Chapter 5

Suddenly, footsteps behind me pulled me from my thoughts.

Lucas held a birthday cake in his left hand and the Transformer our son had longed for in his right.

Behind him followed Veronica in a red dress.

Lucas looked at my swollen eyes, his voice tinged with hoarseness.

"Zara..."

Before he could finish, Veronica interrupted.

"Zara, you spoil your kid too much. Having a birthday in such a creepy place."

"People who don't know better would think you're cursing the child."

I didn't respond, just stared coldly at Veronica.

"Leave. Now."

Wearing red before the dead was blatant provocation.

Others might not know our son was gone, but how could Veronica not know?

After all, when I'd held my son's cold body in the hospital, crying until I nearly suffocated, she'd stood in the doorway, unable to hide her satisfaction.

"A sick kid like that—it's better off dead."

"With the frequency Lucas and I go at it, I'll get pregnant eventually. The Harrington family won't die out."

"But you won't even have anyone to bury you."

At that moment, I'd wanted nothing more than to die together with her!

It was my son's dying words—"live well"—that held back my last shred of sanity.

I looked up. Lucas was gently comforting Veronica.

I was too tired to watch their performance anymore. I pointed at the headstone and spoke calmly.

"Lucas, our son is gone."

Lucas's sympathy froze on his face.

"The second child you'd been hoping for is also gone."

"The doctor said it was a girl."

"The culprits are you two."

"You owe these two children an apology."

With a crash, the cake fell to the ground.

He stared at the photo of our son, shaking his head continuously.

"That's impossible. The doctor said cord blood could save him."

"Zara, stop this. Today is Ryan's birthday."

I laughed coldly. Just as I was about to present the evidence, Veronica spoke first.

"Zara, even a tiger doesn't eat its cubs. Cursing your own children like this is just evil."

"I just went to the school specifically to check. Ryan is fine, and he even got first place in his grade!"

As she spoke, she handed her phone to Lucas.

The first image was a report card.

Ryan's name was right at the top.

The second was a photo taken during recess.

The little boy in the photo did look about eighty percent like Ryan.

Lucas let out a long breath of relief. The look he gave me carried disappointment and anger.

"Zara Richardson, and here I felt sorry for what you've been through these three years. I never imagined you'd get even worse!"

"Back then you played hard to get by leaving that divorce agreement. Now to force me back, you've fabricated lies about our children dying!"

"What's even more disgusting is that you're deliberately targeting Veronica, an innocent person. You need to apologize!"

Innocent?

I scoffed. Even cursing them felt like a waste of breath.

I continued burning paper money on my own.

The flames danced, illuminating our son's smiling face on the headstone, and also Lucas's absurdity.

My silence completely enraged Lucas. He kicked over the burning basin.

"Stop burning! My son isn't dead!"

"I told you to apologize to Veronica. Did you hear me!"

I didn't even bother looking up. I threw the death certificate and miscarriage diagnosis directly at his feet.

"Lucas, I've said what needed to be said. Believe it or not, that's up to you."

"Or you can ask your good friend. After all, she knows very well what happened back then."

Lucas flipped through the reports. His fury froze, and he turned to Veronica with confusion.

Veronica seemed to have anticipated this. She showed no panic whatsoever.

"Zara, I know you don't like me. Today I brought Ryan here."

"Your schemes need to stop."

Soon, a little boy from the video walked over step by step.

The moment he saw me clearly, he rushed into my arms.

"I came to see Ryan."

Then he pulled five hundred dollars from his pocket.

"Oh, and that lady bribed me. She made me say I was your Ryan."