Chapter 2

Leo looked up at Sarah the next morning, his small face serious.

"Mommy, why was Daddy giving that lady a sparkly bracelet?"

Sarah pulled him close.

"Daddy made some bad choices, sweetie."

"Is he going to live with her now?"

The question, so innocent, tore at Sarah.

"No, Leo. We're going to make a new life, just you and me. A better one."

Leo nodded slowly. "Okay, Mommy. As long as you're happy."

His simple acceptance strengthened her resolve.

Sarah scrolled through social media later that week, a sick curiosity she couldn't fight.

There were pictures from the gala.

Ethan and Victoria, smiling, arms linked.

Articles praising Ethan's "comeback," his generosity.

Victoria was quoted, gushing about his "unwavering support."

Each image, each word, was a fresh twist of the knife.

He was living the life he'd stolen from her and Leo, out in the open.

A few days later, Ethan showed up at their cramped Queens apartment.

It was the first time he'd been there since the gala.

He looked out of place in his expensive suit.

"Sarah, we need to talk about Leo," he began, no apology, no explanation for his gala appearance.

"What about Leo?" she asked, her voice cold.

"Victoria's son, Chase, he's sick. He needs a kidney transplant. They think Leo might be a match."

Sarah stared at him, disbelieving.

"You want Leo to be tested? For her son?"

"He'd be saving his stepbrother, Sarah. It could unite our families."

His audacity was breathtaking.

She felt a surge of anger so strong it almost choked her.

"No, Ethan. Absolutely not."

Her lawyer, a woman named Ms. Albright, had been sympathetic but practical.

"Filing for divorce is the first step, Sarah. But he's a powerful man."

Sarah had explained her plan to move to Oregon, to her parents.

Ms. Albright had seemed surprised. "That's a big move. Are you sure?"

"I need to get Leo away from him, from all of this."

Ethan, Ms. Albright explained, would likely assume Sarah was just angry, that she'd eventually cool down and be "reasonable," especially if he dangled money.

He wouldn't expect her to actually leave, to cut ties so completely.

His arrogance was his pattern.

Sarah confided in her only close friend in New York, Maria, a fellow mom from Leo's old playgroup.

"I'm taking Leo and I'm leaving, Maria. For good. I'm going to Oregon."

Maria's eyes widened. "Oregon? Wow, Sarah. But... good for you. You deserve so much better."

The validation felt like a small weight lifted.

Someone understood. Someone saw Ethan for what he was.

One afternoon, Sarah came home from a cleaning job.

The apartment was too quiet.

"Leo?" she called out, a knot of dread tightening in her stomach.

No answer.

She searched the small rooms, her panic rising.

He wasn't there.

On the kitchen table, a note.

Not in Ethan's handwriting. This was more elegant, feminine.

"Leo is having a playdate with Chase. Central Park. You should join. - V."

Victoria.

She had taken her son.

Sarah ran, her heart pounding, all the way to Central Park.

She found them near the carousel. Victoria, looking chic and unconcerned. Ethan, standing awkwardly by. Leo and Chase were near the pond.

As Sarah approached, she heard Ethan's voice, cold and clear, talking to Victoria.

"Don't worry, V. Sarah will agree to the testing for Leo. She always does what's best for the family, eventually. And Chase is family now."

He was still scheming, still so sure of his control over her.

Using her son as a pawn for this other woman, this other child.

The full, horrifying scope of his betrayal slammed into her.