was okay if he cursed me. I knew. In the end, he wouldn't abandon Leo. I started the car. Drove away. The sleeping pills lay quiet on the table. I stretched out on the rental bed. Set a delayed message to the landlord. To send in twenty-four hours. Asking her to contact the funeral home. I'd sold my last pieces of jewelry. Twenty thousand dollars. Not enough for Mom's surgery. But enough to cover the landlord's trouble. I brought the pills to my lips. The door exploded inward. Someone grabbed my throat. I choked. Spat the pills out. Silas's jaw clenched, his eyes wild. "What did you do? What did you and your mother do to Jade?!"
Watch? https://cps-front.novelix.live/app-api/ext/new/20260619za1Ck9ifpU ? Continue the story here ?? ? Download the "Novelix" app ? search for "ni724137", and watch the full series ✨! #Novelix