Chapter 2

2

"I'm the one who hurt him?" I asked, laughing dryly.

How could I possibly have the power to make his life so miserable?

When I first returned to the Sterling family, I knew his mother was the one who stole my life. But I didn't blame him.

The sins of the parents shouldn't fall on the child.

I was kind to Xavier. I even agreed when he wanted to stay with the family.

When I was twenty-four, Xavier was hospitalized with kidney failure.

My parents called me, and I rushed home immediately.

The first thing they did was drag me to get tested for a transplant match.

We were a perfect match. But I was hesitant.

While they were rushing the surgery, I came down with a sudden, violent fever and took some strong medication.

I remember Vivian slapping me so hard my ear rang when she saw the medical report.

She called me a monster. She said I had destroyed Xavier's life.

Because of the viral infection and the meds in my system, I was no longer a candidate for the transplant.

Xavier cried in front of everyone, claiming I had gotten sick on purpose just to watch him die.

It wasn't intentional. But that incident showed me the true faces of my family.

My parents, who were already distant, started treating me like an enemy.

They poured all their love into Xavier, the thief.

Even my wife refused to have my child.

We had been married for three years, and she never got pregnant.

The doctors told me I had a low sperm count. It was only a few days ago that I found out Vivian had bribed them to lie.

She had been on birth control the entire time. There was no way she was ever going to have my baby.

Leo had been brought home by my parents after they heard about our "fertility issues."

They and Vivian pressured me into adopting him.

I looked at the boy now. The more I looked, the more he looked exactly like Xavier.

"Your eyes look scary, Daddy," Leo said, shrinking back. "Uncle Xavier was right. You're a villain who stole Mommy away."

My heart skipped a beat. My brow furrowed.

"Did Xavier teach you to say that?" I demanded.

Vivian immediately stepped in front of the boy, her voice trembling with fake protective rage.

"Nate, he's just a child! Don't take it out on him!"

"Leo just knows the truth about how you refused to save Xavier. Even a child knows the difference between right and wrong."

I heard the subtext. She was still punishing me for not giving up my kidney years ago.

I didn't bother explaining myself. There was no point anymore.

Vivian was my college sweetheart, but the moment she met Xavier at my house, everything changed.

That was when she started pulling away. From then on, she only had eyes for him.

I rubbed my aching temples and looked at her.

"Vivian, just go. I'm done."