Hearing My Daughter's Heart

At my daughter Cathy's tenth birthday party, I unexpectedly gained the ability to read minds.

She made a wish to the candles, "I hope I can get a hundred on my final exam."

Before I could praise Cathy for being sensible, her second wish rang in my ears like a bomb.

"I don't like my mom. I wish Kylie could be my mom instead."

I froze, holding the cake knife.

1

"Cathy, what did you say just now?" I asked, looking at Cathy's innocent face, unwilling to believe what I had just heard.

"Mom, I said I want to cut the cake, give me the cake knife," she replied.

Cathy was still young and couldn't hide her emotions at all.

I saw impatience in her eyes.

Sure enough, the next second, she started complaining in her mind again, "My mom is so stupid! Kylie is much smarter, and I love the dress she gave me so much!"

Now, I finally saw clearly that Cathy's mouth didn't open.

I suddenly realized that I had awakened the ability to read minds.

Today should have been a happy day.

I had been planning Cathy's tenth birthday party for a whole year.

To make Cathy happy, I specially booked a hotel and paid people to decorate it with the Frozen theme that Cathy likes.

Cathy was wearing an Elsa princess dress and a crown, looking just like a little princess.

The birthday party was going very smoothly, and while I was feeling proud of myself, Cathy's thoughts were like a bucket of cold water, drenching me to the bone.

I suddenly had a guess, that is, my husband, Tobias, had cheated.

And he must have been cheating for a long time.

Otherwise, how could Cathy be so close to this so-called Kylie?

So close that she wanted Kylie to take my place.

But this was Cathy, whom I carried for ten months and gave birth to.

No matter what, she should be by my side.

But now, Cathy's thoughts told me that she loved Tobias and that homewrecker more than me, her own mother.

No.

I secretly vowed in my heart that no matter what, I must protect Cathy well.

Thinking of this, I couldn't help but look at everyone who came to the birthday party.

At that time, Cathy and her friends were playing in the play area.

Tobias was holding a wine glass, chatting and laughing with the people around him.

Most of the people around him were his colleagues from the company, from the general manager down to the smallest salesperson, almost all of them came.

It wasn't because Cathy was particularly outstanding, but because Tobias was the company's top salesperson, and over the years, his performance had been far ahead of others. So, whether out of emotion or reason, they should all bring gifts to the birthday party, whether sincerely or not.

This was the world of adults.

But they, including Tobias, didn't know one thing.

This company belonged to my parents.

Tobias was able to climb to the position of top salesperson in just a few years not because of his own ability, but because most of his clients came from my parents' network.

I hid my identity when I married Tobias, content to be a housewife, but that didn't mean I was just a powerless housewife.

Suddenly, my gaze stopped on a girl.

She looked no older than twenty-five or twenty-six. Her long hair cascaded over her shoulders, a crown-shaped hairpin tucked into her dark locks, standing out strikingly. Paired with a light blue gown and silver high heels, she resembled a life-sized Elsa from Frozen.

If I hadn't been certain that I gave birth to my daughter, I might have mistaken this girl for her real mother.

"Kylie, you're finally here! I thought you forgot my birthday!"

My daughter was still a child at heart. The moment she saw the girl, she rushed out of the play area and threw herself into her arms, using a playful tone I had never heard before.

I stood among the crowd, watching as Kylie bent down to ruffle my daughter's hair before pulling a gift from behind her back and handing it to her.

My daughter beamed with joy. "Thank you, Kylie!"

Kylie looked up at me, her smile bright and bold.

This girl seemed familiar, like I had seen her somewhere before.

2

The birthday party ended, and for the first time in ages, Tobias came home with us.

In truth, over the past two years, he had come home less and less.

Our marriage had long since become devoid of intimacy.

Whenever I asked, Tobias would shut me down with the same rehearsed lines, "Honey, it's not that I don't want to come home. The company's just too busy. If I come back late and disturb you and our daughter's sleep, I'd feel awful."

At first, I fell for his sweet-talking excuses.

Later, I let it go, thinking as long as Tobias still cared about our family, it didn't matter if he wasn't home.

Besides, around that time, my daughter had just started first grade. I was consumed with helping her with phonics and building good study habits.

My entire focus was on her.

On the drive home, we hit a red light, and Tobias's phone pinged with a voice message on WhatsApp. "Tobias, don't be late for the eight a.m. meeting tomorrow!"

The sugary voice sent shivers down my spine.

Before I could say anything, Tobias jumped in with an explanation, "Honey, don't get the wrong idea. Kylie's just a kid at heart, nothing more."

"When did Kylie start working with you, Tobias? You never mentioned her."

"Oh, her? She joined a few months ago. Fresh out of college, doesn't know much yet." Tobias probably didn't notice, but whenever he talked about Kylie, a smile crept across his face.

"Really?" I glanced at my daughter in the back seat, unwrapping her gifts, and asked again. "Cathy, have you met Kylie before? You two seemed pretty close."

My daughter stroked the fur of a stuffed rabbit, flashing a sly wink at the rearview mirror. "Mom, today was the first time I met Kylie. She's so pretty! I really like her!"

But her thoughts told a different story. "Mom's trying to trick me, but I'm not that stupid. Kylie is my good friend! Dad had told me to keep it a secret, or Mom would get mad and keep asking questions.

I shifted my gaze away from my daughter's face."

Her smile unnerved me. When had she learned to lie?

I racked my brain, piecing together small details from our daily life.

My daughter's changes hadn't come out of nowhere.

Last month, Tobias had bought her a smartwatch.

She started hiding from me to call or message someone.

Maybe that someone wasn't Tobias but Kylie?

I needed to get to the bottom of this.

Whether it was Tobias or Kylie, I wouldn't let either of them off the hook.

Back home, I went through the routine of helping my daughter with her homework.

She sat upright, but her mind was full of complaints.

She wondered why I was so hard on her. It was her birthday, and I still made her do homework. She hated it. She was already getting nineties on her tests, so why wasn't I satisfied?

I had to admit, since my daughter started third grade, I had become stricter with her, always worried her grades might slip.

Maybe that was why she no longer liked me.

Thinking of this, I handed Cathy's homework to Tobias.

"Tobias, Cathy's in third grade now. From now on, I'll leave her homework to you. I'm sure she'd prefer her dad helping her anyway."

Sure enough, my daughter jumped with excitement. "Yay! I want Dad to help me with my homework!"

Tobias hesitated, "Honey, you know how busy I am with work. I might not even get home some nights. If Cathy's homework doesn't get done on time..."

I had anticipated his excuse. "I know you're busy, but Cathy's in third grade. She needs her dad's company too. I've been handling her studies for the past two years, and if I keep doing it, she's going to resent me. If you really think it's too much, how about we hire Kylie to tutor her?"

My daughter lit up at the suggestion. "Dad, Dad, I want Kylie to be my teacher! Please, Dad!"

Left with no choice, Tobias agreed reluctantly, saying he'd ask Kylie about it tomorrow.

I wasn't giving him a chance to back out. "Tobias, I'm heading to my parents' place tomorrow. Cathy can go to the office with you. In the evening, invite Kylie over for dinner. I'll talk to her about the tutoring."

3

That night, my daughter finished washing up and went to her room.

I lay in bed, tossing and turning, unable to sleep.

Everything that happened that day sent chills down my spine.

My daughter's thoughts, Kylie's appearance at the party, and the strange looks from Tobias's colleagues all pointed to one truth.

Tobias was definitely cheating.

The reality was clear, but I couldn't act rashly.

The only thing I could do was gather enough evidence.

That way, I could secure more rights in a divorce.

As for custody of my daughter...

I couldn't bear to think about how painful losing her would be.

My only hope was to rebuild our relationship in the meantime.

After all, at ten years old, she had the right to choose who she wanted to live with.

The thought made me sit up in bed, overwhelmed with pain.

Tobias, startled by my movement, reached out to pull me close. "Honey, what's wrong? Bad dream?"

I pushed his hand away and got out of bed. "Nothing. I just can't sleep."

Tobias, rebuffed, said nothing more and bent down to pick up his phone from the floor.

The next morning, my daughter bounded out the door with Tobias, thrilled.

Before leaving, she didn't hold back her complaints about the breakfast I made.

"Finally! I get to spend the whole day with Kylie. I can eat those egg pancakes near her place again!"

Watching her skip away, I decided to let go.

What did it matter if she did her homework or not?

The teacher wouldn't blame me if she didn't.

She needed to learn how harsh the world could be.

After seeing her off, I messaged my high school friend Virginia on WhatsApp.

She worked as a private investigator.

My request was straightforward.

I needed Kylie's personal information and solid proof of their affair.

I paid Virginia a twenty-thousand-dollar deposit and bought several tiny cameras from her. When I got home, I installed them in every corner of the house.

Since Tobias always deleted the dashcam footage, I also ordered a high-definition listening device and camera for the car.

Once everything was set up, I called Tobias. "Honey, don't forget to invite Kylie over for dinner tonight. I've already prepared the food. I won't be able to join you, though. My parents haven't seen me in a while and want me to stay a few days."

Tobias didn't suspect a thing and agreed quickly.

I asked to speak to my daughter, who took the phone reluctantly.

"Cathy, are you having fun with Dad?"

"Yeah, Mom. Can I keep doing my homework with Dad from now on?"

"No, sweetie. Today's a special case. If you're with Dad every day, it'll distract him at work."

My daughter went silent, but her mind erupted in complaints.

"Mom's so mean. I told her I like being with Dad, but she just doesn't get it! Kylie gave me chocolate today. I'm not telling Mom, or she'll scold me again! When is Kylie coming to our house? I want to be with her all the time!

Dad said Kylie's pregnant. Does that mean I'll have a little brother?

I wish Kylie could be my mom. She's so gentle. Mom's the worst, like a tiger!"