Chapter 4

As I watched him kick my suitcase away, I was furious.

“Vincent, what the hell is wrong with you?”

But in the next second, his eyes bloodshot, he pinned me against the corner of the wall, that suffocating hand closing around my throat again.

“What did you do to my son?”

Faced with his hoarse accusation, I was completely baffled.

“What did I do?”

At the same time, a sense of foreboding washed over me.

Ever since Vincent installed Luna in his private villa, no matter what happened over there, Vincent would always suspect me first.

All because in my past life, I had stubbornly refused to grant him a divorce.

Even in this life, though I compromised at every turn, Vincent still couldn't see me without his prejudice.

Vincent forcibly dragged me down to the first floor, where the nanny was anxiously holding the wailing infant. While I was still completely confused, Vincent threw back his swaddling clothes, and I froze.

The child had just been baptized not long ago, and his entire body was covered in a red rash.

Vincent was on the verge of losing his mind. “Don't you know? A child this young can't afford any mishaps! The slightest mistake could kill him!”

I couldn't understand. “The baby has a rash, why don't you take him to the hospital?”

“Mrs. Romano, you make it sound so simple!”

The old butler, a loyal servant to the family for many years, stared daggers at me, his eyes burning with hatred:

“If it weren't for that can of baby formula you sent, why would the young master have broken out in such a terrible rash after drinking it? And you still have the audacity to claim you had nothing to do with it?”

“Our Miss Luna is so pure and kind, she refuses to compete with you for anything. After she found out she was pregnant, she tried to leave again and again, all because she didn't want to make things difficult for you.”

“But you? You're a woman, just like she is. Our Miss Luna has no intention of taking your place as Mrs. Romano. So why must you constantly torment her, and even try to murder her child?”

I was so infuriated by his barrage of slander that I began to tremble, unable to utter a single word.

“Vincent, don't listen to the butler. I believe Stella wouldn't do this......”

Hearing the commotion, Luna burst into the room in tears.

Her heart shattered at the sight of her son crying inconsolably.

Yet, she seemed intent on defending me.

Vincent shot her a look filled with heartache. “Someone, escort Miss Luna back to her room to rest.”

The maid had barely escorted Luna out of the room when Vincent pulled out a pistol, aimed it at my right hand, and fired.

I let out a piercing scream of agony. Startled by the gunshot, everyone around us shrank back, desperate to avoid being dragged down with me.

I looked up at him in despair, “Vincent, knowing my character as you do, do you really think I would harm a newly baptized child?”

A flicker of contemplation crossed Vincent's eyes, but he quickly averted his gaze and scoffed.

“You're jealous of Luna. There's nothing you wouldn't do.”

As he left, he instructed the driver to take me to the family's private clinic and walked away without a single glance back.

The pain overwhelmed me, and I lost consciousness.

When I came to, I was lying in the family's private clinic. The doctor had removed the bullet and given me several stitches.

The nurses often cast sympathetic glances my way.

I couldn't help but overhear their whispers.

“Did you see earlier? That Miss Luna only sprained her ankle, yet the Boss swept her up in his arms, ran to the clinic, and personally cared for her the entire day.”

“But Mrs. Romano is so grievously injured, and her husband hasn't even come to see her once.”

My gaze was vacant as I stared at the ceiling.

During that time, only my sister came to bring me meals. Whenever she thought I wasn't looking, she would secretly wipe away her tears.

One day, her eyes were red with fury:

“Stella, you never should have married that bastard, Vincent, in the first place.”

“On my way here, I saw Vincent setting off fireworks for that woman. He's completely forgotten who his wife is now. You've been with him for eight whole years. It truly wasn't worth it.”

I managed a bitter smile.

“Soon, we'll be complete strangers.”

While we were vacationing on the coast of Italy, Luna, her eyes red, had pleaded with Vincent several times.

“Stella is your wife. You let her get hurt. You should go see her, otherwise, my conscience won't let me rest.”

Vincent dotingly stroked her hair.

“I knew it. My Luna is the kindest soul.”

When he spoke of me, he gave a cold, careless scoff.

“Stella's always been strong and independent. She'll be fine on her own. She's not like you, who needs someone by your side taking care of you constantly. You don't have to worry about her.”

“Besides, she was the one who harmed our son. Thank God the doctor said he's fine. Otherwise, that bullet wouldn't have just hit her arm.”

He pulled her into a doting embrace.

“From now on, no one can hurt you or our child. No matter who it is, I will make them pay a terrible price.”

For seven straight days.

He was with Luna, traveling to lift her spirits, the three of them reveling in their perfect family bliss.

The day I was discharged from the hospital, I received an encrypted message:

“Your new identity is now active.”

My sister had already packed my bags for me: “These are your essentials. If you're missing anything, you can just buy it when you get to the new place.”

I nodded, and my sister and I took a cab straight to the airport.

Standing at the entrance to the airport, Diana gave me a long, searching look:

“Stella, if you want to change your mind, it's not too late.”

I shook my head and smiled. “I won't. I'm just wondering why I didn't see the truth sooner and leave.”

Then, I took a deep breath, snapped my SIM card in half, and tossed it into the trash can. “Let's go.”

With our new passports in hand, we got our boarding passes and boarded the flight.

Never looking back.