It Ended on the Decade

Samuel froze. He still believed I was just throwing a tantrum. "Cindy! What's wrong with you! All this because I didn't take you on a trip? And you're already taking it all the way to divorce?! How childish can you get?"

Morgan rushed over, too, and he kept pounding my legs with his fists. "Bad mom! You're bullying Rachel! I hate you!"

Rachel immediately stepped in and pulled Morgan back as she put on a saintly look. "Don't be mad, Cindy. This is all my fault. If you really can't stand me, I'll leave right now..."

The way she acted made my stomach turn.

I immediately slapped her and said in a cold voice, "The kind of people I can't stand the most are fakes like you."

Rachel held her swollen face and shrieked.

Samuel lunged forward and shoved her behind him as he roared at me, "You witch!"

Right then, Morgan charged in and shoved me hard. "You bad person! You're not allowed to bully Rachel!"

I didn't brace myself, and the back of my head slammed into the wall. I slipped down to the floor as I hissed in pain, my vision becoming darker.

Samuel did not even look at me as he yelled at me impatiently. "Stop acting! How much strength could Morgan possibly have!"

Then, he helped Rachel up and comforted her gently. "Are you okay? I'll take you to your room. Don't bother with this crazy woman."

I watched them walk away together, and tears rolled down without a sound.

So, this was what it felt like when a heart finally died.

Not long after, Samuel stormed out of the study with red eyes. "Cindy! You went into my study and smashed it?!"

I looked up, my expression deathly calm. "Yes. I smashed it. What? Was there something in there you could not let anyone see?"

He stiffened. Then, his tone softened. "Fine, I'll let it go. You're done venting, right? Rachel isn't feeling well, and she needs to stay somewhere pleasant. You should sleep in the guest room for a few days."

I let out a bitter laugh. He was only backing down so he could demand something worse. I then said, "Samuel, we're getting a divorce."

He did not expect me to keep insisting, and his voice dripped with arrogance. "Cindy, you have no wealth and no influence. Your family's influence collapsed a long time ago, and you have not worked in ten years. If you leave me, how will you live?"

He threw that at me and then left with Rachel and Morgan.

From the doorway, Morgan shouted in excitement. " Mom! We're going to the amusement park!"

Those words really stung. It stung so bad that I could not tell whether my body or my heart was in more pain.

-

That night, my head felt like it was splitting open as I lay in bed. The door into the guestroom suddenly slammed open. Samuel barged in and yanked me up from bed. "Cindy! Rachel was in a car accident! This is all because of you! If you didn't fight with her this afternoon, she wouldn't have been upset! Nothing would have happened to her!"

He dragged me so hard I stumbled as I felt the room spin. I couldn't comprehend the absurdity of his logic as I said in a cold voice, "Her accident has nothing to do with me."

"This all started because of you. You'll make things right!" Samuel roared at me.

He ignored my struggle and forced me to the hospital. He dragged me toward a doctor's office and said to the doctor in a commanding tone, "Take her blood. Rachel has a rare blood type, but she has the same blood type, too."

Only then did I understand what he meant. "Samuel! What gives you the right to do this?!"

I fought with everything I had, but it meant nothing against the two bodyguards who pinned me to the chair. The ice-cold needle went into my veins.

My body grew colder, and my mind blurred.

In the last few seconds before I passed out, I saw Samuel sprinting outside, no doubt toward Rachel's room.

-

In my dreams, I drifted back to ten years ago.

At the time, Samuel had just lost his family, and he was gloomy and withdrawn. I stayed with him, cooked for him, talked to him... I was awkwardly trying to warm him up.

At our wedding, he looked at me with deep affection. "Cindy, this time, I will protect you."

But his protection was never meant for me.