Chapter 1 Chapter 1

My baby seemed to have sensed my low spirits. He began wailing at the top of his lungs all of a sudden. I spent the next two hours rocking him just to calm him down. Meanwhile, my husband, Elijah Montgomery, never bothered calling me to explain the truth. As for his girlfriend, Yvonne Miller, she was still updating her social media feed in real-time. She uploaded three photos featuring a bunch of lavish monetary gifts, shocking the Internet users who stumbled across her post. Almost immediately, a ton of comments flooded her comment section. So far, everyone looked envious and jealous of her. I keenly noticed one of the comments belonging to Elijah. "I prepared all these gifts for you today. In 20 years, I'll make sure to prepare the same amount for our daughter too," the comment read. "You're the best, honey! I love you!" Yvonne instantly responded to the comment. Elijah and Yvonne's flirtatious interactions stung my eyes. I turned to look at my baby, who was fast asleep in his pram. I supposed Elijah must have forgotten that he still had a newborn son who was only six days old. After all, he claimed that he was too busy with work to keep me company on the day I gave birth to our son. Sometime later, I only found out that Elijah was actually busy celebrating Yvonne's three-year-old daughter's birthday. "Your gallstone is overly big. We can't drag the surgery out any longer. You're advised to get it surgically removed tomorrow." My doctor analyzed my condition while holding my check-up results. I was only diagnosed with gallstones during my pregnancy. A few seconds of hesitation later, I finally shot Elijah a text. "Can you return home tomorrow? I have something urgent I need to talk to you about." A long time later, Elijah finally texted back, albeit impatiently, "I'm very busy! Stop looking for me just to resolve every little insignificant thing in life! If you keep bothering me, I'll file for a divorce!" I just stared at the private chat calmly. Honestly, I couldn't remember how many times Elijah had threatened me with divorce. Ever since Yvonne appeared in Elijah's life, they tended to be lovey-dovey together. Whenever I caught them at it, I'd start having mood swings. That was when Elijah would threaten me with divorce. "All women always suffer from injustice in their marriage. If you can't handle me flirting with Yvonne, then go ahead and file for a divorce." I was always the one admitting my mistakes and apologizing to Elijah in the past. This time, I decided to grant him his wish. "The reason why I asked you to come home is because of my impending surgery. If you're already this impatient with me, I suppose it's time for us to file for a divorce," I texted back. A few seconds later, my phone started ringing. Elijah's voice was obviously a lot softer and gentler than before. "Why didn't you tell me that you got sick? What time is your surgery tomorrow? I'll head back and keep you company." I frowned while gazing at my baby, who was fast asleep. "It's at 2:00 pm tomorrow.""Alright." But Elijah's phone was switched off the next afternoon. I was in so much pain that my complexion had gone pale. I didn't have any strength left in my body. So, I could only grit my teeth and ask a friend of mine to come get my papers signed. It was already evening by the time the surgery was over. My doctor told me to recuperate over the next few days. However, Elijah never bothered to call me back. At the same time, Yvonne kept gloating about her latest tales of romance with Elijah on her social media feed. "My ankle got sprained slightly, and yet he was so frightened that he went pale! He sped up all the way to the ER just for my sake! "He had bought a flight ticket home, but he got it canceled the moment he found out about my ankle injury! "Oh my goodness! It's just a light sprain, but he refused to let me walk at all! He kept carrying me the whole time!" I tapped on the photo, which showed Elijah carrying Yvonne on his back. That was when I remembered the time I had gone for a prenatal check-up when I was four months along. My hip joints had begun hurting all of a sudden, which made walking an extremely torturous activity to carry out. The doctor had told me that I suffered from hip joint synovitis. I was advised not to move around much and that I needed to apply a hot compress to my hip joints every day. Back then, I had called Elijah and asked him to come over to the hospital so that he could carry me home. His response came back irritated and impatient.

Chapter 2 Chapter 2

"I'm a very busy man, you know! My time is meant for my work, not to be wasted on you! You're just pregnant, so what's with all the troublesome nonsense? If you can't walk, then you might as well get hospitalized!" Back in the present, I picked up my phone and texted Elijah once again. "I only have one condition—I get custody over our child. Also, I'm entitled to my portion of the assets." Elijah quickly texted back, "I have something really urgent to tend to today. Don't do anything crazy, okay? I'll go home tomorrow." But I never got to see Elijah at all for the next three days, even after the doctor gave me the green light to get discharged from the hospital. As I sat in the car and watched the buildings fleet across the window, I could feel distant memories surging back into my mind. I had gotten to know Elijah when I was still studying at a university. That was when I fell in love with him, too. In the first year of our marriage, Elijah started his own business for the first time. However, he ended up setting foot into an elaborate trap set up by his "best friend", causing him to shoulder a massive debt. During that period, I had to work three odd jobs just to help Elijah clear the debt. At night, I still needed to deal with house chores and whip up dinner for him as well. This lasted until Elijah had his first taste of success during his second attempt at establishing his business. I thought I could finally live a happy married life with him at that time. But one year ago, everything changed on the day he cheated on me with Yvonne. Elijah finally came back not long after I returned home. He glanced at the surgical results on the table before shaking me awake. "You went ahead to get the surgery on your own? Why didn't you wait for me to return?" I suffered from terrible insomnia during my three-day stay in the hospital. When I finally fell asleep after so long, I found myself being woken up by Elijah. At the moment, I was both physically and mentally exhausted. "Elijah, do you think I should let my condition worsen for three days so that I can wait for your return before undergoing the surgery?" Elijah was momentarily stunned. His expression softened slightly as he replied, "Fine. I'll forgive you this time. Now, hurry up and iron my suit for me. I'm about to head out soon." I was taken aback by his request. It turned out that he chose to return just to attend a business gathering, not to keep me company during my post-surgical recovery. My phone buzzed all of a sudden. It was an alarm that reminded me that it was time for me to feed my baby. I had to drag my severely weakened body out of bed in order to start making a bottle of baby formula. Elijah kicked the chair next to him out of frustration. "Damn it! I shouldn't have married you from the start! I regret everything now!" After that, he left the house and slammed the door behind him. I ignored Elijah's outburst. Instead, I turned to reassure and comfort my baby, who was wailing at the top of his lungs because of the loud slam. Half an hour later, the baby finally fell asleep once again. That was when I picked my phone up and shot someone a text. "Please recommend a divorce lawyer.""Are you nuts? Isn't it your birthday today? Why are you thinking of getting a divorce all of a sudden?" that person texted back immediately. … The next morning, Elijah came home abruptly. He gazed at me coldly while berating me in an accusatory tone, "Why didn't you remind me that it was your birthday yesterday?" I remained silent. "Fine. I specifically bought you a birthday gift." Elijah then handed a gold necklace to me. I glanced at it, noting how thin the actual necklace was. The weight was definitely a lot less than the weight of the jewelry that was included in the lavish monetary gifts he had showered Yvonne with some time ago. One could easily tell if their partner loved them or not based on many things in life. "Put this necklace on. I'll whip something up for you later. Let's celebrate your birthday together.""No need for that," I responded coldly. Showering me with gifts and gracing me with his presence after all this time would only make me resent him even more. Elijah could tell that I was getting annoyed. This pissed him off. "I've already taken the liberty to comfort you! What more do you want from me, huh? What's with your tantrum?" I raised my head before replying calmly, "I'm not throwing a tantrum." Elijah threw the necklace to the floor before stomping on it violently. "I know what you're angry about! All I did was take a family photo with Yvonne! Her daughter's teacher had requested all the students to present their family photos in class! That's why I took the photo with them!" After that, Elijah let out a sigh. "Besides, since you made Yvonne mad, what's wrong with me giving her a gift in return? Heck, I haven't even told you to apologize to her!" It would be detrimental to my health if I were to get into any arguments during my postpartum recovery period. I took a deep breath instead. "Yeah, you're right." The moment my voice fell, a notification popped up on my phone. It was an email from my company. It turned out that my boss had approved my resignation.

Chapter 3 Chapter 3

I booked a flight that would depart in five days. After that, I texted my lawyer. This time, I was bent on getting custody of my baby. After doing all those things, I got up and made my way toward the bedroom. Right now, I wanted to have a good night's sleep. Elijah hollered at me angrily while glaring at my receding silhouette. "I'm talking to you here! Where the hell do you think you're going?""I'm going to bed." I turned to look at Elijah calmly. The moment I entered the bedroom, I could hear loud crashes coming from the living room. The divorce preparations were carried out just as planned. Three days later, I was about to pack my luggage when I received a phone call from Elijah. "I'm in the outdoor bar at Bellmond Beach. Get your ass here. Now." It was extremely windy at Bellmond Beach. Since I was still recuperating, I couldn't possibly visit that place. I wanted to turn Elijah down, but he began spamming my phone with calls after that. By the time I reached the outdoor bar at Bellmond Beach while clad in thick clothes, I saw Yvonne and Elijah sitting very closely with each other. Their friends eyed me up and down before scoffing. "Yvonne didn't lie to us at all! Turns out Elijah's mistress really is a fatass!" Yvonne took a sip of red wine while gazing at me. "Sorry about that. I lost the last round of truth or dare, so I was given two options—either I have to kiss the lead singer of the bar's live band, or I have to summon Elijah's mistress here. "Elijah forbade me from kissing other men, so he said I should summon you here instead. You can leave now." Yvonne might sound apologetic, but if one were to pay attention to her tone and wording, they'd know that she actually sounded quite smug. I frowned at Elijah. He looked down awkwardly, choosing not to say anything to me. So, it turned out that Elijah's friends thought of me as the shameless mistress all this time. Furious, I was about to speak up when I saw Yvonne tilting her head haughtily in order to show off her solid gold necklace. I approached her instantly and grabbed the necklace. Then, I tore it off her neck. "What the hell, you stupid fatso?" The annoyed Yvonne tried to snatch the necklace back from me. I stuffed the necklace into my handbag, my expression already stormy. "Elijah used the money from our joint marital assets to buy this necklace for you. I can always retrieve this necklace whenever I want to." I had asked my lawyer about the lavish monetary gifts before. He told me that I could still get everything refunded back to the joint account. Yvonne's expression became icy at that moment. She retorted darkly, "How dare you steal my personal belongings under broad daylight! I'll have you know that I can get you arrested for that!" "Do you want me to call the cops, then?" I wasn't scared in the slightest. Elijah could tell that I was being serious, so he snatched my phone out of my hand with a frown. "That's enough! Stop kicking up a ruckus. You should go home first." The sight of his worried expression made my heart sink. At the same time, Elijah's friends sensed that something was wrong. They began murmuring about who the actual mistress was—me or Yvonne. Yvonne's nose tingled immediately as she turned to stare at Elijah like a kicked puppy. "You were the one who said that the third party is the one who's unloved and unwanted in the relationship! Hurry up and tell everyone that Jeanette is the actual mistress!" Elijah wiped Yvonne's tears away for her, clearly heartbroken. Then, he turned around to scold me. "That's enough! Jeanette Braxton, you always kick up a huge ruckus whenever you appear in public!" He took Yvonne's hand before looking at the onlookers. "Stop it with the guesses, you guys. Yvonne's my actual wife. I love her very much." Everyone cheered loudly at the confession. "Elijah, you should kiss Yvonne!" Elijah didn't hesitate to cup Yvonne's face before pressing a loving kiss onto her lips. Embarrassment fleeted across Yvonne's face at that moment. Then, she turned to shoot me a taunting smile. "You see now? So what if your name is on the marriage certificate? I'll snatch everything from you—be it Elijah's body, assets, and love!" I couldn't hold myself back anymore, so I responded by slapping Yvonne in the face. Yvonne cradled her face while looking at Elijah pitifully. "Honey, she slapped me!" Elijah's expression darkened instantly. He didn't hesitate to kick me in the stomach brutally. The stitched wound that was left behind by the C-section tore open instantly. At the same time, I collapsed to the floor heavily. Elijah bent over to grip my chin firmly, his voice coming out dark and cold. "Get up and apologize to Yvonne!" I bit my bottom lip tightly with bloodshot eyes. "She doesn't deserve my apology!" Elijah kicked me in the gut once again. As he did so, he berated, "You really want to make things difficult for yourself, huh? It's bad enough that you don't want to leave when you're ordered to, but to think that you're bold enough to stir up trouble here! I'm definitely teaching you a lesson today!" With every blow that I received to my stomach, I could feel the horizontal wound on my stomach tearing open completely. Crimson blood slowly stained my clothes. I was in so much pain that I curled into a small ball. My complexion was extremely pale, and I kept spasming from the pain. I managed to muster the final bit of strength in me just to raise my head. "Elijah Montgomery… Let's get a divorce!" Shock flashed across Elijah's eyes at that moment. He parted his thin lips, looking like he was about to say something. But I didn't hear what he said, for I had already passed out at that time.