Chapter 1

My wife locked our daughter in the car on the day of her big audition just to help her first love's daughter land the lead role.

"Acting has always been Winnie's dream. Don't try to take this away from her," she told our girl.

Because of that, our daughter was killed when a runaway truck smashed into the car.

Later, when my wife finally saw the death certificate, she completely lost her mind.

1

On the day of my daughter Cece's audition, I caught an early flight back from my business trip abroad.

As soon as I landed, I got a call from the police.

They told me my daughter had been in a horrific accident. They said I needed to get to the hospital immediately if I wanted to see her one last time.

I rushed there as fast as I could, but I was still too late.

The light in the emergency room had just gone out. The doctor walked out, shaking his head, and told me to prepare for the worst.

Cece was lying on the hospital bed, completely pale. My beautiful, vibrant girl had become a mangled corpse.

"How did this happen? How could there be a crash!"

"Cece, please, just look at Daddy. Wake up, okay?"

No matter how much I screamed, there was no response.

The weight of losing her hit me so hard I couldn't breathe. I collapsed onto the floor.

The police officer held me up. "I'm so sorry for your loss."

He told me she was inside the car when a truck lost control and plowed into it.

Hearing that, I grabbed the officer's arm. "What about my wife? Is she okay? Is she badly hurt?"

The officer looked at me with pity. "There was only your daughter in the vehicle. No one else was there."

What?

My brain went numb. I tried to force myself to calm down.

Today was Cece's big audition. My wife, Vivian, was supposed to be with her the entire time.

But my daughter was dead, and Vivian was nowhere to be found.

The officer noticed my confusion. He told me they hadn't been able to reach the mother yet.

I tried calling Vivian myself, but she wouldn't pick up. I started to panic.

On the twentieth try, she finally answered.

Her voice was full of annoyance. "Are you crazy? Why do you keep calling me?"

"I'm at the audition set! I'm busy!"

In the background, I heard her talking happily to someone else.

"Thank you so much, Vivian. Winnie got the lead role, and it's all thanks to you."

"I really have to thank Auntie Vivian for staying by my side and encouraging me," a younger girl added.

I recognized those voices. It was Gavin Miller, Vivian's first love, and his daughter, Winnie.

"Vivian, you aren't with our daughter? You're at an audition for someone else's kid?"

I was so angry I was practically roaring into the phone.

"Cece's audition already ended," she snapped.

"Winnie is my student. What's wrong with me being here for her?"

"You're lying!" I screamed.

"Cece is dead!"

The other end of the line went silent for several seconds. Then, I heard a man's mocking chuckle.

"Arthur is still such a jokester," Gavin said.

Vivian's tone turned even more impatient. "What kind of sick game are you playing now?"

"Besides cursing your own daughter to death and making a scene, do you know how to do anything else?"

Then, she hung up on me.