When they strapped me to the operating table, I heard my wife comforting Leo Ferdinand outside the door.

“Leo, don’t worry. In a little while, I’ll perform the surgery and swap your face with Carter’s. Once we hand him over to the police, you won’t have to worry about the hit-and-run case anymore.”

A smile immediately spread across Leo’s face.

“Riley, you’re the only one who’s ever been good to me, but... won’t Carter be angry? After all…”

Riley let out a soft sigh.

“Carter loves me so much, and your sister once saved my life. The least he can do is help you. I’ll make it up to him in the future.”

Before I could even process what I had heard, the anesthesia took effect, and everything went black.

When I woke up, my face was already wrapped in thick layers of bandages. To stop me from damaging this new face, Riley brought up our son.

“Carter, please try to understand. If not for me, do it for our son.”

In the end, I stopped resisting. With her own hands, she sent me to prison, and five years later, I was finally released.

The day I was released from prison, I was wearing old clothes that had been washed so many times they had lost their color. I was so thin that I was little more than skin and bones. I looked nothing like the bright, handsome Carter Quince I had been five years ago.

Riley West was waiting outside in her car.

“Carter, you’re finally out.”

I looked up, revealing a face that wasn’t mine, covered in scars. There was even the word "trash" carved into it.

On my first day in prison, the other inmates heard that "I" had killed a child in a hit-and-run and fled the scene. So, they pinned me to the ground and branded that mark of shame onto my face. From that day on, beatings became part of my daily life.

Riley froze for a moment. A trace of guilt flashed in her eyes before it disappeared.

Just then, Leo Ferdinand leaned out from the passenger seat. His face had been altered, and he no longer looked quite like he used to. Then again, with Riley being one of the most renowned plastic surgeons in the country, changing someone's face was effortless for her.

“Carter, Riley and I are here to pick you up. Even though you've spent five years in prison, and you look like this now, we'll never look down on you.”

Every word got on my nerves, but I endured it. All I wanted was to see my son and then take him far away from this place.

I opened the car door and got into the back seat.

Riley quickly explained, “Leo gets carsick. He's gotten used to sitting in the front over the past few years, so you–”

“Just drive. I want to see my son.” I cut her off.

I didn't have the energy to play along with them. Besides, I had surrendered everything I had to Leo five years ago. What was a passenger seat compared to that?

Yet, Riley suddenly went silent. Before I could think much of it, Leo's expression darkened.

“Carter, do you still blame me for what happened? I've also been punished all these years.”

He sounded like he was choking back tears.

“Riley has practically kept me under house arrest. After we started living together, she wouldn't let me go out alone because she said it wasn't safe outside. She bought everything I needed and brought it home herself. She wouldn't even let me get involved with the cosmetic surgery clinic, so she gives me the shares and dividends instead. She says my skills aren’t good enough. She’s spoiled me so much that I can barely do anything for myself now.”

Each word felt like a needle piercing my heart.

Back then, I had told Riley that I hated how Leo constantly hovered around her without any sense of boundaries.

She had promised me then. “Carter, I'll keep my distance from him. If you don't like him, I won't let him anywhere near our house.”

Yet now, he had moved right in.

As for the cosmetic surgery clinic, I was the one who built it from the ground up. I worked day and night and developed a severe stomach ulcer from drinking at business dinners to secure the investments that made it possible.

Back then, Riley had held my hand and said, “Carter, once the clinic is successful, everything will be in your name.”

Yet now, the person enjoying all of it was the man who had destroyed my life.

Riley's expression turned anxious. She lowered her voice and said to Leo, “Leo, that's enough.”

Then, she looked at me probingly. “Carter, let's go home.”

I said nothing. Instead, I turned away, and it took everything in me to unclench my fists.

I thought that once I saw my son, things would finally get better. What I didn't know was that this was just the start.

After returning home, I followed my memory and rushed straight toward the room that belonged to my son, Andy.

“Andy? Buddy? Andy, Daddy's home.”

The household staff stared at me in shock. At first, I thought it was because of my face. So, I quickly pulled out a wrinkled mask and put it on. I didn't want to scare Andy when he saw me.

However, the moment I pushed open the door, I froze. The room that had once been filled with toys was now packed with miscellaneous junk. The stench of dust and garbage hit me hard, and my mind went blank. Slowly, I turned around and grabbed the nearest servant by the arm.

“Where's Andy? Where did you take him?”

The servant glanced at Riley, who had just walked up behind me, and hesitated to speak. A terrible feeling settled in my chest, and I started to panic.

I grabbed Riley by the collar, asking, “Where is Andy, Riley? Where is he? You can't just neglect him because I wasn't there with him...”

Riley closed her eyes. After a long struggle, she finally forced out the words.

“Andy… is dead…”

Something inside me snapped.

“The child who was hit in that accident was Andy. Leo didn't mean for it to happen. Back then, we were afraid you'd be devastated, so we thought it would be better if you spent a few years in prison. That way, you wouldn't have to face the pain directly.”

The blood seemed to drain from my entire body. I couldn't stop trembling as tears streamed down my face.

“Liar! Riley, I’ve done what you wanted! I went to prison for Leo! Now give me back my son. I'm begging you. Bring Andy back to me!”

Riley's face turned pale.

“Carter, Andy is gone. There's no point putting Riley in a tough spot,” Leo said, aggrieved. “I know you're angry, Carter, but please believe me. I know I was wrong. For the last few years, I've stayed by Riley's side, trying to make up for it.

“Riley found out she's one month pregnant. Since the baby and Andy share the same mother, they'll be brothers. If it comes down to it, we'll give this child to you to make up for Andy.”

I stared at him in disbelief, my eyes wide with fury. Then, I used every ounce of strength I had and slapped him across the face.

Smack!

My Andy… How could he talk about Andy's death so casually, as if Andy were a piece of trash that could simply be replaced?

Riley had started toward me. However, when she saw Leo staggering backward, she immediately changed direction and rushed to support him instead. When she finally looked up and met my bloodshot eyes, her lips parted.

In the end, she said, “Carter, what happened between Leo and me… was a mistake. But since I'm pregnant, I'm keeping the baby. Andy is gone, and I can't bear losing another child.”

I had never felt so disgusted in my life.

I lunged forward and grabbed Leo by the hair, shouting, “How can the child of a homewrecker and a murderer ever be compared to my Andy? Riley, Andy was your son, too!”

Leo screamed, and in the struggle, his fingernails raked across my face, blood splattering onto the floor. Another scar was added to the face I already hated.

Instinctively, Riley kicked me away, but in the second, she froze.

“Carter, I… You need time to calm down. Someone, take Mr. Quince back to his room. Make sure he rests.”

Two bodyguards in black suits immediately stepped forward. With one on each side, they grabbed my arms, dragged me away, and shoved me roughly into a bedroom.

My strength gave out, and I collapsed onto the floor. All I could see was the image of Andy from five years ago, the almost three-year-old running toward me with his tiny arms outstretched, calling out, “Daddy!”

My heart felt like it was being torn apart; it felt so empty. However, no amount of tears could ever bring my Andy back.

That night, Riley pushed open my bedroom door. In her hand was my old phone.

“There are photos of Andy on here. Maybe it'll make you feel a little better.”

I reached for it immediately, but she stopped me.

After a moment of hesitation, she spoke again. “Carter, I have an appointment for the baby check-up tomorrow. But if you refuse to forgive Leo, he's threatening to make me terminate the baby to make up for what happened. You wouldn't want me to suffer either, would you? Will you come with me tomorrow?”

I stared at the woman in front of me and laughed so hard that tears streamed down my face.

“Okay.”

I didn’t sleep the entire night. Instead, I spent every hour looking through photos and videos of Andy. The next morning, when Riley wanted me to accompany her to the prenatal check-up, I nearly collapsed to the floor.

Riley quickly caught me.

“Carter! What’s wrong? Are you feeling sick?”

Leo shot me a malicious look before his expression suddenly turned pitiful.

“I knew it. Carter never truly forgave me. If that’s the case, Riley, let's not keep this baby. That’ll make up for what I did to Carter!”

Riley immediately comforted him. “What nonsense are you talking about? Carter has forgiven you, hasn’t he?”

Her gaze drifted to the phone in my hand. It served both a warning and a reminder.

I snorted and shoved her away.

“Whatever.”

Riley’s eyes darkened, but she said nothing as the three of us headed to the hospital.

While Riley was undergoing her checkup, I desperately called my parents over and over. I wanted to tell them that I was finally home and that they could stop worrying about me. However, when no one picked up, a familiar sense of dread rose inside me.

Leo sat beside me and glanced at my phone screen. A twisted smile spread across his face.

“Carter, are you calling your parents? But your parents died during your second year in prison. They couldn't take the gossip and judgment from everyone around them. What? Did nobody tell you while you were locked up?”

I felt a lump in my throat and barely managed to say, “That’s impossible! Riley said you went to prison under your own identity. How could my parents possibly know it was me?”

Leo confessed smugly, “Because I told them, of course. They spent all that time searching for their son. I was just helping them out.”

A loud ringing filled my ears, and I couldn’t hear anything around me. By the time I came back to my senses, my hands were already tangled in Leo’s hair as I yanked him forward and punched him several times.

Leo immediately began screaming, “Help! He's attacking me! He's jealous because my wife chose me instead of him. That’s why he's assaulting me!”

Someone in the crowd spoke up.

“That’s right. The pregnant woman who went in before me came with him.”

In an instant, the surrounding crowd shoved me to the ground and kicked me from all directions. During the chaos, the mask covering my face was torn off.

A woman gasped. “Oh my! No wonder he's so jealous. He's an ugly freak!”

By the time Riley returned, I was covered in injuries, and blood covered my face.

A look of pain flashed across Riley’s eyes as she hurried toward me, intending to help me up. However, Leo pulled her back. With reddened eyes, he buried himself in her embrace.

“Riley, please don't go to him. If you do, everyone will think I was lying. I may be fine, but when our child grows up and learns about this, they'll be heartbroken.”

Riley stopped in her tracks. In the end, under Leo’s pleading gaze, she turned her face away.

I, on the other hand, was taken to the police station and charged with public disturbance. I had to be detained for three days, but I could leave immediately if someone posted bail.

Riley stood in front of me, looking conflicted.

“Carter, Leo isn't holding today's incident against you, but he's so frightened that he’s lost his appetite. Since you’re used to this place, why don’t you stay here for a few days? Three days from now, I'll pick you up myself. And…”

She lifted a hand, wanting to touch my face. However, when I avoided her, her hand slowly fell back to her side, and her expression grew unreadable.

“When we get home, I'll restore your original face for you, and once the baby is born, I’ll send Leo away. Then, we'll live the rest of our lives together.”

I didn't look at her. However, after she left, looking rather disheartened, I turned toward the police officer nearby.

“I’d like to report a crime!”