Chapter 1The Fire That Saved Me

My husband and I spent five years trying to conceive. In the end, we chose IVF.

A year of hormone injections and failed attempts didn't just fail to give us a baby; it turned me into a haggard, exhausted shadow of my former self.

Then came the day my husband’s personal assistant showed up at our house to pick up his dry cleaning. She looked at me with pure disdain and ordered me around like I was the help.

"Can you move a little faster? For a maid, you really have zero awareness. While you're at it, polish the shoes I'm wearing. If you don't, I'll have your boss dock your pay!"

I froze, suppressing my rage as I asked her what the hell she meant.

Instead of answering, she dialed my husband, Ethan, tears instantly welling up in her eyes. She sobbed into the phone, claiming some "crazy old woman" was bullying her.

Ethan rushed home in a fury. He didn't ask for my side of the story; he just started screaming.

"Sarah, she was obviously joking! Do you have to be so sensitive?"

"Besides, is she wrong? Look at you. You look no different than a homeless woman begging on the street corner."

With that, he grabbed his assistant’s hand and stormed out, leaving me standing there. Moments later, a notification popped up on my phone. He had posted a photo of me—looking my absolute worst, swollen from medication and crying—to his Instagram Story.

The caption read: “Official Statement: This ugly woman is no longer my wife! She can't even give me a child. As a woman, she’s a total failure. It’s embarrassing. She’s on a three-day timeout. If she doesn't apologize to Chloe by then, I’m filing for divorce!”

Chloe, the assistant, was the first to like the post.

I let out a self-deprecating laugh. Ethan was absolutely certain I would come crawling back, begging for forgiveness.

But he was wrong. This time, I didn't want the baby. And I definitely didn't want this dirty man anymore.

* * *

I was about to like that Instagram story out of spite, but Ethan deleted it seconds later.

I didn't care. I picked up the phone and called the fertility clinic. I told the doctor I was terminating the IVF process.

The doctor was shocked. "Mrs. Miller, are you sure? We’re at the final stage. The embryo implantation is the last step. Last time you were here, Mr. Miller seemed very eager to have a child..."

I rubbed my temples, exhaustion seeping into my bones. "He’s cheating on me. I don't want the child anymore."

There was a pause. "I... I’m so sorry to hear that. However, termination requires signatures from both parties to be effective."

"No problem," I said. "Send me the forms. I'll make him sign."

Just as the email with the PDF landed in my inbox, the front door banged open.

Ethan walked in, looking a bit awkward, holding a large shopping bag.

"I thought about it, and maybe I was a little harsh earlier. Don't take it to heart. Just apologize to Chloe, and we’ll let this whole thing go."

I gave him a cold look, ignored the bag, and turned to head to the bedroom to pack.

Ethan’s temper flared. He rushed forward and blocked my path.

"What is this attitude? I apologized for my tone! It was clearly your fault, why can't you just lower your head and admit it? With a temper like yours, I worry our kid is going to inherit it!"

I smiled bitterly. So, he deleted the post because he remembered I still had "breeding value."

I thought back to when we graduated college. We started his business from nothing. One winter, to secure a crucial client who lived in a lakeside villa cut off by a blizzard, I swam across that freezing lake because the roads were blocked.

I watched the despair in Ethan's eyes turn to hope as I jumped in. Ice shards cut my stomach. I secured the deal, but I passed out and woke up in the hospital with permanent uterine damage.

Back then, Ethan covered my ears, eyes red with tears, and promised me: "It’s okay, Sarah. If we can't have kids, we won't. You suffered so much. Your health is all that matters to me."

But I knew how much he wanted a family. Every time we went shopping, he’d linger in the baby aisle, touching the tiny shoes, dreaming of a family of three.

That’s why I volunteered for IVF. Even though it was agonizing. Even though the hormones made my hair fall out in clumps and aged me ten years. I endured it all gladly.

And his repayment? Letting another woman mock me, scold me, and then demanding I apologize.

I snapped back to reality and glared at him through gritted teeth. "Absolutely not."

Ethan’s face turned dark instantly. "I'm warning you, Sarah! Don't push your luck!"

He took the shopping bag and smashed it into my face. The sharp corner of the packaging cut my forehead.

I crouched down in pain, watching the contents spill out. It was chocolate.

I picked up the receipt that fell out. It was dated yesterday.

I shook my head, looking at the pile of candy I didn't even like. He was just giving me the leftovers someone else didn't want.

Ethan’s eyes flashed with a moment of guilt. He bent down to help me up, but then Chloe waltzed in, hips swaying, voice dripping with fake sweetness.

"Oh my god, what happened here?"

She covered her mouth in mock surprise. "Ethan, isn't that the chocolate you bought with me yesterday? I told you to save me two bars! I know I’m on a diet, but I was craving a little bite!"

She turned to me, smiling. "Sarah, aren't you worried about getting fat eating all that?"

Then she playfully slapped her own mouth. "Oops! Silly me. Sarah is already upset about being... well, ugly. I shouldn't have brought it up. I deserve to die!"

Ethan’s heart melted immediately. He grabbed her hands. "Little dummy, don't hurt yourself. You didn't say anything wrong. Why should we cater to her fragile ego?"

He kissed her hands, blowing on them as if they were hurt.

A wave of nausea hit me. I remembered my last egg retrieval. The pain was so bad I couldn't walk. Ethan had stood there, arms crossed, sneering. "You're a grown woman, stop acting. It’s just a needle. How much can it hurt?"

He hadn't cared about my pale face then. He just drove off, leaving me at the clinic because he "didn't have the patience for my drama."

Now, he scooped Chloe up into his arms and walked out without a backward glance at his bleeding wife.

"I'm taking Chloe to the doctor to check her hands. You stay home and reflect on your behavior!"