My beautiful son, sitting on a couch with his favorite stuffed bear. Relief washes over me, but it only lasts a second. Because then I hear it.
"Mommy, can we go to the park?"
Not my voice. Not me.
Olivia.
She smiles, tucking Liam’s hair behind his ear like she’s known him forever. "Of course, baby. Anything for you."
Liam beams at her. At her.
I choke. I press a hand to my mouth, shaking as the video continues. Liam—my son—leans into her, lets her kiss his forehead. Like she’s his real mother.
I let out a strangled scream and hurl the phone across the room. Everything inside me shatters into pieces. Ethan didn’t just take Liam. He erased me from his life completely.
I stumble to the bathroom, gripping the sink as I stare at my reflection. Hollow eyes. Chapped lips. A ghost of the woman I used to be.
I grip my hair, tugging hard, my breath coming out in ragged sobs. "I can’t do this," I whisper. "I can’t—I can’t—"
The walls close in. My legs give out.
And then everything fades to black.
I don’t remember how I end up on the streets. One moment, I’m in that motel. The next, I’m wandering through the city, numb and empty.