Yet, this kind of care was nothing more than a guilty conscience. It was a feeble attempt to atone for his infidelity. Every time Rick cheated, he would pour a lot of attention to Wanda.

These text messages often came at odd hours of the night. Maybe they were sent as he smoked his cigarettes after doing the deed, or perhaps ….

The thought made Wanda's stomach churn violently. She bolted to the bathroom and vomited until she felt utterly drained.

When she finally stepped out of the bathroom, Ben had already finished his breakfast and waited patiently by the door.

When he saw her, he instinctively grabbed her hand. “Mommy, if you don’t take me to school soon, I’ll be late.”

Wanda pulled her hand from his grasp and said nonchalantly, "Jane will take you to school today. I’m tired.”

"I want you, Mommy, to take me to school," Ben pleaded. "Please."

"No, I'm tired," she replied coldly and ruthlessly.

Her ruthless refusal made Ben froze and he closed his mouth. He did not understand the reason his mother who usually did what he wanted would become so cold to him. He gulped down the words as he held back his tears.

Jean, who was standing at the side, sensed Wanda was in a bad mood. She wisely dragged Ben out of the house.

Wanda didn’t have the energy to console her son’s wounded feelings.

At the front desk, the receptionist hesitated as she looked up to confirm Wanda’s identity, her disbelief was evident. Yet, she quickly masked her shock and directed Wanda to Room three hundred and two to proceed with the paperwork.

Inside the room, a masked figure confirmed the details with her, such as the time and method of her death.

After she gave her firm answers, the man reminded her once again, his voice low and somber, “Once you sign, there’s no turning back. Seven days from now, Wanda will cease to exist.”

Wanda nodded. With steady hands, she signed her name. Then she handed over the sandalwood bracelet she’d worn for years as she said, "If I’m going to die, let’s make it convincing."

The bracelet held special significance. After Ben was born, Wanda fell into a mysterious coma. In desperation, Eric, despite being a staunch atheist, had traveled to Tibet. He endured freezing temperatures and knelt every three steps to pray for her recovery.

His sincerity had moved her back then, so much so that she had vowed never to take the bracelet off, even in death.  Now, in a cruel twist of fate, she was making good on that promise.

As she left the office, she overheard the murmured gossip from the reception desk, “They say Mr. Gordon dotes on Mrs. Gordon like she’s his whole world. Yet here she is, signing up for a fake death service.”

"This shows that even the most glamorous marriages can be miserable behind closed doors.”

“I can’t believe I used to root for their love story. Turns out it was all fake.”

Wanda did not wait to hear the rest of the conversation. Maybe Eric had truly loved her at some point in the past seven years. However, for him, love was just a fleeting thing.

Leaving the service center, Wanda wandered into a nearby mall. She hoped she could distract herself.

Yet, fate was cruel. Unexpectedly, she bumped into Ben, who was supposed to be in kindergarten. At that time, he was being with Eric and Christina. The trio of them were walking side by side like a real family.

Wanda froze and stood rooted to the ground. Her mind went blank.

It wasn’t until Christina noticed her that reality snapped back into focus.

"Mrs. Gordon, why are you here?" She covered her mouth in pretend surprise. She walked briskly on her high heels toward Wanda. There wasn’t the slightest trace of guilt on her face being caught in an affair.

“Please don’t misunderstand,” she continued with a practiced innocence. “Mr. Gordon was just being kind. I recently got cast in a role where I play a mother and he thought it would be helpful for me to spend time with Ben to practice.”

“If you’re upset, please take it out on me. It’s my fault, not theirs. Mr. Gordon and Ben are completely innocent," she added.

Christina deliberately played the role of a pitiful damsel, her teary eyes brimming with innocence. However, she used the fact that Eric was standing behind her, so she subtly exposed the faint red marks on her neck.

"Alright, Wanda isn’t the petty type," Eric interjected, as he was massaging his temples in frustration. "There’s nothing for her to misunderstand. We’ve done nothing wrong."

Before Christina could say anything more, he cut her off, "Don't you have to appear at the media conference? You should leave now."

"Mr. Gordon … but … but you promised that today you'll …."

When Eric saw Christina was about to say something detrimental and revealing, Eric's voice turned cold, "Christina, you're crossing the line!"

Her lips tightened in defiance, but seeing his expression, she eventually relented. Shooting a covert glare at Wanda she put on her mask and left, her reluctance palpable.

Using his young age, Ben walked toward Wanda and said, "Mommy, Christina is here to help pick out a present for you! I wanted to get you the world’s most amazing birthday gift.”

Wanda said calmly, "I’m not upset. It’s just … such a coincidence running into you all here."

She seemed detached, "Do you need anything else? If not, I’ll be heading back first."

“It’s rare for us to go out together,” Eric said, his softened voice. “There’s a charity auction tonight. Will you join me?”

Wanda said nothing, but her silence was enough for Eric to take it as agreement.

Without hesitation, he placed an arm around her slender waist. “You’ve gained some weight,” he remarked absentmindedly, then quickly added, "Yet, that’s a good thing. You were too thin before. Whether you’re slim or not, I love you either way."

Wanda’s lips curled into a cold smile, but she did not say anything.

Her weight hadn’t changed in years. His comment about her being fat was only because he was accustomed to Christina’s waist.

Perhaps out of guilt, Eric took her to an upscale boutique and personally picked out a red dress for her.

When Wanda emerged in full makeup while wearing a tailored gown, there was a flicker of amazement in his eyes.

Ben, on the other hand, clapped his hands directly and cheered, “Mommy, you look so pretty!”

When Wanda looked at her reflection, she couldn’t help but be reminded of the red gown Christina had worn on television just days ago. For so many years, she had never worn a red dress.

Yet, when it came to choosing a dress for her, Eric had instinctively picked Christina’s favorite color.

In the past, she would have confronted him, demanded him to give answers and even threatened to get a divorce. However, she did not care anymore.

With less than a week left, she decided to let him do as he pleased.

When they arrived at the auction that evening, Wanda wasn’t surprised to see Christina again. This time, she stood on the stage as the host of the show. Her witty remarks earned laughter from the crowd.

When she got off the stage, Christina intentionally sat next to Eric and even pinched Ben's face intimately.

On the contrary, Wanda, who was sitting on the side, was extraordinarily indifferent to the father and son duo. She did not take Christina's provocation in her heart.

Her attention was directed to the stage and her eyes slowly reddened as she recognized the final auction item.

If she wasn't mistaken, the last exhibit was the necklace her mother had worn the day she was killed, the Eternal Heart.

The name symbolized the truest form of love.

Her mother had once joked that when Wanda grew up, she would gift her the necklace as part of her dowry.

Perhaps he noticed the way Wanda looked at this place was a bit strange, Eric was the first to raise his sign to bid. "Seven hundred and fifty thousand dollars," he said.

However, a crisp female voice sounded immediately afterward, “Fifteen hundred dollars.”

Eric frowned when he heard that. He was very unhappy with Christina's recklessness.

Yet the woman was spoiled and pretended to be envious, “Mrs. Gordon is now a winner in life, Mr. Gordon loves you so much. Surely you wouldn’t begrudge me to get this necklace, right?”

When he heard Christina's provocative words, Ben tugged the corner of Wanda's clothes. “Mommy, why don’t we just let Christina have the necklace? We already have so many at home.”

Wanda forced a bitter smile. “What if this is the only one I want?”

She had never cared for luxury items, but this time, she refused to back down.

Eric gently squeezed her hand to comfort her before giving Ben a playful flick on his forehead. “In this family, we listen to Mommy. How can you give away something Mommy likes?”

He raised his paddle again. In the end, Eric won the bidding with the price of seventy-five hundred thousand dollars.

Christina's face turned red with rage. Tears glistened in her eyes as she stormed out of the auction hall.

Eric took a deep breath, got up and prepared to chase after her. However, before he left, he leaned down and kissed Wanda on her forehead. "I’ll go get the necklace and grab a hot milk for Ben while I’m at it.”

Ben, who had been about to follow his father, stopped in his tracks turned to Wanda and started to pester her to tell him a story. It was a familiar tactic and silent agreement between the father and son duo.

In the past, Eric would use this trick to distract Wanda and give himself a legitimate excuse to slip away and indulge his passion in his escapades.

However, children were children and Ben's ploy was easy to unravel. Wanda used the excuse of needing fresh air and slipped away. Ben didn’t press any further and let her go.

She stalked Eric until he stopped Christina in the bathroom. From behind the wall that separated them, she could hear clearly Christina's crying voice.

“It’s all your fault! You made me lose face in front of that woman. You only love her. You don’t care about me at all. If I’d met you earlier, there’s no way you would’ve married her!"

Then she added, "The only reason she’s still around is because she is your childhood sweetheart."

Christina cried for a long time. Eric just listened and did not say anything. When she could not cry anymore, Eric laughed softly and said, “Look at you, you've cried like a little kitten. You’re such a mess.”

His teasing only made the young woman puff out her cheeks in indignation and she put her hands on her hips. “I don’t care! Your wife stole the necklace I wanted. You have to make it up to me tonight!”

The air between them grew thick with passion and Eric’s voice dropped to a husky murmur, “You said it yourself. Don’t beg me to stop later.”

The man who always held himself when he was with Wanda turned into a ravenous wolf in front of Christina.

Wanda stood there as she listened to the lewd sound, of their lovemaking and torturing herself. When it was about to end, she finally couldn't bear it and fled the place that was suffocating her.

What she did not know was that after she left Christina asked Eric, "Do you love me?"

“If I didn’t, why would I do this with you?” Eric answered.

Seeing the lust clouding his eyes, she pressed further with a coy tone, "What if you had to choose between me and that old woman?”

“Of course, I’d choose you," said Eric.

“Then how about you divorce her and marry me?” Christina asked.

When he heard this, Eric's face instantly went cold. "You're crossing the line."

Seeing that the girl was crying from his fright, Eric reverted back to his amorous demeanor. He held her in his arms and comforted her, “You know I rarely touch her. Isn’t that enough to show how much I love you?”

Christina through her tears. However, what she truly desired wasn’t just his affection. She wanted to be his legitimate wife. She was tired of sneaking around like a thief.

As she thought about this, her eyes drifted to her flat stomach. One day, she would make Eric divorce Wanda willingly and marry her.

Meanwhile, Wanda had no idea where to go. She eventually found an empty room, the darkness within matching the emptiness in her heart.