Ten Years Raising Someone Else's Son

I went into the bedroom and only took my documents and a few changes of clothes.

I did not even glance at the safe.

Ten minutes later, Jean and I were standing by the front door.

Natalie was clutching the divorce agreement while huddling together with Michael, the two of them studying it excitedly.

"This is perfect, Michael. Tomorrow we can transfer both apartments into your name!"

"Of course. Hazel's gonna be thrilled."

Michael turned and shouted at me, "Hey, old b*stard, leave the keys behind!"

"And don't let me catch you hanging around here again. Bad luck. If you dare come back and cause trouble, I'll break your legs!"

I pulled the keys from my pocket and casually tossed them onto the floor. The metallic clang rang sharply through the room.

"Natalie. Michael."

I looked at the mother and son and called their names one last time.

"I hope neither of you regrets this someday."

"Regret?" Michael wrapped an arm around Hazel and laughed so hard he nearly bent over.

"The biggest regret of my life was living with you for ten years. Get lost, you broke loser. And if you end up begging on the streets someday, don't come begging outside my house!"

I grabbed Jean's hand and walked out the door without looking back.

The moment the elevator doors closed, I called the bank's customer service hotline.

For the past ten years, Natalie and Michael had used my money as their own.

"Hello, this is Gerald Hensley. I want to report all my credit cards lost.

"Yes. All of them.

"Including the supplementary cards. Freeze everything immediately."

By the time I finished, the elevator had reached the first floor.

The snowstorm outside had grown even heavier, but my heart had never felt warmer.

The streets on New Year's Eve were nearly empty as snowflakes crashed down from the sky.

Jean shrank into herself, clutching my hand tightly, her little face pale from the cold.

"Dad... where are we staying tonight?"

Her voice trembled as she asked carefully, "Are we going to sleep by the road? I'm not scared of hardship. As long as I'm with you, I'll be okay."

I took off my coat and wrapped it around her shoulders, then gently tightened her scarf.

"Silly girl. How could Dad ever let you sleep by the road? I'm taking you somewhere nice."

Right then, my phone screen lit up.

A WhatsApp message popped up from Michael.

[Old b*stard, what the hell did you do? Why won't my card work anymore? Hurry up and unlock it. Hazel's waiting for me to buy her a game skin!]

I glanced at it, swiped the notification away, and blocked him immediately.

Less than thirty seconds later, my phone started ringing.

Michael again.

I declined the call without hesitation.

Then Natalie called.

I looked at the word 'Wifey' flashing across the screen and let out a cold laugh before dragging the number straight into the blocklist too.

The world stayed peaceful for about ten seconds.

Then a third-floor window in the building behind us slammed open.

Michael's furious roar tore through the snowstorm.

"F*ck! Gerald! You old b*stard, you blocked me? Did you shut off the supplementary card?"

Natalie's shrill voice followed right after.

"Gerald! How can you be this shameless? Since you left with nothing, the money on those cards should belong to us!

"This is fraud! Turn them back on right now or I'm calling the police!"

At that moment, two bright beams of light swept across Michael's twisted face, forcing him to squint.

A Maybach glided silently to the curb and stopped right in front of me.