Chapter 3

Maya's POV

I hired a lawyer to handle the divorce proceedings.

Then I went home and started packing.

My bedroom was full of gifts Ethan had given me, each one expensive and rare.

Once I jokingly asked Ethan to give me the stars from the sky. The next day, Ethan bought me a diamond necklace worth tens of millions of dollars.

He said that although he couldn't pluck stars from the sky, he could give me the world's most expensive jewelry.

Now looking at that diamond necklace, my eyes stung.

I opened my phone and pulled up a photo. It was a picture I'd taken with Ethan at our front door when he left for his trip abroad a month ago.

In that photo, Ethan still looked at me with tender eyes.

I couldn't understand why going abroad once had turned him into a completely different person.

But at this point, I didn't care anymore.

The harm Ethan had caused me was real. No reason could whitewash it.

I stayed home alone for three days.

During those three days, Ethan never came home once.

I knew he'd been at the hospital watching over Autumn the whole time.

After Autumn woke up, she'd been active on social media. From her account, I could clearly see how carefully Ethan had been caring for Autumn these past days.

Every day he personally made nutritious meals for Autumn, told her bedtime stories, even childishly wrote prayer cards for her.

I saw all of this, but my riddled heart no longer felt pain.

Besides divorce, I had a second thing to do: revenge.

I saved all the photos Autumn had posted as evidence for future retaliation.

On the day of my mother's burial, I wore all black.

I had no family or friends left, so I handled her funeral arrangements alone.

After returning from the cemetery, I found the handmade doll my mother had sewn for me.

When I was little, our family was poor. I always envied other children who had toys. My mother felt bad for me but couldn't spare the money, so she made me a little doll herself.

Over a dozen years had passed, and this doll had always been with me.

"Mom, treat this as me, keeping you company down there."

With tears streaming down, I walked to the fireplace, lit the flames, and gently placed the handmade doll into the roaring fire.

But I didn't expect Ethan to suddenly come home.

As soon as Ethan entered, he saw me dressed in black with the doll burning in the fireplace.

Ethan's expression changed immediately. "What the hell are you doing? Autumn's health suddenly worsened. Are you making evil dolls to curse her?!"

I hadn't expected Ethan to think this way. Before I could explain, Ethan had already strode over and knocked the doll out of the fire, stomping hard on it.

"No!"

Seeing my mother's keepsake being trampled, I frantically threw myself forward, using my hands to shield it.

But my desperation only seemed to confirm Ethan's suspicion in his eyes.

Ethan's face darkened, apparently convinced I was doing something malicious.

He pressed his shoe down on my fingers and ground them hard.

I cried out in pain but didn't dare move my hand, afraid my mother's memento would be destroyed.

Seeing me trembling all over from pain, Ethan finally slowly withdrew his foot.

He went upstairs, grabbed a few changes of clothes, and was about to leave again.

But just as he reached the door, I called out to him. "Ethan, I'm not like you people. I never do such despicable things. Don't throw dirty water on me."

My eyes were empty but revealed a stubborn strength.

Ethan stared at me for a few seconds without speaking, then turned and left.

I laughed self-deprecatingly. No matter how much I explained, it was useless because Ethan simply didn't believe me.

I clutched the burned and trampled doll tightly to my chest, tears slowly falling.

Suddenly, a wave of nausea hit me.

I covered my mouth tightly, forcing down the urge to retch.

I suddenly remembered that my period hadn't come this month.