For the past seven years, I've been taking care of my paralyzed mother-in-law in the countryside on my own till the day she draws her last breath. That's when I finally get to see my husband, Arthur Hughes, whom I haven't seen for a very long time, hurrying back to the countryside.

After the funeral, I pack up everything belonging to me and our daughter, Tessa Hughes, seeing as we're about to move to the city with Arthur soon.

To my surprise, a woman seeks me out and shows me her marriage certificate.

"I'm the actual wife of Arthur Hughes. Now that my mother-in-law has passed away, you've completed your mission. From now on, you are not allowed to contact Arthur anymore."

I remain rooted to the spot, my body already shaking like a leaf uncontrollably.

At that moment, I feel as though my mother-in-law is laughing at my stupidity, based on how she's smiling at me from her portrait.

Lauren Porter threw a wedding photo at me, along with the marriage certificate.

The photo stung my eyes.

With trembling hands, I picked it up. In the picture, my husband, Arthur Hughes, and Lauren were smiling happily.

I lifted the marriage certificate and ran my rough fingers over the embossed seal. The cold stamp felt like a seal burned straight into my heart.

Suddenly, something came to mind. I ran to the cabinet and pulled out my own marriage certificate with Arthur's.

There was no embossed seal. Just a crooked, barely legible red seal.

I had touched this certificate countless times.

This was my only anchor while I stayed in the village, enduring the constant torment from my senile, paralyzed mother-in-law, Paula Rodriguez.

It had been the courage I held onto to raise my daughter, Tessa Hughes, on my own.

And now, Lauren was telling me it was all a lie.

I opened my mouth to argue, but my throat felt blocked. My words came out in fits. "But Arthur and I are married… We have Tessa… How could he ever lie to me?"

Lauren took the marriage certificate and wedding photo back from me. Without any expression, she replied, "Why would Arthur tell you? If you had known, would you still take care of his bedridden mother? Look closely. Arthur and I got married five years ago. Our son is already three."

A cold shiver ran through me, as though I'd fallen into a freezer.

Back then, Arthur and I had agreed we'd get married after college.

But that same year, Paula had a stroke and became paralyzed. Arthur got a job at a big company.

Faced with a paralyzed mother and a bright career, he had held my hand and begged me to stay behind and take care of Paula while he went to the city to work.

"Hattie, I know I'm asking too much, but I promise I'll never let you down. Once I'm settled in the city, I'll bring you and my mom there."

I had believed him.

Just like that, seven years passed.

The first two years, he came back whenever he had time, and that was when Tessa was born.

But after that, his visits became fewer and fewer.

It turned out that it wasn't the job keeping him away. He was busy marrying Lauren.

How ridiculous.

For seven years, I had been a fool, holding onto a promise that never existed and pouring myself out day after day.

Yet, it had all been a scam from the start.

I felt my knees weaken. Luckily, Tessa hugged me just in time, keeping me from falling.

I looked up at Lauren, who had her head held high.

"Where's Arthur? Don't think that waving a marriage certificate around will make me give up. I won't rest until I see him and get answers."

Lauren nodded and let out a sigh that screamed reluctant compromise. "Fine. I'll let you see him one last time. He can also say goodbye to his illegitimate daughter."

The old, crumbling country house clashed completely with Lauren's stylish, high-end look.

Her heels clicked on the brick ground, kicking up dust as she walked away.

The words "illegitimate daughter" cut into me like a knife.

I couldn't hold back anymore. I screamed at Lauren's retreating back, "Tessa isn't illegitimate! She's Arthur's and my daughter. The day she was born, you and Arthur weren't…"

I froze mid-sentence because I remembered Lauren's marriage certificate date perfectly.

It was the exact day Tessa was born.

I remembered that day clearly. It was a rainy noon.

I had just finished feeding Paula lunch and was scrubbing the dishes with my huge belly sticking out.

The moment my water broke, I called Arthur immediately. But no matter how many times I tried, I couldn't get through.

I had to run outside and ask our neighbor, Sophia Carson, to watch Paula.

Sophia's husband, Steven Huff, took me to the village clinic on his tricycle.

As I lay in the delivery room, the pain was unbearable.

Yet, Arthur's phone seemed cursed. I dialed incessantly for a day and a night before the call finally got through.

There was no concern or joy in his voice. All I received was a jagged torrent of resentment. "Do you know how busy I am? This is a critical point in my career! Why did you keep calling me? Are you trying to ruin me?"

My hand shook as I held the phone. The words stuck in my throat turned into choked sobs of frustration.

After a long while, I managed to say, "She's six pounds, one ounce. It's a girl. I named her Tessa."

The call ended. Soon after, a transfer of two thousand dollars appeared in my account.

Arthur sent me a text. "I'm swamped and can't go back. Buy something nice for yourself."

Tessa was already five now. She hugged me and gently rocked me, pulling me back from my spiraling thoughts.

"Mommy, can we move to the city and live with Daddy?"

Her words shattered me.

She had breathed for the dream of a life shared with Arthur. Now, it seemed that dream would remain forever out of reach.

I saw Arthur again the next day at 4:00 pm.

Perhaps my expression was too broken. He sighed and took my hand. "Hattie, you know the full story now. I admit that I was in the wrong.

"But I was forced to marry Lauren. Her family has a lot of influence where I work. She pursued me for two years. She said that if I didn't marry her, I'd lose my job. You were pregnant then, and my mom was… I couldn't lose my job, so…"

So he could lie to me for seven whole years, keep me tied to his paralyzed mother, and trick me into giving birth to Tessa.

Now that Paula was gone, he was eager to kick me to the curb.

Even Tessa was just a tool to keep me trapped in this family.

I looked at his face, and all I felt was disgust. I pulled my hand back coldly and slapped him across the face.

"You make me sick."

Arthur's head turned from the slap.

Frowning, he pressed his tongue against his cheek. For a moment, he even looked relieved.

"I'll give you some money for Tessa's child support. After that, it's over between us."

As I stared at him, my heart sank completely.

Seven years of devotion, and I couldn't even buy a shred of his conscience.

His so-called love, promises, and excuses were all lies. To him, Tessa and I were nothing more than caretakers for his paralyzed mother.

When Tessa saw me crying, she immediately wiped my tears with her hands.

Tessa walked up to Arthur and pushed against his leg. "I know you don't want me and Mommy anymore. You're a bad guy. Go away. We don't want to see you."

When Arthur looked down at Tessa, a flicker of raw heartache crossed his features.

But it vanished just as quickly. He stepped back resolutely and tossed a document toward me.

"I can't give up everything I have now. I'm sorry. I failed you both. You can keep this house. Think of it as compensation. I've already signed the separation agreement. The money will be transferred to your account soon."

The last shred of hope inside me shattered.

In the end, he still chose himself.

…

Arthur did send the money.

I stared at the cold string of numbers in my account and almost laughed.

100 thousand dollars. That was all it took to buy off seven years of my life and his bond with Tessa.

I didn't want to stay in that house in the village anymore. And for Tessa's future, I couldn't.

I planned to use the money as a down payment for a small apartment in the city. At least Tessa would have a chance to attend a better school.

But the day before we were supposed to leave to look for a place, I got a call from my younger brother, Henry Weber.

After graduating high school, Henry had been working odd jobs far away. I only saw him once a year at Christmas.

"Hattie, I wouldn't call unless I had no other choice. I'm sick. I need money for treatment. Can you help me ask Arthur for a loan?"

The words hit me like a hammer. My vision went dark.

Our parents died early. Henry was three years younger than me. We grew up relying on each other.

He didn't have much of a degree or a high-paying job, but every now and then, he'd send me some money and even mail snacks and toys to Tessa.

Now that he was sick, how could I not help him?

I replied, "Don't panic. I'm coming right now. Don't worry about the money. I have it."

After hanging up, I stared at the 100 thousand dollars in my account. All sorts of emotions tangled inside me.

It was supposed to be the money for Tessa and me to start over. Now, it had become Henry's lifeline.

Without hesitation, I took Tessa and rushed to the hospital where Henry had been admitted.

In the ward, he lay on the bed with an IV in his arm. His body was painfully thin.

When he saw me, his eyes reddened, and tears fell. "Hattie, I'm sorry to trouble you."

I swallowed my own tears and held his cold hand. "Don't be stupid. You never have to apologize to me. Help me look after Tessa for a bit. I'll go talk to the doctor and pay the hospital bill."

I stepped out of the ward with my phone in hand.

Just then, everything fell apart.

I received a call from the court.

"Mr. Arthur Hughes transferred marital assets into your account without authorization during his marriage. Ms. Lauren Porter has filed a lawsuit requesting that you return the total sum of 200 thousand dollars. You are required to settle this debt in full within three days."

My mind exploded. I stood frozen in the hospital hallway, my body shaking uncontrollably.

I turned to look back at the ward. Henry was still waiting for that money to save his life. But the court notice locked it in place like chains.

Trapped with no way forward or back, I felt myself breaking.

With the last bit of clarity I had left, I called Arthur. "Why are you doing this to me, Arthur? Are you trying to kill me?"