Chapter 3

I recognized him instantly. It was Julian's illegitimate son, Leo Thorne.

Leo and his mother, Serena Thorne—Julian's mistress—had moved into our apartment complex two years ago. Back then, I actually felt sorry for Serena. She was a single mother raising a child on her own, and since Leo and Chloe went to the same kindergarten, I naturally sympathized with her. I often gave Leo rides when picking up Chloe. He always seemed polite and perfectly normal, and if Serena was running late, I would invite him over to our place.

But whenever Leo came over, Julian would give him the best toys or the biggest slices of cake, insisting that Chloe give way to him. If Chloe resisted, Julian would punish her by making her stand on the balcony for hours.

I argued with Julian over this several times. He would snap impatiently, "Leo is a guest, and he grew up without a father. Chloe is older, so she should be kind. Didn't school teach her any manners?"

The irony was that Leo was actually months older than Chloe.

Once, I was so furious that I had a massive fight with Julian and even threatened divorce. He stormed out, slamming the door behind him. The next day, he came back with my favorite cake and a few gifts, kneeling down to apologize.

"Honey, I was wrong," he pleaded. "I shouldn't have upset you. Please forgive me. I swear, whatever you say goes from now on."

Julian's sweet talk always managed to sway me. My parents had passed away when I was young, leaving me a substantial inheritance but very little love. I longed for affection so deeply that I ignored my friends' warnings and married Julian, a penniless nobody. I supported his career and even funded his parents' move to the city.

After that particular fight, I accepted his apology and the cake, but my resentment lingered. I banned Leo from coming over to our home.

So how was he hiding under Chloe's bed now?

Watching Leo's practiced movements on the screen, a chilling thought struck me. Recently, Chloe had been having nightmares about a shadow crawling out from under her bed and doing "bad things." Julian had dismissed it entirely, claiming I had spoiled her into being overly sensitive. Worried for her safety, I had secretly installed a camera in her room.

Was Leo the shadow she had been dreaming about?

Before I could dwell on the horrifying implications, the video showed Leo reaching for the nightstand. He grabbed one of the juice glasses and drank the entire thing.

I had no idea if Leo had hidden under the bed in my past life. Back then, Chloe and I had drunk the drugged juice without any suspicion. Leo wouldn't have been able to get to it, and he likely escaped the moment the smoke alarm went off.

But this time, the drugged juice Julian had prepared for us ended up in his precious son's stomach.

As expected, the full dose hit faster than I could have imagined. Within two minutes, Leo's eyes rolled back, and he collapsed onto the bed, completely unresponsive.

Meanwhile, smoke began seeping through the bedroom door.