Love. It takes a second to say, a lifetime to prove. Kade spent seven years making me believe in that one-second promise. Then, he spent a single day shattering that belief, burying it in a cold, rainy night along with my blood, my flesh, and the only family I had left. So when I opened my eyes and found myself back at the beginning of the tragedy, I knew my life had been distilled to two simple purposes. First, take my brother, Leo, and run from him. Second, if I couldn’t run, I would drag Kade to hell with me. … The sharp scent of antiseptic filled my nostrils. My eyes snapped open to a familiar white ceiling and a cold crystal chandelier. This was the bedroom of the penthouse Kade and I shared at One Lunar Bay in Oakhaven City. My hand instinctively went to my stomach. It was flat. There was no swell, no gut-wrenching pain. The digital clock on the wall read August 15th, 10:23 AM. I was reborn. I was back on the day I discovered Kade had unilaterally divorced me, the day I went to confront him, pregnant with his child. In my past life, on this very day, I had stormed into his top-floor office at “The Abyss” casino like a madwoman, slamming the doctored copy of my personal information onto his desk. I had demanded to know why. He had only looked at me with cold indifference, as if I were a stranger throwing a tantrum. “Eliza,” he’d said, “it’s time to be sensible.” Standing beside him was that girl, Vivian. She was dressed in a white dress, as pristine as a hothouse flower. She hid behind Kade, peering at me with the wide, frightened eyes of a fawn, as if I were the venomous woman tearing them apart. I lunged to slap her, but Kade’s bodyguards pinned me down. Everything that followed was a nightmare from which I could not wake. My only brother, Leo, in a fit of rage on my behalf, went to confront Kade. Kade’s men broke both his legs and threw him into the pouring rain. He bled out, freezing to death right in front of me. The shock sent me into a miscarriage. I bled all over the white hospital sheets, and finally, my own absurd life ended in a convenient “accidental” car crash. In my final moments, I thought I saw Kade standing nearby, holding an umbrella over his pristine flower, not even bothering to waste a single glance on me. “Heh…” A dry laugh escaped my throat, the corrosive hatred in my chest threatening to consume me whole. I pushed myself up, my stomach churning. Calm down, Eliza. You have to calm down. Fate hadn’t given me a second chance just to relive the agony. I threw off the covers and walked barefoot to the floor-to-ceiling windows. This penthouse was a symbol of power in this city, a kingdom I had helped Kade build, step by step, from the days when he was nothing more than a desperate outlaw. I was the “Queen of Cards” in Oakhaven’s underworld, a name whispered with fear and reverence. My hands had dealt him countless winning hands, and they had been stained with the blood of his enemies. The irony was, once he was firmly seated on his throne as the city’s uncrowned king, he decided I was too dirty. He wanted a clean flower. I stared at my reflection in the glass. My face was pale, but my eyes were as cold as ice. This time, I didn’t want his kingdom. And I certainly didn’t want his love. All I wanted was my brother, Leo. I picked up my phone and dialed a number I knew by heart. It connected quickly, and Leo’s sunny, slightly sleepy voice came through. “Sis? Why are you calling so early? I thought you and Kade were celebrating your birthday today?” My birthday. Right. Today was also my birthday. How fitting. Last time, I had waited with a heart full of joy, expecting a surprise. The surprise he gave me was a divorce and a feast of death. A bitter sting pricked my nose, and I fought back tears. This was not the time to cry. “Leo,” my voice trembled, but I forced it steady. “Listen to me. Pack your most important things right now. Don’t ask any questions. Go to the entrance of the alley in our old neighborhood, the one we used to live in, and wait for me. Hurry!” “Sis? What’s going on?” Leo’s voice was tight with worry. “Don’t ask. Just do what I say. I only have two hours.” I hung up before he could ask anything else and immediately dialed a second number. It was my most trusted man, Caleb. “Boss,” Caleb’s voice was, as always, a steady rock. “Caleb, I need you to liquidate everything. All our secret accounts. Cash out my jewelry, the properties in my name, as fast as you can. Transfer everything to the anonymous Swiss account. And contact the Serpent. I need two tickets on a boat to Southeast Asia tonight. Top price, most secure route.” Caleb was silent for a few seconds, clearly stunned. “Boss, is this about… Kade?” “Don’t ask questions you shouldn’t,” I cut him off. “This stays between you and me. If this leaks, my brother and I, and you, will all end up as fish food in the Oakhaven River.” “I understand,” Caleb’s voice was firm, resolute. “You saved my life, Boss. I’ll get it done, even if it kills me.” After hanging up, I took a deep breath and began to move. I opened a hidden compartment in the walk-in closet. Inside was my personal stash, accumulated over the years: several priceless, limited-edition watches, a few bars of untraceable gold, and a handful of flawlessly forged passports. I had prepared all of this for Kade, a contingency plan in case his empire ever fell and he needed to rise again. Now, it was my escape plan. I packed everything into a nondescript duffel bag, changed into a simple tracksuit, and wiped off my makeup. A baseball cap and a mask completed the disguise. When I was done, I took one last look at this gilded cage. I once thought this was happiness. Now, I saw it for the joke it was. I turned and walked toward the door without a shred of sentimentality. Just as my hand reached for the doorknob, the door swung open from the outside. Kade’s tall frame filled the doorway. He wore a perfectly tailored black suit, his handsome face an emotionless mask. His deep-set eyes, like chips of ice, were fixed on me. My heart plummeted. 2 The sight of Kade froze the blood in my veins. Why was he here? In my last life, he never showed up. He was gone the entire day, not appearing until I hunted him down. My mind raced, my hand tightening on the duffel bag. Kade’s gaze swept over me, from my baseball cap down to my running shoes, finally landing on the bulging bag in my hand. His eyes instantly turned glacial. “Where are you going?” he asked, his voice low, heavy with a pressure that permitted no argument. The me from my past life would have probably dropped the bag, stammering out a clumsy explanation. But now, I just calmly met his gaze. “Out,” I said simply. “For some air.” “Dressed like that? Going for a hike?” A sarcastic smirk touched his lips as he advanced on me, step by step. The force of his presence was overwhelming. I could smell the familiar scent on him—a cool, clean fragrance mixed with the faint trace of tobacco. A scent I had once been infatuated with. Now, it just made me sick. “Is there a problem?” I retorted, my voice flat. My composure clearly took him by surprise. In his world, Eliza was the woman who would coo and cry and wear her heart on her sleeve. He narrowed his eyes, studying me, searching for a crack in my façade. “Eliza,” he said, and his hand shot out, snatching the bag from me. He yanked the zipper open, and the gold bars and passports inside spilled into view. “You had better give me a very good explanation.” I looked at him and laughed coldly in my head. An explanation? Why should I explain myself to the man who was about to cast me aside? “The explanation,” I said, each word clear and deliberate, “is that we’re done, Kade.” The air went still. The last trace of warmth vanished from his face, replaced by a terrifying, dark fury. He grabbed my wrist, his grip so tight I thought the bones would shatter. “Say that again,” he hissed, the words ground out from between his teeth. “I said, we’re done.” I ignored the searing pain in my wrist and held his gaze without flinching. “You already had my marital status changed to ‘divorced,’ didn’t you? What, you have the guts to do it but not to admit it?” Kade’s pupils contracted. He clearly hadn’t expected me to find out so soon. In my past life, I’d overheard it from a subordinate by accident. This time, I was just bluffing. But his reaction told me I’d hit the mark. He released my wrist, his expression reverting to its usual cold mask, as if his momentary rage had been a figment of my imagination. “Since you know, why didn’t you make a scene?” he asked, his tone probing. “What’s the point?” I gave a self-mocking smile. “If I make a scene, will you change ‘divorced’ back to ‘married’? If I make a scene, will you take your heart back from that girl, Vivian?” At the mention of her name, Kade’s brow furrowed almost imperceptibly. “This has nothing to do with her.” “Oh, really?” I stared at him, my eyes full of scorn. “Kade, I know you better than anyone. You never do anything without a purpose. You pulled her from the card-washing tables at The Abyss, gave her a place to live, and put her under twenty-four-hour protection. Now you’re in a rush to cut ties with me. Don’t you dare tell me you’re not trying to make her a respectable woman.” My words were a knife, slicing through his pretense. His face darkened completely. “Eliza, my affairs are none of your business.” He spoke coldly. “I’ll pretend I didn’t see any of this. From now on, you will stay put at One Lunar Bay. You are not to go anywhere.” With that, he tossed the bag onto the floor and turned to leave. “Kade!” I called out. He stopped but didn’t turn around. “Today is my birthday,” I said. My voice was soft, but it pierced the dead silence like a needle. His back stiffened for a fraction of a second. “I forgot,” he said after a long pause. Then he walked out without another glance. The door slammed shut with a deafening bang, sealing two worlds apart. All the strength drained out of me. I slowly sank to the floor, burying my face in my knees. I forgot. With three simple words, he had erased seven years of my devotion. From the day he had nothing to his name until the day he ruled Oakhaven, I had remembered every important date, every small detail. His stomach was weak, so I learned to make soup. He was a light sleeper, so I learned to breathe softly beside him. When he was in danger, I would have taken a bullet for him without a second thought. I thought I had warmed a block of ice. It turned out it wasn’t ice. It was a stone, one that could never be warmed. Tears finally fell, betraying me. But this time, I didn’t let myself drown in sorrow. I wiped my eyes and forced myself to my feet. He thought locking me in here would be enough? That I was a bird in a cage? He seriously underestimated me. I walked to the window and watched Kade’s car pull away from the building. Plan A had failed, but I couldn’t just sit here and wait for the end. I picked up my phone and sent a message to Caleb. Change of plans. Proceed with Plan B. And one more thing, I need you to find out what Kade’s rival, ‘Mad Dog’ Marcus from the West Side, has been up to lately. 3 Kade had placed me under house arrest. Four stone-faced bodyguards now stood outside the door to the penthouse, working in shifts, never leaving their post. My phone was confiscated, the landline was cut, and the internet was shut off. He wanted to turn me into an isolated island. But he forgot one crucial detail: I was the one who helped him build this island. I knew every secret escape route. Using a backup phone hidden in a wall cavity, I contacted Caleb. “Boss, I’ve got news on Mad Dog. He’s fighting Kade for the development rights to that new casino plot in the South Hills. Tensions are high. Word on the street is, Mad Dog is planning to make a move on the person Kade cares about most.” A cold smile played on my lips as I listened. The person he cares about most? Right now, all of Oakhaven knew that the person Kade cared about most was the girl he had tucked away in a secret love nest, Vivian. “Caleb, do me a favor. ‘Accidentally’ leak Vivian’s schedule for today to Mad Dog’s crew.” Caleb hesitated. “Boss, if we do that, Miss Vivian will be in real danger.” “I know,” I said, my voice devoid of warmth. “I’m counting on it.” I didn’t expect Mad Dog’s thugs to actually harm her; Kade protected her like the crown jewels. I just needed a diversion. A chance to get away. And Vivian was the perfect bait. “One more thing,” I added after a pause. “Find a doctor, someone you trust with your life. Get some things ready and wait for me at the old place. And be quick.” “Understood.” I hung up and began to wait. I knew Kade would be coming for me soon. Sure enough, he returned at dusk, radiating a murderous aura. He kicked open the bedroom door and stormed over to me, grabbing me by the collar and slamming me against the wall. “It was you, wasn’t it?” His eyes were bloodshot, like those of a cornered beast. “You were the one who leaked Vivian’s location to Mad Dog!” My back hit the cold wall with a painful thud, making me gasp. But I smiled. “What if it was? What if it wasn’t?” I met his savage gaze without backing down. “Kade, what makes you think I’m still the same woman who cleans up the messes from your little affairs?” “Eliza!” he roared, his grip tightening. “I’m warning you, don’t you dare touch her! If you have a problem, you come at me!” “Come at you?” I laughed, a bright, sharp sound. “I’d love to. But you won’t even let me out the door. What’s a girl to do? I had no choice but to ask your little sweetheart to act out a scene for me.” “You’re being completely unreasonable!” Kade was trembling with rage. He had probably never seen this side of me—unyielding, even vicious. “Unreasonable?” I dropped my smile, my eyes turning to ice. “Kade, don’t you forget who walked through fire and fought at your side to get you where you are today! It was me, Eliza! When Mad Dog had a gun to your head, who took a knife for you? Me! Now that you’re on top, you kick me to the curb to protect some sniveling woman who does nothing but hide behind you. You want to talk to me about being reasonable?” My questions hit him like hammer blows. The fury in his eyes slowly faded, replaced by something complex and unreadable. He let go of me and took a step back, his tone softening slightly. “Eliza, whatever is between us, let’s not drag innocent people into it.” Eliza. How long had it been since he’d called me that, with that soft inflection? For a fleeting moment, I almost believed he still had some feelings for me. But I knew better. This was just a tactic to pacify me. “Innocent?” I scoffed. “Kade, in this godforsaken city, nobody is truly innocent. She chose you. She should have been prepared for the consequences.” “What is it you want?” His patience was clearly wearing thin. “It’s simple,” I said, looking him straight in the eye. “Let me go. I’ll take my brother and leave Oakhaven. We’ll never come back. Our debt to each other will be paid.” “Impossible,” he refused without a second thought. “Why?” “There is no why,” he said, turning his face away. “Eliza, stop pushing my buttons.” I understood then. It wasn’t that he couldn’t bear to let me go. It was that he couldn’t allow his possession to escape his control. It was his pathetic, laughable kingly pride. “Fine,” I nodded, a strange smile gracing my lips. “If you won’t let me go, then we’ll see who breaks first. I wonder who has more stamina—your delicate little flower, or my worthless life.” Without another word, I turned, walked to the bed, and pulled the covers over myself, closing my eyes. I knew my words had planted a thorn in his mind. The one thing he feared most was my reckless streak, the fact that when pushed, I didn’t care if I lived or died. Kade stood there for a long time, so long I almost drifted off to sleep. Finally, I heard his footsteps recede. The door closed again, but this time, it wasn’t locked. My chance had come.

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On Thanksgiving, driving to my boyfriend Dean’s family dinner, another car hit mine on a deserted road. Doors jammed shut, gasoline scent filled the air—the car was about to explode. I grabbed for the life hammer in the console, but found a pink toy hammer instead. Panicking, I called Dean. His ringtone blared from the other car. Dean stepped out, arm around his childhood sweetheart Melissa, who fake-cried about her poor driving. He glared at me. “She did it on purpose.” I screamed, “The life hammer was switched! Get me out!” Melissa grinned. “That was me! Cute, right?” Dean sneered, “Just a bump. Get out yourself.” Smoke choked the cabin. I begged as Melissa giggled, “Cooking in there, sis? Baby’s hungry. Let’s go, Dean.” He walked off, saying, “Stop the drama. My parents are waiting.” With my last strength, I hit the emergency button. 1 That button was my lifeline. It instantly sent my exact location and a live audio feed of the situation directly to my brother, Caleb. The moment I pressed it, a piercing alarm blared from the car’s system. Dean and Melissa, who had already walked a few yards away, spun around. Dean stormed back to my car, his face a mask of fury. He slammed his fists against the glass. “What the hell are you playing at, Ava? When does it end?” “It’s just a little smoke! You hit the emergency button for that? Do you think the whole city’s emergency services are your personal beck and call? Stop making a big deal out of nothing!” Melissa covered her mouth, but a snicker escaped. “Dean, honey, don’t be mad at Ava,” she cooed. “It’s all my fault.” She pulled a small, matchbox-sized black device from her pocket and waved it triumphantly. “The last time you gave me a ride, I bought this smoke simulator and planted it in her car. I just thought it would be a funny prank, you know? To mess with her a little.” “See? You just press this button, and poof! Smoke! It’s harmless, no toxins or anything. Just for fun!” Dean’s face grew even darker with rage. “Did you hear that, Ava? It’s fake! It’s a joke!” he roared. “Have you lost your mind? Or do you just expect everyone to drop everything and cater to your every whim, just like I have to, twenty-four-seven?” I was trembling with a fury so intense it burned hotter than the smoke. They were the ones who had been fooling around in their car, Melissa deliberately yanking the wheel and swerving into me. But there was no time to argue. I pointed a shaky finger at the hood, where the smoke was growing thicker, blacker. “Dean, the engine is actually smoking! It’s real!” “The doors are locked from the inside! You have to open them from the outside! Get me out!” Dean just sneered. “You’re getting more and more pathetic, trying to one-up Melissa. You really think I’m going to fall for that again?” I stopped wasting my breath on them. Every second of arguing was a second of precious oxygen lost. Then, I remembered. For emergencies like this, Caleb had packed a large, heavy-duty wrench in the toolbox in my trunk. I scrambled over the seat to get to it. The impact had bent the latch on the box. I clawed at it with my nails, bit it with my teeth, and finally, it popped open! A wave of relief washed over me. I reached inside, my fingers closing around the familiar shape of the wrench. But when I pulled it out, my heart sank into a pit of ice. It wasn’t a wrench. It was a wrench-shaped piece of chocolate. “Chocolate?” My mind went completely blank. Outside the car, Melissa was clapping her hands, her laughter echoing in the small space. “Wow! You found it, Ava!” “I told Dean, why would a girl want a big, greasy piece of metal in her car? You could hurt yourself with that! Isn’t it better to have something yummy instead?” “And it’s not just any chocolate! It’s a custom-made Swiss piece I had imported for you. It was super expensive! You should be thanking me!” I crushed the chocolate in my fist, a primal scream tearing from my throat. “Who told you to touch my things! Are you out of your damn mind?” Melissa’s smile vanished, instantly replaced by a waterfall of tears. “Ava, how could you be so mean? I was just trying to be nice, w-w-w….” Dean’s protective instincts flared. He pulled Melissa into a tight embrace, murmuring comforting words into her hair before turning his venom on me. “Have you no class? Melissa saved that expensive, imported chocolate for you—she wouldn’t even eat it herself! Don’t be so ungrateful!” The black smoke had now completely filled the cabin. The floor of the car was growing hotter, the heat searing the soles of my shoes. And then I saw it. A flicker of orange. Flames. “It’s on fire! The car’s going to explode!” I whipped my head back to Dean, my voice a desperate plea. “Dean, save me! Open the door! The car is on fire! It’s real this time! Please… I’m begging you…” “Have you completely lost it, Ava? To get my attention, to make me feel sorry for you, you’d set your own car on fire?” “You’ll stop at nothing, will you? Look at yourself! Your face is a mess, all smoke-stained and tear-streaked. You think that’s attractive? I’ll tell you what it is. It’s pathetic!” It was getting harder and harder to breathe. The smoke was like acid in my lungs. With the last of my strength, I hammered on the window, my pleas becoming faint, muffled gasps. “Open… the door… I’m… going to die…” As he watched the black smoke billow and the flames lick higher, a flicker of doubt crossed Dean’s face. 2 Melissa immediately tightened her grip on his arm. “Dean, honey, her act is so convincing. It’s starting to scare me.” “Let’s just go. Your mom cooked all that food for us. It’s Thanksgiving, we can’t keep your parents waiting.” At the mention of his parents, that sliver of doubt in Dean’s eyes vanished. He gave me one last, cold look, then turned his back on me, pulling Melissa along with him. They hadn’t gone twenty yards when the flames under the hood erupted, shooting two feet into the air. The car began to crackle and pop as the fire consumed it. Intense heat radiated through the glass, blistering my skin. The terror of death washed over me like a tidal wave. A primal survival instinct gave me one final burst of energy. “HELP! SOMEONE HELP ME! IT’S ON FIRE!” I shrieked, grabbing my phone and smashing it against the side window with all my might. The screen shattered on impact, the sharp edges slicing my palm open. Blood streamed down my hand, but I didn’t feel a thing. My horrifying screams finally made Dean stop. He spun around, and when he saw the inferno that had once been my car, he froze. But Melissa, standing beside him, let out a shriek even louder than mine. “Ava! Are you setting off fireworks in the car? It’s so pretty, but so dangerous!” “I know this car is supposed to be fireproof and blast-proof, but you can’t play with fire like this just to get Dean’s attention!” “Fireworks?” Melissa’s absurd explanation muddled Dean’s mind once again. Yeah, he must have thought. A woman like Ava would do anything to get what she wants. “You’re a psycho, Ava!” he screamed at the burning wreck. My relentless assault finally paid off. A crack appeared in the window! A sliver of fresh air rushed in, and I pressed my face to the opening, gasping, my lungs screaming for oxygen. But Melissa was faster. She ran to her car, popped the trunk, and pulled out a wide roll of clear packing tape. She sprinted back to my window. “Oh no, sis, you broke the window! That’s so dangerous!” she said, her voice dripping with fake concern as she tore off a long strip of tape and expertly sealed the crack I had just made. She even pressed it down firmly with her palm, making sure not a single wisp of air could get through. “This is your car with Dean, you know! How could you be so selfish and just smash it up like that?” “You—” The precious mouthful of air I’d just inhaled was trapped in my throat. Black spots danced in my vision. Dean, now seething, stormed over. “Have you had enough, Ava?” He snatched the tape from Melissa’s hand and, his eyes blazing with a terrifying hatred, began to wrap it around and around the crack, sealing it even more tightly. As I stared at his face, so familiar yet so monstrously alien, my hand fell limp at my side. My breathing grew shallow. Images flashed through my mind. In college, when he was so broke he was starving himself, giving himself stomach problems, I was the one who cooked him nutritious meals every single day. After graduation, I helped him start his business. I used every connection I had, called in every favor, to find him investors and clients. I drank myself sick at business dinners so he wouldn’t have to. And now, this same man was sealing my tomb, layer by layer. Just as I was about to lose consciousness, a middle-aged guy on a motorcycle pulled over. He saw the burning car and couldn’t just ride by. “Hey! What are you two doing? That car’s a bonfire! Call 911, get her out of there!” he yelled. A spark of hope ignited in my chest. I started weakly banging on the window again. 3 Dean’s face went pale, but Melissa quickly put on a worried expression and called out to the man, “Sir, it’s not what it looks like! My sister is just… cooking in there!” “She likes to do extreme things, you know? She calls it her ‘car kitchen.’ She insisted on showing us her skills for Thanksgiving, but the fire got a little out of hand.” “It’s fine! The car is fireproof. She’s perfectly safe in there!” “Cooking?” The man looked utterly baffled. Dean quickly chimed in, “Yeah, my girlfriend… she loves to mess around. Sorry for the scene. We’re about to take her home.” The man looked from me to Dean and Melissa, his brow furrowed with suspicion. Finally, he just shook his head, muttering, “Kids these days,” and revved his engine, speeding off down the road. The oxygen in the car was nearly gone. The car’s system issued its final warning. “BEEP! BEEP! BEEP! DANGER! CARBON MONOXIDE LEVELS CRITICAL! OXYGEN CONTENT BELOW 8%! EVACUATE VEHICLE IMMEDIATELY! EVACUATE VEHICLE IMMEDIATELY!” The fire roared, and the windows, superheated, began to groan and creak. Suddenly, I remembered. Caleb, always paranoid about my safety, had placed an emergency fire extinguisher under my passenger seat. With my last bit of strength, I dragged it out. But when I tried to pull the pin, it wouldn’t budge. I looked closer and my blood ran cold. The pin had been superglued to the handle. And worse, as I held it, I realized it was completely empty. Melissa saw what I was holding and burst out laughing. “Oh, that! I told Dean the other day I’d never actually used a fire extinguisher before and was super curious what it felt like.” “And you know Dean, he’d do anything for me. He showed me how to use it, and… whoops! We accidentally used it all up.” She tilted her head, her expression one of pure, malicious innocence. “I figured you’re such a careful driver, you’d never need it anyway, so I just put it back for you.” Dean stood behind her, not a trace of guilt on his face. He just ruffled her hair affectionately. “You’re such a handful.” Then, he turned to me, his face a mask of pure exasperation. “Ava, will you stop this! Are you really going to play this out to the bitter end?” he yelled. “Now you’ve brought out a fire extinguisher? If you keep this up, you’re going to get yourself killed for real!” I didn’t say another word. I just stared at him, my eyes burning with a hatred I never knew I possessed. Then, as they watched in shock, I used every last atom of my strength to lift the heavy metal canister over my head. “Ava, what are you doing? You’re insane!” Dean screamed, a genuine fear finally entering his voice. I ignored him and brought the extinguisher down with a final, desperate heave, smashing it against the side window. CRACK! The tempered glass shattered. Saved. I didn’t care about the shards of glass tearing at my skin. I scrambled to climb out of the broken window. But a hand shot in from the outside, grabbing a fistful of my hair and yanking me back with brutal force. Dean, his face contorted with rage, had pulled the car door open the moment the window broke. “You bitch! So you were faking it! You still had the strength to smash my car!” he roared, shoving me violently back into the driver’s seat. Then, he grabbed the roll of tape and began wrapping it around me, pinning me to the seat. I struggled, but I was too weak. To my horror, he tore off another piece and slapped it over my mouth and nose. “Mmmph! Mmmph!” The agony of suffocation was immediate and absolute. Dean leaned in close, his face inches from mine, watching me struggle for air. “You’re too spoiled, Ava,” he whispered. “It’s time you learned a lesson.” The fire inside the car reached its tipping point, the roar deepening into a low hum that signaled an imminent explosion. My vision blurred. Just as the world went black, I heard a furious shout from somewhere in the distance. “Touch my sister again, and you’re a dead man!”

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The moment I married into the dynasty, my billionaire husband, Damian Blackwood, basically locked me in our bedroom for seven straight days. He didn’t let up until the pregnancy test finally showed two bright pink lines. Then, without a word, he was gone. He never once came back to see me during the entire pregnancy. But to the outside world, I was the most envied woman alive. A million-dollar monthly allowance isn’t something every trophy wife gets, after all. And when the doctors announced I was carrying twin boys, my stock soared even higher. I was practically giddy, dreaming of the perfect future that lay ahead. But when the day finally came, when I actually gave birth… I refused to let Damian see the children. I would have died first. He returned, his brow furrowed into that familiar, intimidating line. “What is it?” he asked, his voice dripping with ice. “Did you give birth to someone else’s bastards?” Bastards? Hah. If only it were that simple. I gave birth to two snakes. And how in the hell was I supposed to tell him that? 1 The positive test was still warm in my hand when Damian left the country to manage his sprawling international conglomerate. For ten long months, I didn’t see his face. Not once. He only relented as my due date approached, promising he would fly back to see his sons. But, of course, things didn’t go according to plan. I went into labor early. The day I gave birth, the entire private medical team I’d hired stood frozen in shock. No one moved. No one even tried to pick up the babies. A thousand horrible scenarios flooded my mind. “Are they stillborn? Deformed? What is it?” I didn’t dare look down between my legs. The head physician, his face the color of chalk, just stared at me and shook his head. It wasn’t until I felt a slick, cold slithering against my inner thigh that I knew something was terribly, fundamentally wrong. My gaze dropped. Coiled between my legs were two small snakes, one jet black, the other pure white. A scream tore from my throat, and I scrambled back so violently I tumbled off the delivery bed, landing in a heap on the floor. This couldn’t be happening. My deepest, most primal fear was snakes. “Where are my babies?!” I shrieked, grabbing the doctor’s sleeve in a crazed grip. The poor man looked like he was about to burst into tears. “M-Mrs. Blackwood… we saw them come out of you with our own eyes! I swear it! The security footage will prove it!” He showed me the monitor. The high-definition video was horrifyingly clear. The world tilted, and then everything went black. Thank God the labor came early. If Damian had returned on schedule and found out I’d given birth to a pair of serpents, he would have probably snapped my neck without a second thought. I would have preferred giving birth to actual bastards, even if one came out black and the other white. Anything but this. Anything but one black snake and one white snake. If they were human, Damian would have just thrown me out, probably too disgusted to even demand back the fortune he’d spent on me. But snakes… this wasn’t just a betrayal painted by a cheating wife. This was a cosmic joke, a metaphysical slap in the face. I paid the medical team an exorbitant sum for their silence and had every last second of audio and video scrubbed. Alone, I stared into the glass terrarium where my two… snake-babies… were sleeping. I had to think. They couldn’t stay. I had no idea how a human being could give birth to egg-laying reptiles, but that wasn’t the point. The most critical thing right now was to protect Damian’s reputation. Which, by extension, meant protecting my bank account. The doctors were bought. The story was simple: a difficult birth, and tragically, the twins did not survive. Plan in place, I waited for the cover of darkness. I carried the small case to a secluded, moonlit clearing in the woods—a place that felt strangely peaceful—and set the two snakes free. When it was done, I collapsed into bed and fell into a dead sleep. Sometime in the deep of the night, a creeping cold touched my fingertips. I mumbled, thinking the AC was on too high. I reached for the remote on the nightstand, but my hand brushed against something smooth, cool, and impossibly large. “AHH!” I shot upright, scrambling backward until my head slammed against the headboard with a sickening thud. 2 There they were. Two little snakes, one black, one white. The black one was coiled on my desk, and the white one was on the nightstand, right next to the remote control. The very thing I had just touched. My breath hitched. “Who… who let you back in? I released you! How did you find your way back here?” Thump! Thump! The little white snake lowered its head and deliberately bumped the temperature-up button on the remote. Twice. The room warmed by a few degrees, and the chill in my hands and feet began to fade. My jaw dropped. In the next second, the white snake launched itself into the air. “NO!” I screamed, throwing my arms over my head, bracing for the bite. I waited. Nothing happened. Peeking through my fingers, I saw him coiled beside his brother on the floor in front of me. Between them lay a pair of thick, fuzzy socks. The two tiny snake heads bumped against each other with a soft thwack. It was like they were saying, “Hugs!” My mouth hung open. Hesitantly, I reached for the socks. The moment my fingers got close, both of their tails began to wag furiously, like excited puppies. The sudden movement startled me, and I snatched my hand back. I remembered reading somewhere that a rattling tail was a sign a snake was about to strike. Seeing my fear, they immediately stopped. Their tails went perfectly still. I tried again, extending my hand slowly. This time, they just watched me with wide, unblinking eyes. It wasn’t until I had the warm socks on my feet that their tails erupted into a frenzy of joyful wagging again. Was I crazy, or did I just see pure happiness on the faces of two snakes? Wait a minute… this behavior seemed less like a reptile and more like… a dog. My hand trembling, I cautiously reached out. If they bit me, they bit me. It wasn’t like they had any fangs yet. To my astonishment, the little white one nuzzled against my wrist, a soft, dry friction. When I didn’t pull away, he gracefully coiled around my arm, settling like a living bracelet of white jade. The little black one started wagging his tail so hard his whole body wiggled. I offered him my other hand, and he eagerly slithered onto it, mirroring his brother. Well, great. Now I had a matching set of bracelets. Watching them sway their little heads back and forth, I swallowed hard. I gently tapped them each on their little puppy—I mean, snake—heads. Their eyes squeezed shut in what looked like pure bliss. I sighed, a tear of helpless affection rolling down my cheek. Fine. They were mine, after all. What was I supposed to do, throw them out for good? I started looking up guides on how to care for exotic pets. But it turned out my two little guys weren’t picky at all. They’d devour sea cucumber and abalone with the same gusto as they would fried chicken and pancakes. They were tough, resilient, and surprisingly low-maintenance. Before I knew it, I was raising them like a pair of scaly puppies. But in my newfound domestic bliss, I’d forgotten one crucial detail. Damian was still coming home to see his children. One afternoon, I was leisurely trying to weave the two of them into a decorative braid when the housekeeper’s frantic shout echoed through the hall. “Ma’am! The master’s plane lands at eight tomorrow morning! He’ll be here by the afternoon!” I fell out of my chair. 3 I was a woman on a mission. I raced to the maternity ward of the city’s most exclusive hospital, sliding to a halt beside the bed of a woman who had just given birth to healthy twin boys. “Blank check,” I said, my voice shaking with desperation as I shoved it into her hand. “Fill in any number you want. Just let me adopt your sons.” Her eyes widened at the check, and she swallowed hard. She agreed. The day Damian returned, I hid my little black and white snakes in a secure room and sat on the bed, cradling the two human babies, doing my best impression of a tired new mother. He walked in, as cold and regal as ever. His eyes, which usually only held interest for financial reports and the continuation of his bloodline, flickered over me. Seeing my face, which I’d dusted with white powder to look pale and weak, he offered me a black credit card. “You’ve worked hard,” he said. The babies bore a passing resemblance to both of us. It was the best I could do on short notice. Damian held them, one in each arm, his expression unreadable. His mother, my mother-in-law, was overcome with emotion. Tears streamed down her face. “Finally… the Blackwood line is secure. Vivian, you are our family’s greatest hero!” I managed a weak, embarrassed laugh. “Oh, it was nothing…” Just please, please don’t look in the basement, I prayed silently. “Vivian,” Damian’s voice cut through the celebration, low and sharp. “Are you certain these are my children?” The air froze in my lungs. My mother-in-law, in the middle of dabbing her eyes, went rigid. Her tear-streaked face turned towards me. “Vivian,” she asked, her voice suddenly brittle. “These are… Damian’s sons?” 4 I was sure. I had contacts in every major hospital, every maternity ward. This woman’s children were the closest match to Damian and me out of all the newborns available. I squared my shoulders. “Of course they are!” “Are you certain?” Damian’s voice dropped an octave, laced with something dangerous. I swallowed, my mouth suddenly dry. I’d heard the rumors about his ruthless nature before we were married, but my direct contact with him had been limited to that first delirious week and the monthly wire transfers. I had never truly been on the receiving end of his intimidating presence. Now, the hairs on my arms were standing on end. “Y-yes, of course I am.” “Fine.” He placed the babies back in the bassinet and glanced at his watch. “Schedule a paternity test.” “What?!” 5 In the sterile hallway of the genetics lab, I sat pretending to be calm. In reality, my hands were twisting the fabric of my skirt into a wrinkled mess. I couldn’t understand it. The boys I’d chosen were a perfect blend. They had my eyes and his jawline. How could he suspect, right off the bat, that they weren’t his? Was he secretly hoping for something… not quite human? I stole a glance at him. He was leaning against the opposite wall, a picture of casual indifference. But even with that blank expression, an aura of pure pressure rolled off him, making it hard to breathe. If he found out the truth… I didn’t even want to imagine how I would die. My phone vibrated. A text from the head of the medical team I’d bribed. 【It’s done, Mrs. Blackwood.】 A small bit of the tension eased from my shoulders. I deleted the message. When the results came back, they were exactly what I’d paid for. Paternity confirmed. I let out a breath I didn’t realize I’d been holding. Damian took the report, his eyes scanning the page. I forced a few tears, dabbing at my eyes. “See, darling? I would never lie to you.” He gave me a long, unreadable look. Then, he tore the paternity test into pieces and dropped them into the trash can. Without another word, he turned and walked away. I was left standing there, stunned. He was the one who was wrong, who had baselessly accused me, and I didn’t even get an apology? But I didn’t have time to dwell on it. My real babies were still locked in the basement, waiting for their dinner. I gathered my purse and hurried out of the lab. Damian’s limousine was parked right at the curb. He was holding the passenger door open. But before I could take a single step, a stunning woman in a jade-green silk dress swept past me and slid into the seat. He leaned in, his face softening as he spoke to her. The hard edges of his features, the ones always present when he looked at me, seemed to melt away. I froze, the world narrowing to that single, intimate moment. Suddenly, a rumor I’d heard before marrying him came rushing back. That Damian had an old flame, the one that got away. But his mother had never approved. My mother-in-law wanted a woman who could guarantee heirs for the Blackwood dynasty, and this woman, with her delicate frame, looked anything but fertile. They had fought bitterly over it, until his mother’s threats finally wore him down. And I was the compromise. I was the wife he’d settled for. At the time, I hadn’t cared. I was only in it for the money. But now, it all clicked into place. Damian never really cared if the babies were his or not. He was just looking for a way to needle me, a way to punish me for not being her. It also explained why he’d been so quick to demand a test. In his mind, I was already the kind of woman who would cheat. It was a slap in the face to his mother, a way of saying, See what you made me marry? Thinking of that first week, his insatiable, almost punishing desire, it all felt like a bitter irony now. No matter how you sliced it, being so thoroughly distrusted… it hurt. Even if… even if I couldn’t exactly explain giving birth to two snakes. I shook my head, clearing the thoughts away. Whatever. I had four children at home waiting for me. I hailed a cab and sped home. But the scene that greeted me when I walked through the door made my blood run cold. Pointing a shaking finger at the two extra children standing in my living room, I gasped, “Who are you?!” 6 Two toddlers stood before me, one with a shock of pure white hair, the other with hair as black as night. I sprinted down to the basement. The terrarium was empty. My little snakes were gone. “Mommy!” The two boys rushed forward and threw their arms around my legs. “We can change shape now!” Demon snakes were clearly built different. The human twins were still helpless infants in their cribs, but Onyx and Albus—as I’d secretly named them—already looked like they were three years old. Thank God Damian wasn’t home. I hustled them up to my bedroom, my mind reeling from this new “disaster.” “Listen to me, boys,” I said, gripping their little hands. “Now that you can do this, you can’t stay here. If Damian finds out, all three of us will be in terrible danger. I’ll buy you a house right now. You have to move out. Immediately.” “So, the rumors were true. You really did have another man’s children.” The bedroom door swung open. Standing there was the woman from the car, Sylvia, dangling a key from her finger. “How did you get in here?!” I demanded, instinctively shoving the boys behind me. She smirked, a cruel, triumphant twist of her lips. “Damian gave me a key long before he ever met you. In the grand scheme of things, sweetheart, you’re the one who’s trespassing.” Her eyes fell on the boys hiding behind my legs. “My, my. They’re already so big, aren’t they? No wonder Damian was suspicious. You didn’t just cheat on him, you brought your bastards into his home! You have some nerve! Mrs. Blackwood!” she called out, her voice ringing through the house. “Wait!” I lunged, trying to clamp a hand over her mouth. She sidestepped me effortlessly. “MRS. BLACKWOOD!” she bellowed, marching towards the stairs. I spun around, desperate to hide the boys, but it was too late. And then, to my absolute horror, I saw him. Damian was walking up the main staircase, just as my mother-in-law was descending from the top floor. They were converging on my location. The blood in my veins turned to ice. 7 I planted myself in the doorway, a human shield. No matter what Sylvia said or did, I wouldn’t move. “I said, get out of my way!” she shrieked, grabbing a fistful of my hair. I twisted her wrist, shoving her back. It was just a push, barely enough to create space, but she stumbled dramatically, collapsing to the floor in a heap. “Ah…” she whimpered, fat tears instantly welling in her eyes. “Damian… it hurts…” “Vivian.” Damian’s voice was steel. A powerful hand gripped my arm and yanked me aside. As I stumbled, the crumpled form of Sylvia on the floor shot a leg out, tripping me. I went down hard. My forehead cracked against the sharp corner of the newel post at the bottom of the stairs. A curtain of red instantly blurred my vision. Damian, his back to me, was already pushing open the bedroom door. “No…” I gasped, my voice a weak whisper. “Don’t!” 8 The door swung open. Everyone froze. The room was empty. There were no children. Not even a snake. “That’s… that’s impossible…” Sylvia scrambled to her feet, her face a mask of disbelief as she stared into the vacant room. “Impossible! I saw them! One with black hair, one with white! They looked at least three years old! She even said if Damian found out, the three of them were doomed!” “Vivian, you…” Damian’s brow furrowed as he turned to face me. The anger in his eyes vanished, replaced by shock. “Vivian?!” My head was spinning. The world was a dizzying smear of red. Seeing that the room was empty, my last ounce of strength gave out, and I collapsed completely. When I woke up, Damian was sitting by my bedside. “The doctor said it’s a mild concussion. You’ll be fine with some rest.” I reached up, my fingers brushing against the gauze on my forehead. “Thank you, Mr. Blackwood.” He hesitated, looking uncharacteristically awkward. “I… I didn’t mean to pull you that hard.” “It doesn’t matter,” I said, my voice flat. “If you want to be with your old flame, that’s fine. I can step aside.” He looked stunned. “But you shouldn’t take your anger out on me just because you couldn’t marry her. The fact that you two aren’t together is not my fault.” “Vivian… I…” “You should go, Damian.” I closed my eyes, shutting him out. After a long silence, I heard him sigh, followed by the soft click of the door closing. The moment he was gone, two small figures darted out from under the bed. “If we knew Mommy was going to get hurt, we wouldn’t have turned back into snakes to escape,” Albus whispered. “That’s right!” Onyx added, his little fists clenched. “My fangs are grown in now! I could have bitten that mean lady!” Seeing their tear-streaked faces, I sighed and pulled them into a hug. “Onyx, Albus… this place isn’t safe for us anymore. We have to leave.” 9 I married Damian for money. My part of the deal was to produce an heir; his was to provide financial security. It was a simple transaction. But being subjected to baseless accusations and physical harm? That was a workplace injury. And I was quitting. As for the two human boys I’d adopted, I knew Damian would probably lose interest in them anyway. I sighed. I would take them with me. I hired a nanny to take them to a safe location ahead of me. Then, I convinced Onyx and Albus to change back into their snake forms and hide in a small, ventilated travel case. With my suitcase in one hand and the case in the other, I waited until the house was empty. Then, taking the millions I had earned through this miserable ordeal, I walked out without a second thought. But the car I’d hired didn’t follow the route to the airport. It took a sharp, unfamiliar turn. My nerves screamed. “Driver! Where are you taking me?” “I think that’s my line.” The driver, who had been wearing a low-brimmed baseball cap, tilted his head up. His eyes met mine in the rearview mirror. It was Damian. “Where,” he asked, his voice dangerously calm, “did you think you were going with my children?” My eyes went wide. I grabbed the case with Onyx and Albus and lunged for the door handle. An iron grip clamped onto the back of my collar and hauled me back into the seat. Damian’s strength was overwhelming. Before I could even struggle, he had me pinned across his lap. “Who told you I had an old flame?” he murmured, his breath hot against my ear. His body was pressed against mine, and I could feel the hard ridge of his arousal. My mind, which had been frantically searching for an escape, went completely blank. Because… wait a minute. That feeling. There were… Two of them?

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The night of our engagement party, my fiancée, Julie, was dragged into the women’s restroom and raped. I heard everything from the men’s room next door. Julie’s sobs were a symphony of despair, her cries for help sharp enough to pierce my eardrums. When I finally walked out, I saw him. The man who did it, calmly zipping up his pants and walking away with a look of sickening satisfaction on his face. After that night, something in Julie broke. Her mind fractured, and she was lost in a world of nonsensical whispers. Half a month later, the doctors gave up. There was no improvement, no effective treatment. And I told Julie’s family I was calling off the engagement. In the hospital room, her brother’s fist connected with my jaw. Leo’s eyes were wild, blazing with a murderous light as he grabbed me by the collar. “You animal. Are you even human? My sister was raped, she’s broken, and you… you’re not out there hunting down the bastard who did this to her. You’re running away. You’re abandoning her. What kind of a man are you?” … His shouts were deafening, spittle flying onto my face. I didn’t say a word in my defense. I just stood there, as if I accepted every accusation. “My daughter has been a kind, gentle soul her whole life,” Julie’s mother, Mrs. Miller, sobbed, her words choked with tears. “Out of all the men in the world, she chose you. How could you let her suffer like this?” Her gaze flickered to her daughter, lying vacant and still on the hospital bed, and the grief in her eyes ignited into pure rage. She strode forward and slapped me hard across the face, twice. CRACK. CRACK. “Ethan,” she hissed, “if you have any shred of a man left in you, you will find the monster who did this to our Julie.” Looking at her tear-streaked face, I just slowly shook my head. “I’m calling off the engagement.” In an instant, Leo’s hands were around my neck, squeezing. “You piece of shit! You think you can just throw my sister away?” Mrs. Miller pointed a trembling finger at me. “Julie always said she was the luckiest girl in the world. She said she’d found a man who loved her as much as her family did. Is this your love?” I glanced at Julie on the bed, my expression a cold, indifferent mask. “Ma’am, what happened to Julie is a tragedy, and my heart breaks for her. But it happened. We have to accept reality.” “What reality is that?” Leo’s grip tightened. “The reality that you think she’s dirty now? Is that why you’re leaving her? Is that it?” he roared, his voice like thunder. His eyes burned with a hatred so intense, it felt like he wanted to devour me whole. Mrs. Miller stared at me, her body rigid. When I gave a slight, almost imperceptible nod, something inside her snapped. She lunged at me, clawing and scratching like a wild animal. I instinctively tried to pull back, but Leo’s hands were still locked around my throat. I couldn’t move. Her nails raked across my face, leaving searing trails of pain. But the agony on my skin was nothing compared to the crushing weight in my chest. She didn’t stop until my face was a bloody mess. A nurse rushed in, her eyes wide with alarm. “Sir, should I call security? Should I call the police?” Leo sneered, “Yeah, you animal. You gonna call the cops on us?” I looked at the nurse and weakly shook my head. “But you’re bleeding so much…” “Get the hell out of here!” Leo bellowed. The nurse scurried away. Just then, the door opened again. Mr. Miller walked in, his face a thundercloud. “Dad, this son of a bitch is calling off the engagement with Julie!” Leo immediately tattled. “He thinks she’s tainted goods, so he’s dumping her!” Without a word, Mr. Miller grabbed a wooden chair, lifted it high, and brought it down across my back with ferocious force. The impact sent me crashing to the floor, my entire body convulsing in pain. “AH!” A terrified scream came from the bed. It was Julie. “Honey, it’s okay, don’t be scared,” Mrs. Miller rushed to her side, holding her tight. “Mom… w-why is he here?” Julie pointed at me, her eyes filled with panic and terror. Her mother misunderstood. “Your father is teaching this scum a lesson for what he’s doing to you, darling!” Mr. Miller lifted the chair again, ready to strike. I was in too much pain to even lift my head, completely powerless to defend myself. “Don’t…” Julie cried out, her voice sharp. But the chair was already falling. CRASH! The solid wood shattered on impact. I felt a warm, metallic taste fill my mouth as I coughed up blood. “Dad, don’t hit my fiancé!” Julie screamed, her eyes red with tears. “He is not your fiancé!” Mr. Miller spat, his voice cold as ice. He walked over, squatted down, and grabbed my collar, his gaze a bottomless abyss. “Do you know why I’m hitting you?” I couldn’t speak. The pain was making me tremble uncontrollably. “It’s not because you’re calling off the engagement. And it’s not because you’re abandoning my daughter. It’s because… you’re not human.” He paused, letting the words hang in the air. “I did some checking,” he continued, his voice low and menacing. “On the night of the party. When Julie was being attacked… you were in the men’s room. The hotel janitor saw you.” His words landed like stones. “In other words, you almost certainly saw the man who raped Julie.” “Is… is that true?” Mrs. Miller whispered, rushing to her husband’s side. “He saw him?” “Yes,” Mr. Miller said with absolute certainty. “He had to have seen him.” He turned his chilling gaze back to me. “So why did you tell the police you saw nothing?” Mrs. Miller grabbed a fistful of my hair, her face twisted with fury. “It must have been someone we know,” Mr. Miller theorized, his voice dropping to a cold whisper. “Someone he recognized. Someone he’s too scared to cross. So he kept his mouth shut. To avoid retaliation.” “Is that it?” Mrs. Miller shrieked into my ear. My body was a canvas of agony, and speaking was a monumental effort. But through the pain, I forced the words out. “I… didn’t see… anyone.” “You’re lying!” Mr. Miller’s eyes were glacial. “The janitor said she saw you come out of the restroom. And another man left, going in the opposite direction. You one hundred percent saw the bastard! Why won’t you say who it was?” Before I could answer, Leo hauled me to my feet. Without a single question, he started pounding his fists into my face, again and again. Just as the world was beginning to fade to black, he finally stopped, roaring in my ear. “Tell us, you piece of shit! Who was it?” When I remained silent, his rage exploded. “You won’t talk, huh? Fine!” The next thing I knew, his hands were back on my throat, squeezing with every ounce of his strength. This wasn’t a threat anymore. He was actually trying to kill me. The world began to tunnel, the air disappearing from my lungs. “I want to fly!” At that critical moment, Julie’s strange words cut through the violence. The Millers turned. Their blood ran cold. Somehow, Julie had gotten out of bed and was now perched on the windowsill, her upper body already leaning out into the open air. “Julie!” “Honey!” Their faces went white with terror. They scrambled to pull her back inside. In that moment of distraction, I found my chance. Ignoring the fire in my lungs and the agony in my body, I staggered out of the room and escaped. My parents came to the hospital to see me that afternoon. When they heard that I had likely seen the attacker and refused to identify him, they stared at me with utter disbelief. “Why didn’t you tell the police who it was, Ethan?” my mother asked, her voice trembling. “Why are you letting Julie suffer like this?” my father demanded. “Are you a man?” Seeing the profound disappointment in their eyes, I turned my head away and said nothing. “To have a son like you,” my father said, his voice thick with disgust, “is the greatest shame of my life.” He stood up and walked out. My mother stayed, but the warmth was gone from her eyes. I didn’t try to explain. The next morning, Leo came to see me. He didn’t shout or hit me this time. He was trying a new tactic. “Ethan. You didn’t report us, did you?” I shook my head. He let out a long breath of relief. “Look, we were… emotional yesterday. You have to understand, that’s our family he hurt. We can’t stand to see her in pain. You get that, right?” I nodded. “I get it.” “Good.” He sat on the edge of my bed and lit a cigarette. “You mind?” “Go ahead.” He took a deep drag. “My sister… she was a little lucid last night. She said she called you during the attack. She said you picked up, but you didn’t say anything. Did that happen?” “Yes,” I confirmed. “It did.” “Then why didn’t you tell the police?” “I forgot.” Leo’s brow furrowed. “Did you hear her crying for help on the phone?” “I did.” “Then why didn’t you go help her?” “I’d been drinking. I thought it was some kind of joke.” “You bastard!” Veins bulged on Leo’s forehead. He glared at me, his knuckles white. “If you had just believed her, maybe this never would have happened! You’re the one who let this happen to her!” “I know. I failed her.” “Since you know you failed her, I suggest you drop this talk about calling off the engagement. And when you’re healed up, you’re going to go and apologize to my parents.” “I’ll think about it.” “What is there to think about?!” He looked ready to lunge at me again, but my phone rang. I answered it. “Can you recover the call recording?” I asked. A voice on the other end replied, “It’ll be difficult, but… I think so.” “I’ll wait for your call.” I hung up. “What call recording?” Leo asked, his eyes narrowed. “The night Julie called me for help,” I explained. “I vaguely remember hearing a man’s voice. It sounded familiar. It’s a shame I was so drunk, and I didn’t have call recording active. But if I can get a recording of that call… if I can hear that man’s voice again, I think I can identify him.” Hearing this, Leo’s entire demeanor shifted. He leaned in, his voice tight. “Can you… can you really recover it?” I looked him straight in the eye and nodded. “My friend just told me he thinks he can.” “That’s… that’s great,” Leo stammered, grabbing my arm, his excitement palpable. “That’s fantastic!” He looked around conspiratorially. “Ethan, you can’t tell anyone about this.” “Why not?” “Think about it! The guy who did this was at your engagement party. It has to be someone we know. If word gets out about this recording, he might come after you. Keep it quiet. Once we know who it is, we’ll hand him over to the police and get justice for Julie.” I pretended to hesitate, then nodded. “Okay. My friend said it might take a day or two.” “That’s fine. We can wait. Call me the second you have it.” “I will.” As I watched Leo hurry out of the room, my expression hardened into ice. There was no damn call recording. It was just bait. And it looked like the fish was starting to bite. My theory was likely correct. But I still needed to prove it.

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The first day I returned to the Ashford family as their long-lost daughter, I heard the voice of our family’s guardian spirit: 【Stop your father from investing in the Westwood project. There’s an ancient tomb underneath. He’ll lose every last cent.】 I convinced my father to abandon the project and invest in the Northgate Industrial Park instead. But who could have known that the factory next to Northgate would have a toxic gas leak? Dozens of employees died overnight. My father was wiped out, financially ruined. As despair settled over our home, the guardian spirit spoke again: 【Money is fleeting. But it’s a shame your mother will die in a car crash while going to borrow money from an old friend.】 I immediately stopped my mother from leaving the house. But she dodged the car crash only to die from a sudden heart attack. My father, weeping, told me she had been feeling chest pains for days. She couldn’t bear it any longer and had decided that morning to go to the hospital. The blood in my veins ran cold. By stopping her from leaving, I had sealed her fate. Overcome with grief, my father swallowed poison and died on the spot. Overnight, the only ones left were me and the adopted daughter, Bella Ashford. To pay off the debts, Bella worked three jobs a day, just so I could stay in school. Then the guardian spirit warned me again: 【Your sister is being dragged into an alley. You must save her.】 I ran as fast as I could to the location it described, but I was too late. My sister lay in a pool of her own blood, her last breath gone. 【Clara, this is all your fault. You are a harbinger of doom. You should be the one to die…】 In my despair, I leaped from a high-rise, ending my tragic life. But even as I fell, I couldn’t understand. It was supposed to be the Ashford family’s guardian spirit. Why had every one of its warnings pushed my family toward utter destruction? When I opened my eyes again, I was back on the day I first heard the guardian spirit’s voice. 【You are the true heir of the Ashford family. Your birth parents are coming to take you home.】 My hands, halfway through hauling out a bag of kitchen waste, froze. My heart hammered against my ribs. I had been reborn. In my last life, I was working my way through college in the campus cafeteria when I first heard this voice. It claimed to be the Ashford family’s guardian spirit and correctly predicted several small events. That’s why I trusted it when it warned me about my father’s project. But it was this same spirit that led my family to ruin. This time, I didn’t glance around in confusion, asking who was there. I pretended I heard nothing and quickened my pace. 【Clara, you have the Ashford blood. I know you can hear me.】 【You may not believe me now, but you will soon learn the truth…】 Before it could finish, the screech of tires cut through the air. “My daughter, my daughter—” A regal, elegantly dressed woman threw herself at me, her face streaked with tears as she pulled me into a tight embrace. “I’ve finally found you. My child, you’ve suffered so much.” 【See? Now do you believe me? I am the true guardian of the Ashfords.】 I felt the warmth of my mother’s hug, a gentle current flowing through my heart, and I hugged her back. Just like last time, she didn’t care that my clothes were dirty or that I smelled of garbage. I made a silent vow: this time, I would protect my family. I went home with my parents. On the way, the guardian spirit spoke again. 【There is an adopted daughter at home, but do not worry. She is a good person.】 【She knows she has been occupying your place all these years and is preparing to leave.】 Hearing these familiar words, I studied my parents’ faces, but saw no hint of anything unusual. My mother felt my intense gaze and gently stroked my hair. “What is it, sweetheart?” “Mom,” I asked, “do you hear someone talking?” She looked at me, then at my father, a bewildered expression on her face. She slowly shook her head. “No one is talking, dear.” It was just like my past life. I was the only one who could hear the voice. The moment I stepped through the front door, I saw a girl my age, suitcase in hand, her eyes brimming with tears. “Sister, you’ve suffered so much,” she said, her voice trembling. “For all these years, it was I who stole the beautiful life that should have been yours. Don’t worry, now that you’re back, I’ll get out of your way immediately.” She made a move to leave with her suitcase. My parents’ eyes held a trace of reluctance, but they didn’t stop her. Having lived this once before, I knew Bella wasn’t just putting on a show. Her suitcase contained nothing but a few cheap sets of clothes. She genuinely felt she owed me everything. And in my previous life, after my parents died because of my trust in the spirit, it was Bella who worked three jobs to keep me in school. The memory of her brutal death flashed through my mind. I grabbed her hand, my voice filled with sincerity. “You don’t have to go. You will always be Mom and Dad’s daughter, and my sister.” My mother wiped her eyes and pulled us both into her arms. “Clara, you are my only biological daughter. But Bella was never a replacement for you. After you were lost, we searched desperately, but we couldn’t find you. Bella is the abandoned daughter of a distant relative. We only brought her home because we pitied her.” I nodded. This all matched what the guardian spirit had told me. In my last life, I was skeptical at first, until it correctly predicted a few more minor events. That evening at dinner, the spirit made another prediction. 【Your father is about to spill his water glass. He will then change into his blue pajamas.】 A minute later, my father knocked over his glass. The spirit’s voice was laced with regret. 【If only you had stopped him from picking up the glass, he wouldn’t have been scalded.】 It was this very sentence that convinced me last time to start using its predictions to avert disaster for my parents. But in the end, my father went bankrupt, my mother died of a heart attack, and my sister was murdered… This time, I swore I would change our fate. The next morning, I used the hundred thousand dollars my father gave me as pocket money to hire a private investigator to thoroughly look into the Westwood project. Our city wasn’t a historical landmark; no dynasty had ever made it their capital. The investigator reported back: “We had a history professor survey the site. He confirmed it’s virtually impossible for any ancient tombs to be there.” I finally breathed a sigh of relief. A few days later, my father was beaming at the dinner table. “The Westwood deal is sealed,” he announced joyfully. “The guaranteed profit is at least a hundred million.” He looked at me, his eyes shining. “My daughter Clara will get seventy million, and Bella will get thirty. I won’t favor one over the other.” Bella immediately waved her hands. “I’ve already enjoyed so many years of the good life that should have been my sister’s. Please, give my share to her.” My mother watched us with a gentle smile, and my father roared with laughter. A warmth spread through my chest. This time, I had finally protected my family, hadn’t I? The next morning, the headline of the news screamed: Major Ancient Tombs Discovered at Westwood Site; All Development Halted Indefinitely. An icy chill shot through me, plunging me into a frozen abyss. Why? Why were there suddenly tombs at Westwood in this life? There was nothing there last time. I had defied the guardian spirit, so why was my father… bankrupt again? At that moment, a scream came from the living room. “Dad! What’s wrong? Are you okay?” The news had hit my father so hard he’d collapsed, the shock so great he coughed up blood. My mother and Bella frantically rushed him to the hospital. My mother cried until she fainted, and Bella stayed by his bedside for days. When my father returned, his hair had turned white overnight, but he didn’t say a single word of blame to me. My chest felt tight, as if something was lodged in my throat, and I couldn’t breathe. Just then, the haunting voice returned. 【Your mother is going out to borrow money tomorrow. You must not let her leave, or she will be in a car accident.】 I clenched my fists so tightly my nails dug into my palms. Last time, I stopped her from leaving, and her heart gave out. This time, I would not make the same mistake. I had to save her. I knocked on her door. “Mom,” I asked directly, “is your heart bothering you?” Her face was pale, but she shook her head. “I’m fine, don’t worry about me… cough cough… The most important thing now is to figure out how to pay back your father’s debts. The house is already mortgaged, but I worry about you and Bella…” Her eyes welled up as she took my hand. “My poor child. You just came home, and our family is ruined. I haven’t been able to give you a single good day.” Tears blurred my vision. “Don’t say that, Mom. Just being back with you is all that matters to me. Don’t worry, I won’t let anything happen to you.” I immediately took out my phone and dialed for an ambulance. The spirit said the accident would happen tomorrow. If I got her to the hospital tonight, she would be safe. My mother insisted she was fine, but I was firm. “Mom, your health is the most important thing. Don’t worry about the money. My… my boyfriend’s family is very wealthy. I can borrow from him. You’re going to be okay.” She looked at me, a grateful smile on her face as tears rolled down her cheeks. “Clara, you are such a blessing. Having you back is the best thing that’s ever happened to me…” To be safe, I rode in the ambulance with her. The entire way, my palms were slick with nervous sweat. But the journey was smooth. Nothing happened. As the hospital came into view, I finally allowed myself to relax. Suddenly, a deafening BANG! rocked the vehicle. The world spun violently. It happened again. The car crash. Before I lost consciousness, only one thought screamed in my mind: Why… why is it happening again… I tried to crawl towards my mother, but my body wouldn’t obey. With a heart full of despair, I succumbed to the darkness. When I woke again, it was to the sound of my father’s and sister’s suppressed sobs. I forced my eyes open and turned my head. On the bed next to mine, a figure was covered by a white sheet. Mom… was gone. The blood in my veins turned to ice. Was the guardian spirit telling the truth all along? My eyes shot to my father, terrified he would do what he did in my last life. I’ve already lost my mother; I couldn’t lose him too. Just then, he noticed I was awake. The love in his eyes was gone, replaced by bloodshot despair. “Why?” he rasped, his voice raw. “Why did you have to kill your mother?! You hate us, don’t you? You hate us for losing you, so you came back for revenge! You want to destroy our family, don’t you?!” Tears streamed down my face as I tried to tell him about the guardian spirit. But as the words “guardian spirit” formed on my lips, nothing came out. My father just saw my mouth moving silently. “Clara, what are you trying to do?” he demanded. “This is no time for games…” Desperate, I turned to Bella and tried to say the words again. She just stared at me, confused, and said she couldn’t hear anything. “Enough!” my father roared. He lunged at me, his eyes crimson, his hands closing around my neck. “You curse! You’re still lying! Once you’re dead, our family will finally have peace!” A crushing pressure on my windpipe made me choke, my vision turning black at the edges. Just as I was about to pass out, Bella threw herself at him. “Dad, calm down! She’s your daughter! Sister was just worried about Mom’s health, that’s why she sent her to the hospital! The crash was an accident!” My father’s grip loosened. His eyes went vacant. “An accident… it was all an accident… The company is gone, we’re bankrupt, the house, the cars, everything… and the debt collectors will be here at the end of the month… It’s not her fault… so whose fault is it? Mine?!” His expression turned blank, and then he burst into a fit of insane laughter. “Yes, it’s my fault! It’s all my fault!” A terrible premonition seized me. I reached out to grab him, but before my fingers could touch his sleeve, he let out a chilling shriek and threw himself headfirst against the wall. My father was dead, too. Bella and I numbly went through the motions of arranging their funerals. Afterwards, she held me tight. “Sister, I’ll earn the money for your tuition. You have to finish your degree.” I shook my head, tears streaming down my face. “No. I’m the one who destroyed our family. I should be the one to work and atone for my sins.” Bella gently stroked my hair, forcing a smile. “Sister, your grades are better than mine, and you have a rich boyfriend. Only with a degree can you marry into a powerful family and change your future… Then you can restore the Ashford name. Mom and Dad would be so proud.” After much hesitation, I agreed to continue my studies. But a persistent, gnawing anxiety wouldn’t leave me. Remembering Bella’s fate from my past life, I swallowed my pride and asked my boyfriend, Julian, to hire a bodyguard to secretly protect her. I had always been aware of the class difference between us and never asked for anything, but this time, I had no choice. The bodyguard reported to me daily. Bella’s routine was simple: work and home. As I slowly started to feel at ease, the guardian spirit spoke one last time. 【Your sister will be cornered by thugs tonight. She will be killed.】 Panic seized me. I frantically dialed the bodyguard’s number, but it wouldn’t go through. I had no choice but to run towards Bella’s workplace myself. And once again, I arrived to a scene of utter despair. Bella was lying in a pool of blood. With her last ounce of strength, she gasped, “Sister… run…”

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1 The day the Hawthornes—the wealthiest family in Starling City—came to claim me, I was already one of the brightest stars in Hollywood. The homecoming was a media circus. Paparazzi swarmed the estate, their cameras broadcasting live to the entire nation. But as I approached the grand entrance, Chloe, the daughter they’d raised in my place, stepped forward to block my path. “Sister,” she began, her voice dripping with fake sympathy, “we looked into you. You got famous off that indie film, didn’t you? The one with all the… explicit scenes. The Hawthornes have standards. You’ll have to change into something more appropriate before you can come inside.” She gestured to a small, smoldering brazier and a simple grey dress laid out beside it—a bizarre, humiliating purification ritual. “Dad said that when he and my brother are away, I’m the lady of the house. I hope you understand.” The old me would have played along, carefully managing my image, desperate for their approval. Too bad for her, I’ve been reborn. With a sharp kick, I sent the brazier clattering across the marble. I shoved Chloe aside, my voice ringing with cold fury. “A joke! You want to strip me down? You couldn’t afford the price tag on my coat, let alone the rest of me. Don’t you dare.” “Every part of me is insured for millions. You can’t even afford a single strand of my hair.” “‘Lady of the house’?” I scoffed. “We’ll see how long that lasts. I’ll have you on your knees begging before this day is over.” … My outburst was like a signal. The reporters surged forward, a tidal wave of flashing lights and shouted questions. The world exploded in a strobe of blinding white. “Sienna! Is it true? Are you really the long-lost Hawthorne heiress?” “You seem furious. Is it because you resent Chloe for taking your place?” “This temper doesn’t quite match your sweet public persona, does it?” The questions were like bullets, sharp and relentless. In my past life, I had meekly submitted to Chloe’s demands. My return became her stage. She used me as a stepping stone, then spent years spreading vicious rumors about my ‘promiscuous’ lifestyle until the relentless online hate drove me to despair and, ultimately, death. This time, I refused to be the sacrificial lamb for her ambition. Chloe stared, stunned into silence for a long moment before she finally snapped out of it. I ignored her and strode toward the doors, but she grabbed my arm. “Sienna, we’re all happy to have you back, but you can’t just disrespect the Hawthorne name like this!” Her voice rose, playing to the cameras. “Your big break was a movie where you showed everything! Dad was furious when he found out! A woman with your reputation has to be cleansed before entering this house!” She lunged, her fingers clawing at the fabric of my dress. I slapped her hand away, the sound cracking through the air. “You dare!” I snarled. “Even if I weren’t a Hawthorne, I’m a star worth millions! I’m warning you, Chloe. Touch me again, and you’ll be hearing from my lawyers.” Chloe cradled her cheek, her eyes blazing with hatred. “You…!” This was the drama the paparazzi lived for. They shoved their microphones in Chloe’s face. “Ms. Hawthorne! Sienna is a huge star. Aren’t you happy to have a sister like her?” “She’s the real Hawthorne by blood. Don’t you think you’re being a little harsh?” A calculated smile spread across Chloe’s lips. “Of course, I’m happy. This wasn’t my idea; I’m just following my father’s wishes.” She preened for the cameras. “I’m preparing for my own debut, you know. But unlike some, I know there are lines you don’t cross. I would never sell my body for fame. So really, no one here is better than anyone else. I’m just acting as her older sister, as the lady of this house, and teaching her the Hawthorne way.” I let out a sharp, derisive laugh. “Lady of the house? Let’s wait until the Hawthornes officially acknowledge you. For now, you’re just a cuckoo in the nest.” “You!” Chloe trembled with rage, but the cameras held her back. I smoothed my hair, my voice dripping with ice. “Well? Is this reunion happening or not? Because if not, I have places to be.” The reporters seized the opportunity. “We heard the Hawthornes initiated this reunion. Why are you turning Sienna away now?” “Are you really shunning her over that critically acclaimed art-house film?” “Is the world of the super-rich completely devoid of artistic taste?” Chloe’s face went pale, her lips trembling, but no words came out. It’s amazing what a little leverage can do. Just then, the old family butler, Mr. Thompson, hurried out. He bowed his head to Chloe. “Miss Hawthorne, your father saw the live stream. He’s on his way back!” Then he turned to me, his tone laced with contempt. “And he said actresses will be actresses. He told me to tell you not to be afraid, Miss Chloe. You are the only daughter of his heart. No one can bully you.” The reporters erupted. “Did you hear that? Even if Sienna comes back, Chloe’s position is secure!” “So much for a grand homecoming! She’s still second-class!” My phone buzzed violently. My agent, Amy, was screeching into my ear. “Sienna! For God’s sake, get out of there! Forget the reunion! The internet is exploding! They’re saying you’re an ungrateful brat! This is the richest family in the city!” “Do you have any idea how much Hawthorne money is invested in our agency?! Are you trying to kill me?!” I chuckled softly at her panic. “Relax, Amy. Just watch the show. I’ll handle the fallout.” Amy’s voice cracked. “My dear girl, that’s Caleb Hawthorne’s sister you’re messing with! The heir! He’s notoriously overprotective! Do you think he’ll let this go? The second the Hawthornes pull their funding, the agency will drop you so fast your head will spin!” Suddenly, there was a commotion on her end. “Oh, hell! I have to go! I just got a message from the Hawthorne Corp business affairs! Listen to me, Sienna! Come back now!” Dropped? I had to laugh. My adoptive mother was Eleanor Vance, a three-time Oscar winner. I’d just never told anyone, determined to make it on my own. As if the Hawthornes had the power to blackball me. Chloe, noticing I’d hung up, leaned in and whispered, a venomous smile on her face. “Looks like my brother is already making moves. I suggest you learn to behave. So what if you have Hawthorne blood? With that attitude, you’ll never set foot in this house again.” As if on cue, a flashy red sports car screeched to a halt with a dramatic drift at the main gate. The legendary Hawthorne heir, Caleb, stepped out, his face a mask of cold displeasure. Chloe’s expression instantly transformed. She scurried over, clinging to his arm like a damsel in distress. “Caleb… you’re finally here…” Caleb walked right up to me, his eyes raking over me with disdain. “So you’re Sienna.” The paparazzi held their breath, practically salivating. “Mr. Hawthorne! Sienna is one of the hottest stars in the country! Your long-lost sister! How do you feel?!” Caleb sneered. “She might share our blood, that’s true. But Chloe has been a Hawthorne for years. She’s the only sister I’ve ever known. Besides,” he added, his voice hardening, “Chloe is older. For Sienna to show up on day one and treat her with such disrespect… it just shows a complete lack of proper upbringing.” Just then, my phone rang again. Eleanor. She must be furious too. I ignored it. Caleb continued, his voice low and menacing. “I don’t care what kind of celebrity you are. The Hawthorne estate is not a stage for your publicity stunts. If you cause a scene here, don’t blame me for being ruthless.” The reporters buzzed, cameras trained on me, waiting for my response. I met their lenses with a smirk. “This is being broadcast live to the entire nation. Everyone saw who tried to rip my clothes off. How did that become me causing a scene?” I raised an eyebrow. “And didn’t you already pull the funding for my latest project just minutes ago? Who’s the one putting on a show now? I had no idea the great Hawthorne family was so skilled at twisting the truth.” The live-stream comments must have exploded. I could feel the tide of public opinion turning in my favor. Chloe’s face tightened. She quickly adopted a saintly, innocent expression. “Caleb didn’t mean it like that. He’s just always been protective of me.” She paused, then added with a tone of magnanimous charity, “We’re the Hawthornes. We can certainly afford to feed and clothe one more person.” Her eyes welled up. “Today was just about following family tradition. My sister must have misunderstood. After all,” she sighed, “she never had a proper education. She’s been working since she was a teenager. It’s only natural she’d have a more cynical view of the world.” I laughed and raised my hand as if to strike her. She flinched, squeezing her eyes shut and cowering away. I let my hand drop. “Do you know who first contacted me for a DNA test?” I asked, my voice dangerously soft. “Let me tell you something, Chloe. Whether this family accepts me or not is not up to an adopted little stray.” My biological mother had searched for me for years after I was lost. The guilt and despair eventually consumed her, and she took her own life. But long after, once I became famous, my face plastered on screens across the country, my maternal grandmother recognized me instantly. It was her—not some high-and-mighty patriarch or his arrogant son—who had begged me to take the test, who had longed for my return. Chloe’s eyes flew open. “So what if Grandma recognized you!” she shrieked. “This is the Hawthorne house! What she says doesn’t matter! My brother is the sole heir, chosen by Dad himself! If he says you can’t come in, you will never set foot past that door!” I chuckled inwardly. Not his real sister, indeed. She didn’t even know who truly held the power in this family. I calmly pulled over a patio chair and sat down, crossing my legs. A cool smile played on my lips. “Fine. Then we’ll wait for Mr. Hawthorne to get here.” The viewer count on the live stream was skyrocketing. Perfect. If I didn’t blow this up, these two would never learn who was really in charge. As I casually scrolled through the comments, a furious roar cut through the air. “What is going on?! When did my home become a public theater?!” I looked up. It was Charles Hawthorne, his face contorted with rage. I rose slowly, a mocking smile on my face. “No one’s putting on a show. Although some people seem to have gotten a little too comfortable playing a role that isn’t theirs.” Charles’s eyes swept over the sea of cameras, and his face turned a dark shade of purple. “Mr. Thompson! Get these vultures out of here!” The reporters protested. “On what grounds? We’re here for Sienna!” “Some welcome! The great Charles Hawthorne won’t even let his own daughter in the door! Is this how you do things?” A vein pulsed in Charles’s temple. “My daughter? For all I know, she’s just another gold digger trying to get her hands on the Hawthorne fortune! You think shooting a few skin flicks makes you royalty? We were willing to acknowledge her, and this is the thanks we get? She shows up and tries to drag our family’s century-old reputation through the mud!” I looked at him, the irony thick enough to choke on. This man, who had changed his own name to marry into wealth, had the audacity to lecture me about integrity. Caleb, thinking my silence was fear, puffed out his chest. He snapped his fingers at the security guards. “Get them all out! And I want you to monitor the news for the next few days. If I see a single negative story about this family, there will be consequences.” The reporters exchanged uneasy glances. Most of them lowered their cameras, seemingly forgetting that their live feeds were still running. Chloe pointed a finger at me, her voice dripping with scorn. “Looks like this reunion is off. Maybe when the ‘big star’ is ready to change her clothes and step over the brazier, we can talk.” Charles glared at me with disgust. “Don’t think a little shared DNA gives you the right to throw your weight around here! We don’t welcome women who sell their bodies in this house! Now get out before you dirty the place!” Just then, a powerful, commanding voice thundered from the gate. “I’d like to see who dares touch a single hair on my granddaughter’s head!” An imperious, white-haired woman leaning on a cane strode onto the property. She was the true matriarch of the family—my grandmother. Charles, Caleb, and Chloe froze, their faces a mask of pure shock. They clearly hadn’t expected her. After my mother’s death, my grandmother had moved to a neighboring city, leaving the day-to-day operations of Hawthorne Corp. to Charles. She never involved herself in family affairs. In my last life, she was the one who brought me home. But I was too timid then, too eager to please. She thought I was happy. When Chloe’s lies began to circulate, she had tried to help, but by then, I was lost in my depression and pushed her away. Seeing her now, my eyes burned with tears. “Grandma…” I choked out. Her gaze softened with heartache as her wrinkled hand gently cupped my cheek. “Sienna, my girl. It’s my fault. I should have been here on such an important day.” Charles’s jaw was hanging open. “Mom… why didn’t you tell us you were coming?” THUD. Her cane struck the ground with startling force. “I finally find my daughter’s lost child, and this is how you treat her?!” She whirled on Charles, her voice a whip crack. “I wouldn’t have known what a disgrace you are if I hadn’t seen the live stream!” “You are nothing but a son-in-law who married into this family! When did it become your place to pass judgment on my blood?!” The reporters, who had been cowed just moments before, sprang back to life. Cameras flashed, microphones were aimed. “Unbelievable! The CEO of Hawthorne Corp is just a son-in-law!” “A real-life succession battle! The tables have turned!” Sensational headlines scrolled across the live feed. Charles’s face cycled through shades of green and white. He shoved Caleb in front of him like a shield. “Get out! All of you! I’ll sue you for invasion of privacy!” Chloe, so arrogant moments ago, was now pale and frantic. She tugged at our grandmother’s sleeve, pleading in a low voice, “Grandma… please, don’t make a scene… This is embarrassing for Hawthorne Corp…” The old woman ripped her arm away. “Don’t you dare call me Grandma! Sienna is my only grandchild! And the only embarrassment here is you!” A reporter shouted, “Does that mean Caleb Hawthorne isn’t your grandson either?!” “He’s the son Charles brought with him from a previous relationship!” she declared, her voice ringing with fury. “My daughter and Charles were a blended family! I never should have allowed it! I never should have let this ungrateful parasite into our home!” The entire scene erupted. The live-stream chat exploded with a torrent of shocked comments and memes. Caleb’s face was a thundercloud. He grabbed Charles and Chloe and stormed into the villa. My grandmother took my hand, and we followed them inside. Under the glittering crystal chandeliers, she slammed her cane onto the marble floor. The sound echoed through the vast hall. “Charles Hawthorne! Get on your knees!” Charles flinched, but defiance hardened his features. “Mom, what is this? I’m the CEO of Hawthorne Corp!” “CEO? You’re nothing!” she spat. “Without the Hawthorne name, you are nothing! You were a penniless nobody when my daughter took pity on you! Do you think you’d have any of this without her?” She leaned forward, her eyes blazing. “And don’t forget the promise you made when she passed. I told you that if you behaved, Hawthorne Corp would be yours after I was gone. But as it stands, the majority shares are still in my name! You’re just a glorified manager!” Seeing Charles remain defiant, my grandmother snatched an antique vase from the coffee table and hurled it at him. “Don’t make me repeat myself!”

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I’m a 30% owner and co-founder of our company. On dividend day, my account was credited just $25. I stormed into finance, but the new CFO, Lana Fumero, blinked innocently. “Terry, the company lost money this year. Be grateful for the $25! The CEO said tech partners are on stock options, not for cash dividends.” I slammed the financial statement on her desk—$670,000 net profit, clear as day. She snatched and shredded it, screaming, “This is confidential!” My other partner, Mark Chen, rushed in and shoved me. “Laying hands on a woman? Stick to coding! Why meddle in finances?” Furious, I demanded my dividend. He sneered, “I’m the one drinking with clients till dawn. You just write code. Why should you get the same as me? If $25 isn’t enough, go find your own clients!” My father’s surgery required an 18,000 deposit. My15,000 loan was due today. I’d invested everything in this company, relying on that dividend. My balance: $25. My entire body trembled as I raced to the hospital. My father’s name had already been crossed off the surgical schedule. He grabbed my hand, his smile weak and papery. “Son,” he rasped, “is the company in trouble again?” “It’s okay,” he whispered, his grip slackening. “Don’t worry about me. This old bag of bones… has had a good run…” I collapsed to my knees by his bedside, sobbing uncontrollably. Five days later, my father was gone. At the funeral, Mark arrived with the entire company in tow. Lana had even thoughtfully prepared a funeral wreath. Emblazoned across it in large, gold letters were the words: “Here’s to the Old Man’s Grand Promotion to the Underworld.” A black wave of dizziness washed over me. I confronted her, my voice shaking. Lana’s eyes filled with tears, her lower lip trembling. “Oh, Terry, I’m so sorry! I thought… I thought it was a cool, edgy way of saying he’s in a better place!” Mark immediately stepped in to smooth things over. “Terry, don’t be like that. Lana meant well. I heard you were short on cash lately. I can give you a personal loan. Don’t take it out on her.” A loan? After three years of my life, my entire life savings, countless sleepless nights, all for my thirty percent stake… he was offering me a loan? A sharp, crushing pain seized my chest. As someone with a congenital heart defect, extreme emotional distress was the one thing I had to avoid. But in that moment, I couldn’t even reach for my medication. Mark’s voice began to fade, as if coming from the end of a long tunnel. “Quick! Call an ambulance!” “Lana, don’t be scared,” I heard him say. “It’s not your fault. Terry’s had a bad heart his whole life…” In the last second before my eyes closed, I saw Lana fall into Mark’s arms. They looked at each other, and the corners of their mouths curled into triumphant smiles. Then I opened my eyes again. I was back on the morning of the dividend payout. 1 I shot upright in bed. A glance at the clock told me I had two hours until that damned $25 landed in my account. I took a deep, shuddering breath. It was real. I had been reborn. And my father was still alive. The thought brought a hot sting of tears to my eyes. This time, I would not make the same mistakes. I grabbed my jacket and bolted out the door, making a beeline for the bank downstairs from our office. It was a familiar route. “Good morning, sir. How can I help you?” the teller asked. “A home equity loan,” I said, my voice steady and firm. “I need eighteen thousand dollars. As fast as possible.” The teller blinked. “Sir, that requires an appraisal. The fastest we could possibly…” “I know the process,” I cut her off, slapping the deed to my condo on the counter. It was a document I’d prepared long ago, just in case. “I bought it in cash. No mortgage history. You can verify it in your system.” My gaze was intense, unwavering. “I’ll pay extra to expedite the appraisal. I need that money in my account before the end of the day. It’s a matter of life and death.” My tone left no room for argument. The teller looked from my face to the documents, then nodded. “Okay, sir. I’ll get on it right away.” The two hours I spent waiting felt like an eternity. I sat in the bank’s stiff chair, my mind racing. In my last life, I was a fool. I thought partners were brothers, that contracts were ironclad, that hard work would be rewarded. What a joke. Mark had systematically isolated me, turning me into nothing more than a coding machine for his company. Lana cooked the books and funneled profits into her own pockets, all while playing the part of a sweet, naive girl so convincingly she could have won an Oscar. This time, they would pay. “Mr. North, your loan has been approved. The $18,000 has been transferred to your account.” I leaped to my feet. “Thank you!” I didn’t run, I flew out of the bank and straight to the hospital. My father’s room was on the third floor. When I pushed the door open, he was lying in bed, his face pale and drawn. “Dad!” His head turned, and a flicker of surprise lit his tired eyes. “Terry? What are you doing here? Isn’t it busy at the office?” “It’s fine. I came to see you.” I walked to his bedside and took his hand. It felt so much stronger than I remembered. “Dad, I have the money for the surgery. All eighteen thousand. You don’t have to worry about a thing.” My father’s eyes welled up. “Son… this money…” “Don’t ask where it came from,” I said gently. “Just focus on getting better.” I found his doctor and paid the deposit in full. “Mr. North,” the doctor said, looking at me with professional calm, “your father’s surgery is scheduled for 8 a.m. tomorrow. The success rate is very high. You can rest easy.” I nodded, a massive weight lifting from my soul. Back in the room, my father gripped my hand. “Terry, the company dividend… is everything alright?” I paused. My father had never been a businessman, but he was far from stupid. “There might be a little trouble, Dad. But it’s nothing I can’t handle.” “Son,” he said, his gaze serious, “in business, the most important things are honesty and fairness. You three started that company together. Whatever you agreed on, that’s how it should be.” He paused, his grip tightening. “If someone starts playing games… they’re no longer a brother.” A lump formed in my throat. He was right. Mark, you showed no mercy. Don’t expect any from me. After settling things at the hospital, I returned to the office. It was already two in the afternoon. I opened my banking app. Sure enough, a new transaction had appeared. A deposit of $25. The irony was so bitter it tasted like ash. Two hundred thousand dollars, reduced to twenty-five. A cold smile touched my lips as I kicked open the door to Mark’s office. “Terry?” Mark was in a meeting with Lana. He looked surprised. “What are you doing here? I thought you took the day off.” “I’m here about the dividend, Mark,” I said, my eyes locked on his. “Why did I only receive twenty-five dollars?” A flicker of unease crossed his face, but he quickly composed himself. “Oh, that. Terry, you know how it is. It’s been a tough year. Profits are down.” “So everyone’s dividend is a little smaller this year.” “Is that so?” I asked, my voice dangerously quiet. “Then tell me, Mark. How much was your dividend?” He frowned. “Terry, what are you trying to say?” “It’s simple,” I said, taking a step closer. “The financial statement showed a net profit of $670,000 this year. My thirty percent stake means my share should be $201,000.” “So how did that become twenty-five dollars?” Lana suddenly jumped in. “Terry, you’re the tech partner! Your compensation is primarily in stock options.” Her voice was sickly sweet. “The cash dividends are for the operations partners. That was the agreement!” The agreement? I stared at her innocent, perfectly made-up face and felt a primal urge to rip the mask away. “Lana, the original partnership agreement is right here.” I pulled out my phone and displayed the document. “Would you like to read the clause that says, and I quote, ‘All three founding partners shall participate in profit-sharing dividends proportional to their equity stake, with no exceptions’?” Lana’s face went pale. Mark’s expression hardened. “Terry, what the hell is this? Lana is new, she doesn’t know the history. Why are you yelling at her? If you have a problem, take it up with me!” I turned to him. “Fine. Then I’ll ask you. Where is my $201,000?” Mark was silent for a moment before letting out a theatrical sigh. “Terry, you don’t understand the complexities of running a business. Yes, on paper the profit is $670,000. But we have outstanding receivables, we have to reinvest in R&D, we have marketing expenses…” He spread his hands wide. “Giving you $25 was already a stretch for us!” I almost laughed out loud. He’d used the exact same lines on me in my past life. And I had believed him. Not this time. “Mark, are you seriously asking me to believe that a company with a net profit of $670,000 can’t afford a $201,000 payout?” I pressed. “What about the other shareholders? Did they get their dividends?” His eyes shifted. “I… I’m not sure about the specifics. You’d have to ask finance.” “Great,” I said, turning to Lana. “Lana, I’d like to see the complete, unabridged financial records.” My gaze was a physical force. “As a shareholder, I have the right to audit the books, don’t I?” Lana stammered, “Well… I… I need Mark’s approval for that…” “Then approve it,” I said, my eyes boring into Mark. “You wouldn’t deny me that, would you, partner?” Mark’s face was a thundercloud. After a long, tense silence, he finally spoke. “Terry, do you have a problem with me?” His voice took on a wounded tone. “We’re brothers. We were college roommates. We built this company from nothing! What are you trying to do, coming at me like this?” Brothers. My heart felt like it was being squeezed in a vise. At my father’s funeral, that’s not what he was saying. “Mark, I just want what I’m owed,” I said, enunciating every word. “Two hundred and one thousand dollars. Not a penny less. If the company truly can’t afford it, then you can use assets as collateral. Or transfer a portion of your shares to me.” The friendly mask finally dropped. Mark’s face turned to stone. “Terry, are you insane?” “I’m not the one who’s insane,” I shot back. “You’re just the ones who got too greedy.” I turned and walked out. Mark’s roar echoed behind me. “Terry! You get back here!” I didn’t stop. Back at my desk, I powered on my computer. As the CTO, I held the highest-level administrative privileges for all our systems. Including the financial software. Lana had tried to lock me out, but she was an amateur. She had no idea I’d built a backdoor into the system from day one. My fingers flew across the keyboard. A few moments later, I was inside the core database. Lines of raw data scrolled across the screen. And then I saw it. My pupils contracted. The net profit wasn’t $670,000. It was $1.2 million. Mark had cooked the books. He had created two sets of financials. One for show, and one for reality. So where did the extra $530,000 go? I kept digging. And there it was. A wire transfer for $500,000. The recipient: Lana Fumero. The memo: Dividend. Another transfer, for $30,000, to Mark’s personal account. The memo: Annual Bonus. My hands were shaking. It all made sense. Mark and Lana were in this together. They hadn’t just stolen my dividend; they had stolen from everyone. We had two other small-stake investors from our early days, Lee and Anna, who each held ten percent. Based on the real numbers, they should have each received $120,000. The books showed they’d only gotten a few thousand each. I took a deep breath. Stay calm. Stay focused. Confronting them now would be pointless. I needed more. I needed irrefutable proof. I downloaded a copy of the entire database, encrypted it, and saved it to a thumb drive. Then I scrubbed all traces of my access. Leaning back in my chair, I let the cold fury settle in my bones. Mark. Lana. This time, you’re going down. 2 The next morning, I was at the hospital before sunrise. My father’s surgery was a success. When the doctor emerged from the OR and removed his mask, he gave me a tired smile. “Family of Terry North? The procedure went very well. The patient is stable and in recovery.” I nearly collapsed with relief. “Thank you. Doctor, thank you so much!” When the nurses wheeled my father out, his face was pale but peaceful. Tears streamed down my face. He managed a weak smile. “Son, don’t cry… I’m okay…” I held his hand, my voice thick with emotion. “Dad, you just rest. I promise, I’m going to give you a good life.” He patted my hand, his eyes filled with a quiet trust and pride that spoke more than words. This time, I had saved him. This time, I wouldn’t let anyone harm the people I loved. When I got to the office, Mark was waiting for me. “Terry,” he said, his expression a carefully crafted mask of sincerity, “I’ve been thinking about what happened yesterday. You’re right. The company has been unfair to you.” He put on his best ‘big brother’ face. “How about this? I’ll personally loan you fifty thousand dollars to help you with your immediate needs. Once the company’s cash flow improves, we’ll get you the rest.” A loan. Always a loan. I laughed, a cold, sharp sound. “No thank you, Mark. I don’t need a loan.” My voice was flat, devoid of emotion. “I just want what’s mine. Paid out, clean and simple.” Mark’s friendly facade twitched. “Terry, what is it you really want?” “I want to see the complete, unabridged books,” I said, looking him dead in the eye. “Lana, please provide me with all financial statements for this fiscal year.” Lana shrank behind Mark. “Terry… that requires board approval…” “Then call a board meeting!” I raised my voice, making sure everyone in the open-plan office could hear. “Let’s get all the shareholders in a room, lay the books on the table, and have a look together!” Mark’s face turned an ugly shade of red. “Terry, you don’t trust me?” “This isn’t about trust. This is about exercising my legal rights as a shareholder.” I turned to leave. “Terry!” Mark yelled after me. “If you try to pull something, don’t blame me for getting nasty!” Getting nasty? I stopped and looked back at him over my shoulder. “Mark, who do you think started this fight?” The office was dead silent. Every employee was staring at us. Mark stood there, humiliated and fuming. I ignored him and went back to my desk. I opened my personal email and sent a message to our two other investors. “Lee, Anna, I’m writing about this year’s dividend. How much did you each receive? If the number seems wrong to you, perhaps we should approach Mark for clarification together. Best, Terry.” I hit send. Less than ten minutes later, Lee replied. “Terry, I only got $5k. I thought it should be more, but Mark said the company was losing money, so I didn’t want to make a fuss…” Five minutes after that, Anna’s email came through. “Terry, I got $5k too. I asked Mark about it, and he said it was a tough market and asked us to be understanding. I don’t really get the numbers, so I let it go. Do you think something is wrong?” Wrong? It was a goddamn heist. I replied immediately. “Lee, Anna, I have evidence that the company’s actual profits far exceed what’s on the official statements. Mark and our new CFO have created a second set of books and embezzled our dividends. If you’re with me, we can fight this together and get back what’s ours.” This time, the replies were instantaneous. Lee: “Are you serious? You have hard proof? If that’s true, I’m in. I want what I’m owed!” Anna: “Terry, I trust you. Tell me what to do. I’m on your side.” I let out a breath I didn’t realize I’d been holding. I had allies. Now, I needed some heavy artillery. I scrolled through my contacts to a number I hadn’t called in years. Arthur Vance. Our company’s angel investor. In the beginning, it was Arthur who had believed in us, investing $100,000 for a twenty percent stake. He’d been a silent partner ever since, content to let us run the show as long as his dividend checks arrived on time. I hesitated for a second, then dialed. “Hello?” Arthur’s voice was as booming and confident as ever. “Arthur, it’s Terry North.” “Terry!” he exclaimed, his tone warm. “It’s been too long! How are things at the company?” “Arthur, I need to see you. There’s something I need to discuss in person.” There was a pause on the other end. “Is the company in trouble?” “You could say that,” I said with a humorless laugh. “It’s a financial matter.” “I understand,” Arthur said, his voice turning serious. “Tonight. Seven o’clock. The usual place.” Hanging up, I felt a sliver of the weight on my shoulders lift. Arthur was a man of integrity. He invested in us because he believed in our passion. If he knew what Mark had done, he wouldn’t stand for it. At seven, I arrived at the quiet lounge we used to frequent. Arthur was already there, a pot of tea steaming between them. “Terry, sit,” he said, pouring me a cup. “Tell me everything.” I laid it all out: the $25 dividend, my investigation, the two sets of books, everything. As I spoke, Arthur’s jovial face grew harder and colder. “You’re telling me,” he said, his voice a low growl, “that Mark created a fake P&L? That the real profit was $1.2 million, but he only paid out dividends on $670,000?” “That’s right. And I suspect that $500,000 transfer to Lana wasn’t a ‘dividend’ at all. It was…” “Theft,” Arthur finished, slamming his fist on the table, rattling the teacups. “That little son of a bitch. He’s got some nerve.” I nodded. “Arthur, I want to call an emergency shareholder meeting and confront them. But I’m worried Mark will destroy the evidence.” Arthur thought for a moment. “Send me your backup of the data. I also have friends at a top forensic accounting firm. We can bring them in.” His eyes were like steel. “If we’re going to do this, we’re going to do it right. We’ll tear his books apart, piece by piece.” I looked at him, overcome with gratitude. “Thank you, Arthur.” He waved a hand dismissively. “Don’t thank me. This is my investment he’s messing with. I backed you boys because I saw your drive—your technical genius and Mark’s salesmanship. I never imagined his ambition would curdle into pure greed.” “I’ll have my lawyer send an official notice tomorrow morning,” he declared. “We’re calling an emergency shareholder meeting. As a twenty-percent stakeholder, it’s my right.” I took a deep breath. This time, Mark, there’s nowhere to run. I got home late, my mind buzzing. Lying in bed, I couldn’t stop replaying the events of my past life: my father’s death, my own, the smug, smiling faces of those two vipers. My fists clenched at my sides. The next morning, the office exploded. A letter from Arthur’s law firm arrived by courier, formally demanding an emergency shareholder meeting in three days to review the company’s financial status. Mark’s face was ashen. He stormed into my office. “Terry! It was you! You went to Arthur!” “And what if I did?” I said, looking up from my screen, my gaze cold. “As a shareholder, I have the right to request an audit.” “You…!” he sputtered, pointing a shaking finger at me, speechless with rage. Lana followed him in, wringing her hands. “Terry, isn’t this a little extreme? We’re a startup family. Things are hard enough without you trying to tear us apart.” I stood up and walked right up to her. “Lana, that five hundred thousand dollars in your bank account. What’s your explanation for that?” The color drained from her face. “I… I don’t know what you’re talking about…” “You don’t?” I smirked. “Don’t worry. You’ll have a chance to explain it at the meeting in three days.” Mark lunged forward and grabbed my collar. “Terry, are you trying to destroy this company?!” “Destroy it?” I shoved him back. “Mark, you’re the one who’s destroying it! You’re the one who cooked the books! You’re the one who stole from your own partners! That’s how you destroy a company!” He froze, a flash of panic in his eyes before he replaced it with bluster. “That’s slander! I never cooked any books!” “The proof,” I said calmly, “will be presented in three days.” I walked past him and out of the office, his furious shouts echoing behind me. “Terry! You’re going to regret this!” Regret? In my last life, I had plenty of regrets. I regretted trusting him. I regretted being naive. I regretted not being able to protect my father. But this life? I would have no regrets. The next two days at the office were thick with tension. Mark and Lana were constantly locked away in his office, whispering conspiracies. I knew they were trying to cover their tracks, to erase the evidence. It was useless. I had the backups. And Arthur’s auditors had already been granted access to the company’s bank records by court order. The net was closing. On the third day, the shareholder meeting convened. All five of us were present. Mark, with his 30%, sat at the head of the table. I, with my 30%, sat directly opposite him. Arthur, holding 20%, sat beside me. Lee and Anna, with 10% each, flanked us. Arthur’s lawyer and the lead forensic accountant sat quietly to the side. The air in the room was electric. Mark spoke first. “Since everyone is here, let’s begin. The agenda for today is a financial review, requested by Arthur. Now, I don’t know who has been spreading rumors that there are problems with our finances,” he said, shooting a dark look at me, “but I want to state for the record that this company’s books are clean, legal, and can withstand any scrutiny.” Arthur spoke without looking at him. “That’s wonderful news. Mr. Accountant, your report, please.” The accountant opened his briefcase. “Good morning. After a two-day review, our team has identified several discrepancies. First, the company’s actual revenue for the fiscal year was $2.8 million. With costs and expenses totaling $1.6 million, the net profit should be $1.2 million. However, the official financial statements provided to shareholders reported a net profit of only $670,000. There is a discrepancy of $530,000 that is currently unaccounted for.” The room erupted. Lee slammed his hand on the table. “What? $1.2 million? Mark, you told us we barely broke even!” Anna was frantic. “Where is my hundred and twenty thousand dollars?!” Mark’s face was granite. “This… this must be a mistake! Our reports were professionally audited!” The accountant continued, unfazed. “Second, we traced a wire transfer of $500,000 from the corporate account to the personal account of CFO Lana Fumero. The transaction was noted as a ‘dividend.’ According to the company’s articles of incorporation, Ms. Fumero is not a shareholder and is not entitled to dividends.” Lana shot to her feet. “That’s not true! That was… that was a bonus! For my performance!” “A bonus?” I scoffed. “A five-hundred-thousand-dollar bonus? Lana, your annual salary is sixty thousand dollars. On what planet do you get a bonus eight times your salary?” “I… I…” she stammered, unable to form a sentence. “Third,” the accountant said, “we identified a transfer of $30,000 to Mr. Mark Chen’s personal account, noted as ‘Annual Bonus.’ According to company policy, the CEO’s bonus must be approved by the board. We could find no record of such an approval.” Arthur’s voice was low and dangerous. “Mark. Explain.” Sweat beaded on Mark’s forehead. He glanced from Lana, to me, and back again, before suddenly rising. “Alright, I admit it! Some of our practices were… unorthodox!” He was grasping at straws. “But it was all for the good of the company! That $500,000 was a loan to Lana to secure a major client! It was for schmoozing! And my bonus was because of the insane hours I put in this year!” His voice rose to a desperate shout. “These funds were all used for the company, not embezzled!”

🌟 Continue the story here 👉🏻 📲 Download the “MotoNovel” app 🔍 search for “385548”, and watch the full series ✨! #MotoNovel

In my past life, my brother Andre emptied our estate of guards for a camping trip with his “soulmate” Scarlett. A vengeful rival broke in that night. My pregnant sister-in-law Sophia died shielding me. My 3-year-old nephew Leo lost his hands trying to save me. I frantically called Andre, forcing him to abandon Scarlett and return. Scarlett’s final text before vanishing read: “Your sister and wife wanted me dead. Now they have their wish.” Andre coldly deleted it. Father stripped Andre of power, but weeks later, Andre cornered me: “You called me back. You killed Scarlett. Now join her in hell!” He murdered me. I awoke to the sound of men breaking down our gate—back at the beginning. 1 The splintering crash of wood yanked me back to the present. With a surge of adrenaline, I grabbed my pregnant sister-in-law, Sophia, and my three-year-old nephew, Leo, and dragged them into the study’s hidden panic room. “Charlotte, what are you doing?” Sophia asked, her voice trembling slightly. “The estate is crawling with security. We don’t need to hide in here.” “Yeah, Aunt Charlotte,” Leo piped in, his small hand clutching his mother’s. “Grandpa said this room is only for a real emergency.” They stared at me, confusion and fear blooming in their eyes. They had no idea. They didn’t know that Andre, for the sake of his precious Scarlett, had left us utterly defenseless. “Sophia,” I said, my voice low and urgent. “Andre took all of them. Every single guard. It’s just the three of us in this house.” I threw my entire weight against the heavy steel cabinets flanking the panic room door, shoving them in front of it. The screech of metal against the polished floor was a scream in the quiet room, a sound that would surely lead our attackers right to us. Sophia froze, her face pale with disbelief. It was unthinkable. Andre, always so careful, so responsible, pulling a stunt this reckless? The Monroes were the wealthiest family in Crestwood; our security was legendary. An empty estate was a death sentence. But the raw terror in my eyes must have convinced her. “Then call him! Call Andre and tell him to get back here now!” she pleaded, one hand protectively on her swollen belly, the other gripping Leo’s. Her whole body was shaking. But I didn’t call my brother. Instead, I dialed 911. I gave the dispatcher our address and a clipped, frantic summary of the situation, begging them to hurry. I had zero faith that Andre would drop everything to save us. In my last life, by the time he’d returned, Sophia had bled out on the floor, taking her unborn child with her, and Leo was maimed for life. Hanging up, I felt a fresh wave of dread. A storm was raging outside. The nearest police station was a thirty-minute drive away, even without the torrential rain. I couldn’t imagine how I was going to prevent history from repeating its bloody course before they arrived. Soon, we heard them. Footsteps and gruff voices, searching the main floor. I instinctively clamped a hand over Leo’s mouth, my own breath catching in my throat. Just then, Sophia’s phone lit up. She had managed to get Andre on the line. “Andre, you have to come back! There are intruders in the house!” she cried, her voice cracking with tears. His response was a condescending chuckle. “Babe, come on, stop with the drama. I know the pregnancy hormones are making you paranoid, but I’m with Scarlett tonight. Just go to bed, okay?” Sophia’s voice rose to a near-scream. “I’m not being paranoid! They’re real! Andre, please, come home, or they’re going to kill me and the baby!” His tone turned to ice. “I know you’re possessive, Sophia, but this is a new low. I already promised Scarlett this would be our last night together. After today, I’m done. What more do you want?” he snapped. “And tell Charlotte, if she doesn’t want a repeat of last time’s little tragedy, she should stay the hell out of my business.” His words hit me like a physical blow. My heart didn’t just drop; it plummeted into an icy abyss. He remembered. Andre was reborn, just like me. But why didn’t he believe me? He’d seen what happened last time. He saw Sophia’s mutilated body, saw what they did to Leo. How could he be so cold, so detached, now that he had a chance to change it? Was it all because of Scarlett’s whisper in his ear? Your sister and your wife are in this together. 2 The footsteps stopped right outside, in the study. A moment later, a violent crash shook the reinforced door. The steel cabinets we’d braced against it rattled violently. We watched in horror as a hole was smashed through the thick wood. Through the splintered opening, an eye appeared, followed by a twisted grin. “Well, well. Look what we have in here.” I shoved Sophia and Leo behind me, backing away slowly. One by one, they crawled through the hole. The leader kicked the cabinets aside with a deafening clang, throwing the panic room door wide open. “Did you really think a little hidey-hole would save you?” he sneered. “We were paid to send a message, and we’re not stupid.” He leveled a chilling gaze at us. “Don’t blame us. Blame Andre Monroe for pissing off the wrong people.” My body trembled uncontrollably as I watched the cold light glint off the blade of the knife in his hand. His predatory eyes landed on Sophia. “I recognize her. That’s Monroe’s wife,” he said, a sick smile spreading across his face. “Always wondered what it’d be like with a pregnant one…” Sophia glared at them, her fury overriding her fear as she shielded Leo. “Stay away from us!” Fighting back my own terror, I turned to her and whispered, “There’s another switch, behind that vase. When I give the signal, you open it and run. Get to the Hamiltons’ place next door. Find Ethan. Tell him to come save me.” The man with the knife was getting closer. We were out of room to retreat. I’d already died a horrible death once. This time, I would not let them suffer the same fate. “Charlotte, I can’t leave you here alone!” I dug my nails into her arm, desperate to make her understand. “You have the baby! And Leo is only three!” I pleaded. “Listen to me. You run. I’ll hold them off. As long as you can get to Ethan, we still have a chance!” Just as the man lunged, Sophia did the unthinkable. She flipped the hidden switch with one hand and shoved Leo into my arms with the other. Then she threw herself at the intruders’ legs, clinging to them with all her might. “Go, Charlotte! Take Leo and run!” Her voice was a heartbreaking cry of sacrifice and love. “Sophia!” In the final second before the secret door sealed shut, I saw one of the men grab Sophia by the throat and slam her to the floor. In that instant, my world shattered all over again. “Run, Charlotte! Get help!” 3 A bone-deep chill washed over me, but the instinct to survive was stronger. Staying would mean all three of us would die. Clasping Leo tightly, I bolted through the secret passage that led outside. Once out, I didn’t dare stop. I just ran, a desperate, mindless sprint into the rain-swept darkness. I slipped on the wet gravel and fell hard. My knee tore open, a flap of skin peeling back in a mess of blood and torn flesh. Gritting my teeth against the searing pain, I pushed myself up and kept running, limping heavily toward the Hamilton estate. When I reached their wrought-iron gates, I hammered on the intercom, pounding on the bars with my free hand. “Ethan! Ethan, please, help my sister-in-law!” “Ethan! Help us!” The lock clicked open. Ethan, dressed in a casual sweatsuit, appeared at the door. His brow furrowed as he took in my disheveled, bloody state. But he didn’t rush to help me as I’d expected. Instead, he looked down at me with cold disapproval. “Seriously? You’re going this far just to put on a show for your brother? You even dragged poor Leo into it.” His voice dripped with contempt, as if I were nothing more than an actress in a cheap melodrama, scheming to help my sister-in-law win back her husband’s attention. “Ethan, I’m not acting! Sophia is still back there, and she’s pregnant!” I cried, my voice raw. “There are men in our house! Please, just grab some of your security and come with me!” He glanced at my injuries with a look of detached amusement, shaking his head. “I might have actually believed you if Andre hadn’t called me. He warned me that you and Sophia were jealous he was taking Scarlett camping and that you’d pull some crazy stunt to ruin it.” Panic clawed at my throat. “Don’t listen to him, it’s real! It’s the people he put out of business a few months ago, the ones from that big corporate takeover! They’re here for revenge!” I fumbled for my phone, showing him my call log. “I’m not lying, I even called 911! I’m just so afraid they won’t get there in time. Please, Ethan, you have to help her!” He remained unmoved, letting out an impatient sigh. “Filing a false police report is a felony, Charlotte. Your sister-in-law is really crossing a line with this jealousy game. And you… I know you two are close, but how could you go along with something like this?” “Ethan! We are not lying! This is real!” I screamed, tears of frustration and terror streaming down my face. But my desperation had no effect on him. He looked at me with disgust and turned to go back inside. I lunged forward and grabbed his arm. “Ethan, I’m begging you. She’s pregnant. Just… just as a favor to me, please, just go and see for yourself!” My voice broke. “She’s going to die!” He looked down at me, his face an unreadable mask. “Charlotte,” he said, his voice flat. “Your brother explicitly told me not to get involved in your family’s drama.” His words were like a steel spike through my heart. Before Scarlett appeared, Ethan and I had been inseparable. We were childhood friends, practically engaged. But her arrival changed everything. Andre became distant, and so did Ethan. Both of them were utterly captivated by her, doing one foolish thing after another. Ethan once tried to force a girl at his company to change her name just because she was also named Scarlett. Andre’s obsession was worse. He’d driven a competitor to bankruptcy, taking a massive loss, all because Scarlett claimed the company’s CEO had looked at her the wrong way. That was the man whose thugs were in my house right now. I clutched Leo, who was now limp in my arms, and pleaded. “Ethan, please. Just go look. If you go, I promise… I will never bother you again.” 4 Ethan froze. For years, my greatest wish had been to marry him. Even after Scarlett drove a wedge between us, I had never given up on him. Now, hearing those words from me… he knew I wasn’t bluffing. Even his housekeeper, watching from the doorway, looked concerned. “Mr. Hamilton, maybe you should go. Miss Monroe would never joke about something like this.” He hesitated. Seeing my chance, I pressed my advantage, my voice thick with desperation. “Please, Ethan. Save Sophia. I’m begging you.” Finally, a flicker of compassion crossed his face. “Alright,” he sighed. “I’ll go check.” He turned to me, his voice hardening. “But I’m warning you, Charlotte. If I find out this is all some elaborate act, you and your sister-in-law will pay a steep price.” A sliver of hope ignited in my chest. He was finally listening. But just as he was gathering a few of his security guards, his phone rang. He glanced at the screen, then at me, and hit the speakerphone button. Andre’s annoyed voice filled the air. “Is Charlotte over there? Don’t listen to a word she says. Some guy just called me from Sophia’s phone, trying to blackmail me for fifty million dollars or he’d kill my wife and kid. Can you believe the nerve? Women and their jealousy games… they’ll do anything for attention.” The world tilted on its axis. I felt like I was free-falling, my mind a complete blank. I couldn’t believe it. Andre, the brother who had once promised to protect me forever, the husband who had sworn eternal love to Sophia, was now treating our lives like a joke. All for a woman he barely knew. Anger and betrayal surged through me. I snatched the phone. “Andre, are you even human?!” I shrieked into the receiver. “Are you going to wait until we’re all dead before you believe us? Have you forgotten what you saw last time?!” He just scoffed. “Oh, please. You just want Dad to hand the company over to you. You’re a daughter, Charlotte. You’ll marry out of the family eventually. What do you need all that for anyway? Besides, I called the chauffeur. He said everything at the house is fine.” “Last time,” he said, his voice dropping to a venomous whisper, “I made the mistake of trusting you, and it got Scarlett killed. I’m not falling for that again.” 5 His accusations left me speechless. The chauffeur he’d spoken to had taken a leave of absence three days ago; he was hundreds of miles away. Before I could explain, the line went dead. Ethan, who had just agreed to help, now stared at me with pure disgust. “So it really was all a performance,” he said, his voice laced with ice. He gestured to his guards. “Get them out of here. Throw her out. And get rid of this little bastard she brought with her.” Despite the pain radiating through my body, I hugged Leo, who had thankfully passed out, even tighter. “Don’t you dare touch me!” I snarled, my voice shaking with rage. “When my father gets back, he will ruin you!” The guards hesitated, taken aback by my ferocity. Ethan just laughed, a cruel, ugly sound. Then he kicked me. Hard. The blow landed squarely in my chest, sending me and Leo tumbling down the stone steps. I managed to twist my body so he landed on top of me, cushioned from the impact. “Threatening me?” he sneered. “Let’s see who your father helps when he finds out about this pathetic little scheme of yours.” I scrambled backward, horrified. The Ethan before me was a stranger, his face twisted with a coldness I’d never seen. As I tried to get away, he kicked me again. This time, the toe of his expensive leather shoe caught me under the chin, splitting the skin. “This is what liars get,” he hissed. “You’re a Monroe, for God’s sake. Act like it. Instead, you’re playing these pathetic little house games.” He looked down his nose at me. “You’re just as small-minded as your sister-in-law. Neither of you could ever compare to Scarlett.” Tears of pain and humiliation streamed down my face, but he didn’t seem to notice or care. Just then, my phone, which had fallen from my pocket, lit up on the steps. He picked it up, a mocking smile on his face. “What’s this? Your partner-in-crime calling to tell you the gig is up?” He answered it, putting it on speaker again. But it wasn’t Sophia. A calm, professional voice came through the speaker. “Is this Ms. Charlotte Monroe? This is Sergeant Miller with the Crestwood PD. We’ve secured the situation at your residence.” There was a pause. “The intruders have fled. Your sister-in-law… she’s in bad shape. We need to get her to the hospital immediately. Can you meet us there to sign the consent forms?”

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The moment Ethan led me to my seat at our wedding reception—the one designed to kill me—I knew I was done. Nine times, I had replayed this life to win his love. Eight times, I had died at the hands of his adopted sister, Abby, and her murderous little games. This was the closest I’d ever come to succeeding, but the glint of fishing line on the grand clock’s hour hand told me everything. When the hand struck twelve, the taut line would trigger the crossbow hidden in a box below. And I would die. Again. The warmth of Ethan’s hand on my shoulder felt sickening. I tried to pull away, but he leaned in, his lips brushing against my ear. His voice was a soft, cruel whisper. “Be good,” he murmured. “Abby was up all night setting this up. What’s one more try? A tenth time’s the charm, right? I promise, next time, I won’t let her be so naughty.” So he knew. He knew everything. He knew I’d fallen for him nine times, and he knew I’d suffered nine brutal deaths because of Abby’s “pranks.” But there was one thing he didn’t know. This was my last chance. 1 I sank into the chair, numb. A part of me welcomed the release. To die was to finally be free of the pain. Ten seconds left. Abby raised her glass, calling for a toast to the happy couple. Everyone rose to their feet, their faces beaming with genuine joy, their blessings lost in the roaring buzz that filled my head. My vision blurred. Ethan grabbed my arm and pulled me to my feet, positioning me with chilling precision. He made sure my forehead was perfectly aligned with the firing mechanism, ensuring I would meet my end at the peak of my supposed happiness. My eyes fixed on the dark little hole that would swallow my life. I counted down in my head. 10, 9, 8, 7… A manic glee danced in Abby’s eyes. Ethan looked at her with a gaze full of adoration, as if she were the most innocent child in the world. …4, 3, 2, 1, 0! The bolt shot out like a striking viper. A wave of primal fear crashed over me, and I jerked my head to the side. Instead of oblivion, a searing pain tore through my ear. The joyous atmosphere shattered. The room fell into a dead silence. Seeing her “assassination” had failed, Abby slammed her wine glass down at my feet in a fit of pique. Red wine bled into the white silk of my dress. “Why did you move?!” she shrieked. “Do you have any idea how much work I put into recreating the ‘Wedding Murder’ trap? This was the only chance!” Ethan dropped my hand, his face a mask of disappointment. “Why didn’t you just listen? Abby was up all night. Couldn’t you have at least shown her some consideration?” “Consideration? For the fact she stayed up all night planning to murder me?” “You…” Ethan’s voice dropped to a low hiss. “It’s not like you actually die.” But it hurts! Every single time, it hurts! The guests stood frozen, their champagne flutes hovering awkwardly in the air. The standoff was broken by the small, piping voice of a child. “Auntie Aurora’s ear is bleeding!” Blood and tears streamed down my face. A few women rushed forward with handkerchiefs, dabbing frantically at the wound. Only then did Ethan grudgingly grab my arm again. “Let’s go. To the hospital.” A bitter laugh caught in my throat. What am I to you? Some cheap toy for you and your sister to break over and over again? I remember being tied up, a rope connecting my neck to my ankles, slowly strangling myself to the sound of Abby’s innocent laughter. I remember her luring me into a small, dark room, the space filled with a strange hissing. I died of suffocation, crushed against a wall, only to realize later it was the sound of an inflatable castle filling with air. I cried. I fought. I screamed. I tried countless times to prove to Ethan that his sister wanted me dead. He would always just brush it off. “It’s just childish games. How could that hurt anyone?” “She’s my sister. Can’t you just humor her for my sake?” “I’m five years younger than her! Why should I be the one to ‘humor’ her?!” “See? You’re getting worked up over nothing.” Even at my most hysterical, my most broken, I never imagined this. I never thought that he knew, from the very beginning, that I would die these agonizing deaths, again and again. I’d always believed he was just blinded by his love for the precious sister he held so dear. Now, Ethan’s voice was sharp with impatience. “To the hospital! What are you standing there for? You want everyone to see you like this? You want them to blame Abby? You already ruined her plan, are you trying to make her look like the villain, too?” I hadn’t said a word, but he had already spoken my indictment and delivered his verdict. I wrenched my arm from his grasp, turned, and yanked the crossbow bolt from the floral wall behind the main table. It was embedded, with perfect, sickening irony, directly in the heart drawn between my name and his. The bloodied tip gleamed under the chandeliers. I shoved it in Abby’s face. “At my wedding to your brother, what exactly do you think you’re doing? If our marriage bothers you that much, just say so. I’ll give him to you. You don’t have to kill me for it!” The color drained from her face, then flooded back in a blotchy red. “We’re just like brother and sister! What are you talking about?! You’re the one with a sick mind! Besides, this thing can’t even hurt anyone. I can’t be bothered explaining it to someone with no sense of fun!” I pressed the arrowhead against her cheek. “Can’t hurt anyone? Let’s find out.” Before I could apply any pressure, Ethan lunged, his hand clamping around my wrist like a vice. The fury in his eyes was a terrifying inferno I’d never seen before. After all the times Abby had experimented on me—tying me to a windmill, cutting the rope to a crystal chandelier above my head, stretching fishing line across a bike path—the harshest he’d ever been was a soft-spoken “warning” for her not to be so mischievous. The difference between being loved and not being loved was so painfully clear. I stubbornly held onto the bolt. Ethan’s grip tightened. A sharp crack echoed as my wrist bone snapped, and the bolt clattered to the floor. Abby snatched it up, and in a flash of movement, dragged the sharp point across my cheek, leaving a deep gash. Then she darted behind Ethan, peering out at me with wide, innocent eyes. I screamed and lunged for her, but Ethan blocked my path again. “Aurora,” he said, his voice cold as ice. “You started it. You can’t blame Abby for this.” He must have been terrified his precious darling would get hurt. He swept me into his arms, carried me out to the car, and drove me to the hospital. In the sterile white room, Ethan sat by my bed, studying the twenty-something stitches that now marred my face. “Does it hurt?” he asked. My ear, torn and mangled. My wrist, shattered. My face, sliced open and bleeding. This was the grand wedding you promised me, Ethan. And you have the audacity to ask if it hurts? Before I could answer, he continued. “So why did you have to be so stubborn? I told you this was the last time. Why couldn’t you just grant her this one last wish? She came to my family when she was three, always feeling like an outsider. She’s drawn to these things because the child inside her never had a chance to grow up. She’s not trying to hurt you; she’s trying to soothe herself. Once you come back next time, we can help her find an outlet, a new purpose. It would have all been fine.” I pushed myself up, ignoring the shooting pains, and pointed a trembling finger toward the door. “Get out.” My voice was flat, devoid of all emotion. “I can’t ‘love her because I love you.’ And besides, with a brother who dotes on her like you do, how could she ever feel like an outsider? And just so you know, there won’t be a next time.” He let out a long, heavy sigh and took my hand. “Please, don’t say things like that. She’s my sister. I’ve always known nothing could ever happen between us. You don’t need to be jealous. You know you’re the one I love.” But the frustration and regret in his eyes told a different story. It must be painful to be toyed with by fate. I understood that feeling all too well. So, I decided to set them both free. I pulled my hand away and began twisting the wedding ring on my finger, trying to get it over my knuckle. He dropped to one knee beside my bed, his voice pleading. “Aurora, please, stop this. We’ll have another wedding. A better one, even grander than this!” Then, as if he were reciting a vow, or maybe just trying to convince himself, he said, “I remember the first time. When Abby electrocuted you in the tub. The way my heart broke when I found you… that was love, wasn’t it? And the next morning, when I woke up and the day had reset to when we first met, the joy I felt… that was love, too.” The system must have glitched, I realized. It hadn’t wiped his memory. Listening to him list the evidence of his love so calmly, I felt a wave of profound exhaustion and disgust wash over me. Just then, an orderly opened the door to the en-suite bathroom. A moment later, Abby’s hysterical sobs erupted from inside. “You’re begging her, brother?!” Panic flared in Ethan’s eyes. He shot into the bathroom and emerged carrying Abby, then bolted from the room without a second glance. Before I could process what was happening, a sharp, acrid smell drifted into the room. Dizziness washed over me. What was she up to now? I stumbled out of bed and staggered into the hallway, just in time to see Abby curled in Ethan’s arms on the stairwell, sobbing like a lost child. “You just left with her! You’re abandoning me, aren’t you?! Fine! Then let’s just die together!” She had disguised herself as an orderly to sneak into my room, mixed disinfectant and toilet cleaner to create toxic gas, all to stage this dramatic, tragic love scene. And there they sat, clinging to each other on the stairs, a perfect portrait of star-crossed lovers. As if I didn’t even exist. Ethan gently tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear and cupped her tear-streaked face. “We’ll have another wedding for Aurora,” he soothed. “And I’ll help you build another device, a better one. Just for her. Please don’t be sad anymore, okay?” But Abby only cried harder. “Go ahead! Go be happy with her! Why do you even care about me?! And what’s the point? The trick has been revealed! We could do it ten more times and it wouldn’t be the same! That perfect moment is gone forever, and it’s your fault! You owe me this!” Seeing her like this, Ethan looked as though his heart was being torn to shreds. His eyes were wild with panic and self-reproach. Without a moment’s hesitation, the words tumbled out of his mouth. “Whatever you want. Tell me how you want her to die, and I’ll make it happen.”

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After the long holiday weekend, my wife had her assistant, Leo, host the company’s back-to-work party. I got lucky and won third prize in the raffle—$500. Leo immediately started egging me on, insisting I treat the entire company to dinner. At the restaurant, the staff swarmed Leo, raising their glasses to him, praising his generosity. I, the one who was supposedly hosting, was left completely on the sidelines. After the meal, Leo, his breath thick with alcohol, slid a stack of receipts in front of me. When I saw the total, I calmly pulled out my phone and dialed my wife. “Zoe, I need you to wire fifty thousand to my account.” 1 The table fell silent. Everyone put down their chopsticks, their eyes locked on me. The phone rang for a good fifteen seconds before she picked up. Her voice exploded through the speaker. “Sebastian, have you been drinking? Did you forget your own name?” I glanced at Leo, who was smirking beside me. “I haven’t had a drop,” I said coolly. “My mind is perfectly clear.” The screaming on the other end intensified. “Who gave you the nerve to ask me for money?” I rubbed my ear, my voice flat. “You should ask your assistant about that. He threw a company dinner in my name. The bill…” She hung up before I could finish. Leo’s grin stretched from ear to ear. “Mr. McKinnon, you’re the famous son-in-law of the Croft family. Don’t tell me you can’t even cover fifty thousand?” He raised his glass, his eyes dancing with malicious glee. “I guess some people are just born to be kept men.” I looked at him, my face a blank mask, and let out a cold chuckle. “So, what you’re saying, Leo, is that I’m disposable to this company?” He saw me walking right into his trap, and his grin widened. “What do you think? Every single person at this table is more capable than you. If you weren’t married to the chairwoman, you would’ve been fired years ago! Keeping a waste of space like you on the payroll is just a drain on resources.” I slowly raised a single finger. “No, no. I think you’ve misunderstood something.” Leo looked surprised by my confidence. “Misunderstood what? Don’t tell me you think the Croft Corporation can’t survive without you?” A slow smile spread across my lips. I gave him a small nod. “You’re absolutely right.” “If I walk away from this company, it’s only a matter of time before it collapses.” The words hung in the air for a moment, and then the table erupted. “Oh my god, is he drunk? The Croft Corporation is a Fortune 500 company! How could it possibly fail because of one useless freeloader?” “Exactly! He just leeches off his connection to the chairwoman, wandering around doing nothing all day and collecting a paycheck for three years.” “It’s disgusting. How can a man be so shameless? He has no dignity at all!” The insults grew louder, but I didn’t care. Because every word I had spoken was the absolute truth. The Croft Corporation’s transformation from a tiny firm with a dozen employees to a publicly traded giant with thousands was entirely my doing. Or rather, it was because of the resources behind me. It had nothing to do with the woman they called the chairwoman. Three years ago, Arthur Croft, the company’s founder, traveled all the way from Boston to New York City with an old marriage pact, begging my father to honor a promise made long ago. I had just graduated from college and didn’t understand the nuances of social standing or family alliances. All I knew was that I couldn’t defy my father’s wishes. I never imagined that after single-handedly building this empire for them, they would turn around and call me a waste of space. The thought sent a surge of anger through me. I decided right then and there to find Arthur Croft and ask him if his family was planning on burning this bridge. If he couldn’t give me a satisfactory explanation, I had no problem sending the Croft Corporation right back to where it was three years ago. “Stop!” I had just turned to leave when Leo’s voice cut through the noise. “You think you can just walk out of here, McKinnon?” I turned back slowly, meeting his gaze. “What is it, Leo? Do you have further instructions for me?” He stared at me with a wicked smile. “We all agreed this dinner was on you. Everyone is waiting for you to pay the bill.” My fists clenched. My eyes narrowed. “And what if I don’t?” Leo snapped his fingers. A couple of big guys who had been lingering by the door instantly moved to block my path. “Let me be straight with you, Mr. McKinnon,” Leo sneered. “My brother-in-law owns this place. If you try to skip out on the bill… you might have to leave something behind.” 2 Leo’s threat sent a fresh wave of excitement through the room. Most of the employees were smirking, eager to see the show. Only a few colleagues I was closer with shot me worried glances. In that moment, I truly understood what it meant to be kicked when you’re down. I remembered when I first joined the company. Everyone was so respectful, calling me “Mr. McKinnon.” Now, as Leo humiliated me, not a single person dared to speak up in my defense. It was clear to me that the company had grown too big, too fast, in these three years. Leo saw me standing motionless and gave me a hard shove. “Hey, I’m talking to you, McKinnon! Are you deaf?” I just smiled, completely unruffled. “You’re just an executive assistant. Do you really think you speak for the entire company?” He raised an eyebrow, his expression dripping with contempt. “I don’t think you grasp the severity of your situation, do you? Even your own wife won’t bail you out now. With the pathetic salary you make, how are you possibly going to come up with fifty thousand dollars tonight?” I couldn’t help but laugh out loud. “Who ever told you that Sebastian McKinnon needed a woman to support him?” Seeing me stand up to Leo, a few employees at the table decided to chime in. “Well, well, well, listen to the big talk. It’s just the little dog the Croft family keeps on a leash.” “Exactly. Acts like a big shot with empty pockets. You’ve completely ruined the mood for everyone!” “If Ms. Croft finds out about this, you probably won’t even be allowed back in the house tonight, will you?” They laughed and jeered, clearly enjoying themselves. I quietly made a mental note of their names. “If I’m not mistaken,” I said, my voice cutting through their laughter, “you three were in on this with Leo from the start, weren’t you?” As a top-tier investor, sharp observation is a basic skill. From the moment the raffle started, I’d noticed them exchanging glances with Leo. The company rules explicitly state that the raffle is fair for all employees, regardless of position. Yet somehow, this group managed to win all the major prizes, while I conveniently won the one that would put me in this exact situation. It was an obvious setup. The only pitiful one was my CEO wife, who was probably still completely in the dark. “What are you talking about? We have nothing to do with Leo!” one of them sputtered. “That’s right! We just can’t stand watching a freeloader like you act all high and mighty!” My gaze swept over them, a cold smile on my face. “It’s a little late for that performance, don’t you think? Can any of you swear that Leo didn’t rig today’s raffle?” “I’ll rig your damn face!” Leo roared, the accusation hitting a nerve. He rolled up his sleeves and lunged at me. “What’s this?” I sidestepped him easily. “Did I hit a little too close to home? Is someone getting nervous?” Leo threw a few more wild punches, but he couldn’t even touch the hem of my jacket. He was furious. “Stand still and fight, you coward! You want me to have you fired right here, right now?” I didn’t fight back. I just dodged and deflected. It wasn’t because I was afraid of him. It was because the real mastermind hadn’t shown up yet. From what I knew of Leo, he wasn’t smart enough to orchestrate this whole charade by himself. Seeing my lack of response, Leo took it as a sign of weakness and charged again. Just as his fist was about to connect, the private room door was thrown open. “Ms. Croft! What are you doing here?”

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