After my husband passed away, my mother-in-law, Evelyn, brought home a little boy. His face looked so much like Jack, my late husband, that it startled me. She told me he was my husband reborn, a chance to make amends. So, I devoted everything I had to raising him, making him the heir to Landon Enterprises. But the first thing he did after taking over the company was to torture me to death. As I lay dying, Jack appeared with his loyal protégé, Megan Starr. “Thanks for raising our son and building a billion-dollar empire. After you’re dead, our son will be there to send you off,” Jack sneered. I died in rage and heartbreak, only to open my eyes and find myself back on the very day my husband had faked his death. “Ms. Landon, Professor Hayes was in a terrible accident… They don’t think he’s going to make it. Please hurry to St. Andrews Medical Center… maybe… maybe you can still see him one last time…” Megan’s voice trembled with despair before breaking into sobs. Hearing Megan’s voice again, memories of my previous life rushed back, chilling my resolve. But I feigned shock, struggling to control my voice as I replied, “Jack… wait for me… I-I’ll be there soon!” I added with an edge, “Megan, tell the hospital to use whatever resources are necessary, the best treatment available. Landon Enterprises has no shortage of money!” Megan, so poised and disdainful, always looked down on me as if I were some vulgar merchant. But this time, she would learn just how powerful money could be. In my previous life, Jack had never been in a car accident at all. Megan had lied about his “imminent death” to lure me to the hospital, and overwhelmed by grief, I drove recklessly, crashing into oncoming traffic. By the time I woke up from surgery, Jack’s ashes were already in an urn. Not this time. If Jack wanted to fake his death, I’d gladly help him make it real. I quickly called Andrew Carson, my assistant, instructing him to pick up my mother-in-law, Evelyn, in my car and drive her to the hospital. Then, I went to my office’s hidden safe, retrieved a little “something,” and headed downstairs, taking along four bodyguards my father had insisted I keep by my side. We climbed into my armored car and headed for the hospital.
Outside St. Andrews Medical Center, Andrew’s anxious voice crackled through the phone. “Ms. Landon, I’m so sorry, the car was in an accident on Lexington Avenue!” “Are you hurt?” I asked, knowing well that this trap was meant for me, and that Andrew would be fine. But I asked anyway. “I’m fine, Ms. Landon. But Evelyn… her leg is broken.” Ha! The exact same injury I’d suffered before. Jack and Megan must be terrified I’ll get to the hospital on time. But I wouldn’t play into their plan. “Andrew, call the police for an investigation and then dial 911 for an ambulance to get her to the hospital!” I ordered calmly. She wouldn’t die so easily. Then, I called my chief lawyer, Sam Reese. “Sam, handle the accident on Lexington Avenue. Have the driver held for attempted murder. No settlements, only criminal charges.” “Yes, Ms. Landon!” he confirmed. Satisfied, I let my guards in on my act, stumbling out of the car with crocodile tears, sobbing and stumbling toward Jack’s hospital room. Behind me, the bodyguards exchanged bewildered glances.
Inside the hospital room, Jack lay under a white sheet. My abrupt entrance made Megan go pale. “Ms…Ms. Landon, h-how did you get here?” she stammered. Ignoring her and everyone else in the room, I clutched my mouth and collapsed to my knees, my muffled sobs rising into gut-wrenching wails. “Ms. Landon, I’m so sorry. Professor Hayes is… gone. You have my condolences,” Megan whispered, moving to offer me support. I sidestepped her, throwing myself onto Jack’s body, brushing his hair with trembling fingers and choking on my words, “Jack, how could you be so cruel, just leaving me like this? Jack… come back… open your eyes…” As I leaned over Jack’s body, I swiftly jabbed three needles into pressure points on his scalp, hidden within my sleeve. Landon Enterprises was founded on the medical expertise my grandfather passed down, and I was the sole inheritor of his rare acupuncture secrets. In my previous life, Jack had injected himself with a fake-death serum, concocted by him and Megan, that fooled the doctors and orchestrated the car accident to fool me. Together, they’d faked his death successfully, living carefree abroad for twenty years. By the time I raised their son and handed him Landon Enterprises, I was left broken and dying, having realized I’d been conned all along. Their serum had side effects, though. Without a counter-injection within two hours, Jack would actually die. With my needlework, I’d shortened that window by half an hour without leaving a single detectable trace. My work done, I stepped away from the miserable corpse, my voice barely audible as I instructed my bodyguard, Bobby, “Bring Evelyn to see her son one last time.” “Ms. Landon, but her leg…” Bobby hesitated. “Doesn’t matter. She’s his mother, and she has a right to say goodbye,” I replied. Megan’s eyes widened, panic flashing across her face as she murmured, “Ms. Landon, maybe it’s best not to tell her. Evelyn just had an accident and has a weak heart… if she hears Jack is dead, it might be too much.” Oh? Megan knew about Evelyn’s accident already. This car crash wasn’t some random act of fate. Ignoring her, I waved Bobby off with a weary gesture. He left immediately. “Ms. Landon, you’re being reckless!” Megan hissed. “Jack wouldn’t want you to endanger Evelyn, not after what happened!” “Ghosts? Oh yes, Jack, do come back and haunt me. Show me you care…” I whispered, quaking with feigned emotion, putting on the perfect show of a grieving, love-stricken widow. Megan’s practiced composure cracked. If she could play the composed saint, I could just as easily play the loyal, devoted wife. And I wouldn’t stop until they both suffered.
“Ms. Landon, we should prepare Jack’s arrangements and send him to the County Coroner’s Office,” Megan pushed, clearly anxious. So, she had accomplices waiting there. But I wasn’t in any rush. None of these schemers would be getting off easy. “Evelyn will be here soon,” I said, savoring the panic that washed over Megan’s face. “M-my son… my Jack… get up and look at me. I’m here, Jack!” Evelyn wailed, entering the room in an overdone display of grief, her voice cracked and dry, her eyes tearless. She seemed so heartbroken, yet her sorrow wasn’t genuine. In my previous life, I’d been blind. I’d thought Evelyn’s quick recovery from “losing her only son” was miraculous, and convinced myself that her devotion to their son, Jeremy, was simply love, failing to see the truth. “Evelyn… Jack is really gone,” I said, watching her body go rigid, her gaze darting nervously toward Megan. Megan gave her a barely noticeable shake of the head. Evelyn’s tension faded, and she resumed her display of anguish. As I withdrew the needles from Jack’s head, Evelyn’s face turned deathly pale, her hand clutching her chest. “Ah… my… heart… it hurts…” “Evelyn, are you okay? Don’t scare me!” I said, my tone dripping with fake concern, though I hadn’t moved an inch. “Move! She’s having a heart attack!” Megan screamed, pushing me aside. I let her. Switching to speaker, I called Evelyn’s cardiologist, Dr. Grey. “Dr. Grey, my mother-in-law’s heart condition has worsened. Please advise,” I sobbed. “…Ms. Landon, I’ve told you, her heart transplant can’t be delayed anymore. But we haven’t found a donor,” he said, his voice heavy with regret. “If it were my husband’s heart… could it be a match?” “What?” My tearful voice wavered as I explained, “Dr. Grey, my husband just died in a car accident…” “Oh… my deepest condolences, Ms. Landon,” Dr. Grey replied, sadness mingling with a glimmer of hope. “It’s possible, Ms. Landon. I’ll bring my team immediately.” “No! I won’t allow it!” Megan and Evelyn both shouted in unison. Evelyn’s voice was weak, but she managed to raise a finger, pointing at me. “Rachel, my son just died, and you’re already after his heart! How heartless can you be?” Megan chimed in, “Yes, Ms. Landon, Jack feared pain. How could you? Let him be cremated, and let him rest.” I looked at them, tears welling up. “Mom, I wouldn’t suggest this if I had a choice. If Jack knew his heart could give you a longer life, he’d approve. And if possible… I’d like to donate his other organs to others in need, so Jack can live on in others.” Evelyn’s face flushed with fury. Unable to contain herself, she collapsed, sending the room into silence. Only Megan remained, shrieking, “Help! Help!” Just then, Dr. Grey and his team arrived. Seeing my chance, I clung to him, crying, “Dr. Grey, please save my mother-in-law. I can’t lose her, too!” Dr. Grey squeezed my hand. “I’ll do everything I can. If the transplant’s a success, Evelyn could have another two or three decades.” Yes, I’d been the one to find her a heart donor in my past life, ensuring Evelyn a long and healthy life even after I was gone. Remembering the cruelty they showed me back then, I felt my anger reignite. “Dr. Grey, I leave everything to you,” I said. “I’ll handle the paperwork.” With my consent, Dr. Grey split his team, one group taking Evelyn to surgery while the other prepared Jack’s “body” for organ retrieval. I caught Megan’s desperate expression as she clung to Jack’s bed, sobbing as if it were her own husband lying there. Unable to contain myself, I slapped her hard, saying, “Mind your place! This is my family business, not yours.” At my signal, Bobby yanked Megan away, her face blank with shock. Jack’s “body” was taken from the room. Megan was in disbelief. I wanted to see just how deep her so-called love for Jack ran. Sure enough, as Jack’s body disappeared down the hall, Megan finally broke, screaming, “Jack isn’t dead! He’s not dead…” What a laugh. The play is about to begin.
Megan’s outbursts had already crossed several lines. Dr. Grey looked at her coldly, a flicker of impatience crossing his face as he asked, “And who is she?” “Oh, she’s just one of my husband’s students, Dr. Grey,” I answered, stepping forward to block her from him. “Please don’t listen to her nonsense.” “No, Dr. Grey, I can prove it! I can prove that Jack’s still alive!” Megan’s voice was trembling, but her face was desperate and determined, as though she thought she could still salvage this disaster. I shot her a sharp look, and Bobby loosened his grip just enough for her to stumble free. She tore into her purse, pulling out a small insulated medical box and fumbling with the syringe inside it. Eyes wide with panic, she lunged toward Jack’s bed, trembling as she tried to inject him. I slapped her hard across the face, making her freeze. “Enough! Megan, you’re a medical student, yet you’re acting like a fool. Jack’s gone! What, are you going to bring him back from the dead with one injection?” “Ms. Landon, I swear, it’ll work! Jack’s only faking it. Just give him this shot!” Megan was crying now, her sobs disfiguring her face, her panic morphing into a pitiful display. Looking at her, I felt the same disgust I’d felt back when Jack betrayed me. I realized, at last, what Jack had sacrificed his life and career for—a second-rate, weeping fool. He must have been blind. Trying to keep up the pretense of professionalism, Dr. Grey approached and checked Jack’s vitals again, only to shake his head solemnly. Nearby, Jack’s attending physician, who had already lost patience, glanced at the clock and declared firmly, “It’s been exactly one hour, eighteen minutes, and twenty-six seconds since Professor Hayes was pronounced deceased. There’s no way he could be revived now.” The nurse beside him agreed, glancing at Megan with thinly veiled scorn. “Landon Enterprises’ CEO is his wife. If anyone wants him to be alive, it’s her. Who does this woman think she is?” “She must be his… mistress. Why else would she act this way?” I seized the moment, gesturing to Bobby. “Escort this lunatic out. She’s done enough damage.” It wasn’t yet the full hour and a half Jack’s serum would buy him, but there was no way I’d let Megan have her chance to save him. I wanted Jack to die beyond any doubt. As Bobby dragged her, she screamed until her voice cracked, but no one believed her. They assumed she was just another woman gone mad over a married man. Watching Dr. Grey handle the syringe Megan had dropped, I feigned curiosity. “Dr. Grey, are you sure that shot couldn’t bring him back? Maybe… we should try it?” He examined it for a moment before shaking his head. “I’m sorry, Ms. Landon, but Jack has truly passed. My condolences.” The grief in my eyes gradually dimmed, and I whispered, “Is there no hope, then?” The attending doctor approached, a pen and a death certificate ready. “Ms. Landon, if you’re ready, please sign here.” I took the form, my hands shaking as I signed, then collapsed into muffled sobs, my face hidden behind trembling hands. “Oh, Jack… how could you be so heartless…” I wailed. Everyone in the room saw my raw despair, murmuring to each other. “Ms. Landon, you have to stay strong. Your mother-in-law needs you. You’ve made the right decision to help her,” someone murmured. “Yes, this poor woman… so much grief to endure,” said another. After I signed the death certificate, Sam arrived, placing the organ donation forms in front of me. I handed them to him and then watched as Dr. Grey and his team wheeled Jack’s “body” down the hall to the surgery room.
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