Chapter 2

Leo obediently told me, “Bye, Mom.”

Then Leo took Jessica’s hand and left with David.

Leo used to hate going to school. He’d refuse to wake up, refuse to eat breakfast, crying and throwing tantrums no matter how patiently I tried to coax him.

Jessica told me, “Stella, I have to go out every day anyway. Why don’t I just drop Leo off at school on my way?”

Leo listened to her and went to school obediently, which saved me a lot of trouble.

Then a few days later, David said, “It’s on my way to work, I’ll drive you both.”

From then on, they all left together.

I ate my toast, watching Jessica and David holding Leo’s hand, get into the car. Jessica sat in the passenger seat, laughing and talking to my husband, while my son sat quietly in the back, swinging his feet, looking very happy.

Soon after, Sam sent me a surveillance video.

David didn’t take Leo to school. Instead, he dropped Leo and Jessica off at a large shopping mall.

Jessica browsed luxury goods, buying clothes and bags. She took Leo to the children’s play area on the first floor, bought him a pile of fried foods and sodas, and let him sit there and eat by himself.

When Leo was little, he was mischievous and had half his spleen removed due to an injury. The doctors said his diet needed to be bland, so I never allowed him to eat these things. He’d thrown tantrums a few times, protesting with hunger strikes, but after a few days of starving, he’d learned his lesson. He saw my firm stance and didn’t dare to act up again.

I called Leo’s teacher. “Ms. Davies, did Leo not come to school today?”

“Leo’s mom, Leo has been absent for several days. Leo’s dad called to say his grandmother had passed away. We were afraid of upsetting you, so we didn’t call to confirm.”

Ha. David even dared to lie about my parents now.

My parents looked down on David, that poor guy. They’d objected to our marriage, even saying I dressed like a beggar every day.

They never brought David to their home. For holiday dinners, they’d book a restaurant that suited his status. If it weren’t for Leo, they wouldn’t even bother to see David.

All these years, I’d asked them to keep a low profile, and it truly hadn’t been exposed.

Now David was successful, and he secretly looked down on my parents.

“My mother is perfectly fine. He must have misremembered; it was his mother who passed away. Please don’t tell Leo’s dad about my call today.”

Ms. Davies hung up, flustered.

The luxury items Jessica bought were for a woman.

I knew that woman too: Ashley Davies, my next-door neighbor. But the man on her arm wasn’t her husband, Blake, but a young, strong guy.

No wonder Jessica wanted to frame me for having an affair with a neighbor. It turned out Ashley was already cheating. Ashley and Jessica instantly clicked, deciding to frame me for an affair with Ashley’s husband, so Ashley could get a divorce and her share of the property legitimately.

After they separated, Ashley and the young guy went to a hotel.

I immediately sent the room number to Ashley’s husband.

Want to watch my show? That’s probably not going to happen.

I sipped my tea, leisurely watching Jessica frantically making calls outside.

She was probably calling Ashley. The banquet was about to start, and she needed Ashley to bring her husband over to continue her plan.

From what I knew, Blake was a boxer, an international boxing champion.

By this time, Ashley might be getting a beating.