It turned out Edmund had seen the trending headlines last night. Fearing I might do something reckless, he had searched for me the entire night. I never imagined the only warmth left in my world would come from someone outside the family. My eyes reddened, and I choked back tears. “I… I’m okay…”

“No, you’re not,” he said, his voice dropping into a stormy calm. “You’re not okay at all. I’m cutting my trip short. I’ll come get you.”

“Thank you. I’m sorry…”

“You never have to say that to me, Victoria. My feelings have never changed.”

Years ago, Edmund had once pursued me. But back then, I had been hopelessly in love with Stephen, blind to everyone else. I never thought that, after thirty years, he would still hold a place for me in his heart.

When I returned home from the hospital, I found Eleanor draped across Stephen’s black bed, wearing a loose men’s shirt and holding a glass of champagne. Her legs were shamelessly splayed. Stephen had always been obsessed with cleanliness. He used to hate me, leaving even a trace of scent in his room. Twenty years ago, when his business had yet to flourish, he offended an important client because of his temper. To salvage the situation, I drank until I nearly suffered a gastric hemorrhage. But when I stumbled back home that night, he didn’t offer a word of concern. He only wrinkled his nose in disdain and stopped me at the door.

“You stink. Wash it off yourself.”

I had been left outside in the snow all night. By the time I dragged myself back to my room at dawn, my body was burning with fever, and it lasted an entire week. And now, Eleanor, reeking of alcohol, lay sprawled comfortably in his bed. So, all those rigid rules were only meant for me.

She rose slowly, deliberately tugging open the shirt that still carried Stephen’s scent, exposing the crimson hickeys blooming across her skin.

“Stephen was wild last night. He went at it for hours. Said you were as stiff as a board, boring as hell. You never knew how to please him.” I felt nauseated, like bile rising up my throat, but I forced it back down and looked her straight in the eye, cold and unfazed. “So what? Eleanor, you’re still just a mistress.”

The word struck her like a slap. Her eyes darkened with venom. But then, she rolled them with exaggerated flair, grabbed the glass beside her, and smashed it to the floor. A sharp cry followed as she collapsed to the ground.

“Eleanor!”

Stephen burst through the door, eyes wide with panic. He rushed to her side, cradling her like porcelain. Tears clung to her lashes as she whimpered, “I just wanted to explain last night to Victoria, but she told me to die and pushed me into the glass…”

Stephen held her bleeding hand, just a shallow cut, yet his expression twisted with heartbreak, his eyes bloodshot with fury as they turned to me.

“Apologize to Eleanor!”

A tidal wave of grievance surged through me, and I cried out in despair, “I didn’t do anything! She-”

“I’d better leave before Victoria finds another way to hurt me!”

Eleanor’s wailing cut me off as she pretended to pull away from Stephen’s embrace. But instead of pushing her away, he held her even tighter, as if she were the most fragile treasure in the world. His eyes burned into me with contempt.

“You’re so petty and small-minded. Go reflect on yourself.”

And with that, he left, taking Eleanor to see a doctor as if I were the criminal. Later, the bodyguards dragged me into the basement like a discarded object. I had no choice but to call my son for help. Arthur’s voice on the line was cold and sharp.

“I already heard from Dad. You went too far. It was just a little misunderstanding, and you actually hurt Aunt Eleanor?”

“Mom, can’t you learn to be more like her? Be graceful for once. Stop embarrassing the family.”

My heart froze. I stared at the screen, tears falling without end. My fingers trembled as I hung up in silence. Stephen was determined to punish me. He didn’t even allow a drop of water. After a day and night of silent suffering, my foot throbbed with unbearable pain. At last, the old housekeeper, unable to stand it anymore, secretly let me out.

9:12 AM

Just as I arrived at the hospital, I saw Eleanor’s latest post on Instagram. The first photo showed Stephen’s back as he ran hospital errands for her. The second was a pregnancy report.

[With a man who truly loves you, the sense of security is overwhelming.]

Beneath the post, the Mortimer family lit up the comments.

My son: [Congrats to Dad for winning back the heart of his goddess.]

My daughter, writing from overseas: [Didn’t you used to joke about borrowing some sperm to have a baby? Looks like your hard work with my father paid off. Congrats!]

My daughter-in-law: [We absolutely need to throw a party for you two.]

Then came a reply from Stephen himself.

[Don’t jump to conclusions. I’m just helping Eleanor. If you keep stirring things up, are you trying to push your mother and me to divorce?]

At once, my son and daughter-in-law replied together. [Got it. We won’t say more.]

But then my daughter wrote. [Everyone knows you’ve never let go of Aunt Eleanor. Why not follow your heart? We support you.]

I never thought the child I loved most would say something like that. She respected her powerful father, but her own mother, less graceful and less impressive, could never compare to Eleanor. In their eyes, I didn’t deserve to be his wife, nor their mother. So, all those years I gave and all the sacrifices I made were worthless. Now that the marriage had shattered and the family I once protected had turned cold, I had nothing left to lose.

I typed slowly on my phone.

[Congrats on having a child in your old age. Don’t worry, I won’t interfere with your happy family. Stephen and I are getting divorced.]

The moment I hit send, my phone started ringing.

9:13 AM