During a swim, my five-year-old son accidentally splashed water onto a woman nearby.

The woman shrieked and jumped away. My husband rushed over, and without a word of explanation, he shoved our son under the water to "punish" him.

Panicked, I grabbed onto him and screamed, "Gerald, are you insane? It's just a splash of water! How can you treat a child like this?"

But he acted as if he hadn't heard me. His hand locked around our son's throat, pressing him down.

Only when Miles' struggles grew weaker and weaker, until he stopped moving altogether, did Gerald finally let go.

I frantically lunged forward, hauling my son's limp body out of the water—but I was too late.

His small body lay motionless on the ground, soft, lifeless, without a single breath left.

And my husband? He didn't even glance at him. Instead, he was busy comforting the frightened woman, his eyes full of concern.

"It's all right now. The child was being naughty, but I've already taught him a lesson."

The woman leaned into his arms with a coy whimper.

"He scared me to death, Gerald... Thank goodness you were here to protect me."

Watching their intimacy, something in me snapped. I suddenly recalled the file the assistant had delivered this morning—

So this was it.

The woman he had hidden in his heart for the past ten years. His so-called unforgettable first love.

...

Wiping my tears, I typed out a single message with trembling hands.

[Activate Level One contingency. Freeze all Hamilton Corporation assets immediately.]

Swallowing the lump in my throat, I turned back to my son.

He lay there so quietly, so softly, as if merely asleep.

But he would never wake up again.

Never run into my arms, laughing and calling me Mommy.

"Baby..." My hands shook as I cupped his cold little face, my voice breaking.

"Baby, wake up... Please, look at Mommy..."

There was only silence.

Those bright, sparkling eyes of his were closed forever.

"Gerald!" I raised my head and roared, my throat tearing, "You killed our son! You killed Miles!"

But Gerald only tightened his hold around Tiffany, murmuring softly to comfort her.

Hearing my words, he frowned impatiently.

"Lorraine, what nonsense are you screaming? I was just disciplining him. He was too weak—that's not my fault."

His words carved through my heart like a thousand blades.

This was the man I had loved for ten years. The man for whom I had severed ties with my own family.

"He was only five years old!" I sobbed hysterically, my tears falling without end.

"He just kicked up some water! And you held him down until he couldn't breathe! He was your son—your own flesh and blood!"

Tiffany whimpered, shrinking further into Gerald's arms.

"Gerald, I'm so scared... Lorraine looks so terrifying..."

At once, Gerald shielded her tightly, glaring at me with nothing but disgust.

"Lorraine, look at yourself. You're acting like a shrew! You're scaring Tiffany!"

A shrew?

I looked at him protecting another woman so tenderly, and all I could do was laugh.

Ten years ago, I was the Olson family's cherished daughter.

My father, Luciano, was a man whose very name made both the underworld and the business world tremble.

I was his only daughter. He adored me, raised me like a treasure in his palm.

Back then, I had everything I wanted.

Until I met Gerald.

He was poor, unable to even pay his tuition.

What did I see in him? Perhaps his fake pride, his forced arrogance.

My father had warned me. He said this man had ambition in his eyes, not love.

I didn't listen. I thought defying my family for love was noble.

So I stole the household registry and married him. My father was so furious he severed ties with me on the spot.

Gerald used the millions I gave him as startup capital to open his company.

I pulled every string I could, begging my father's old friends for projects, paving his way.

What he never knew was that his company’s very first big order had been arranged in secret by my father, who only did so out of respect for my late mother.

The company flourished, and he became the president of his own company. Driving luxury cars, living in a villa.

At first, he treated me decently enough, at least in appearance.

But three months ago, Tiffany returned from abroad—and everything changed.

She was his high school classmate, the woman he had worshipped for ten years.

He married me only because I resembled her. Because I was naïve enough to help him climb the ladder.

Now that the real one had returned, the substitute could be discarded.

In these three months, he barely came home. And when he did, it was only to mock me—calling me a washed-up housewife, saying I had no charm, that I was worthless without my father.

He forgot. Without me, without my father's name, he would never have had any of this.

"You call me a shrew?"

I staggered to my feet, pointing at Tiffany with pure hatred.

"You shameless woman! It was just a splash of water—why did you scream like that?"

Her eyes instantly filled with tears, and she put on a pitiful act.

“Lorraine... how could you say that? I was really frightened... Miles kicked the water so hard that it hurt…”

“Bullshit!” My whole body trembled with fury, my chest aching with every beat.

“He’s a five-year-old child! How much strength could his splash have? You did this on purpose, you—!”

“Enough!”

Gerald roared, shoving Tiffany aside to stride over to me. His fingers gripped my chin tightly, his eyes blazing as he commanded, “Lorraine, apologize to Tiffany!”

I stared at him, stunned.

“Are you out of your mind? Why should I?”

“Because you scared her!” he snarled.

I froze. Staring at this man I had once given everything for.

There was no grief in his eyes for our dead son. Only protection for Tiffany—and revulsion for me.

“Apologize?” I laughed, tears streaming down my face.

“Gerald, you killed your own son for this cheap woman! And now you want me to apologize to her?”

“He deserved it!” Gerard's eyes flickered with guilt, but quickly hardened with anger.

“He was rude first, splashing at people! As his father, what’s wrong with disciplining him? He was just too fragile, that’s all!”

Too fragile...

That was how he described our dead son.

With those words, the final thread of my restraint shattered.

I raised my hand with all the strength I had left and slapped Tiffany across the face, hard.

“Ahhh!”

She screamed, clutching her cheek as a red handprint bloomed across it. She stared at me, wide-eyed.

“You’re insane!”

“Shut up, you bitch!” I screamed back. “That slap was for Miles!”

I lunged forward, ready to tear her face apart.

But in the next second, a resounding crack exploded across my cheek.

Chapter 2 – The Slap

It was Gerald.

His slap landed with full force, knocking me to the ground. My ears rang, my mouth filled with the taste of blood, and my vision went black for several seconds.

"Lorraine! Do you have a death wish?"

He glared down at me, voice cold and venomous, pointing at me as though I were filth.

"How dare you lay a hand on Tiffany? You must be tired of living!"

Tiffany immediately burst into tears, looking fragile and pitiful as she threw herself into his arms.

"Gerald, my face hurts so much... has she gone crazy?"

Gerald held her protectively, whispering comfort into her ear. But when his gaze shifted back to me, his eyes brimmed with murderous hatred.

"Kneel down and kowtow to Tiffany! Apologize! Or don't blame me if I beat you to death today."

Blood dripped from the corner of my mouth as I struggled to breathe. My left cheek burned, already swelling.

But the pain on my face was nothing compared to the agony tearing through my heart.

I looked at the two of them—and then at Miles' cold little body lying on the ground.

My mind flashed back to when his company had just begun to take shape. Gerald had once embraced me with excitement, promising, "Lory, when I succeed, I'll give you the very best in the world."

All lies.

Every word had been a lie.

He had never loved me.

What he loved was my money, my influence, the Olson family's power that could clear the road for him.

Now the Olson family had cast me aside. His company was thriving. His first love had returned.

And my son and I had become nothing but obstacles.

So Miles' death meant nothing to him.

Perhaps it even freed him.

"Gerald..." I tried to stand, but my knees buckled, and I crashed heavily back to the ground.

"You'll regret this... You will regret it one day..." I growled through gritted teeth.

He let out a sharp, mocking laugh, as if I had told the funniest joke in the world.

"Regret? Lorraine, look at yourself! Without me, you're nothing. A discarded daughter, abandoned by your own family. You had nothing but a burden—a little bastard dragging you down. And now, even the burden is gone."

His words were laced with venom, each syllable like ice.

"Let's end this cleanly. Since Tiffany is back, let's get a divorce."

The contempt and cruelty in his tone chilled me to the bone.

Tiffany, nestled sweetly against him, played her part with false compassion.

"Gerald, don't be so harsh with Lorraine. She just lost her child—she must be in so much pain. The boy was mischievous, yes, but..."

"But what?" Gerald cut her off, gazing at her with such tenderness it could melt water.

"Tiffany, you're too kind. That little brat was ill-mannered and uneducated. His death was deserved! It's better that he died now than grow up and harm society."

Scoffing, he continued, "I did the world a favor by getting rid of him."

I snapped my head up, staring at him in horror.

He had just called his own son a burden.

Tiffany's lips curved in the faintest trace of triumph as she darted me a smug look, though she quickly hid it, feigning worry again.

"Gerald... stop talking. Lorraine doesn't look right... What if she does something foolish?"

"Her?" Gerald sneered, his voice dripping with disdain.

"She's too vain and greedy to die. The only reason she married me was for money. Now that she's seen the company thriving, she's clinging even harder to life. Tsk. Die? She wouldn't dare."

His shameless lies made me shake with rage.

Back then, he had knelt before me, swearing he loved me for who I was, not for my family name.

Tiffany tilted her head and suddenly gasped, pointing at my pocket in a mock alarm.

"Gerald! Look—her phone lit up! Is she recording us?"

Gerald's expression changed instantly. He lunged forward, shoving me aside as he yanked the phone out of my pocket.

"Give it back!"

My heart lurched. I scrambled up, desperately trying to snatch it from him.

Chapter 3 – Revenge

Gerald dodged easily. As he glanced at the screen, his face immediately darkened.

"So you really were recording me! Planning to use this against me in court? Lorraine, you're vicious!"

My heart sank.

It's over. They've found out.

With a snarl, Gerald raised the phone high and smashed it to the ground.

Crash!

The screen shattered instantly, fragments scattered across the floor.

"No!" I cried, panic seizing me. If the phone was destroyed, I would lose my only evidence.

But Gerald wasn't finished. He ground his heel into the remains, again and again, until the device was nothing but useless shards.

"Let's see how you record anything now."

Breathing heavily, he looked down on me with scorn.

Beside him, Tiffany pretended to intervene with her soft, fake kindness.

"Gerald, forget it. Lorraine must have acted on impulse... after all, she just lost Miles. She's not herself right now."

Her words sounded gentle, but every line poured salt into my wounds.

Sure enough, Gerald's fury only deepened.

"Impulse? That gives her the right to hurt others? Don't defend her, Tiffany. A poisonous woman like this deserves punishment!"

He swept his gaze around the pool. The staff had long since hidden in fear, and the few guests watching from afar didn't dare interfere.

Seeing this, he grew even more brazen.

"Lorraine, I'll say it one last time—kneel and apologize to Tiffany."

He jabbed a finger at my face, his voice cold and commanding.

"Or don't even dream of walking out of here alive."

I lay on the ground, staring at the smashed phone, then at Miles' lifeless body not far away.

Something inside me broke. My heart... completely died.

And perhaps that was a blessing.

Because now, when it was time to strike back, I wouldn't hesitate.

Slowly, I lifted my head. My lips curved into a chilling smile.

"Gerald... do you know what the Olson Group's ‘Level One Contingency Plan' is?"

He froze for a second, then sneered.

"What kind of bullshit trick is that? Don't play games with me, Lorraine. The Olson family already disowned you!"

Tiffany quickly chimed in, feigning pity.

"Lorraine, are you hallucinating? The Olson Group is a giant. It has nothing to do with you anymore."

Yes. That's what everyone believed.

That after my fallout with the Olson family, I had nothing left.

Even Gerald thought so.

But he forgot one thing—my father was Luciano Olson.

He might have declared he no longer had a daughter, but I am still his only child. His blood runs in my veins.

Gerald had even forgotten that those seemingly generous cooperation projects he signed in the beginning were bound by the harshest gambling agreements and the strictest risk-control clauses.

Once triggered, there was no escape.

The "Level One Contingency Plan" I mentioned, was the highest order of liquidation—Olson family's deadliest weapon, left behind as my final shield.

Once activated, the Olson Group would stop at nothing to annihilate its target.

And with my phone forcibly destroyed, the Olson family's alert system would have already been triggered.

It wouldn't take long before they traced the signal here.

The thought made me laugh.

"What are you laughing at?" Gerald demanded, his eyes narrowing. Then he gave a short, derisive chuckle.

"Trying to act crazy to win my pity? Lorraine, your schemes never really end."

I shook my head, blood dripping from my lips, and whispered, "You're both fools."

"Gerald, by now your company's liquid funds should already be frozen."

His face twitched, though he quickly forced composure. "Bullshit! Who do you think you are? You think the banks belong to you?"

"And your properties, stocks, your investment funds..." I went on slowly, deliberately, "they should all be sealed off by now."

Tiffany giggled behind her hand and tugged at his sleeve.

"Gerald, she... she really has gone mad, hasn't she?"

But in Gerald's eyes, I caught a flicker of doubt.

Still, he scoffed, trying to sound steady.

"Do you believe what a lunatic says? My company is running perfectly—"

His words cut off abruptly when his phone rang.

He frowned, pulled it out, and glanced at the caller ID. His expression shifted.

It was his Chief Financial Officer.

Gerald answered the call, his tone was impatient.

"Hello? What is it? Didn't I say not to bother me unless it's urgent—"

On the other end, the voice of his CFO was so loud I could hear it clearly from where I stood.

"Mr. Hamilton! Something terrible happened! The bank suddenly froze all our accounts! They said we're suspected of illegal operations. Every single project's funding chain has collapsed!"