Hearing her insult Bastian so cruelly, I couldn’t stop my fists from clenching, my nails digging deep into my palms.

It was only after some time that the two finally noticed me standing silently in the doorway. Shena didn’t even bother fixing her disheveled clothes. Instead, she smugly pulled Billie’s hand and sauntered toward me, her expression dripping with contempt.

“Well, look who finally decided to show up. You disappear all night with the child and this is what you call being a father? Teaching him to pull stunts and play sick to get sympathy?”

Her eyes narrowed, voice sharper than ever.

“Don’t think I don’t know you ran off to complain to Grandpa again. You manipulated him into denying his own bloodline and used Bastian’s life to threaten me into keeping Billie out of this house.”

“In that case, pack up your things and take your precious Bastian back to the old mansion where you can go play the perfect little son-in-law. From now on, this house belongs to Billie and me. And where is Bastian, anyway? Bring him out now and make him kneel and apologize to Billie. Don’t think a little hospital stunt will make this go away.”

As I looked at her, this woman who had utterly abandoned all love for her son, I couldn’t stop the image from flashing in my mind—Bastian, alone and starving on that desolate island, terrified and clinging to hope.

I almost lunged at her, but then Bastian’s soft voice echoed in my memory, from the day before he was sent away.

“Dad, it’s my fault. I didn’t learn the house rules properly and I made Mom angry.”

“But don’t worry, okay? Mom said I’ll only be gone for five days. When I come back, I’ll be the rightful heir. Then Mom won’t have to work so hard anymore and she can be with you again, like before.”

I bit down hard, forcing myself to swallow the fury in my throat. I turned silently to leave—but she grabbed me by the arm.

“What’s this attitude? You’re just a glorified servant—how dare you act like you’re above us?”

Her voice turned venomous.

“If you and Grandpa hadn’t schemed to push Billie out, you’d never have become the Collins Family’s son-in-law. A bastard whose own parents were murdered dares to dream of marriage and children?”

“What is it now? Found another rich heiress to con into marrying you by flaunting that little life-saving act again? Having a father like you was the greatest misfortune of Bastian’s life!”

I let the words fall on me without reaction. But the calmer I remained, the more enraged she became.

With a snarl, she grabbed a whip from the wall and kicked my knees out from under me.

I collapsed to the floor and the whip lashed down hard, splitting my skin open in an instant.

“You still think you’re right? You’re the one who raised that unruly brat. If you won’t accept your mistakes, then I’ll beat them into you!”

“Grandpa might be blinded by your honeyed words, but I’m not. I see you for what you are—a greedy, low-born climber who only got here by stealing Billie’s credit. If it weren’t for you falsely claiming it was you who woke me up, I never would’ve married you.”

“I owe Billie too much. I won’t let him suffer even a fraction more because of you. Now get Bastian out here and make him kneel—both of you owe Billie an apology! If you won’t comply, I can assure you there are plenty of others waiting to claim the Collins Family heir’s title.”

At that moment, the pain in my body couldn’t compare to the pain tearing through my heart.

I couldn’t bear it anymore. I grabbed the whip mid-swing and flung it aside with all my strength. She stumbled backward, barely caught by Billie.

“Theo, how dare you resist?! So you finally drop the act, huh?”

I rose to my feet despite the blood and pain, meeting her gaze with icy clarity.

“You want Bastian to apologize?” I said with a hollow laugh.

“Fine. Then go find him—underground—and take Billie with you.”

“Bastian is dead.”

Shena froze. For a brief moment, her expression cracked. But then she burst into mocking laughter, flinging the whip aside.

“You really are a monster, Theo. You’d curse your own child to death just to threaten me?”

“Isn’t this all because you found out I’m pregnant with Billie’s baby? You’re afraid I’ll revoke Bastian’s heir status and that your little claim to the Collins Family will vanish with it. So you went and hid Bastian somewhere with Grandpa, didn’t you?”

"I won't let you get away with this."

As she spoke, she pulled out a handkerchief and wiped the blood from her hands with exaggerated force, as if afraid of catching some kind of disease.

"If it weren’t for you, Billie’s child and mine would already be in elementary school by now. Theo, you stole his credit, his future, his place. I’m merely setting things back to how they should’ve been. You should be thanking me for being so polite about it."

With that, she flung the bloodied handkerchief at my face and dragged Billie away without another word.

I silently tossed the handkerchief into the overflowing box in the corner of the room. My chest tightened with grief so intense, I could barely breathe.

When Shena fell into a vegetative state after the accident, the Collins Family spared no expense seeking doctors both at home and abroad. But nothing helped—her condition only worsened.

Eventually, Master Collins remembered the Marvin family’s ancient acupuncture techniques said to revive those on the brink of death. And because he had once helped me handle my parents’ affairs after their murder, I owed him a great debt.

So I agreed to marry Shena—not for love, but to repay kindness and honor my parents’ dying wish that I never practice medicine for profit.

Even though I was still young, I spent countless sleepless nights experimenting on myself before I dared treat her.

The final time I collapsed from exhaustion, Shena had already opened her eyes and could sit up on her own.

Master Collins was overjoyed. He arranged a grand wedding for us and I devoted myself to caring for her—body and soul.

But three years later, she entered my room on her own, saying she wanted to deepen our bond. That night, she wept in my arms, swearing she'd fallen in love with me over those three years.

I believed her.

I gave in willingly, letting myself drown in the illusion of love.

Especially after we had Bastian, I was more desperate than ever to hold on, convinced that our child was the salvation I had been seeking all along.

But after Billie returned to US, everything changed. Her affection grew cold. She barely looked at me anymore—and worse, her gaze toward Bastian became empty, almost resentful.

Then came the lie that broke me: she told everyone that it was Billie who had brought her back to life. That he, who had fled overseas to treat his failing health before she even woke up, was her true savior.

And I—who had stayed and sacrificed everything—became the schemer who tricked Master Collins and stole another man’s honor.

Even the contract we signed, agreeing to eight years, was twisted into a scheme used to manipulate her.

Every time Billie fell ill, she’d take it out on me. Her people would restrain me, strip me and she’d whip me with that special lash she kept just for these moments.

The moment Shena left the house, my thoughts were interrupted by the thick stench of smoke.

I followed the trail to the backyard—and what I saw nearly drove me mad.

Billie, cradling his dog, stood smugly by the fire while servants tossed Bastian’s belongings into the flames one by one.

“Move it! Shena said this house is under my control now. Anyone who doesn’t like it can get out.”

My eyes turned blood-red. I rushed forward to stop them, but his hired men blocked my way.

“Who gave you the right to burn Bastian’s things?!”

Billie just smiled coldly as he stroked his dog’s back.

“Pudding likes Bastian’s room,” he said casually. “So Shena gave it to him as a kennel. But he doesn't like used things—they’re filthy.”

Then, as if to drive the knife in deeper, he picked up Bastian’s last cherished item, held it in front of me for a moment... and threw it into the fire without hesitation.

In that moment, I realized something terrifying.

To Shena, Bastian was worth less than one of Billie’s dogs.

I went numb.

I stood there, watching the flames die down and gave up struggling.

Then I laughed—wildly, bitterly.

“Burn it all,” I said. “Burn it good.”

And with that, my legs gave out beneath me and I collapsed to the ground.

When I opened my eyes again, I was lying in bed in my old room.

Just thinking about what Shena and Billie had done in this bed made my stomach churn. I forced the bile down, got up and began to pack. I only wanted to leave this place—go to the funeral parlor and stay with Bastian a little longer.

But just as I placed the Marvin family’s ancestral medical kit into my suitcase, the bedroom door was violently kicked open.

Shena stormed in. Her eyes flicked to the open suitcase and landed on the medical tools. For a moment, she froze. Then, without warning, she slapped me across the face.

“Theo! So it was you who killed Billie’s dog, Pudding!”

Before I could say a word, she grabbed me and dragged me outside.

In the courtyard, Billie knelt by a bloodied dog—his face swollen, eyes red and puffy from crying. As soon as he saw me, he clutched his chest and burst into fresh tears.

A private doctor rushed to his side, whispering urgently, “Hardy, Mr. Morgan has already fainted once. If he’s shocked again, I can’t guarantee he’ll regain consciousness.”

Billie suddenly turned to me, prostrating himself as he kowtowed again and again.

“Theo, I know you hate me. You think I ruined your relationship with Shena. But why take it out on Pudding? He’s all I had to hold on to while Shena was gone. I can’t live without him!”

Hearing his sobs, Shena’s rage boiled over. She slapped me again, then rushed to lift Billie gently from the ground, scolding me as if I were a monster.

“Theo, I actually felt bad leaving you in the courtyard and had someone bring you back inside so you wouldn’t catch a cold. And this is how you repay me?”

“Just because I sent you and Bastian to the old mansion, you target Billie? You knew how fragile he is, yet you still went after his dog? What next—are you going to harm the child in my belly too?!”

She waved her hand and a maid quickly stepped forward, holding out a stack of papers. Shena signed with a flourish and flung the divorce papers at my feet.

“From today forward, you’re no longer the Collins Family’s son-in-law. I’ll make a public announcement, too. I’ll declare Bastian as the child of another woman. From now on, only the child I bear with Billie will be worthy to inherit the Collins name!”

I stared at her, stunned, before shouting.

“Shena! Bastian is dead! He was your son too—he shared your blood! Must he be slandered even in death? Let him rest in peace!”

Even if Bastian can’t hear the lies anymore, I won’t let his memory be dragged through the mud. I won’t let my child become the world’s laughingstock.

For just a second, doubt flickered in Shena’s eyes. But Billie quickly threw himself into the moment, clutching his chest and trembling as he pointed at me.

“Theo, how could you say something so cruel? Bastian’s just doing the trial on the Collins Family island—there’s no danger at all! Are you using him to attack me again? You’ve already taken Pudding from me. Do I have to die too, just so you can feel better?”

He turned to Shena, choking on his words.

“Please, let me go. This is all my fault. Don’t divorce Theo because of me. I just wanted to check in on you… Seeing you happy is enough. I’ll leave now. I won’t let the two of you fight over me ever again.”

With those words, he broke free from her hand, picked up the dog’s limp body and walked slowly out of the courtyard. His shoulders trembled as though the weight of his sorrow was too much to bear.

Shena's face went rigid. She turned back to me, jaw clenched.

“Still lying, Theo? I stayed on that island for a month and nothing happened. And your son couldn’t even survive five days?”

“You think I’m stupid?”

Her eyes narrowed in fury.

“And don’t think I didn’t see you packing just now. You were planning to use those tools to kill Pudding. I won’t give you another chance to hurt Billie—or my child.”