Chapter 2

Once we were on the road, the mother introduced herself. "I'm Bella, and this is my husband, Jason."

She seemed very curious about me. "Miss, do you have a boyfriend?"

I kept my eyes on Jason in the rearview mirror. Our eyes met.

"Yes," I replied. "We've been together for eight years. He chased me for two years before that."

"Wow, a ten-year run!" Bella gasped. "My husband and I have been married for four years, and our son is four, too."

"We're fated mates. I got drunk at a bar, ran into him... and then he marked me."

I didn't really understand what she meant. I figured it was some weird couple's slang, so I didn't press.

"I got pregnant right after. Since having the baby, he won't let me go anywhere dangerous. He spoils me like a child."

Jason reached over with one hand and ruffled her hair. "Alright, chatterbox. You tell this story to everyone we meet."

She playfully squeezed his hand. "What? Are you shy?"

Every word she said felt like a dagger piercing my heart.

When Jason and I first started dating, the first time we were intimate, he refused to use a condom. He claimed he wanted to "truly feel" me.

I let him convince me.

Two weeks later, I found out I was pregnant.

Back then, Jason stared at the two pink lines on the pregnancy test, smoking half the night away. Finally, he knelt before me, his voice raspy. "We have to get rid of it."

An abortion clinic was too expensive, so we had to buy the abortion pills.

The pills made me desperately ill, causing agonizing pain. To make things worse, the doctor told us that because of the complications, it would be very difficult for me to get pregnant again.

When Jason heard this, he slapped himself repeatedly, calling himself a monster.

His handsome face was swollen. He looked at me with those deep, loving eyes and swore, "I, Jason, will only love Grace in this lifetime. I will always protect her. If I ever break this promise, may I rot in hell."

As I recalled this, I looked at the four-year-old boy sitting next to me.

How could someone who betrayed a sacred vow like that not face any karma?

...

Bella had booked a table at a private, members-only restaurant called The Summit.

It was one of the most exclusive places in the city. Supposedly, it only opened for a select group of people, and regular citizens couldn't even get a reservation.

I had walked past it with Jason once. He had glanced at the sign, said it was too expensive, and dragged me away.

I believed him back then.

But now, Bella led me through the lobby like she owned the place, heading straight for the private VIP elevator.

The receptionist bowed immediately when she saw her. "Mrs. Blackwood, the penthouse is ready for you."

The penthouse.

Fewer than fifty people in this city had access to the penthouse of The Summit.

People said they were the real rulers of the city, holding dark, hidden identities.

At the time, I thought it was just an urban legend.

Either way, Jason never seemed like a literal wolf.

Bella turned to me with a smile. "My husband is a black-card member here. The penthouse is his personal spot."

She sat down. Jason and their son, Jay, naturally took their spots beside her.

Jason kept glancing at me. He looked terrified that I might say something.

I thought about our years together. He had never taken me to a high-end restaurant. Our dates were always at corner cafes, cheap diners, or movie theaters.

He told me he was saving up to buy a house, to build a home for us.

And I believed him.

But everything in front of me screamed one thing: he had been lying to me all along.

Bella added me on Snapchat and chatted warmly.

She seemed to be showing off their affection on purpose—asking Jason to feed her, leaning on his shoulder.

Jason played along perfectly, carefully cutting up her steak and putting it on her plate.

I remembered him telling me he hated steak because it was too greasy.