###Chapter 5
When I turned, Freya stood at the doorway, tears spilling over her eyes, the ground scattered with petals and fragments of a broken vase.
“I only came to apologize to my cousin for adding yams by mistake. I didn’t know I’d be interrupting you two…”
Her voice faltered. Biting her lip, she turned and ran.
“Freya, it isn’t what you think!”
In his haste, Cody shoved me aside.
Unprepared, I tumbled from the hospital bed. The impact of my forehead against the floor sent a sharp pain bursting through me, blood instantly staining my skin.
Yet Cody didn’t even look back. He chased after her, panic written across his face.
“Karina was burning with fever and delirious, and I was only taking care of her.”
From the hallway came Freya’s choked reply. “You don’t need to explain to me. She’s your wife, stay with her!”
“Must you say this just to ease your heart? Let me see your hand, it’s bleeding!”
“I’d rather die than let you care for me! Leave me alone!”
Through the narrow crack of the door, I saw Cody at last lose all patience. He gathered the sobbing Freya into his arms and strode immediately toward the emergency room.
Blood blurred my vision, yet in my heart I mocked my foolishness.
I tore the bracelet from my wrist and hurled it to the floor, shattering it into fragments. I cried until my tears ran dry, and then, at last, I laughed.
Because of another gastric hemorrhage, along with the head injury, I remained in the hospital for several more days.
Cody never appeared again. I knew he was busy soothing Freya.
My son’s family never came either.
Only my daughter, Suzy Partridge, who is studying abroad, sent me a message to ask after me. Her final words pierced my eyes with unbearable pain.
[Don’t make Dad angry anymore. For decades, he has worked hard enough for this family. Can’t you be a little more considerate of him?]
I was the one covered in scars, yet I was expected to understand his betrayal?
Never had I thought that even my most beloved daughter would speak so cruelly.
But it no longer mattered.
I would give them all they wanted, even if it meant changing to a different wife and a different mother.
On the evening of my discharge, I returned home alone, riding in a taxi.
Walking into the house, I found the villa in complete disarray, untouched for days. Newspapers, toys, and empty snack bags littered the floor, as if they had neither eyes nor hands to care enough to clean.
Carlos lounged on the sofa, waving the luxury cruise tickets Freya had given them.
“There were only five luxury cabins left, so we didn’t book one for you. But I figured you wouldn’t be interested anyway. You like staying home all day, an old woman who’s never seen the world.”
Yet once, I had been the most promising young lawyer, courted by the world’s top ten law firms. Once, I too dreamed of traveling across the country, reaching the ends of the earth.
And after sacrificing everything, what had I gained in return?
My daughter-in-law came down from upstairs, her face lit with joy.
“This global limited LV handbag, only ten in the world! Aunt Freya helped me get one. My god, this is something money can’t even buy.”
On the sofa, my granddaughter swung her legs lazily, eyes fixed on her tablet as she cried out, “I’m hungry, Grandma! I want strawberry pancakes!”
My daughter-in-law stepped in with her bag, pushing the door open as she proudly announced to the neighbors.
“We’ve had enough of takeout these days, Mom. Tonight, I want to eat truffle risotto.”
My son complained right after.
“So annoying! The laundry is piling up in the washing machine!”
Not one of them spared a look at the scar on my forehead. Not one of them asked how I was feeling. Instead, they barked orders, picking on me with disdain, just as they always had, crushing my identity as family, reducing me to nothing, like an ant ground into the dust.
I nearly said aloud, Do it yourselves. I won’t serve you anymore.
The phone rang. It was Cody.
“Come to the Alterio Clubhouse immediately.”
