The moment Marcella stepped in, the smile on Henrietta's face vanished.

“Good grief, you’re really getting more arrogant by the day. Calling you back for something this important, and you still made me wait. You really don’t know your place, do you?”

Marcella had lost count of how many times she’d heard these words.

The woman beside Henrietta eyed Marcella from head to toe, her gaze filled with contempt.

Marcella had seen her once—from a distance—at an auction. The woman was the Churchills’ heiress.

In Henrietta's eyes, Grady should’ve married someone from a family like Arizona’s.

Arizona smiled faintly, her gaze occasionally landing on the stack of documents on the coffee table.

“Come here and sign.”

Henrietta tossed the words at Marcella, cold and indifferent.

On the table, bolded on the first page, were two words: [Divorce Agreement].

Marcella’s lips curled slightly, almost imperceptibly. ‘So that’s how it is.’

“This is Grady’s decision too?”

Henrietta raised an eyebrow, unsurprised by the question.

“Of course! He only married you for your kidney. We’ll compensate you more than enough to keep you comfortable for life, so you’d better not be ungrateful—”

She barely finished speaking when Marcella picked up the pen and signed her name.

She didn’t even glance at the contents.

Lifting her head, her eyes landed not on Henrietta, but on Arizona.

“Congratulations to you both in advance.”

For a moment, both Arizona and Henrietta were stunned.

Their faces turned pale and then red, clearly not expecting Marcella to agree so easily.

Without another word, Marcella turned to leave.

She had already chosen to let go of Grady. There was no reason for her to keep up appearances for his mother anymore.

“Your son only has one kidney left. Don’t hold up a young woman’s future for him. Besides, in his heart, there’s only Zeth.”

As expected, the moment Marcella said that, Arizona’s face drained of color.

The Walquists had been tight-lipped about Grady’s accident all these years. No one knew his true condition.

All anyone knew was that he had married a woman he didn’t love—out of obligation.

Marcella let out a soft laugh and shot a glance at Henrietta, whose face was now flushed with anger. Then, the younger woman turned and walked away.

Suddenly, with a crash, a porcelain vase shattered against the doorframe behind her.

“Without the Walquists, what do you think you are?! All these years, haven’t you and that kid been living off Grady’s money? Divorcing you is the greatest mercy we could show you!”

“What divorce?” A deep voice cut through the air.

Grady suddenly appeared in the doorway, his gaze shifting between Marcella and his mother.

Before Marcella could speak, Henrietta quickly reacted, putting on a pitiful act as she grabbed Seth’s hand.

“Marcella heard rumors about you and Zeth and came crying to me, demanding a divorce. No matter how much I tried to talk her out of it, she wouldn’t listen.”

She hadn’t expected Seth’s eyes to light up at that.

His gaze kept flickering toward the car parked outside.

The moment he heard they were getting a divorce, all he could think about was rushing out to tell Zeth.

Grady stood in front of Marcella, his expression unreadable.

“I’m leaving. The papers are signed.”

To her, the agreement didn’t really matter anymore—she was already set on heading into the wilderness. But since Henrietta had asked her to sign, Marcella figured she might as well get it over with.

But just as she stepped out, Grady grabbed the papers from the table and ripped them to shreds.

The pieces fluttered to the ground at her feet.

“I never agreed to a divorce! Don’t even think about leaving me in this lifetime!”

The light that had just flickered in Seth’s eyes instantly dimmed.

Seeing this, Marcella couldn’t help but feel a pang of bitterness in her heart.

Did he really hate her that much?

But Zeth had only been around for 10 days.

Grady’s gaze remained fixed on Marcella’s face as he spoke those words.

But she stayed indifferent, not even showing a hint of surprise.

She was nothing like the woman who once had eyes only for him.

For some reason, Grady felt as if something was slipping away—something beyond his control.

Just as Marcella turned to leave, Grady stepped forward, grabbed her wrist, and pulled her out of the family estate.

But the moment they stepped out into the garden, Zeth was already standing there.

Her eyes were red as if she’d just been crying.

Her phone was still connected to a call, and from a distance, Marcella could see the contact name on the screen—Seth, the boy she had raised for seven years.

The man who had just been gripping her wrist so tightly instantly let go the moment Zeth turned her head.

All Marcella was left with was his retreating.

“Mom, if you want a divorce, why don’t you just be straightforward about it? You keep saying you want to leave, but then you cling to Dad. I hate you! I want Aunt Zeth to be my mom!”

With that, Seth shoved Marcella aside and ran off, chasing after Zeth without hesitation.

Standing outside the villa, Marcella couldn’t hear what Grady said to Zeth.

She only saw that one moment, Zeth was still angry, but in the next, her lips curled up slightly.

Then, Seth threw himself into her arms.

[I’m going to the office. Figure out how to get home yourself.]

It was a text message from Grady that popped up on her screen.

By the time Marcella looked up, the three of them were already in the car, ready to leave.

The scorching sun beat down, drenching her shirt in sweat.

The Walquists’ family estate was built up in the mountains, surrounded by nothing but wilderness for the sake of privacy.

Marcella walked alone along the mountain path, unable to get a cab no matter how hard she tried.

Her head was starting to feel dizzy. She took out her phone, thinking of calling for help.

But after scrolling through her contacts, she realized there wasn’t a single person she could call.

A distant honk broke the silence. When Marcella turned around, Arizona had already pulled up beside her.

“Playing hard to get a little too much, aren’t you? I almost believed you were serious about that divorce. So… it was all just an act, huh?”

Marcella never expected that signing the divorce papers without hesitation would be seen as nothing more than a ploy.

Of course. Everyone knew Grady had a wife who loved him to the bone—a wife who didn't even hesitate to donate her kidney for him.

‘So that’s what Grady thinks too, huh?’

Marcella didn’t bother explaining. She didn’t spare Arizona another glance.

Having just been ignored by Grady at the family estate, now being treated as air by someone she looked down on made Arizona’s blood boil.

As she watched Marcella’s retreating figure, an idea flashed through her mind.

The car suddenly sped up, brushing past Marcella.

Caught off guard, she stumbled and crashed to the ground.

“Oh my! So sorry about that! Maybe next time, watch where you’re going?”

Arizona leaned out of the car window, grinning at the sight of Marcella struggling to get up from the dirt.

Then, with a flick of her hair, she stepped on the gas, leaving nothing behind but a trail of exhaust.

Marcella struggled to get up, even though she only had a scrape on her leg.

But the dull ache in her belly was getting worse. When she looked down, she saw herself lying in a pool of blood.

Her face turned deathly pale. There was no time for fear—she hurriedly dialed Grady.

“Grady, I—”

“Dee is in the shower. He doesn’t have time to answer your call. If you have any self-respect, you should step aside and give up your position as Mrs. Walquist. Playing hard to get won’t work, you know. It’ll only make him hate you more.”

Before Marcella could finish her sentence, Zeth hung up on her.

Marcella called again, but all she got was the beeping sound of a powered-off phone.

The pain in her belly became unbearable, and her whole body trembled uncontrollably.

‘Grady, I will never forgive you! You will never be happy in this lifetime!’

That was the last thought in her fading consciousness before everything went dark.

When she woke up, she was in a hospital bed.

A security guard on patrol had found her. By the time she was brought in, she had already lost consciousness.

She instinctively placed a hand on her belly. A nurse who had just walked in sighed at the sight.

“You’re still so young. You’ll have another child in the future.

“Try calling your family. They should be here to take care of you.”

The memory of that phone call before she passed out nearly crushed her.

Even a stranger could offer her comfort and concern, yet Grady was as cold as ice—completely unaffected no matter what she did.

Marcella couldn’t help but wonder, ‘In those seven years, how many moments had been real?’ Or had I been nothing more than a way to pass the time whenever Zeth wasn’t around?’

“I don’t have any family. Thank you, but I’ll be fine on my own.”

Her voice was soft, but the nurse still caught the loneliness in it. She looked at the patient with sympathy but didn’t press further.

As soon as the nurse left, Marcella finally broke down, sobbing uncontrollably.

She never expected to find out she was already two months pregnant.

And now, before she even had the chance to process it, the baby was gone.

She wondered how Grady would react when he found out they lost their second child because of him.

‘Would he feel relieved? Or would there be even a flicker of sadness?’

Marcella let out a bitter laugh.

‘He’ll probably be thrilled—one less tie between us.’

Just then, her phone buzzed with a message from Grady.

[I’m on a business trip. Go home and take care of Seth.]

Marcella gripped her phone tightly, an overwhelming sense of exhaustion washing over her.

‘Business trip? Is that what he called lying in bed with Zeth?’

But she didn’t reply. Instead, she blocked him on Telegram.

There wasn’t much time left, anyway.

As she stepped out of the hospital room, she suddenly froze.

Standing by the OB-GYN’s office, where she never should have been, was Zeth—leaning into Grady’s arms, gently cradling her belly.

Marcella’s mind went blank. Her whole body started shaking.

“Dee, since I’m pregnant now, why don’t we let Seth stay with Marcella?”

From a distance, Marcella heard Zeth’s voice.

At that moment, everything around Marcella seemed to fall silent.

She stared at Grady, waiting for his answer.

“You know I’ve never liked Seth.”

Grady’s response made Zeth smile. She was still smiling when the elevator doors closed behind her.