Chapter 3 

After Emily’s burial, I went to the hospital to obtain her death certificate. 

The moment I received the death certificate, I truly realized that my child was gone. 

My little girl, who used to hold my hand and tell me she loved me, was gone forever. 

Leaving the administrative building, I had to pass through the emergency room to exit. 

As I entered, a familiar voice echoed in my ears. 

“Can you be gentler? Can’t you hear her saying it hurts? I don’t know how you do your job. I’ll complain to the hospital if you’re not careful.” 

Following the voice, I saw Jeffrey holding Louise in a room. 

A nurse was cleaning a small cut on Louise’s finger. 

The nurse rolled her eyes at Jeffrey. 

“It’s just a tiny cut. If you had come any later, it would have healed on its own. You people waste medical resources for nothing.” 

“Jeffrey, it’s all my fault. If I hadn’t been so clumsy and cut myself, you wouldn’t have to deal with this.” 

Louise looked at Jeffrey with such pitiful eyes that he almost felt sorry for her. 

“You’re too kind–hearted. I don’t know what you’d do without me,” Jeffrey replied. 

“Aren’t you always going to be with me?” Louise asked. 

“Yes, I’ll always be with you,” he said. 

And then they embraced each other like characters in a soap opera, unwilling to part. 

Watching this scene, I gripped Emily’s death certificate tightly, feeling a sense of injustice for both myself and my deceased daughter. 

At that moment, Jeffrey looked up and our eyes met. 

“Why are you here? Are you following me?” 

His expression was full of displeasure. 

Louise stood up from Jeffrey’s embrace. 

“Rose, don’t blame Jeffrey. It’s all my fault. I got hurt and he was just worried, so he brought me to the hospital.” Louise always wore that pitiful expression, which made me furious. 

“Shut up! You’re a thirty–year–old woman. Don’t act like a child. Do you want to be Jeffrey’s mistress?” 

As I yelled at her, Louise immediately hid behind Jeffrey. He glared at me, furious. 

“Rose, shut your mouth. Louise is hurt and already feeling bad. Do you have to come here and make it worse? How did you become so vicious?” 

“I’m vicious? You sent Emily out alone to get her a milkshake. Did you ever consider she might get hurt?” I demanded. My eyes were red with anger and grief. 

Jeffrey was momentarily taken aback, then sneered. 

“You keep talking about Emily. It’s time for school to end. Shouldn’t you be picking her up instead of coming here to confront me? You’re so hypocritical, Rose.” 

I looked at the death certificate in my hand, feeling utterly drained. 

“Emily doesn’t need to be picked up anymore. She’ll never need to be picked up again.” 

“What do you mean?” 

Jeffrey finally noticed the death certificate I was holding. When he saw the words “Death Certificate,” his eyes widened in shock. 

He asked nervously, “What are you holding? Who… who died?”