Chapter 1

Trapped in a gilded cage of deception, Caroline discovers her "loving" husband’s cure is a slow-acting poison. With her body failing and children in danger, she feigns weakness to uncover his affair with the nanny and a plot to steal her fortune. Aided by a detective and her resilient cat, Caroline fights to reclaim her life—one antidote pill at a time. But as her enemies turn on each other, survival demands she become the actress of her own funeral. How far would you go to escape a killer who shares your bed?

"Nala, you can't eat that."

When the medicine bowl was knocked over, my cat Nala suddenly jumped down from the windowsill and started licking the spilled medicine on the floor.

I wanted to stop her, but I was too weak and dizzy to move.

I scolded her twice, but Nala ignored me, so I had to give up.

The medicine was something my husband had gone to great lengths to find to help nourish my body. Although human medicine is different from cat medicine, a little bit shouldn't harm her.

I struggled to pick up the bowl and put it back on the nightstand, then collapsed onto the pillow, panting.

Nala licked the floor clean and then jumped back onto the windowsill, basking in the sun and washing her face with her paws.

I looked longingly at the sunlight streaming through the glass window, imagining how warm it must be.

Since my health had deteriorated to the point where even standing up was difficult, I hadn't been out in the sun for a long time.

Thinking about my health made me feel a bit down.

Ever since I gave birth to a pair of adorable boy-girl twins, my health had been getting worse.

At first, I was just dizzy, but then I became lethargic and weak, losing hair in clumps, and my spirits were getting worse.

Now, I barely had the strength to get out of bed.

Fortunately, I have a loving and caring husband, Brandon Jordan. After I frequently felt dizzy post-childbirth, he worried about my health and persuaded me to take a break from work and rest at home.

He even gave up his beloved screenwriting career to help manage the company my parents left behind.

People who know us say I'm incredibly lucky to have such a good husband like Brandon.

I also feel that way. With a loving husband like Brandon and three adorable and considerate children, I am what people often call a winner in life!

It's just that my body is failing me, suddenly deteriorating. Even after visiting major hospitals, no one could find anything wrong.

Brandon has been running around trying to find ways to treat me.

He even hired a nanny to take care of me, prepare my medicine, and remind me to take it on time, hoping I would get better soon.

I also want to get better soon, but...

"Knock, knock, knock!"

As I was lost in thought, the nanny knocked and entered, "Mrs. Jordan, did you take your medicine?"

The nanny Brandon found is named Shirley Ross, and she's only twenty-five years old.

Shirley is very pretty, and although young, she's honest and diligent, taking great care of me.

I'm very satisfied with her and have praised her to Brandon multiple times, even asking him to give her two raises.

I glanced at Nala washing her face on the windowsill and didn't mention that the medicine had spilled and Nala had licked it up.

I just nodded weakly, "Yes, I took it."

I've been taking this medicine since I started feeling dizzy three years ago, but it hasn't helped, and my health has only gotten worse.

Honestly, it's good that it spilled!

I didn't want to take it anymore.

Shirley smiled with relief, "It's good that you took it. Mr. Jordan insisted that you take your medicine on time every day." As she quickly cleaned up the medicine bowl, she sighed with envy, "I've been a nanny for a long time, and Mr. Jordan is the best husband I've ever seen. Mrs. Jordan, you are truly blessed!"

I know I'm blessed.

If only I could have a healthy body again!

I sighed inwardly and looked at the bright sunlight outside, "Shirley, I want to go out and get some sun."

"Okay, Mrs. Jordan." Shirley smiled, "I'll take you out once I finish cleaning up."

"Alright."

Shirley left, and the room became quiet again. For some reason, the silence made me uneasy.

Suddenly,

"Meow!"

A sharp cat's cry startled me. I turned my head to see Nala falling from the windowsill and twitching on the carpet before going still.

If it weren't for her breathing, I would have thought she was dead.

But how could Nala fall from the windowsill?

Cats have great balance, and Nala has always been healthy. Even if she fell, she shouldn't have been knocked out.

She was a gift for my first child, and I've always taken good care of her. There's no way she could have eaten something wrong or suddenly gotten sick.

The only thing she ate that she shouldn't have was...

I suddenly turned my head, staring at the faint medicine stain on the floor.

A chill ran down my spine.

I hurriedly and weakly got out of bed, my legs trembling. I took one step and fell to the floor.

I didn't dare cry out in pain, and I didn't know why, but I was afraid of alerting anyone.

I struggled to crawl to Nala, carefully cradling her soft body.

She seemed to be asleep, but how deeply must she be sleeping to not wake up no matter how I moved her?

Looking at her unconscious state, I couldn't help but imagine if I was the same after taking the medicine.

Unaware and at the mercy of others!

But how could that be?

This medicine was prescribed by a famous expert Brandon found after traveling thousands of miles.

He loves me so much; how could he harm me?

But if not him, then who?

I felt like I was falling into an icy abyss, shivering with cold.

Just then, I heard footsteps outside the door.

I quickly crawled back to bed with Nala, pretending to be asleep.

The footsteps stopped at the door, and I heard someone turning the doorknob. I tensed up, trembling slightly.

The door opened, and the person seemed to just glance inside before closing the door again.

Then I heard faint voices in the hallway, "She must keep taking the medicine. Make sure she takes it."

The voices faded, and I couldn't hear anything else.

I opened my eyes and stared at the pale ceiling, feeling like I had been pulled out of icy water.

Fear made me tremble uncontrollably. What did Brandon mean by that?

Is he really trying to harm me?

Our family is well-off. I'm an only child, and my parents ran a construction company. When the real estate industry boomed, their company grew significantly.

But shortly after Brandon and I got married, my parents died in a car accident, and I inherited their company.

When my health declined, I handed over the company's management to Brandon and focused on resting at home.

If he wanted to harm me, it would make sense.

After all, if I died, Brandon, as my husband, would legally inherit all my assets.

But could it really be him?

We've been in love for five years and married for three.

In eight years, he's always treated me the same.

He surprises me on holidays and anniversaries, and if he's busy with work and neglects me, he buys me gifts to make up for it.

I'm not good at cooking, so he takes care of all the household chores, cooking, and taking care of the kids without complaint.

When I got sick, he was more worried than anyone.

He took me to major hospitals for checkups and read various books to find ways to cure me.

Whenever he heard about a famous doctor, he would book a flight and take me to see them.

Even my friends say Brandon treats me like a daughter.

Sometimes, he even prioritizes me over our daughter.

He says our daughter will grow up and leave home, eventually getting married.

But I am the only one who will walk with him through life.

No one can replace me in his heart!

Could someone who loves me so deeply really harm me?

If someone wanted to harm another, could they really treat them like a treasure for ten years?

I don't believe it.

Because if it's true, then he's truly terrifying!

But if it's not him, then who?

Besides Brandon and the kids, there's only the nanny, Shirley.

But Shirley is honest and has no reason to harm me.

Other families might worry about a young, pretty nanny getting involved with the husband.

But Shirley knows her boundaries and rarely appears when Brandon is home.

And when Brandon is home, he's always with me, so they have no time to be alone.

Brandon can't be the one, and Shirley has no motive. So who could be trying to harm me?