Chapter 3

Lucas' POV

Just then, Madeline's phone rang.

I could clearly make out Jeffrey's voice from the other end.

"Maddie, Melvin suddenly spiked a fever. I don't know what to do."

"Don't panic. I'll be there right away."

Without a second thought, Madeline turned the car around at the cemetery gates. In her rush, the tires rolled over Leo's funeral wreath, destroying it completely.

"The company needs me back for overtime. I have to get there right away."

I stood and watched Madeline drive off into the distance. Then I walked into the cemetery by myself.

My gaze came to rest on Leo's black-and-white portrait.

All Leo had ever wanted before he died was to see his mother one final time, but that wish was never granted.

I managed the entire funeral by myself, greeting relatives and thanking every person who had come to mourn.

After the service ended, I personally lowered Leo's urn into the ground.

Memories of all the years we had leaned on each other came flooding back, and the pain I had been holding in finally overtook me.

A gush of blood burst from my mouth as I collapsed in front of Leo's headstone.

…

When I woke up, I found myself in a hospital bed.

I managed to pull myself up, and when I passed the room next door, I spotted Madeline at Melvin's bedside, tenderly wiping the sweat from his forehead.

Apparently, this was what she meant by "working overtime".

I had known all along that she had left to be with Jeffrey and Melvin, but seeing it with my own eyes still sent a searing pain through my chest.

Leo had always been left to suffer alone whenever he fell ill.

I had heard him cry out for Madeline through the pain on so many occasions, yet she had never once shown him any tenderness or come to his side.

I took a deep breath and brushed away the tears that were threatening to fall.

Leo was gone. There was nothing left in this family worth clinging to.

"Lucas? What are you doing here?"

Jeffrey's voice snapped me out of my daze.

Madeline's hand paused for just a moment before she coughed lightly and said, "I just finished my shift. I heard Melvin was sick, so I dropped by on my way home."

I mustered a hollow, forced smile.

What was the point of keeping up the lie now?

"Maddie, I'll leave Melvin in your hands. Lucas and I haven't seen each other in ages. We'll have a little chat," Jeffrey said casually, like he was asking his own wife to mind their son.

After he led me out into the corridor, the friendly mask slipped from his face, replaced by raw contempt.

"I've come to realize Maddie is a truly wonderful mother. Look how thoroughly she cares for Melvin."

I clenched my fists but said nothing.

Jeffrey threw me a look, then deliberately blew a cloud of cigar smoke right in my face. The thick, acrid smoke burned my throat and eyes.

"Maddie covers everything for Melvin and me. She said it's not easy raising a kid alone, so she hired a live-in nanny for us and even got me a personal fitness trainer."

He gave me a once-over and sneered.

"As for you… Why do you look like you're on your last legs? You look completely wrecked."

For 18 years, I had worked 14 hours every single day to support this family, living as sparingly as possible just to save whatever I could.

Leo, too, had done his part. He used to collect empty bottles after school to earn whatever small change he could.

From the time he was young, the two of us had endured more shame and humiliation than anyone should ever have to bear.

My heart had long since died, and I was too spent to argue back.

"A woman spends her money on what she loves," Jeffrey said with a smirk. "Maddie checked out of your marriage years ago. If you have any dignity left, you'll pack up and leave."

I stood there in silence, saying nothing.

He was right.

From day one, Madeline had only ever truly loved Jeffrey and Melvin. To her, Leo and I were nothing more than a joke.

Then Jeffrey leaned in, dropping his voice with a smirk.

"Oh, right. A few days ago, Maddie bought Melvin a sports car. While he was out racing, he plowed into some student working a part-time gig. No clue whose son he was. Such a shame…"

"What did you say?"

I turned sharply toward him.