My daughter and my husband’s “one that got away’s” cat were kidnapped at the same time. The kidnapper gave Julian a choice: pick one. Only one would survive. I knelt on the ground, banging my head until it bled, begging him, “Save Rosie! Save our daughter! She’s only five!” But he wavered, torn between his daughter and a cat. Sophia cried, “Julian, forget about Snowball, she’s just a cat. But... she’s the only thing I have left...” He glanced at me, his eyes complicated. “I’ll roll a die.” The kidnapper laughed and agreed. Odd numbers saved the daughter, even numbers saved the cat. The die landed. Three. I instantly relaxed, my whole body going limp. But Julian screamed, “Doesn’t count! My hand slipped! I demand a redo!” The kidnapper sneered, “One finger for a redo.” Without hesitation, Julian broke his own pinky finger. I watched helplessly as he threw the die again with a trembling hand. This time... it was a four. 1 “Even! It’s an even number!” Julian laughed with relief, shouting at the kidnapper. The kidnapper grinned, his tone full of mockery. “Hahahaha! Mr. Gu, you are something else!” “You had a chance to save your daughter and you didn’t. You chose to save an animal instead. Mr. Gu, you truly are a once-in-a-century talent!” Julian’s face turned crimson, but he didn’t argue. He just stubbornly repeated, “It’s fate!” My heart sank to the bottom of the abyss. My whole body was trembling, blood and tears blurring my vision. Julian walked carefully to Sophia, opened the cage, and hugged the terrified Ragdoll cat. “It’s okay, Snowball is safe.” Sophia threw herself into his arms, sobbing uncontrollably. Meanwhile, my daughter Rosie—her face pale, tape over her mouth—was crying so hard she was turning purple. I rushed over to hug Rosie. Her small body shook violently in my arms. Only then did Julian seem to remember us, walking over casually. “Is Rosie okay?” he asked lightly, his eyes never leaving the cat in his arms. My throat was so tight from fear I couldn’t make a sound. Suddenly, Sophia screamed, “Julian, Snowball is fading! We have to get her to the vet!” “Okay, we’ll go right now!” Julian anxiously turned away with the cat, never sparing another glance for me or Rosie. He just coldly threw a sentence at the kidnapper: “The money will be transferred. Let my daughter go.” Then, he supported Sophia and hurried away. The warehouse’s iron door slammed shut, cutting off the outside world. I held my daughter, cold all over. The kidnapper squatted down in front of me. He dangled a cigarette from his mouth, sneering at me. “I’ve never seen a guy as ‘awesome’ as your husband. Which dumpster did you find him in?” I stared at him blankly, unable to speak. The kidnapper blew a smoke ring in my face, bringing me back to reality, choking me. “Tell you what. I’m in a good mood today. I’ll give you another chance.” He held out his phone. “Call your husband.” “If he’s willing to turn back right now, I’ll let you both go.” “How about it? Merciful enough?” He laughed at his own joke. My hands shook so badly I could barely hold the phone. I dialed Julian’s number. It rang for a long time before connecting. “Hello?” It was Julian’s voice. In the background, I could clearly hear Sophia’s anxious sobbing. “Julian...” I choked out, “Save Rosie... please come back...” On the other end, his impatient voice cut in. “Layla! I’m getting Snowball emergency treatment! She’s in shock!” “Rosie is my daughter. The kidnapper won’t dare hurt her once he gets the money. Stop adding to my trouble!” 2 He hung up without hesitation. The kidnapper listened to the dial tone and took back his phone. He shrugged, sneering. “I gave you a chance. Mr. Gu is a busy man, and the money hasn’t hit my account yet.” “Can’t blame me for this.” He signaled to his lackeys behind him. A blonde guy stepped forward and roughly snatched Rosie from my arms. “No!” I let out a heart-wrenching scream, crawling on hands and knees to stop him. Another lackey kicked me in the chest. I slammed into the wall and fell to the floor. Blood ran down my forehead, blinding me. My daughter’s cries echoed in my ears. “I want Daddy! Daddy, come save me!” “Mommy! Mommy help!” The next second, Rosie’s terrified screams and my cries stopped abruptly. I watched Rosie’s small body go limp and fall, silent. I shook my head violently, chin trembling, slowly pushing myself up, stumbling toward my daughter. My hand touched Rosie’s face, which had been vibrant just hours ago. Blood from my hand smeared onto her face. I tried to wipe it off frantically, but there was just more and more blood. I picked up my daughter and finally broke down, wailing. When I was exhausted from crying, I looked up to find myself surrounded by a group of people—different from the kidnappers earlier. Before I could react, they swung clubs at my legs and arms. The sound of bones breaking filled the air. Pain threatened to knock me out. In the last second before passing out, I heard their cruel laughter. “This bitch is weak. Sister Frost said just break her limbs, leave her a breath.” ... I woke up in the hospital. Everything hurt, like I’d been taken apart and put back together wrong. The doctor said my left arm and right leg were shattered, and I almost didn’t make it. I stared blankly at the ceiling, my heart aching, but no tears would come. Why didn’t they let me die with Rosie? A nurse walked in and whispered, “Is the little girl in the morgue your daughter?” “The autopsy is done. Family can claim the body.” My heart was stabbed again. Just then, Julian pushed open the door. He was holding Snowball. Sophia followed behind him, eyes red. Seeing me awake, Julian smiled, holding up the cat for me to see. His tone held a trace of relief: “Snowball was critical, but luckily she made it.” I remembered the doctor saying I almost didn’t make it either. A cat, a human life... Heh, this is my husband. I stared emptily at the wall, silent. Just as Julian was getting impatient, I spoke, my voice hoarse, every word scraping my throat like a knife. “Julian, the doctor said they issued twenty-five critical condition notices for me. I almost died.” “I barely survived, but Rosie... she’s never coming back!” I practically roared the last sentence, tears splashing onto the sheets. Julian choked, then sighed. “You know Ragdolls are fragile. Of course we had to save Snowball first.” “Aren’t you fine now? You recover fast, unlike Snowball who needs months of rest.” Then, as if remembering something, he frowned and asked. “What happened to Rosie? Did the kidnapper let her go?” I looked at the face I had loved for ten years, suddenly finding it strange. I opened my mouth, voice raspy: “Rosie... is dead.” “You killed her!” My emotions collapsed instantly, and I started screaming hysterically. “You killed her! Julian, you are a murderer!” 3 Julian’s face turned ugly instantly. Sophia rushed up to hold him back, persuading softly: “Julian, don’t be angry. Layla just woke up, she’s unstable.” Julian shook her off, pointing at my nose and cursing: “Layla, enough! Are you crazy?!” “Frost already contacted the kidnappers. They said they got the money and released her ages ago!” “Where did you take Rosie? What kind of mother are you? Can’t even watch a kid!” I looked at him in disbelief. He didn’t believe our daughter was dead. My eyes widened, lips trembling: “The kidnappers killed her because you didn’t send the money immediately...” Julian sneered, “Layla, I know you hate that I chose Snowball, but you can’t make up such lies just to make me feel guilty!” “How could Rosie be dead? Kidnappers just want money!” “You must have lost her and are afraid to admit it, so you made up this ghost story to trick me!” “Go find Rosie! Stop making a scene!” He finished, hugged the cat, pulled Sophia, and left without looking back. I screamed, throwing everything within reach onto the floor. The movement tore my freshly stitched wounds, blood staining the sheets red. I collapsed on the floor, heart in agony. On the day of discharge, Julian came to pick me up. I was wheeled out of the hospital. He didn’t mention Rosie again. Sophia told him I had accepted the “fact” that I lost my daughter, and just needed time to recover from the shock. He believed it. Back home, I had nightmares every night, often waking up crying. My dreams were filled with images of Rosie dying in front of me. That night, I woke up from a nightmare again and went to the kitchen for water. Turning on the light, I saw a dead cat by the sink. It was Sophia’s Snowball! Before I could react, Sophia screamed behind me. “Layla, you... you killed Snowball!” The scream brought Julian. He pinned the crime on me without asking. Face full of disgust, he scolded me harshly: “Layla, how can you be so vicious?! Even if Rosie going missing made you sad, Snowball is innocent!” “Besides, it was your failure as a mother. Must you make a voiceless cat pay for your mistake?!” I roared with red eyes: “Did Rosie deserve all that? Deserve to die?!” Julian looked at me with disappointment. “You’re really crazy, completely mad! Rosie is just missing, why do you curse her to die?!” I didn’t want to argue anymore. I ran out of the house, ignoring Julian’s rage behind me. I ran barefoot to the hospital, feet bloody. At the morgue entrance, I didn’t dare take another step. I squatted down, covering my face and crying. Julian chased after me. He yanked me up violently, roaring at me. “Layla, what the hell are you doing?!” “Running to this godforsaken place in the middle of the night, are you sick?!” “I haven’t settled the score for Snowball yet, and you ran out because of guilt!” Looking at Julian’s twisted face, I couldn’t hold back my anger. I rushed forward and bit his arm, tearing off a chunk of flesh. The next second, he kicked me away. My head hit the wall. My broken leg couldn’t support me, and I fell, blood dripping. I looked up, meeting Julian’s bloodshot eyes. He pointed at me. “Layla, are you a dog? Biting people!” I laughed. Laughed until tears streamed down, laughed until the wound in my chest throbbed with pain. I wiped the blood from my face, trembling as I struggled to stand. It felt like walking on knives. But nothing compared to the pain in my heart. “Didn’t you say Rosie is just missing?” “She’s lying in there right now. Do you dare go in with me and look?!” “Look at what your choice did to your five-year-old daughter?!” 4 The anger on Julian’s face froze instantly. He looked at me in disbelief. “Layla, are you delirious from the shock? The police are looking for Rosie. How could she be here? Stop talking nonsense!” He tried to drag me away, impatience in his tone. “Alright, if you don’t trust the police, I’ll hire the most expensive private detective to find our daughter. Let’s go home first.” “I’m not crazy.” I shook off his hand. “I’m more sober than ever. Rosie is inside.” I looked him straight in the eye. “What? Are you scared?!” “You were willing to break your finger for a cat. Now you’re too scared to look at your own daughter’s body?” “Watch me!” Julian was provoked. He shoved me aside and strode in. “If I find out you’re lying to me...” He suddenly went silent. The words choked in his throat. Because I had lifted the white cloth covering Rosie. Her face was exposed under the harsh white light. Swollen, pale, lips a terrifying blue-purple. “No... impossible!” Julian’s face went white. He staggered back a step, eyes full of fear and denial. “No... this isn’t Rosie... this isn’t my daughter! There must be a mistake! It’s you! Layla, you found a dummy to trick me! You set this up, didn’t you?!” He whipped his head around, glaring at me with bloodshot eyes. Then, like a madman, he rushed forward to cover her with the cloth, muttering, “Fake... it’s all fake...” The attendant was frightened by his behavior and tried to stop him. “Sir, please calm down! Respect the dead!” I watched his breakdown coldly, feeling nothing. Not even a shred of pleasure. My heart had died with Rosie the moment she stopped breathing. I walked up to him and slapped a document onto his face. The police autopsy report. “Julian, look closely.” Cause of death: Abuse, multiple comminuted fractures. I remembered Rosie’s tragic state again. Painfully, I said: “I watched Rosie die at the kidnappers’ hands. Before she died, she kept calling for Mommy and Daddy. But her daddy ignored her to be with a cat in the hospital!” I sobbed, shouting at him: “Didn’t you say you’d pay before leaving? But you didn’t! You’d rather pay vet bills than ransom!” Julian shook his head incessantly, voice trembling. “No... Snowball’s injury was severe that day, I was busy, but I told Sophia to transfer the money...” I laughed out loud. “Hahaha, Julian! Did you not even have time to check if the transfer went through? So Rosie died because of you. Funny, so funny!” He looked at my maniacal state, wanting to comfort me, but I pushed him away hard. Julian staggered up, picked up the scattered report. His daughter’s name and photo were right there. “Ah!!!” His legs gave out, and he collapsed to his knees, clutching his head, howling in agony. 5 Julian knelt on the cold morgue floor, crying pathetically. He banged his head against the ground repeatedly, dull thuds echoing. “Rosie... Daddy was wrong... Daddy was wrong...” “Come back, okay? Daddy begs you... Daddy will never let you suffer again...” The attendant couldn’t watch anymore and called security, dragging the near-insane Julian out of the morgue. In the hospital hallway, he calmed down slightly, grabbing my arm with red eyes. “Layla, I’m sorry. I really didn’t know it would be like this...” His voice was hoarse. “The kidnappers... it’s all their fault! They killed Rosie! I want them to pay with their lives! I want them all dead!” Looking at him, I suddenly found it laughable. Even now, he wouldn’t admit his mistake, pushing the blame onto others. “Kidnappers?” I shook off his hand. “If you hadn’t given them a second choice, would they have killed her? Julian, the kidnappers held the knife, but you handed it to them.” My words were like a sharp blade, piercing his hypocritical mask again. His face paled, lips moving, but not a word came out. He sat dejectedly on the bench, hands in his hair, groaning in pain. After a long time, he looked up, begging me: “Layla, I know it’s too late to say anything. But trust me, I’ll make it up to you! We’re still young, we can have another child...” Slap! I used all my strength to slap him across the face. Julian’s head snapped to the side, five clear finger marks appearing instantly. He looked at me in disbelief. This was the first time I had ever hit him. “Julian.” My voice was ice. “Rosie isn’t an object to be replaced. She’s gone, never coming back. Keep your disgusting compensation theory to yourself. You don’t deserve to say her name, and you don’t deserve to be a father!” Just then, hurried high heels approached. “Julian, what happened?” Seeing the slap mark on Julian’s face, Sophia immediately cried out in distress. She looked up at me, accusingly: “Layla, you ran out in the middle of the night, Julian chased after you out of worry. Instead of thanking him, you hit him? Why can’t you be considerate?” I sneered: “Don’t you know why I hit him? You knew Rosie was dead long ago. What are you pretending for?” Sophia’s face went white. “Enough! Layla, stop talking! This has nothing to do with Sophia, she’s a victim too! If you’re unhappy, take it out on me!” I smiled bitterly. Julian was still defending Sophia. I stopped looking at them, turned, and left, leaving one sentence behind. “Julian, you regret it now? Too early. There’s more you don’t know.”
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