"This is Mr. Rodger's arrangement," the nurse said gently. "He requested to draw 500ml of your blood."
My pupils dilated. I stared at her, stunned, unable to believe what I was hearing.
She hesitated for a moment, then added with a sigh, “It’s not easy for that child… Please, just let them go.”
I turned to the mirror beside the hospital bed.
A bitter smile tugged at my lips.
Once again, I had become someone else's villain—the cruel stepmother people whispered about behind closed doors.
“I want to see Mike!” I demanded, struggling to sit up, needing an explanation—no, a confrontation.
As if summoned by my anger, the door suddenly opened.
Mike walked in, holding Liam in his arms. The boy turned his face away from me, arms clinging tightly to his father’s neck.
“From today on,” Mike said, “Liam is the heir of the Rodger Family. If you want to remain Mrs. Rodger, you’ll treat him well.”
His voice was calm, almost bored.
“If you don’t want to—there are plenty of women who would kill for your place.”
In the past, I might have responded with logic, with fire.
But now, I simply extended my arm.
The nurse moved quickly. When the blood draw was over, a wave of darkness washed over me.
I hadn’t eaten a proper meal or slept more than a few hours in days. The relentless work, followed by Jinny’s dramatic return, had drained everything from me.
When I returned to the house, I passed by the study—Mike’s private domain. The door, always firmly shut, was left ajar.
I reached out, intending to close it quietly for him. But I froze.
Inside, I heard Jinny’s soft, flustered voice.
“Mike…. Why are all my things here?”
I leaned slightly closer, holding my breath.
“This is my old school uniform—how did you get this back?”
Mike’s low chuckle followed.
“That was the day you got mad over something silly and left it in the classroom. And these—these are our photos. Look, this one…”
His voice was warm. Fond. Intimate.
“In all these years, I never forgot you. Even in bed… it was your face I pictured before I could continue.”
“My body and heart,” he murmured, “have always been yours.”
I heard the soft sound of a kiss. Then another, deeper one—breathless, urgent.
Jinny whimpered as he pushed her back.
“Mike, please…”
That was all I could take.
I shut my eyes, turned away and left.
Even as I walked down the hall, their sounds lingered, echoing behind me.
So it turned out, he wasn’t cold or indifferent.
He simply wasn’t in love—with me.
Ten years of marriage and I was done.
On the dining table, Rachel had left behind the finalized divorce papers.
I picked up a pen and signed my name without a second thought.
The space for Mike’s signature remained blank.
I waited. Not out of hesitation—but out of formality.
Once they had finished their performance in the study, I knocked.
“Come in.”
Perhaps he was in too good a mood to say no.
He let me enter the study.
Even with the windows open, the air inside was thick with a cloying scent.
Before I could speak, Mike glanced up lazily.
“Meghan, you’re a smart woman. As long as you obey, the position of Mrs. Rodger will always be yours.”
“Jinny and Liam are only staying temporarily. If you don’t want to see them, I’ll buy them a place outside.”
There was reassurance in his tone—gentle, even kind.
As if he truly believed I should be grateful.
I stared at him, the man I had once called husband.
The man I had endured humiliation after humiliation for.
I was the only one who had ever compromised in this marriage.
“…That’s disgusting,” I whispered.
He blinked.
“I used to think Mike was a decent man,” I said, my voice steady. “But I didn’t realize you were the type to keep a mistress tucked away in a golden cage.”
