Chapter 4

"Maya, I'm giving you one last chance," I said calmly. "Tell me the truth, and I won't press charges. Otherwise, I'll see you in court."

"Ha! Court?"

Maya burst into hysterical laughter. "Arthur, we went to three different clinics for DNA tests. It doesn't matter what happened that night. The kid in my womb has your DNA. That is an indisputable fact!"

"Your wife has abandoned you. Are you really going to force me to abort your only child? Or do you honestly think any other woman will want to bear your children now?"

Her words hit me like a physical blow.

As the only son of the Vance family, I had desperately wanted a child. Olivia and I had been married for ten years, and we had never conceived due to my low sperm motility.

Seeing my silence, Maya drove the knife deeper. "If this hadn't gone public, you would have happily let me have this baby in secret, wouldn't you?"

"But I don't want my child to live in the shadows forever. So, when someone approached me with an offer, I took it."

My eyes narrowed. "Who approached you?"

Maya smiled. "Who else has access to your personal belongings, Arthur? Who else could get their hands on your genetic material to make this pregnancy happen?"

A chill ran down my spine.

"Are you saying..."

"Yes! Her!"

I stared at Maya in disbelief. "You mean my wife? Olivia?"

Maya parted her red lips, a mocking smile spreading across her face. "Who else could pull off a stunt like that?"

My blood ran cold. The world seemed to stop spinning.

"That's impossible. Maya, I am going to sue you."

Maya sneered. "Arthur, you really are a fool. Your wife played you like a fiddle, and even now, when I'm telling you the truth, you still won't believe it."

Of course I didn't want to believe it. Olivia and I had been together for a decade. We had a great marriage. Why would she do something so monstrous to me?

"Wait," I suddenly realized something. "You just said you didn't want the child to live in the shadows, so when Olivia approached you, you agreed."

"Maya, you're lying."

A flash of panic crossed Maya's eyes, but she quickly masked it. "It was just a slip of the tongue."

I unlocked my phone. "Let's see if it's a slip of the tongue. I'm calling Olivia right now."

Seeing me dial, Maya actually calmed down.

The call wouldn't go through. My number had been blocked.

I grabbed my car keys and headed for the door.

Maya grabbed my arm. "Where are you going?"

"To confront Olivia. And you are coming with me."

Maya tried to resist, but she was no match for my strength. I dragged her out and threw her into the passenger seat.

I drove straight to Olivia's parents' house. But as I pulled up to the driveway, I froze.

Through the second-floor window, the soft glow of the lamp silhouetted Olivia's figure. In front of her was the silhouette of another man. The two shadows were wrapped in a passionate embrace.

I stormed up the stairs, threw the door open, and was met with a sight that shattered my remaining sanity.

Standing in Olivia's bedroom was a young man.

"Dylan?" My eyes widened in horror.

Dylan was my former student. In fact, he was the very first student I had ever sponsored.

Downstairs, I had imagined Olivia cheating on me with her boss, a colleague, or maybe a neighbor. But never in my wildest dreams did I think it would be the impoverished student I had spent years helping.

While Dylan panicked, Olivia remained incredibly composed.

"What are you doing here?" she asked coldly.