My data-tracking algorithm, in its infinite wisdom, pushed a video of my daughter, Chloe, to the top of my feed. She was using a 'Crying Baby' filter, the audio a high-pitched, cutesy song. She pouted at the camera. "Hey guys, so, like, major dilemma," she whined. "Should I take the million-dollar education trust my parents set up and... like, secretly have this baby instead? Just to, you know, surprise them?" She panned the camera down, rubbing a hand over her stomach. "I mean, I'm already five months, and it's getting, like, super hard to hide. What should I do, guys? Give me your best ideas!" The comment section was a dumpster fire. In my last life, that "surprise" sent me into a blind rage. I dragged her to a clinic, I forced the termination. It ended on a rainy night, with her and her boyfriend pushing me down the grand staircase of our home. As I bled out, I heard her whisper, "You ruined my life." This time, I’m letting go. I just want to watch her and that deadbeat boyfriend, Leo, pay for their own "surprise." 1 I scrolled through the comments, my face blank. Yasss queen! A baby is a *life*! You can go to college anytime, but a baby is so much more important! Do it and then play 'guess the daddy' with your parents, they'll think it's HILARIOUS. [clown emoji] omg ur preggo?? that’s gonna be the cutest baby ever! [heart emoji] Just tell them you're taking a 'gap year' lol. A long one. In my last life, I’d thrown my phone so hard it shattered the screen of my office monitor. I couldn't understand how my daughter—our only child, raised with every privilege—could be so stupid. To be pregnant, by him, and to treat her future and our family's reputation like a joke for her online followers. I'd immediately frozen her cards and had my security team pull her out of Leo's squalid one-bedroom apartment. She'd screamed, of course. That I was a tyrant. That I didn't respect her. That Leo loved her, and they had a right to their "miracle." I'd looked at that boy—who had nothing but a pretty, vacant face and a sleeve of bad tattoos—and felt nothing but disgust. I told her the plan was Columbia. The trust was for Columbia. The child was an obstacle. It had to be removed. After the clinic, she'd never looked at me again. I was the enemy. Until that rainy night. She and Leo, blocking my path on the second-floor landing. The argument. His hands on my back, shoving hard. The sickening crunch as I hit the marble floor. "Don't worry," she’d told him, as my vision faded. "She slipped. It's her own fault. She ruined my life. She deserved it." A familiar, sharp pain clenched my chest. I snapped back to the present. I would not be that mother again. I calmly saved the video. I called my husband. "Richard, be home early tonight. We need to talk." "Is everything... okay, Claire?" He sounded surprised. I was never the one to call for "talks." "It's fine. Just be home." I hung up and messaged my personal assistant. "I need a full background check on a 'Leo Rojas.' Everything. The dirtier, the better." I leaned back in my chair. Chloe, my darling girl. We have a debt to settle. 2 Richard walked in at seven on the dot. He handed his suit jacket to the housekeeper, loosening his tie. "Claire? What's this about? You look... serious." I didn't say a word. I just handed him my phone. His face darkened as he watched. Richard is a traditional man. He cares about legacy. He cares about appearances. Last time, he was just as angry as I was. But he'd let me be the "bad cop." He’d played the sympathetic father, telling Chloe, "I'm trying, sweetheart, but your mother is... she's just so upset. My hands are tied." So, in the end, I was the only villain. "This is... a disgrace!" he finally boomed. "She's dragged our name through the mud! I'll call security, have them drag her home!" "And do what?" I asked, my voice quiet. He stared at me. "Do what? We take her to the clinic! We can't let her... let her keep this... thing." "Why not?" I met his gaze. "She's twenty. She's an adult. She has the right to make her own choices. We, as parents, should respect that." Richard looked at me like I'd grown a second head. "Claire, are you in shock? What about her life? What about the company?" "It's her life. She wants to ruin it, that's her choice. As for the company," I gave a small, cold laugh, "as long as our stock price is high, do you really think anyone on the board cares if our granddaughter is a bastard?" I stood up, walking over to him. "Richard. We've done enough. I'm done with her. She wants the baby? Fine. She can have it. But two things are not negotiable." He was so thrown by my calm, he just nodded. "What things?" "One: The education trust. It's a million dollars. It's for Columbia. It is not a 'having a baby' fund. She chooses the baby, the trust dissolves. Two: We cut her off. Completely. She wants to be an adult, she can pay her own bills." "Claire..." he hesitated. "She's... she's just a kid. That Leo... he's a bum. How will they live?" "That," I said, "is her problem. Not ours." I thought of the cold marble floor. The pain. "But if you feel sorry for her," I continued, "if you slip her so much as a dollar, I will file for divorce, I will initiate a full division of our assets, and I will be gone. It's Chloe... or me. Choose." He looked at me, really looked at me, for the first time in years. He saw I wasn't bluffing. "Okay, Claire," he said, all the fight gone. "Okay. We do it your way." As if on cue, the doorbell rang. The housekeeper let them in. Chloe, her belly pushed out, holding Leo's hand like he was a prince. 3 "Dad? Mom? We're home!" Chloe waltzed in, pulling Leo behind her. She was wearing a tight dress, clearly meant to showcase the "surprise." Leo was holding a cheap bouquet of flowers, playing the part of the nervous, humble suitor. It was the same act as last time. Richard and I just sat on the sofa. We didn't get up. We didn't speak. The silence in the room stretched. Chloe's smile faltered. "Mom? Dad? This is Leo. We're in love. And... I'm pregnant!" She waited, bracing for the explosion. I just sipped my tea. Richard folded his newspaper. "Is that all? We were about to go to bed." They both just stared, completely baffled. This wasn't in their script. "Dad! Are you listening to me?" Chloe's voice cracked. "I'm pregnant! I'm five months pregnant!" "We see that," Richard said, his voice flat. "And? This is your life. Your choice. Why are you here?" Chloe was speechless. Her eyes filled with tears of frustration. Leo stepped forward, striking a protective pose. "Mr. and Mrs. Sheng. I know this is a shock. But I love Chloe, and I will take care of her and our child. I promise. We just... we need your blessing." He started to pull Chloe to her knees. "Don't," I said. My voice was low, but it stopped them cold. I finally looked at Leo. "Take care of her with what, exactly? Your part-time job at the vape shop? Your dreams of being a music producer? Do you have any idea what a nanny costs in this city? Or is Chloe supposed to do that, in your fourth-floor walk-up in Bushwick?" Leo's face flushed. "Money isn't everything! We love each other! I'll get a better job!" "Will you?" I pushed a file across the coffee table. "That is Chloe's education trust. It's worth one million dollars. It's hers, on the condition she enrolls at Columbia this fall." I watched the greed flicker in their eyes. "However," I continued, "if she chooses not to go... if she chooses to have this baby... the trust is void. Her credit cards will be deactivated. She will be removed from our will, our insurance, everything. She will be, for all legal purposes, on her own." "You... you can't!" Chloe was shaking. "I'm your daughter!" "And as your mother, this is my last lesson for you: choices have consequences." I stood up. "So, you have a decision to make. A million dollars and a future... or him. Think it over." I turned to Richard. "I'm tired. Let's go to bed." We walked right past them and went upstairs. Behind us, I heard the first real, terrified sob.
? Continue the story here ?? ? Download the "MotoNovel" app ? search for "385722", and watch the full series ✨! #MotoNovel