Chapter 1
"Mommy, will Daddy really come to see me?"
The little girl clutched her blood-stained stuffed rabbit, her bright eyes gradually losing focus. "Mommy, I'm so cold."
I held my daughter tight. "Milly, Daddy will be here soon. Just hang in there a little longer."
Milly Smith's hand slowly loosened, and the blood-red stuffed rabbit slid down the edge of the bed and fell to the floor.
"I'm sorry, Mrs. Smith. We did everything we could. Your daughter died from excessive blood loss after the car accident. Time of death: 4:00 AM, May 13th."
My whole body went cold. Blood dripped from my fingertips onto the floor, pooling into a puddle of crimson that reflected my face, equally covered in blood from the accident.
Today was George Smith's birthday.
A month ago, Milly defeated the daughter of the Master of Blue Moon Clan in a competition, bringing honor to the Triple Grove Clan. George finally agreed to let Milly attend his birthday party this year.
Milly had been preparing for half a month, making him a gift with her own hands, pricking her tender little fingers in the process.
This morning, she put on her prettiest dress, waiting for George to pick her up for his birthday party.
She waited until late at night, but George never came.
Milly begged me to call him, and that's when we found out the party had already started.
George was at the party with Jack Smith, his son, with Sarah Wilson, introducing Jack to everyone in the Triple Grove Clan.
How ridiculous. My daughter practiced swordsmanship so hard just to attend the party, falling and getting back up countless times, her body covered in bruises, finally winning the competition just to earn a smile from George.
Jack did nothing and got to attend the party with him, being introduced to everyone without any effort.
All of this, simply because Milly was born from a shotgun marriage after George and I had an accident.
But Jack Smith was George's child with his first love, Sarah Wilson.
Eight years ago, I had a premature delivery with severe hemorrhaging that nearly killed me. Milly was sent to an incubator right after birth, and the doctor predicted she might not survive three days.
I dragged my weak body to wait outside the ward, only to see George personally escort Sarah into the delivery room and wait outside attentively.
When Sarah came out, he immediately presented her with flowers, thanking her for going through the hardship of giving birth.
Later, when Sarah went abroad to study, he brought Jack home to help her take care of him.
I should have understood then. The gap between Sarah and me in his heart was huge. How could Milly ever compare to Jack?
When they were little, even when Milly was crying from hunger, he insisted I feed Jack first.
As they grew up, Milly had to do things perfectly just to get a glance from him.
But Jack only needed to say a few sweet words to win his favor.
Over time, everyone under him saw Jack as the future heir.
Some even spread rumors privately that Milly was my illegitimate child with another man!
The doctor stood before me, handing over the cremation consent form. "Mrs. Smith, hasn't the child's father arrived yet?"
I took the thin sheet of paper. "The child's father is happily keeping his illegitimate son company."
The doctor didn't know how to comfort me and added in a low voice, "The child's funeral can't wait too long."
I held the heavy black urn, my eyes so swollen I could barely open them, my chest feeling like it was blocked by a huge stone.
The cold wind swept up my hair, slapping it against my face. I brushed it aside and saw the east intersection of Cross Street in the distance.
Where the accident happened.
When I first learned that George's birthday party had already started, I didn't plan to take Milly anymore.
But Milly begged me desperately, saying she just wanted to stand at the door and see her daddy from afar.
I had no choice but to agree and drive her to the party.
The east intersection of Cross Street.
That black SUV came at us at full speed.
Although the license plate had been specially altered, I saw it. The driver was the chauffeur of the Blue Moon Clan's leader.
Blue Moon Clan and Triple Grove Clan had been at odds for a long time.
George was surrounded by bodyguards, so they couldn't find a chance to strike at him directly and turned their attention to those around him.
At first, they targeted Jack, but after that swordsmanship competition, they started noticing Milly.
But Milly only won that competition through hard practice to get George's attention.
The root of everything was George!
I took a deep breath and dialed George's number for the twelfth time.
This time, the call finally went through.
George had been drinking, his voice light and full of irritation. "What time is it? What do you want?"
He was always like this with me.
"Where are you? I need you to sign something," I asked.
George scoffed mockingly. "Divorce papers again? Grace, you pull this stunt every year at my birthday party. Aren't you tired of it?"
My chest tightened. I swallowed the sob rising in my throat. "It's not divorce papers, it's..."
"I'm not interested in your drama." George coldly cut me off.
At the same time, I heard Jack's cheerful voice on the other end. "Daddy, can Mommy really sleep in the same room with us tonight?"
George didn't even hang up, indulging him lovingly. "As long as you want."
"Don't spoil him like that." Sarah's voice was flirtatious, getting closer. "If I really sleep in the same bed with you, won't Grace come after me tomorrow?"
Only then did George remember the call was still connected. His voice turned cold as he responded to me. "I'm not coming home tonight."
Before I could answer, the call was already disconnected, leaving only the busy tone in my ear.
No need to come back.
Not just tonight.
I stroked the urn in my arms, feeling an unprecedented sense of relief. "Don't be afraid, Milly. Mommy's coming to be with you."
I leaped from the window on the seventeenth floor.
When George was woken by the phone call, he was still drowsy.
He glanced at the number and said irritably, "Grace, I told you, I'm not signing any divorce papers."
"Mr. Smith, I'm sorry. Your wife, Mrs. Grace Smith, just jumped from a building, holding your daughter Milly's urn. Please come sign the cremation consent form."
George's drowsiness vanished. He sat up, about to speak, when he heard his subordinate knocking urgently at the door.
As soon as the door opened, the subordinate stumbled in. "Mr. Smith, Blue Moon Clan staged a car accident tonight. Miss Milly died in the accident."
"Mrs. Smith also jumped from a building holding Milly's urn."
George's vision went black, and he collapsed to the floor.