Chapter 1

The day I was released from prison, I watched my husband bring Brenda into our home.

Seven years.

I had taken the fall for him and served his sentence. In the prison hospital, I nearly bled to death giving birth to our child. And now, my own son was nestled in Brenda's arms, calling her "Mommy" in his sweet little voice.

I stood in the autumn wind, wearing the same faded coat I had gone to prison in, my entire body numb with cold.

Logan Vance pulled a plane ticket from the inner pocket of his tailored suit and handed it to me as if he were dismissing a beggar.

"Everything's been arranged for you overseas. Take the ticket and leave. Don't come back and disrupt the peaceful life we've built here."

I accepted the ticket. Its sharp edge sliced my fingertip.

"Does he know who I am?" I asked.

Logan's face darkened.

"Chloe, don't make a scene."

The front door slammed shut in my face.

I tore the ticket in half, checked into a motel, and burned my son's first lock of hair together with my wedding ring until both turned to ashes.

Then I signed a body donation agreement.

The contract stated that after my death, my husband, my child, and even my parents would have no legal right to claim a single handful of my ashes.

Logan Vance...

We're even now.

I owe you nothing anymore.