REVENGE ON MY UNFAITHFUL HUSBAND

Only Now You Realize I'm Dead?

Micah Shark's stepmother, Bianca, had a daughter with Micah's father before, but the child died young, leaving her heartbroken. By chance, she later adopted Zoey.

Three years after Micah's mother passed away, his father married Bianca, and she became the new Mrs. Shark. Because of her attachment to Zoey, Bianca never treated me well.

As soon as she saw Bianca, Zoey sweetly called out, "Dad, Mom."

Mr. Shark's gaze fell on Micah, and he suddenly exploded with anger. "You ungrateful son! How dare you show your face here? You've completely disgraced our family!"

At yesterday's wedding, just as Micah and I were about to exchange rings, Zoey called, claiming her heart was in terrible pain. Micah rushed out without a second thought, leaving me to become the laughingstock of the entire town.

Zoey quickly knelt before Mr. Shark. "Dad, it's all my fault. I thought I was having a heart attack and called Micah. I never meant for things to turn out like this. Blame me, not my brother."

Bianca hugged Zoey protectively. "Zoey's heart condition is because her sister pushed her into the water years ago. Besides, Ruby's family hasn't said anything, so why are you so angry? Come on, sweetie, get up. The floor is cold."

This scene had played out countless times over the past two years. Whenever Zoey and I had a conflict, Mr. Shark would start out furious but always end up letting it go. Zoey would get all the benefits, leaving me with nothing but a bitter pill to swallow.

Micah scanned the room, not seeing the familiar face he was looking for. "Dad, where's Ruby?"

"You have the nerve to ask about her? Yesterday, you left her at the altar, exposing her to ridicule. After smoothing things over with the guests, she said she was going to change out of her wedding dress. She hasn't been back since. She saved our family's reputation, while you trampled all over her dignity!"

Micah's face paled. "What do you mean she hasn't come back? Where did she go? She sent me her location last night!"

He pulled out his phone, his fingers whitening as he gripped it. "She... The police called me today. They found Ruby's wedding dress by the river..."

Hah. I laughed bitterly. Only now does he realize I'm dead?

"How should I know where she went? Did you think about her when you ran away from the wedding? Who are you trying to fool now with this act?"

"Dad, I need to go out for a bit."

"Brother, I'll come with you."

Watching his panicked silhouette disappear, I could only laugh. Isn't it a bit late to start worrying now?

At the police station, Micah got straight to the point: "Officer, what exactly happened?"

"Mr. Shark, a wedding dress was found floating in the river this morning. A jogger thought it might be a body and called it in. When we fished it out, we identified it as the custom gown your wife wore at the wedding..."

Zoey interrupted, "Besides the dress, did you find anything else?"

"No," the officer replied, glancing at Zoey.

"Maybe my sister threw the dress in the river just to upset you? Officer, she pulls stunts like this all the time. We don't have time for her games."

Zoey spoke casually, but the lead detective, Hawkins, frowned. "And you are...?"

"I'm Ruby's younger sister. My sister has always been manipulative. When I was five, she tricked me out of the house and pushed me into a river, trying to drown me. When I finally made it home, she framed me for all sorts of things. She loves using pity to manipulate people's feelings."

Hearing her lies, I desperately wanted to explain. "It wasn't me! I never did any of that!"

I'd explained this countless times, but everyone always saw Zoey as the victim. All my explanations were dismissed as excuses.

I thought Detective Hawkins would fall for her act like everyone else, but his expression remained unchanged.

"We found traces of blood on the wedding dress. After DNA analysis, we confirmed it matches Ruby's. There are also two holes in the dress, likely caused by a sharp object. If Ruby was wearing the dress at the time, she would have been stabbed in both the abdomen and back."

"So we suspect Ruby may have been murdered."

Micah's face turned ashen. His hand holding a disposable cup trembled, spilling hot water all over the table.