"Elowen, why did you insist on having me switch the painkiller for a labor-inducing drug? You knew that this particular drug would damage her internal organs and now Callista can’t even produce milk. Don’t you think this has gone too far?"

"I wanted to make sure she couldn’t produce milk. How could I let my and Maya’s child drink her milk? What if the baby developed feelings for her instead? I absolutely won’t allow that to happen."

Scalding tears slid down my cheeks as my grip on the bed’s edge tightened so much that my fingers turned white.

No wonder the so-called painkiller had only intensified the agony. It had been a labor-inducing drug all along.

I glanced down at my chest. It was dry, sagging slightly, with no sign of milk production, completely unlike a mother who had just given birth.

"Maya has already chosen a name for our daughter, Yasha. Anyway, I won’t stay long. Maya is waiting to see the baby. I’ll let Callista take a quick look before taking the child to her."

Elowen’s voice rang out again as the door swung open. He walked in, holding a newborn in his arms.

Seeing that I was already awake, Elowen gazed at me tenderly and gently placed the baby in front of me.

"Baby, you've worked so hard. Our family has welcomed another little one. Look at this tiny face, it looks so much like you. I've already decided on a name for our baby. Let's call her Yasha. It suits her perfectly."

I stared at Yasha’s face, one that resembled both Elowen and Maya but bore no trace of me. The irony was almost laughable. I had endured nine months of pregnancy, risked my life in childbirth, yet the child I brought into this world belonged to Elowen and another woman.

And my real children? The ones who should have been mine? They had all been killed by Elowen’s own hands.

Before long, he used the excuse that my body had been weakened by multiple miscarriages and couldn’t produce milk, saying the baby had to be sent to a specialized nursery for care. He promised to bring me to see her once I recovered.

I said nothing. I simply nodded numbly. This child wasn’t mine. I had no reason to keep her by my side.

Seeing the hopelessness in my expression, Elowen’s eyes flickered with a strange emotion.

I knew it was the fleeting guilt of a man whose conscience had momentarily awakened after committing a heartless act.

Not long after Elowen left, I received a friend request and I instantly recognized it was Maya because her profile picture was a photo of herself holding a small white dog.

I found the dog quite familiar and instinctively opened Elowen’s Instagram account. I discovered his profile picture was the same dog, cropped from the photo of Maya.

No wonder such a proud person like Elowen would use a dog as his profile picture for five years. It was to match with Maya’s profile picture.

As soon as I accepted the friend request, Maya posted something.

It was a photo of her and Elowen, with her holding the baby that had been living in my belly for nine months.

The caption read. “Our family of three is reunited.”

I knew she posted it for me to see. When I scrolled down, I realized that these five years of my marriage were actually all related to Maya.

On the day I married Elowen, Maya posted a photo of our wedding bed with the caption.

“Sleep peacefully. This bed has already been tested by me and him and the quality is excellent.”

After my first miscarriage, when I was lying in the operating room being resuscitated, Maya also posted a photo of Elowen’s back as he was busy in the kitchen, with the caption.

“Having a brother is really great. I just mentioned period pain and he ran all the way overseas to take care of me.”

But that day, he told me he was on a business trip abroad and couldn’t come to take care of me.

The three miscarriages that followed all coincided with the days Maya posted on her photos. Every post was about how Elowen pampered her, either accompanying her to build a boring block tower, watching the aurora with her, or taking pictures of priceless gemstone necklaces for her.

As for me, he always brushed me off with different work excuses, leaving me to face the cold, lonely operating table alone. Meanwhile, I felt sorry for him, thinking his work pressure was too much and I told him to focus on handling things abroad without worrying about me.

Looking back now, I realize I was quite considerate, always clearing the way for them to have time to love each other.

I had no interest in scrolling further. After wiping away the tears from the corner of my eyes, I dialed my best friend’s phone in Yvermont State.

“You asked me before if I was willing to come over there as a dance consultant. I’ve thought about it and I want to go.”

“That’s great! Make sure you prepare well. I’ll come to pick you up in five days.”

After hanging up the phone, I contacted a local lawyer and asked them to prepare a divorce agreement for me.

For three consecutive days, Elowen didn’t come to see me, but Maya’s posts were constantly updated with their family of three’s daily life.

It wasn’t until the fourth evening that Elowen pushed a wheelchair into my hospital room and his first words were an apology. “Sorry, baby. There was an issue at the company these past few days and I’ve been too busy to come see you. But as soon as I finished, I came straight here to see you.”

His tone was sincere and earnest, with no hint of insincerity.

If it hadn’t been for the countless hickeys I saw beneath his collar, I might have been deceived by him once again.

“Baby, Mom is very happy that you gave birth to our daughter. She said you’ve been working hard lately, so she specially organized a birthday party for you tonight. I’ll take you there right now.”

Before I could say anything, he lifted me from the bed and placed me in the wheelchair, then pushed me out of the room.

When Elowen and I arrived at the hotel, the birthday party had already started. Maya and my mother-in-law were standing by the crib, holding Yasha, smiling and accepting guests' blessings. The atmosphere was very lively.

But as soon as I appeared, the lively atmosphere came to a halt. Guests began to look at me with strange eyes.

“Isn’t today supposed to be her birthday party? Why is she wearing a hospital gown? Didn’t the Aldridge Family prepare a dress for her? And what’s that smell on her? Has she not showered for days?”

“She’s still coming in a wheelchair? Could it be that giving birth left her paralyzed? I wonder if her daughter will be mocked for having a paralyzed mother. How pitiful.”

“The Aldridge Family invited us here to celebrate her birthday and we all dressed up specially. But she shows up like this. Does she think we’re not worthy of her dressing up for us? Don’t give me the excuse of being too tired to take care of herself after giving birth. When I had my child, I wasn’t like this. To me, it just seems like she’s looking down on us.”

The guests murmured, openly making malicious assumptions about me. But what they didn’t know was that due to the severe injuries to my lower body, the doctor had forbidden me from getting wet. Even though the stench from my body made me gag and feel nauseous, I had to endure it.

In the past, Elowen might have said a few words for me, but now all his attention was focused on Maya and Yasha, not far away. After pushing me into a corner where no one was around, he went over to join them.

My mother-in-law, feeling embarrassed by me, was furious. She didn’t care how many people were around and pointed at my nose, shouting. “Callista, you must be doing this on purpose to embarrass the Aldridge Family, right? You already dress like a country bumpkin on a regular day and I’ve told you today is your birthday celebration. Yet you still show up like this? Is this how much you want people to think I’m a wicked mother-in-law who likes to bully her daughter-in-law, even refusing to buy you a decent outfit?”

“You poisonous woman, I never should have let Elowen marry you. You’re not even worth a single finger of Maya. Marrying into our family was the worst luck ever. If Maya weren’t my adopted daughter and couldn’t marry Elowen, there’s no way it would have been you.”

Looking at the scene now, I indeed couldn’t compare to Maya even in the slightest. Her skin was like porcelain and her beauty indescribable. She wore and carried only the finest luxury items and wherever she went, she was the center of attention.