My mother choked out, “I’m sorry.”

Darius shouted, “Louder! Who can hear you?”

My mother knelt on the ground, repeatedly bowing her head to that dog over and over again and crying out loudly, “I’m sorry.”

I cried out to her, “Mom, I’m fine. Don’t torture yourself.”

But Darius didn’t stop her.

My mother could only keep bowing her head and repeatedly apologizing.

The onlookers pulled out their phones to record videos. More people pointed at My mother and laughed hysterically.

Camilla walked over, looking weak and said, “Auntie My mother, I’m sorry. I just hope the dog’s spirit can rest in peace.”

Darius said, “Camilla, you’re just too kind. You don’t need to apologize to her.”

“In the future, you need to be stronger. These malicious people won’t dare to bully you.”

Camilla nodded softly.

Half an hour later, Darius finally seemed satisfied and pushed me aside.

I ran over and helped My mother to her feet.

I cried. “Mom, I’m sorry.”

My mother’s forehead was bleeding, but she reached out and touched my head. 

“I’m fine…”

Before she could finish her words, her body couldn’t take it anymore and she fainted in my arms.

“Mom!” 

I knelt on the ground, sobbing uncontrollably.

A hint of pity finally flashed across Darius’s face. He ordered the bodyguards to help my mother into the car and take us to the hospital.

Camilla grabbed his sleeve. “Darius.”

Darius patted her hand. “Wait for me. I’ll be right back.”

On the way to the hospital, Darius sighed and said to me, “Emma, don’t blame me. Camilla had a miserable childhood. She lived in poverty and her parents often beat her.”

“It was this dog that relied on her and grew up with her. I just wanted to comfort her and let her vent her anger. Otherwise, she might have done something reckless.”

I said coldly, “Let her vent her anger, so you forced my mother to kneel and apologize to the dog, is that it?”

Darius said unhappily, “Your mother was wrong in the first place. Isn’t it only right for her to apologize?”

“If she had cooperated a little back then, things wouldn’t have escalated to this point.”

Looking at my unconscious mother, I said calmly, “Darius, let’s get a divorce.”

“Divorce?” He was stunned, a flash of panic crossing his eyes. But it was only a fleeting moment. he quickly regained his composure.

He looked at me with a mocking expression. 

“Emma, how old are you? Are you really using divorce as a threat?”

“Count how many times you’ve said those two words. Do you think I’m an idiot? I always believed you.”

I sighed bitterly. “Yes, I’ve said it too many times.”

When I married Darius, I never imagined I would ever consider divorce.

At that time, my father, Frediano Ruiz, was still alive and our family business was thriving.

Darius was just a man from the countryside who had made it big.

He was kind and considerate to me and I was moved by his care, believing he was the one I would marry.

But after my father passed away, Darius took over the business, drained our family’s assets and transferred all the property to his name. That was when things changed.

His attitude toward me grew increasingly cold and impatient, while he grew closer to Camilla, the poor student he had been sponsoring.

We argued, fought and even threatened divorce. After each argument, Darius would find a way to appease me. But the next time, he would act as he pleased, while my boundaries continued to erode.

Darius saw through this. He knew I wouldn’t leave him, so he became increasingly reckless.

Even when I was pregnant, he secretly brought Camilla home to spend the night with her.

Darius thought I would keep putting up with it.

But he didn’t know that this time, I was really going to divorce him.

As I was deep in thought, Darius handed me a small box.

“Your mother is your mother and you are you. I won’t blame you for her mistakes.”

“Honey, don’t be angry. This is a special gift I picked out for you.”

I opened the box absentmindedly. What caught my eyes was a necklace. It was last year’s model and there were obvious signs of wear.

The design was familiar. It seemed to have been worn around Camilla’s neck all along. It seemed that Darius had bought her a new one and was using the old one to brush me off.

I sighed and tossed the box under the seat. Darius didn’t notice. He didn’t care whether I liked it or not, or whether I would wear it.

We arrived at the hospital. My mother remained unconscious.

After examination, the doctor found that she had been running a high fever and, due to severe mental trauma. Her brain had suffered significant damage.

My mother was immediately rushed to the operating room for emergency treatment.

I crouched outside the operating room and started crying softly.

Darius sighed and gently wrapped his arm around my shoulders.

“I didn’t expect this either. Don’t worry, I’ll stay with you the whole time.”

At that moment, Darius’s phone rang. 

It was Camilla’s sobbing voice, “Darius, I’m so sad. Can you come and be with me?”

Darius hummed in response and hung up the phone. He glanced at me nervously, then checked the time.

“I’ll go buy you something to eat.”

He hurried away. He hadn’t shown up until my mother came out of the operating room.

My mother remained unconscious and I struggled to clean her and turn her over while pregnant.

Darius never came once.

Occasionally, he would send me a message explaining that he was busy with an important project. But Camilla kept sending me photos of the two of them.

They held hands while shopping, fed each other cake and kissed on the beach.

Most of them were taken in the wedding room I shared with Darius, showing Camilla and Darius lying on the wedding bed. They got entangled in each other’s arms.

Camilla was taunting me maliciously. But none of this could stir any emotion in me anymore.

I had already decided to divorce Darius. If she wanted him, she could have him.

A few days later, I went to pay my mother’s hospital fees.

When I returned, I saw Camilla standing by my mother’s bedside. I was both shocked and angry and rushed over to push her away.

 “What are you doing?”

Camilla waved the water cup in her hand and said in a sarcastic tone, “Auntie is thirsty, I’m giving her water to drink.”

My mother had been in a coma the entire time. How could she possibly want water?

I looked at the hospital bed and saw that my mother was soaked from head to toe in cold water.

I was so enraged that I lost my mind and shoved Camilla hard. 

“Do you have any humanity left?”

Camilla let out a scream, fell to the ground and burst into tears. Just then, Darius pushed open the door and walked in.

“Emma! What are you doing?”

He didn’t give me a chance to explain and slapped me hard across the face.

I covered my face and was about to accuse Camilla of what she had done.

But Camilla immediately said, “Just now, Auntie woke up and wanted water to drink. Emma wasn’t around, so I was about to give her some water, but Emma rushed in and hit me.”

Darius listened. His eyes turned red with anger.

He kicked me hard again and his voice filled with hatred, “Emma, how did you become such a despicable person?”

“Camilla’s dog was killed by your mother. She forgave you and even came to the hospital to visit your mother.”

“And this is how you treat her? Do you even know the etiquette of hospitality?”

“Or are you just like your mother, with cruelty in your very bones?”

I shouted at him in anguish, “Don’t you dare talk about my mother. You have no right to speak about her.”

Darius slapped me across the face. “Do you think I want to talk about her? I can’t even be bothered to look at you two.”

He embraced Camilla and said gently, “Let’s go. Don’t bother with them.”

Camilla didn’t move. She lowered her head and said, “Darius, I know you’re busy at work. You go ahead. I want to stay here to take care of Auntie and mend my relationship with Emma.”

Darius sighed, “You’re just too kind.”

“But I can’t leave you here alone.”

Camilla thought for a moment and said, “Darius, please leave the bodyguards here.”

“As long as Emma doesn’t hit me, I can endure anything else.”

Darius thought for a moment and told the bodyguards, “The two of you stay here. Do everything as Camilla says. Don’t let anyone bully her.”

The bodyguards agreed.

I coldly said to Darius, “I don’t need Camilla here. Please have your people leave.”

Darius pulled me aside and whispered threateningly, “Emma, don’t be ungrateful.”

“Camilla has already given you a way out and you’re still being stubborn?”

“Let me tell you, if you dare to target Camilla again, I won’t let you off the hook.”

I didn’t say a word.  I just silently pulled out the divorce agreement.

Darius glanced at it and sneered, “Divorce? Who are you trying to scare?”

He casually wrote his name on it and slapped the divorce agreement in my face.

“Do you think I’ll keep spoiling you and pampering you like before and not sign it?”

“Emma, it’s not that I look down on you. I know you’ll keep your face and continue being my wife.”

He mocked me and walked away.

Only Camilla and I stayed in the hospital room. As soon as Darius left, Camilla revealed her true colors.

I wasn’t surprised at all because she had always been two-faced in front of Darius and me. 

Camilla looked at my mother’s hospital bed and sneered, “Emma, I know a folk remedy that can cure your mom.”

I shielded my mother. “What are you doing?”

Camilla gave the bodyguards a signal. The two bodyguards immediately grabbed me and dragged me to the corner. She brought cold water and poured it cup after cup onto my mother’s body.

I cried and cursed her. I struggled desperately to stop her. But the bodyguards held me tightly and I couldn’t get to her.

Finally, I gave up hope and cried, “Camilla, I was wrong. Please let my mother go.”

Camilla smiled and said, “Sure, but will you kneel down for me?”

Without thinking, I knelt down on the ground. With my swollen belly, I bowed my head to her.

My tears streamed down my face and I softly said, “I’ve already divorced Darius. I have nothing to do with you anymore. Please stop tormenting my mother.”

Camilla walked over, suddenly raised her hand and slapped me across the face. 

“Divorce is enough? As long as Darius still has even a shred of feelings for you, I won’t let you off the hook.”