A sharp, blinding pain shot through my head, like a rope being pulled tight around my skull. I shouted, "What are you doing? Put her down right now!"

The extreme tearing I had suffered during the difficult childbirth, which had required dozens of stitches, sent shooting pain through my lower body. I knew the wound had definitely reopened. However, there was no time to dwell on it.

Ignoring the blinding pain, I staggered forward and lunged at Yasmin Holden. Victoria's cries filled the room, piercing and frantic, just as Yasmin let out a shrill scream.

Suddenly, the door to my hospital room burst open. Tristan stormed in and crossed the distance in a few quick strides before kicking me aside.

He pulled Yasmin into his arms and asked, "Yas, are you okay? Are you hurt? Bridget, I knew it! You agreed to the divorce too easily because you were obviously planning something! So, this is what you've been waiting to do!"

I clutched Victoria tightly as Tristan's kick sent us flying several feet. My back slammed hard against the wall, forcing a painful groan from my throat.

Meanwhile, the woman in Tristan's protective embrace trembled against his chest, crying while holding her stomach. Yet, her face showed a smug smile directed at me.

Yasmin explained between sobs, "Professor Barnes, I got up to use the bathroom in the middle of the night and happened to pass by Mrs. Barnes' room when I heard the baby crying. I thought I shouldn't disturb Mrs. Barnes' rest, so I took it upon myself to come in and help soothe the baby...

"But Mrs. Barnes suddenly accused me of ruining her marriage with you and threatened to push me and my baby out the window!"

Tristan believed every word Yasmin said and stared at me in utter disbelief. Before I could explain, he scooped Yasmin up in his arms. "I should have known all along—you're completely vicious and cold-hearted! Someone like you doesn't deserve to use my money for postpartum care. You belong on the streets!"

With those words, he carried Yasmin out of my hospital room. Victoria continued crying in my arms, but Tristan never once asked about her.

Before I could react, a group of security guards burst into the room, restrained me, and threw me out of the hospital. The frigid night air made my wound sting unbearably while Victoria's screams had faded to hoarse, pitiful whimpers. My blood was pooling beneath us, dripping onto the ground beneath me.

I had planned to go to the emergency room to have my wound stitched up before figuring out what to do next. However, this private hospital was half-owned by Tristan, and the security guards had already posted my photo at the entrance with large letters stating: "This person is banned from receiving treatment at this facility!"

It was still the middle of the night with very few cars passing by, and the rare cabs that did come avoided me when they saw the blood soaking through my clothes.

With no other choice, I wrapped myself tightly in my hospital gown and carried Victoria five miles through the dark streets to the nearest public hospital, where they stitched me up again.

The morning after the surgery, I sent a resignation email to the college. Then, I dialed a number I knew by heart. "Rowan, about that project you mentioned... I'm in."

After a week of recovery at the hospital, I went to the college with Victoria to handle my resignation paperwork. The college president, Eric Ostell, was still trying to convince me to stay.

He asked, "Bridget, why are you suddenly leaving? Is there something about the job that's bothering you?"

I smiled and shook my head. "I received an invitation for a project overseas, and I've decided to give it a try."

Eric's concerned expression immediately transformed into one of admiration. "So, that's what it is! I knew someone as talented as you would never lack opportunities! Does Professor Barnes know about this big decision?"

I smiled and shook my head again. The time wasn't right to discuss what had happened between Tristan and me, so I didn't want to say a single word about it to anyone else.

Eric seemed to grasp the situation and broke into a wide smile. "You must be planning a surprise for Professor Barnes! You two have such a sweet relationship! Everyone at the college knows he's completely devoted to his wife.

"He always ends his classes promptly at 5:30 pm, saying he needs to rush home to cook dinner for you. Even after five years of marriage, you two still act like newlyweds. It truly makes everyone envious."

My hand froze in mid-air as I gathered my documents. Throughout my pregnancy, I had spent virtually every moment alone in our empty house. Whether it was countless prenatal check-ups or my mid-pregnancy depression, I had endured it all by myself.

For a long time, Tristan had stopped coming home, let alone cooking meals for me. So, if Tristan had been telling everyone he was cooking for his wife, and that wife wasn't me, who could it possibly be?

It wasn't yet time to expose the truth. Hence, I simply smiled and agreed with Eric's comments before finishing packing my things and leaving. I drove Victoria home, but when we arrived at our front door, the passcode I had entered many times before suddenly wouldn't work.

Initially, our home hadn't featured a keypad lock. Five years ago, Tristan and I lived in a rundown apartment that cost just 300 dollars a month to save money for research.

One night, after working late at the research lab, I returned home to find someone had forcibly broken into our apartment. Fortunately, Tristan had arrived in time to call the police, preventing a potential disaster.

After that incident, he had absolutely refused to let me work late at the lab anymore.

In our tiny one-bedroom apartment covered with mold stains, he had held me close and promised that someday he would provide me with a big house protected by the safest keypad lock. Yet now, as our circumstances had improved, the anti-theft lock we had chosen together was being used to keep me out.

Just as I was about to leave, the door opened from the inside. A woman stood in the doorway with lingerie barely hanging on her shoulders, a sheer wrap doing little to hide the red marks on her skin.

She mumbled, "Can't a person get any sleep around here? It's still so early!"

Then, she added, "Oh, it's just you, Mrs. Barnes. Is there something you need? Professor Barnes exhausted himself last night and is still lying in bed. If it's urgent, you can tell me, and I'll pass the message along."

Yasmin spoke while proudly displaying her pregnant belly. She even pulled her shawl down a few inches to reveal intimate marks on her skin, completely embodying the role of the lady of the house.

In the past, this would have driven me insane with anger. However, I simply ignored her provocations and walked straight into the house.

"I'm just here to get my things, then I'll leave," I replied, pushing Victoria's stroller past her into the house.

When I reached what had been my bedroom, I discovered that not a single item of mine remained in sight. The bedside tables and walls were now covered with photos of Tristan and Yasmin.

The pictures documented them watching the Northern Lights in Glaceheim, chasing dolphins in the ocean, and kissing on a mountaintop before sunrise. Tristan had done all the romantic things couples do with her—things he had never done with me.

Instead of feeling hurt, I felt pathetic. During our five years together, I had made the same birthday wish five times. "I hope Tristan can spend more time with me this year."

Tristan had always smiled and promised that he would definitely make time to be with me more the following year. Yet, he broke that promise year after year, and I finally understood the truth.

It wasn't that he didn't have time—he was just busy spending it with his female student.