The Daughter I Protected After My Husband Betrayed Us

My daughter was falsely accused of stealing, but my husband took the blame for everything. I knew it was the daughter of his first love who had done it, and I wanted him to tell the truth. Instead, he launched into a furious tirade. "What decent company would hire a thief? If word gets out, how will Ava find a good job in the future? Our daughter is sick anyway…" My husband even said that helping Ava was her honor, and I was so furious I couldn’t speak. While I worked desperately to find new evidence, my husband tried to make our daughter take the blame for assault. But he had no idea that I already had all the evidence in my hands! "My daughter took it. I found this watch in her room." My husband, Ryan, suddenly walked in from outside and personally admitted that my daughter had stolen the watch. I immediately grabbed him. "Are you insane? You know who the real thief is…" Before this, our daughter had firmly insisted that she saw her roommate, Ava, steal the watch. Ava was the daughter of Ryan’s close female friend, but we had no evidence. Now Ryan had produced the stolen item. He glared at me. "Do you want me to become a criminal along with you two? Our daughter made a mistake, and all you can think about is covering for her. I really don’t know how you raised her." He acted as if he were nobly sacrificing his own daughter for justice. My heart ached with rage. Beside me, our daughter cried and shook her head. She had always been introverted. When she was little, she had withdrawn completely from the world and rarely interacted with anyone. She pitifully tugged on Ryan’s sleeve. "Dad, I didn’t do it." Smack. My husband slapped her across the face. His expression was full of disgust. "What did I teach you? No matter what else you do, never become a thief. You’re an embarrassment." With that, Ryan returned the stolen item to its owner. The watch was incredibly expensive, worth nearly a million dollars. The owner immediately called the police and was absolutely furious. If the accusation was confirmed, our daughter would definitely be arrested. "So you were the one who stole it? You always looked so harmless. I never expected you to be this pathetic and desperate." "My daughter didn’t do it. It was clearly—" I was about to speak when Ryan yanked me aside. He leaned close and "reminded" me that exposing him would mean I was committing perjury, and besides, there were no security cameras. "If you want to get me killed, just say so. If we tell the truth, they’ll stop pursuing the matter." The owner mocked our daughter and ordered her to kneel and apologize, but my husband knelt first. "It’s all our fault." Because the police were still standing nearby, he didn’t dare act too arrogantly. On the way out of the police station, our daughter cried nonstop. She kept saying that she hadn’t done it. "Ava stole it. Dad, you know that too. Why are you lying?" "Ava is going to work for a Fortune 500 company someday. If she can’t get a good job because of this, what will happen to her mother for the rest of her life?" "You’re my child. How could you possibly compare to Ava?" "…" "Don’t be upset. Let your Aunt Victoria take you out for a meal. Helping Ava is your honor." "That’s enough." I was furious, but we had no evidence, and my own husband had personally handed over the stolen watch. He had even admitted that our daughter stole it, completely turning her into a falsely accused thief. I had to find more evidence. I couldn’t let him continue acting recklessly. "Mom, I really didn’t steal it." "I know." I comforted my daughter and told her not to dwell on the matter. I would find solid evidence and clear her name.Victoria carried several large bags of gifts and deliberately bought a watch for my daughter. "If you wanted a watch, you could have asked me. How could you steal one?" Ryan’s eyes lit up. He took the watch and handed it to our daughter. I angrily snatched it and smashed it against the floor. Wasn’t this obviously meant to mock us? "What are you doing? You’re being so petty. Victoria only wants what’s best for our daughter. That watch cost several thousand dollars." Our daughter walked upstairs with a dark expression. Ryan told me to leave her alone. Victoria stood nearby and spoke in a mocking, sarcastic tone. "She’s just a child. If she did something wrong, she should pay the price. Is stealing really something to be proud of? If you don’t teach children when they’re young, they’ll grow up with no sense of right and wrong." "It’s my responsibility that my daughter wasn’t raised properly, isn’t it?" I clenched my teeth and shouted, "My daughter didn’t steal that watch at all. The two of you know exactly where it came from." Ryan was enraged by my words. He rushed over and slapped me. "Don’t push me too far. Victoria meant well. Besides, your daughter has a mental illness. She was never going anywhere in life anyway, so what’s wrong with her having a criminal record?" I never imagined my husband could say something like that. That was his biological daughter. Was his own daughter really less important than the daughter of his first love, a girl who wasn’t even related to him by blood? "Do you even hear yourself?" My husband ignored me and dragged Victoria outside. He said I had ruined his mood, so the two of them were going out to eat. I sat alone in the living room, lighting cigarette after cigarette. When had Ryan become like this? He seemed determined to drain our family dry to support his female friend. When I first met Ryan, he had been gentle and responsible. At the time, my grandmother came to visit me. She had a physical disability and struggled to walk. People often pointed at her, and even when she asked for directions, they treated her with disdain. Ryan was the one who brought her to me. Before coming over, he had even taken her out to dinner. I had been deeply moved. Later, when my grandmother accidentally fell, Ryan was the one who helped her and took her to the hospital. He had been different from everyone else. He was like a ray of light shining into my heart. If not for his female friend Victoria constantly appearing in our lives, everything might have been different. On the day we got married, Victoria had suddenly gotten married herself. She even texted Ryan. [If you say the word, I’ll replace the groom with you.] Ryan had been touched and kept the message, but he insisted that they were only friends. Whenever we argued after that, Ryan would always say the same thing. "If there were really something between us, we would have gotten together long ago." Later, Victoria’s husband died after his heart condition returned, leaving behind their daughter, Ava. Ryan personally took care of everything. He said that he and Victoria had grown up together, so of course he had to help her. I opened my phone and saw Victoria’s post on Instagram. It showed Ryan posing with her daughter, Ava. [Not her biological father, but better than one. The best childhood friend in the world—and Ava’s "dad."] Watching him eagerly play father to someone else’s child felt almost laughable. When I went upstairs, I saw that my daughter had fallen asleep. Only then did I feel slightly relieved.My daughter had become even quieter lately. After coming home, she barely spoke and kept avoiding my eyes. I asked about school, but she only said that nothing had happened. I wanted to ask another girl in her dorm about what was going on, but instead I saw my daughter being bullied by the owner of the watch and Ava. "Don’t you like taking other people’s things? Come on. Crawl between my legs. This is yours." Ava held my daughter’s head down while ignoring her struggles. I was consumed by rage. I rushed over, shoved Ava away, and pulled my daughter to her feet. "What are you doing? Is this how students are supposed to act?" "Oh, look. The thief’s father is here," Ava sneered. "I wonder what Uncle Ryan ever saw in you pathetic mother and daughter." "Shut your mouth. Say one more word and you’ll be sorry." I glared viciously at Ava, and perhaps my expression was frightening enough to intimidate them. I took my daughter home, only to discover that she had numerous injuries. I asked whether Ava and the others had beaten her. My daughter lowered her head and didn’t dare answer. "Don’t be afraid. Starting today, you’re not going back to school. Tell me what happened." But all she did was cry and shake her head. She had always been introverted and rarely socialized with anyone. I felt helpless. I took her phone from her hands and discovered several messages from Ryan. He had told her not to oppose Ava. [Your Aunt Victoria once saved Dad’s life. Do it for me and stop going against Ava.] [Be a good girl. If you listen to me, I’ll take you out to dinner tonight.] No wonder Ryan had just sent me a location and said that our family hadn’t eaten out together in a long time. He had even chosen an upscale restaurant. When we arrived, Ryan was dressed in a suit and came out to greet us. "Claire, Mia, over here! Look at all the dishes I ordered. They’re all Mia’s favorites. After dinner, Dad will take you shopping." Seeing the delight on my daughter’s face, I remembered that she had endured all that humiliation to earn this moment. My anger only grew. But I didn’t want to make my daughter uncomfortable. As soon as we sat down to eat, Ryan’s phone rang. When I saw the caller name, "My First Love," I knew it was Victoria. Ryan’s expression changed instantly. "How could this happen? I’m coming right now." "Dad?" Ryan said Ava had gotten into trouble and was in the hospital. He had to go there. Then he pulled his hand away from our daughter’s and left. I clenched my fists. This marriage no longer seemed worth saving. I asked my daughter, "If your father and I get divorced, will you come with me?" I respected her choice. She lowered her head and stayed silent for a long time. I patted her shoulder, not wanting to put too much pressure on her.Ava had caused serious trouble. At a bar, she had smashed a man’s head open because she claimed he had harassed her boyfriend and that she wanted to teach him a lesson. But the man came from a powerful family, and Victoria was terrified. I never imagined Ryan could sink so low. He had given our daughter a birthday present in advance—a brand-new tablet. He took her to an amusement park, then brought her to the hospital that evening. "As long as you admit that you did it, I’ll give you whatever you want from now on." My daughter’s eyes instantly reddened. "Dad, am I just Ava’s scapegoat?" "No. You already helped Ava take the blame once. Nothing will happen." "Assault causing serious injury can lead to prison, and the other person—" "Enough with the questions." Ava lay on the hospital bed and spoke impatiently. "I already told you he was useless. That tablet was a complete waste." So the gift Ryan had given my daughter was something he had bought for someone else and handed down to her. Victoria panicked and immediately knelt before Ryan. "Ryan, what are we going to do? She’s my only daughter. If she goes to prison, our family is finished." "Don’t panic. I’ll talk to her again." Ryan walked over to our daughter and patiently tried to persuade her. "Dad will do everything he can to help you. Just help me this once." "I don’t want to." "I have an idea." Victoria hardened her heart. "Then beat her until she agrees." With that, she moved to attack my daughter. Ryan made no attempt to stop her. "You’re useless anyway. It’s good if you can be useful for once. What are you resisting for?" "Come on. Hold her hands down and make her sign the confession!" When I arrived, they were holding my daughter down and trying to force her to sign the so-called confession. Tears covered Mia’s face. She kept murmuring "Dad." She was so terrified that she couldn’t say anything else. "Stop right now! Ryan, I’ve never seen a father like you!" "Just this once. The last time. Mia, please help Dad." Ryan held our daughter’s hands and looked at her pleadingly. I never wanted my daughter to face such a cruel reality, but Ryan had ripped the bloody truth open right in front of her. As we argued, the police entered the room. There had been new developments in the theft case. "Ms. Victoria, you are suspected of providing false testimony. Please come with us to assist in the investigation."