Chapter 2

My mentor's voice sounded surprised on the other end of the line.

"If we wipe your identity, you'll disappear completely. Your husband and son won't be able to find you. You turned this down before because of them. What changed?"

I gripped the phone tightly as memories flooded my mind.

Zachary and Leo never knew that I was never just a helpless housewife.

Seven years ago, I was the youngest PhD candidate in pharmacology at Stanford, spending nearly twenty-four hours a day inside the lab.

One night, completely exhausted after an all-nighter, I took a walk along the riverbank. Dizziness hit me, and I tipped toward the freezing, rushing water.

Amid terrified screams, a pair of strong hands caught me just before I blacked out.

When I woke up, I was in the hospital, and in the next bed was Zachary, covered in scrapes and bruises.

The nurses told me Zachary had lunged to grab me, and the momentum dragged both of us down. He managed to catch a tree branch at the last second, saving both of our lives.

Seeing my guilty and grateful expression, Zachary, despite his bleeding wounds, smiled gently. "It's okay. Just be more careful next time."

At that moment, the man walked straight into my heart, which had previously only held research and data.

On the day of discharge, I gathered my courage to ask for his number.

Afraid of rejection, I quickly explained that I only wanted a chance to repay him for saving my life.

Zachary looked at me silently for a long time before asking, "You want to repay me? How about marrying me?"

I stared at him in disbelief. Seeing he wasn't joking, my racing heart gave the only answer I had.

"Yes."

Just like that, I became his wife.

Shortly after our wedding, I became pregnant with Leo. But my body was weak, and the doctor put me on strict bed rest.

Touching my belly after days of agonizing struggle, I turned down the prestigious research project and chose to become a full-time mother.

Zachary had been a dutiful husband. He attended every prenatal checkup, brought back gifts from business trips, and his eyes turned red with tears seeing the pain I endured during labor.

I thought I was the luckiest woman alive.

Until a month ago, on a stormy night, a drenched woman knocked on our front door.

The second the door opened, she collapsed.

The usually calm Zachary panicked visibly, lifting her into his arms and rushing to the car.

That was when I learned she was Jocelyn Greer, his first love.

He had only proposed to me back then because Jocelyn had abruptly dumped him to go abroad, and he needed a marriage to drag himself out of the heartbreak.

After learning the truth, I received another invitation from the research institute.

Yet, Zachary was the man I had loved for seven years, and we shared a five-year-old son.

I told myself that no matter how our marriage started, they must care about me.

So, I hesitated.

And today, my husband and son made the decision for me.

I lowered my eyes, concealing the bitterness inside.

"From now on, neither of them has anything to do with me."

My mentor sighed but didn't pry.

"The clearance paperwork will take seven days. I'll send a car for you then."

After hanging up, I opened social media.

Jocelyn's post was at the very top of my feed.

"Family. (heart)"