Chapter 1

The wind howled bitterly.

Susan Thompson hunched over in front of the villa at Shallow Bay, the searing pain in her stomach making it hard to stand. She clenched her teeth and pounded desperately on the tightly shut door.

"Andrew, please... save Daniel! He really is your son!"

Snowflakes landed on her pale face, melting instantly into teardrops. Trembling, she raised her hand and slammed against the door again.

"Fifty thousand... just fifty thousand... Daniel's surgery can't wait any longer..."

A sharp stab of pain shot through her abdomen, and she staggered, bracing herself against the wall. The agony of late-stage stomach cancer felt like knives twisting inside her, but she ignored it.

"Andrew, I'll do anything..."

The door suddenly swung open.

A flicker of hope lit up Susan's dull eyes.

"Andrew..."

The butler stepped out expressionlessly, hung a brand-new wooden plaque on the door, then shut it firmly in her face.

The bright red words on the plaque burned into her vision.

"Susan and Dogs Are Not Allowed."

Susan suddenly laughed, the sound hollow and broken in the freezing wind. In Andrew Lucas' eyes, she was worth less than a dog.

That misunderstanding four years ago had destroyed her life. Andrew believed she had abandoned him to chase wealth, aborted their child, and even hired someone to break his leg.

The truth didn't matter anymore.

He would never believe her.

The icy wind drove snowflakes into her thin collar. Instinctively, she tried to pull her coat tighter with her left hand, only to be met with excruciating pain. That arm had been ruined during Nicole Capra's imprisonment.

Three days later, Susan finally saw Andrew again.

Their marriage was a joke. He had arranged for her to live in a place called "Willow Lane," as if to remind her of her status.

Now, Andrew stared coldly at her kneeling form.

"Nicole..."

When it was over, he shoved her away without hesitation, straightening his suit sleeves with slow precision.

"You're not Nicole." His voice was glacial. "Get out."

A violent cramp twisted her stomach, but the pain in her heart was worse.

He had mistaken her for Nicole again.

The boy who once cherished her now only touched her when he imagined she was someone else.

"Andrew..." Susan crawled weakly toward him. "Can we just—"

Before she could finish, a cold hand closed around her throat.

A sharp crack—

The air was cut off instantly.