A Severe Allergic Reaction

Walking out of the restaurant, Evelyn slid behind the wheel of her car and drove straight to the Hale residence. Pulling up in front of the familiar house, she felt hot tears blur her vision at once.

In her previous life, after her family's business went bankrupt, this very house had been sold off. Her father had spent years drowning in guilt, repeating that he couldn't even keep the home their family had lived in for generations, while she had been powerless to help.

Grief and bitter regret washed over her. Resting her forehead against the steering wheel, Evelyn took a long moment to steady her breathing, and right as she reached for the door handle, her mother's warm voice carried over.

"Evelyn? What brings you home out of the blue? Have you had dinner yet? You should've called first so we could make something special." Out on a walk, Helen Garrett had spotted Evelyn's car right away, her face brightening as she hurried over.

Evelyn's father, Raymond Hale, walked briskly over too, his eyes crinkling warmly. "Sweetheart, you came to see us. Missing home, were you? That's my good girl—married and still thinking of your old parents." As she was their only child, having her back thrilled them both.

Stepping out, Evelyn let Helen take her hand. Helen glanced into the empty car, noticing neither Damon nor Lucas had come along, yet she didn't dare ask why and simply led Evelyn toward the house. Though her mother said nothing, Evelyn caught every bit of it.

Her parents hadn't always been this cautious around her. Years back, once they realized how poorly Damon was treating her, they told her plainly that she didn't have to endure it—that whenever she wasn't happy, she should just pack up and come home.

Back then, however, her entire world had revolved around her husband and son. Hearing her parents talk that way had made her snap and argue fiercely with them, furious that they would actually want their own daughter to get divorced.

Ever since that clash, though they still felt Damon wasn't good to her, they kept quiet around her out of fear of upsetting her. Later, when Raymond's company hit financial trouble, they grew even more careful, practically walking on eggshells around her.

Watching her parents tiptoe around her like this again made Evelyn's heart ache. Knowing the company's crisis already put more than enough pressure on their shoulders, she kept her troubles with Damon strictly to herself.

After sitting in the living room and talking with them for a while, Evelyn went upstairs to her childhood bedroom. Six full years had passed since her wedding, yet everything inside remained right where she had left it, completely spotless without a speck of dust in sight.

'I really was out of my mind in my last life,' she thought silently. 'I poured every ounce of my love into Damon and Lucas while leaving my own parents behind. This time around, I'll be the daughter they truly deserved, and I won't let them live like that ever again.'

After crying herself out on the mattress, Evelyn got up, took a warm shower, turned off her phone, and climbed into bed. Years had passed since she had slept this early; for so long, her life had centered on looking after Damon and Lucas.

Born with a frail constitution, Lucas had needed constant attention from infancy. Damon, meanwhile, was impossibly picky about every minor detail; not a single servant ever met his standards, and after watching one after another leave, Evelyn decided to step in and take care of him herself.

Oddly enough, as impossible as Damon was to please, he was always satisfied with whatever Evelyn handled for him. Back then, she had felt quietly proud of that, taking his approval as proof of affection and believing she alone was his special exception.

Looking back with clear eyes now, she only felt foolish. Love had nothing to do with any of it; she had merely been a convenient, unpaid servant who knew how he liked things done. Worn out completely by these past six years, she barely closed her eyes before heavy exhaustion pulled her into a deep, dreamless sleep.

*****

Back at the restaurant, Lucas's birthday celebration had just wrapped up. Before anyone could even step out of the private room, Lucas began scratching frantically at his skin and couldn't stop.

Damon noticed right away that something was wrong. Just as he opened his mouth to ask, angry red rashes broke out across Lucas's body while the boy's lips rapidly swelled up.

"Daddy, I don't feel good... I can't breathe," Lucas gasped out.

The instant Lucas choked out those words, Judith let out a piercing scream. "Lucas! What's happening to you? What's wrong?" Rushing forward in a panic, she fluttered her hands helplessly near his swollen face.

"That's an allergic reaction," a relative standing nearby spoke up. "Evelyn was telling the truth earlier. He really must be allergic to nuts."

"How utterly irresponsible!" Judith complained loudly. "If she knew her boy had an allergy this severe, why didn't she make it clear before walking out? What sort of mother lets this happen to her own child? Call her right now! What do we do? Nobody in our family has allergies—she must've passed it down! This is all on her. While pregnant, she just had to trail Damon abroad and get into that accident overseas. How awful for Lucas to be stuck with such an unreliable mother!"

Judith kept ranting behind him, but Damon tuned her out completely, scooping Lucas into his arms and rushing out to drive him straight to the hospital. Anger burned hot inside him as he sped down the road, pulling out his phone to dial Evelyn's number.

He meant to demand an answer from her right then. 'What kind of mother could be that cruel? Knowing the allergy could literally kill Lucas, she still let him eat the cake and walked right out without even looking back. Did I really marry a woman this heartless?'

Yet every call went straight to an automated message stating her phone was turned off. Furious, Damon dialed again and again, only to get the exact same prompt every time, leaving him no choice but to shove his rage aside and focus on getting Lucas to the hospital.

Only after the medical staff got Lucas stable did Damon spot the text message from Evelyn. Not a word mentioned their son; she merely reminded him to meet her at the courthouse tomorrow.

Damon stared down at the screen, sharp irritation burning in his chest. Still, when Camilla walked up to him in tears to apologize, he forced himself to speak gently. "You had no idea about the allergy. None of this is your fault."

Hearing his gentle tone only made Camilla cry even harder. "If I hadn't been so stubborn and walked away from you back then, the two of us might still be together today. Lucas could've been my child." Reaching toward the bed as she spoke, she took hold of Lucas's small hand. "I honestly wish he were my son instead. Everything would be so much better that way."

Listening to her words, Damon frowned slightly as a strange, uncomfortable tightness settled deep in his chest.

Right then, the attending doctor walked in to confirm Lucas had gotten medication in time and was now out of danger, before running through a long list of precautions for Lucas's recovery.

Damon listened patiently until the doctor finished, though his mind was already set. 'Once I get home, I'm going to teach Evelyn a proper lesson. Pull a stunt like this ever again, and she won't stay Mrs. Voss for much longer.'

*****

By the time Damon returned to the Voss residence, he found Evelyn hadn't come home at all. After putting Lucas to bed, he walked alone into the master bedroom, where the exhausting night and the silent, empty space only made his anger burn hotter.

'Not this time,' he told himself coldly. 'I won't let this slide just because she says she's sorry—she needs to learn who really runs this house.'