A Mother's Agony

Alexander, surprisingly, didn't want me to leave. As the CEO of both Gourmet Ventures International, their family company, and Prestige Hotels & Resorts, my family's legacy, he had a reputation to uphold. He assumed leadership roles in our companies, claiming it was his duty as the man.

But why should I stay in this sham of a marriage? We had the grandest wedding imaginable, yet he refused to register the papers to make our marriage legal.

From that moment on, the presence and absence of love were glaringly apparent.

"Alexander, look," I finally said, summoning the strength to confront him. "You have the inheritance already. You're successful. What more do you want from me? I'm giving you your freedom back!"

Standing in the same room with him made me feel physically ill. He seemed to think my actions were just a ploy to gain his attention.

Alexander, without even looking up, scoffed, "What now? Changing your tactics? You can't threaten me with your son, so now you're using yourself as leverage?"

A year ago, our son Lucas was diagnosed with brain cancer. He'd received countless critical illness notices since then. I recalled how desperately Lucas had called out for a glimpse of his father, but Alexander never visited him. He thought I was using Lucas to gain sympathy and manipulate him. After almost a decade of shared life, this was how little he thought of me.

I wiped away my tears. "Think what you want. I'm leaving."

I began to leave with my luggage when Cassandra interjected, "Alexander, I heard you planned to take Lucas to Disneyland. You didn't cancel that for the mountain trip with me, did you? Natalie is upset..."

Alexander replied soothingly, "Don't worry, there are priorities. We can go to Disneyland anytime, but once the snow melts, we won't be able to see it like this."

Hearing this, I scoffed coldly. Ignoring them, I dragged my suitcase out.

Alexander seemed to sense something was off. He rushed forward and grabbed my hand, his voice laced with frustration. "It's the middle of the night, and you insist on leaving?"

He saw my swollen eyes and paused. "Is missing a trip to Disneyland really worth crying over like this?"

My eyes must have been crying themselves raw, for I saw a hint of pity in his gaze. "Let me clear my schedule next month, and I'll take Lucas then, okay?"

Next month? What next month did Lucas have? If only he cared a bit more about our son, he wouldn't say such foolish things.

I pulled my hand away. "No need!"

Alexander stared at his empty palm, momentarily stunned. He never expected the person who used to cling to him would now avoid him like the plague.

Snapping back to reality, he tried to catch up, but Cassandra grabbed his arm. "Alexander, it's all my fault. Even though I knew Lucas was faking his illness, I shouldn't have competed with a child for your attention. Now it's made Natalie angry at me."

Faking... faking illness? My mind went blank. By the time I snapped back to reality, I had already slapped Cassandra across the face!