My husband had a low sperm count, and it took us ten years of marriage before we finally had our first child.

But while I was away on a business trip, our five-year-old son mysteriously fell from the building and was hastily cremated.

In a fit of rage, Daniel Foster beat Nanny Kate into a vegetative state for failing to watch him properly.

With a face full of grief, he knelt before me, tears streaming down his cheeks.

“Grace, it’s my fault. I didn’t protect our child. I’ve punished the nanny severely. If our son knows this in heaven, he will finally rest in peace.”

I was terrifyingly calm.

At Margaret’s birthday dinner, I kidnapped her and dragged her to the rooftop of our eighteen-story penthouse, staring coldly at Daniel.

“I know you’re a dutiful son. You won’t bear to see your mother hurt, will you?”

“I’m giving you thirty minutes. If you don’t hand over the murderer who killed my son, I don’t mind letting your mother go down to keep him company.”

Daniel looked at me, disappointment written all over his face.

“Why are you acting crazy again? I told you—our son climbed up to the rooftop because he was playing. Nanny Kate is already in the hospital because of me. What murderer are you asking for?”

I slashed Margaret’s palm with my knife.

“My son’s death was suspicious. There’s no way it was an accident!”

I had already guessed that Daniel’s strange behavior lately was hiding something.

He had been in such a rush to cremate the body, just to protect the real culprit.

When I dragged Margaret to the edge of the rooftop, a crowd had gathered below, watching the scene unfold.

Fire trucks blared, ambulance lights flashed, and the entire street was in chaos.

Friends and relatives who had come for the party turned pale with shock.

Daniel emerged from the crowd, flanked by a team of bodyguards.

He looked up at his terrified, pale-faced mother, her hair messy from fear.

“Grace! My mother had nothing to do with our son’s death. How can you blame her? Bring her down—she’s old, if something happens to her, can you live with that?”

“Come down, and I won’t hold this against you. We can still live a good life together, okay?”

Daniel’s tone softened, his gentle gaze almost identical to the way he looked at me when we first fell in love.

Everyone knew how deeply he loved me, how he indulged me in everything.

Even now, with me holding his mother hostage, he would never truly blame me.

But so what?

“Daniel, you’re famous for being a dutiful son. You practically worship your mother.”

“I’ll give you thirty minutes. If you don’t bring me the killer, I’ll send your mother to join my son—and then I’ll jump too!”

I laughed bitterly, raised the knife, and brought it down.

A scream pierced the air.

Blood dripped onto the floor, glistening crimson in the sunlight.

Duct tape sealed Margaret’s mouth, leaving her to whimper and tremble violently.

The crowd gasped in horror.

Seeing that I was truly willing to draw blood, Daniel’s face darkened.

“Grace! Stop this madness! I had only one son. Everyone knows how much I loved him.”

“His death tore me apart, but it was an accident. The nanny is still lying in the hospital right now—stop suspecting everyone!”

His tone softened again.

“Grace, come down. What if you slip? Life has to go on.”

For ten years, his love for me and his devotion to our son had been the envy of every neighbor in our community.

They all said I was blessed to have married such a man.

In our first year of love, I was harassed by a group of thugs.

Frailer than most, he still fought them single-handedly, beating them down with sheer willpower, ending up hospitalized with serious injuries.

Late in my pregnancy, when my water broke and we were stuck in traffic, he shielded me with an umbrella against the blazing sun, carried me in his arms, and ran more than ten kilometers—until he collapsed from exhaustion.

Before he passed out, he begged the doctor, “Save my wife first. Save her!”

After our son was born, Daniel immediately announced him as the heir of the Foster family.

Whenever the child had a minor fever, he would panic as though the world was ending.

His friends teased him for being a henpecked husband and doting father, but he took pride in it.

“That’s because you’re jealous I have such a beautiful wife and adorable son!”

Now, even as Margaret bled, he was still worried about my safety.

But I didn’t need his care.

What I needed was the truth—the real murderer.

I drove the knife half an inch into Margaret’s arm, looking down coldly at Daniel.

“An accident? My son has always been obedient—he would never climb to the rooftop on his own. How could he just fall?”

“And why were you in such a rush to cremate him? You didn’t even let me see him one last time. He was the child I carried for ten months!”

“I’ll say it again. If you don’t hand over the killer within thirty minutes, this knife will pierce her chest.”

As the knife tip moved higher, gasps of horror rippled through the crowd.

Margaret’s hand was covered in blood, her whole body shaking with pain and fear.

The atmosphere was suffocating.

No one dared make a sound, afraid that any noise might push me over the edge.

The bodyguards slowly closed in from all sides, exchanging silent signals.

They were waiting for a chance to pull me away.

Someone finally shouted:

“She’s gone mad! She’s going to drag others down with her!”

“Margaret is such a kind and gentle lady! How could Grace do something so heartless?”

“She’s Daniel’s mother, his most respected parent! Grace thinks she can do anything just because Daniel loves her? He won’t forgive this!”

Daniel looked at the blood dripping down the wall, his eyes bloodshot.

“I’ve already punished the nanny. All the house staff who were home that day have been dismissed.”

“If there really is a murderer, I swear I’ll tear them apart! But you can’t be reckless like this—don’t ruin your life.”

Daniel looked truly heartbroken.

For the first time, I saw disappointment in his eyes.

But I could no longer care.

I pressed the knife harder. Margaret, sensing death’s shadow, cried silently and shook her head.

I spoke in an icy tone:

“Daniel, are you sure you want to protect the murderer?”

“Would you really watch your mother die in pain for their sake?”

A flash of hesitation crossed his face, then his expression hardened.

“Looks like my spoiling you all these years has turned you into this.”

“I’ve given you enough chances. If you insist on this path, don’t blame me!”

He waved his hand, and soon my parents and my five-year-old brother were dragged up to the rooftop by his men—

but my newly-returned sister was nowhere to be seen.

My mother trembled at the sight of Margaret’s blood-soaked hand, terrified by the scene.

But I was her daughter, and she couldn’t bear to see me go this far.

“Daughter! You’re out of your mind! The Foster family has treated you so well. How can you be so cruel?”

Robert’s silver hair fluttered in the wind, his brows tightly furrowed.

“Grace, what are you doing? Put the knife down and go back with Daniel. He loves you—he won’t hold this against you.”

“Listen to your father. The child’s death was just an accident. If there really is more to it, even if I go broke, I’ll get justice for you and the boy!”

My family had always loved me and spoke with care,

but even that couldn’t shake my resolve to find the murderer.

“Dad, Mom, stop trying to persuade me. Pretend you never had me. You still have another daughter—she can be the dutiful one. No matter what, I will make the killer pay with their life!”

Linda, knowing how stubborn I was, sobbed as she clutched Daniel’s sleeve.

“Son-in-law, don’t blame Grace. She’s only lost her mind because of the pain of losing her child.”

“For the sake of your marriage, forgive her this time. I’ll make sure she turns over a new leaf.”

Her crying was so heartfelt that even some of the onlookers were moved.

Robert knelt down, tears and snot running down his face.

“This is all our fault as her parents. If you must take your anger out, do it on us. Beat us to death if you want—we’ll accept it.”

Ethan stood frozen, eyes red with tears.

“Brother-in-law! I won’t ask you to buy me candy anymore, okay? Just please don’t be mad at my sister.”

Their cries were so tragic it felt like they were all ready to die with me.

They loved me so much they were willing to sacrifice themselves.

Daniel pointed at them, his eyes icy as he turned back to me.

“See? Your family is breaking themselves over your foolishness. Are you really willing to drag them down with you?”

“I’m warning you one last time—if you dare harm my mother again, tomorrow I’ll make sure the entire Miller family is buried with you!”

With the Foster family’s influence, wiping out my small family was no idle threat.

Everyone was terrified for me, because one wrong move would mean no way back.

But I laughed through my tears.

I lowered the knife toward Margaret’s abdomen, my tone disturbingly calm.

“Go ahead—kill them. Then they can join me and my son in the afterlife.”

Margaret’s sobs snapped the crowd out of their daze.

Everyone thought I would wake up from this madness, but I was far too gone.

They whispered among themselves, staring at me as though I were a monster.

If not for the blood dripping from my knife, they might never have believed this was real.

Some sighed, some pitied, others cursed me as a venomous woman.

But I didn’t care.

Margaret was trembling, barely able to stand from blood loss, staring at me with a mix of resentment and pleading.

She had been strong-willed all her life—when had she ever looked this weak?

Daniel’s face twisted with pain and fury.

He had thought using my family as leverage would force me to release Margaret.

But for once, his calculations failed.

“Grace! Are you really going to go this far?”

“You claim to love your family so much—how can you just watch them walk to their deaths?”

Looking at his frantic face, I couldn’t help but laugh.

“Daniel, the heartless one is you!”

“You’re the cruel one—so eager to shield the killer that you’d rather watch your own mother die right in front of you.”