I Divorced Him for His Secret Son — and He Went Mad

Mia had never spoken to me like this before. The sweetness and thoughtfulness she had always shown were completely gone today. I froze where I stood, my heart pounding so hard I could feel it in my throat. Before I could say anything, Mia's expression darkened again. "Mom, are you not going to do what you're told?" "Who taught you to talk like that?" My face turned cold, even colder than hers had been. "Mia, I'm warning you. Don't ever say things like that in front of other people. Do you even know what day it is today? I expect you to behave." Mia let out a sharp scoff. "You're the one who should be learning from Aunt Judy!" With that, she turned around and ran off. I immediately chased after her, but my foot slipped. My body staggered backward, and my lower back slammed into the edge of the table. A sharp, burning pain shot through my spine. Mia stopped for a second and looked back over her shoulder. "You're so clumsy, Mom! Dad was right. You'll never be as good as Aunt Judy at anything!" Her words froze my entire body. Every muscle locked in place. When I looked up again, Mia was already gone. A deep sense of dread slowly spread through my chest. Her words replayed over and over in my mind. Mia never lied. And that made the suspicion I had been desperately trying to bury even harder to ignore. Did Lawson really have a ten-year-old son somewhere? When I finally found Mia, she was sitting beside the little wolf pup, playing with a toy. A short distance away, Judy, the boy's mother, was surrounded by a crowd of people chatting with her. She stood in the center of everyone's attention, tall, beautiful, and impossible to ignore. When we were planning Mia's birthday party, Lawson had insisted that I stay out of all the preparations so I wouldn't exhaust myself. He had even specifically told me that he had invited the famous celebrity Judy and her son Jason to perform at the opening ceremony. Judy and Jason were well-known throughout the werewolf clans. Jason was a gifted little wolf pup, smart, quick-witted, and adorable. He was only a month younger than Mia. That was the only reason I had paid attention to them before. I had seen them countless times, but I had never noticed it until now. Jason's little habits, his subtle expressions, even the tiny movements he made without realizing it... They were almost exactly the same as Lawson's. I stood there completely frozen. My legs went numb. A wave of disgust surged through me so violently that my stomach twisted. Not far away, Judy was still taking pictures with fans. When someone asked her for advice about raising children, she smiled gently and said, "My husband is always busy with work, but he still makes time for me and our son. He spends four full days with us every week. Sometimes when I'm busy with performances, he'll even bring my son someone his age to play with. It really takes a lot of pressure off me." The moment those words left her mouth, Judy glanced in my direction. A smug smile slowly spread across her face. I could barely breathe. Lawson was always busy managing the family business and was hardly ever home. He was here less than three days a week, and even when he was home, he stayed locked inside his study handling pack matters. Then he would leave again for business trips that lasted several days. Every time, he said it was because he was thinking about me, because I had to raise Mia alone. "I'll take Mia with me on this trip so she won't bother you at home. As her father, I should do my part." Even Mia had always been excited to travel with Lawson. She would pack all her favorite toys in advance, eager to go with him. Back then, I had felt so lucky. I thought I had the most considerate husband and the sweetest daughter in the world. But now, all I felt was bone-chilling fear. Lawson had been taking my daughter away so she could keep his illegitimate son company this entire time. The moment that thought appeared in my mind, ice seemed to run through my veins. All my strength disappeared at once. My knees gave out. I was about to collapse when a hand wrapped around my waist and held me steady. It was Judy. I stared at her in disbelief. The smug expression from before was gone. Instead, she smiled softly at me. "Careful. Don't fall. You could hurt the baby you're carrying." My throat tightened. Only Lawson and Mia knew I was pregnant. "How did you know?" "Sweet little Mia told me just now. Lawson mentioned it too, of course." Judy didn't release my arm. One hand rested gently on her own stomach. "I'm hoping our babies can be born in the same month." Her words struck me like a blow to the head. My chest rose and fell violently. I struggled to breathe as I whispered, "You're pregnant too?" Judy's smile grew wider. "Yes. Honestly, I didn't even want another child. But last month, my husband and I had a fight. He spent the whole night making it up to me, and one thing led to another... I thought having another child would be too much work, but he insisted that I keep the baby." Her face was filled with unmistakable happiness. That smile burned my eyes. It hurt so much that tears began to form. Lawson and I hadn't been intimate in years. I had struggled with infertility for a long time, and Mia had been my miracle baby. But the difficult labor I endured when I gave birth to her left my body with permanent complications. Lawson always told me that being intimate would put too much strain on me, so we gradually stopped being close. But last month, he suddenly came home in the middle of a business trip. He was drunk, the heavy scent of alcohol clinging to him. He held onto me desperately, refusing to let go until we ended up sleeping together. Right afterward, he mumbled something about an urgent business matter and rushed out before I could even understand what had happened. That one night was all it took for me to get pregnant. When I told him the news, he said another pregnancy would be too hard on my body and that I should focus all my energy on taking care of Mia instead. I never imagined that the only reason he had come to me that night was because he had just fought with Judy. And now that I was carrying his child, I finally realized something cruel. The only child he truly wanted was Judy's. I was still drowning in shock when Judy spoke again. Her voice was gentle, almost sickeningly sweet. "It's difficult getting around with this baby, and I have a prenatal appointment tomorrow. Would you like to come with me?" I yanked my arm out of her grasp so forcefully that she stumbled backward in her stilettos, nearly falling. Mia and Jason immediately rushed over to catch her. Jason glared at me. "Why did you push my mom?!" Mia looked at me with the same disgust in her eyes as she tightly held Judy's hand. Judy pulled Jason behind her protectively. "Mommy's fine, sweetheart. Monica didn't mean to do it." I stared at them silently, unable to say a single word. Then I turned around and stumbled into the private room. I gripped the prenatal report so tightly that my knuckles turned white. My chest felt like it had been crushed by a truck. At that moment, Lawson walked in. He placed a soft cloak over my shoulders and frowned. "What's wrong? You didn't like the performances?" His voice was gentle. His eyes were filled with what looked like genuine concern. But now, every bit of that tenderness made me sick. I shook my head. The moment I looked at him, a sharp pain twisted through my chest. Tears spilled down my face before I could stop them. All his fake affection, all his carefully crafted kindness... Knowing the truth made every bit of it unbearable. His expression darkened immediately. He turned to his assistant. "Bring Mia here." The moment Mia walked in, Lawson looked at her. "Did you upset your mom?" Mia shook her head and scoffed. "No! Mom just hates Aunt Judy and Jason! I saw it myself. She pushed Aunt Judy!" Her sharp, accusing voice pierced straight through me. My heart clenched. My mind went completely blank. I stared at her, unable to believe what I was hearing. The things Judy had revealed moments ago had shattered me. But nothing hurt as much as Mia's cold, unfamiliar expression. This was my daughter. The child who had never lied to me once. She had seen exactly what happened. Yet she still chose to accuse me. Lawson frowned, clearly believing every word Mia said. He let out a tired sigh. "Today is Mia's birthday, and Judy is a guest. Don't make a scene, okay? I know Jason is a gifted wolf pup, but there's no need to compare Mia to him. Besides, you're different from Judy. She's a celebrity." He looked at me with disappointment. "Put more effort into raising Mia. Think about it, how many days do you even spend with her in a week? I invited Judy here because I wanted you to learn from her. You should pick up some parenting skills from her." With that, he took Mia's hand and walked out. The irony hit me like a slap. He was the one who had always told me not to worry about Mia's upbringing. Whenever he was away and I begged him not to send her to boarding school, I would say, "Don't send Mia away. I want to raise her myself. I want to make sure she grows into a proper heir." But Lawson had always dismissed me. "She's still young. She needs to learn independence." Then he would hang up. Now everything finally made sense. Every word he had ever said was a lie. He had brought his mistress to our daughter's birthday party. And now he was telling me to learn how to be a mother from her. In his eyes, I had only attacked Judy out of jealousy. Mia's words were the truth to him. He hadn't even bothered to ask for my side of the story. Every word they said felt like another piece of my heart being ripped away. They left me hollow. Right then, I contacted a lawyer from the wolf clan and arranged to file for divorce. At the same time, I instructed him to calculate every asset I was entitled to from the family immediately.