On our wedding day, she'd shown up at the venue and set a fire.

Our ceremony had only made it halfway through.

After all that suffering, Ray—and his entire family—were now protecting this woman. I couldn't wrap my head around it.

When I exposed the truth, Ray scrambled to cover it up.

"That's all in the past. Why bring it up now?"

The elder Dickersons didn't seem to mind either.

Of course not. After all, she was pregnant now.

I lifted my chin, forcing the tears back.

"Ray, you've loved her for years. Now that you're rich and she's carrying your child, you brought her back."

"You got your parents to accept her. All of you, letting bygones be bygones. How pathetic can you be?"

A slap cracked across my face.

I stumbled, barely catching myself.

The burning sting on my cheek deepened my despair—but it also hardened something inside me.

"Marital assets. I'm still entitled to an equal split."

"Ray, don't push this too far. I've agreed to the divorce. But if you think I'm walking away with nothing—"

I swept my gaze around the room.

My voice came out iron-hard: "If you force me to leave empty-handed, I'll die right here."

I'd never been one to make scenes or throw tantrums.

If they hadn't pushed me this far, I would have kept my dignity intact.

But leaving with nothing? That was the one thing I couldn't accept. My parents were in poor health, dependent on expensive medications.

Ray's eyes went bloodshot at my words.

"It's not leaving with nothing. I'm giving you a hundred thousand."

"That's all you're getting. If we're talking about building this from scratch, I'm the one who did the real work."

I stared at him, stunned.

He was comparing labor with me?

We were in the renovation business.

When we first started the company, we'd gone to clients' homes ourselves—measuring rooms, plastering walls, hauling heavy materials.

Sure, he was stronger. He'd done more of the physical work.

But I'd handled everything else. Running to the market at dawn, cooking every meal, keeping us fed and functioning.

And now, today, it had become his hard work that mattered—implying I'd contributed nothing.

My voice tore out of me: "Ray, you're disgusting."

Ray waved his hand, already done with me. "Mom, Dad—throw her out. Lock the door behind her."

The old couple immediately closed in on me, their hostility palpable.

The old man yanked open the front door. Bitter wind sliced through the entryway.