Traveling Star

I died in the terrifying plunge of Flight 815. But when I opened my eyes, I was lying in a luxurious bathtub, completely unharmed. The door opened, and my husband Jordi walked in—looking fifteen years older, his eyes glacial. He pinned me to the wall, his thumb pressing against my windpipe, demanding to know who hired me to play his dead wife. I managed to prove I was the real Isadora, biologically still twenty-eight years old. But my nightmare had just begun. My twenty-three-year-old son Hector looked at my unaged face with pure hatred. "Get this cheap replica out of my father's house, or I'll have him declared incompetent!" My twenty-year-old daughter Blossom, now a spoiled stranger treating Jordi like a personal ATM, screamed at me over the phone. Even Jordi's ambitious female colleague showed up at our estate, treating me like a temporary toy she could easily replace. In the space of a single breath, I had lost fifteen years. My children had grown up without me, learning to hate instead of grieve. Now, they looked at their real mother as if I were a monster trying to steal my own inheritance. But I didn't return from the dead just to be pushed out. I put on my old green silk dress, stepped in front of the female executive, and smiled. If they want to treat me like a threat, I'll fight them all to get my family back.

I spent three years as the silent architect of the Maynard family’s fortune, bound by an iron-clad NDA that turned me into a ghost. As Calhoun’s wife, I was the "silent asset," the one who saved their empire from the shadows while they took the bows and the credit. The betrayal started in a boardroom when my life's work was publicly handed to my incompetent brother-in-law, Conrad. But the real knife came later that night at the victory gala. I caught Calhoun in a VIP lounge, whispering promises to his sister-in-law, Bianca, as they plotted to strip me of my voting shares. When I tried to walk away, the Maynards struck. Bianca faked a pregnancy and threw herself in front of a car, framing me for attempted murder. My father-in-law gave me a brutal choice: rot in prison for fifteen years or sign an annulment forfeiting my inheritance, my identity, and my mother’s last sapphire necklace. They threw me out into a midnight storm with nothing but a trash bag of old rags. I knelt in the mud, watching the gates of the estate slam shut, realizing my entire marriage had been a transaction and I was finally out of stock. How could they steal my work, my name, and the only memory of my mother I had left? As I collapsed on the side of a dark road, a black Rolls Royce cut through the rain. Julian Montgomery, the Maynards’ most ruthless rival, stepped out and draped his cashmere coat over my shivering shoulders. He looked at me not with pity, but with predatory interest. I looked back and whispered the only thing that mattered. "Leverage."

My husband, the man I saved from a suicide attempt and built an empire for, was forcing me to kneel on frozen peas. My crime? A splash of cream in my coffee. This was all for his new "soulmate," a vegan influencer named Kassie, who had moved into our home and declared war on all animal products. The cruelty escalated. He kidnapped my ailing father, torturing him over his hobby of building birdhouses, then used my father' s life to blackmail me into silence. Then, at a gala, he left me for dead in the path of a raging bear to save Kassie. As he turned his back, leaving me to be mauled, I realized the man I loved was gone, replaced by a monster. But I survived, saved by a mysterious stranger. And as I healed, I remembered the one weapon he'd forgotten: the ironclad prenup that gave me a controlling interest in his billion-dollar company. He thought he had broken me, but he had just given me the means to burn his empire to the ground.

I am the sole heiress to a Texas oil empire. To protect me, my father adopted seven boys who were meant to be my future, and I was in love with their leader, Jax, my intended fiancé. But it was all a lie. I overheard them confess they were only playing along to secure my fortune for Daisy-Mae, the girl Jax truly loved. The humiliation was relentless. Jax sabotaged my saddle, breaking my leg. He publicly shamed me at an auction, buying a million-dollar necklace for her after freezing my funds. The final blow came at my birthday party, where a private video of me crying over him was broadcast to hundreds of guests. He did it all for her. Even when I exposed Daisy-Mae's plot, he confessed to her crimes to protect her, then offered to marry me as a bribe to buy my silence. He thought he still had power over me. But in front of everyone, I looked him in the eye and delivered the killing blow. "I stopped loving you a long time ago, Jax." Then I turned to the one man who had defended me, Sterling Prescott, and announced, "The man I'm going to marry is him."

After my family's business collapsed, I married my first love's older brother. On the wedding day, even though Jase Mitchell begged me with tears, I never looked back. Four years later, my husband Kade Mitchell passed away from illness, and his stepmother Katie Fuller drove me and my son out of the Mitchell family. Desperate and with nowhere to turn, I knocked on Jase's door. His tone was playful and teasing. "What brings you here, sister-in-law?" I hid my emotions and stepped closer. This time, I would make Katie's son return the stolen inheritance with his own hands.

My life was simple, if a little messy, running a tech repair shop, but I had everything that mattered: my wife, Olivia, and our five-year-old son, Leo. Then, Olivia left for her sister' s funeral, promising to return. She didn' t. I later found her living a new, lavish life, engaged to her dead sister' s wealthy fiancé. When I confronted her, begging for answers, her bodyguards brutally beat me. In the chaos, Leo darted into the street and was struck by a car. He died in my arms in the pouring rain, while Olivia watched, emotionless. "He was a mistake," she said, her voice like ice, offering me a paltry sum to disappear. Daniel Thorne, her fiancé, then stabbed me, leaving me for dead beside my son' s body. As darkness consumed me, I felt nothing but utter despair and a burning hatred for the woman I had once loved. But then, my eyes opened. I was in my own bed, in our small apartment. And from the other side of the room, I heard a small cough. Leo was playing with his blocks, alive and well. Olivia walked in, suitcase in hand, ready to leave for that funeral. I had been given a second chance, a do-over. This time, Olivia Reed would pay.

For three years, my marriage to Liam Hayes was a meticulously spun fairytale, built on our family' s business deal and his seemingly perfect devotion. Then, on our third anniversary, Chloe Davis, his childhood sweetheart, messaged him, shattering the fragile illusion. Liam publicly abandoned me, leaving me alone at a gala to chase after a woman who later accused me of assault, an incident he believed without question. The man I loved, the one who whispered sweet nothings, openly dismissed me as merely "a means to an end" for his company and public image. I found myself heartbroken and pregnant, forced into an unimaginable choice because of his callous betrayal. He dismissed my pain, my very existence, all while protecting Chloe and his perfect public facade. When I was brutally attacked by his enemy, his primary concern wasn't my well-being, but how my hospitalization might inconvenience his carefully constructed life and reputation. His words, "She's resilient. She'll recover. And then we can move forward. But for now, I have to play the part of the concerned husband," echoed in the sterile hospital room-a final, gut-wrenching confirmation of my insignificance to him. How could he be so blind, so utterly devoid of empathy for the woman who bore his secret child? The rage that ignited within me was a revelation, burning away the last vestiges of my love and despair. I wouldn't just leave; I would erase him from my life, starting with a one-way ticket to London and a silent promise of reclamation.

The gallery was my dream, my soul poured onto vibrant canvases. My fiancé, Mark, stood by my side, whispering promises of our future, of a life built on art and love. Then came the searing pain, a blinding agony that stole my breath and sent me crashing to the cold, hard floor. My hands came away wet and red, and the world blurred around the edges. I woke in a hospital bed, the pain a dull throb. Two voices drifted from the hallway, sharp and urgent: Mark and Chloe, my best friend. "Did you get the portfolio? The final design?" Mark' s cold voice cut through my haze. "Yes, of course," Chloe replied, pride lacing her tone. "My gallery opening will be the talk of the town. No one will even remember Ava's little project." My heart froze. Her gallery, my designs. Then Mark added, "Just make sure no one connects this back to you. It needs to look like a random mugging." This wasn' t a random mugging. This was planned by the man I was supposed to marry, the man who had held me just last night. A new, deeper pain ripped through me, and a nurse rushed in, her face a mask of concern. "We did everything we could, but... you've lost the baby." Our baby. The secret I was going to share with Mark tonight. The doctor' s words finally broke me. The future, my art, my child-all gone, destroyed by their greed. Mark, this isn't just a breakup. This is war. Later, they came to my room, performing their roles with false pity. Mark mused about the "random mugging" story, calculating its narrative. Then the doctor returned, his face grave. "We had to perform an emergency hysterectomy to save your life. You won't be able to carry a child, Ava." They hadn't just stolen my art or my baby. They had stolen my entire future. Mark returned, bringing flowers and feigned remorse. I overheard him raging at Chloe on the phone, blaming her for the "mess," for the "permanent damage" that might "blow back on him." His concern wasn't for me, but for his reputation, his precious plan. He returned, took my hand, and tried to spin a new lie. "We can't tell anyone the full extent of this, Ava. It's for your privacy. We control the story." He saw me as a problem to be managed. I just stared at him, letting him believe I was too broken to see the truth. Let him think he was still in control. It would make his downfall all the more satisfying. Then came the settlement offer: money for my silence, a non-disclosure agreement naming Chloe as a party to the "unfortunate accident." The audacity was breathtaking. I looked at him, at his soft, encouraging smile, and then I looked at the name on the papers-Chloe Devereaux. "Get out," I said, my voice low. His smile vanished, replaced by the cold businessman underneath. He snatched the papers and stormed out, leaving me alone. He expected weakness, tears, and compliance. He had underestimated me. And that was going to be his biggest mistake. Two days later, Mark returned, Chloe by his side, pale and nervous. She dropped to her knees, sobbing theatrically. "I am so, so sorry, Ava," she cried, reaching for my blanket. "I don't know what came over me." I pulled away. She began hitting herself, pathetically. "I'm a monster! I deserve to be punished!" Mark put a hand on her shoulder. "You see, Ava? She's distraught. All we are asking for is your forgiveness. And your signature." I closed my eyes. Then I saw it: around Chloe' s neck, my unique pearl necklace, the one Mark had bought for me. The evidence was blatant. They weren't just business partners; they were together. This was personal. They were flaunting it. "Just sign the papers, Ava," Mark's voice was sharp. "End this now." "No," I whispered. Chloe scrambled up and slammed her head against the wall, a sickening thud. Mark roared, "Look what you've done! Is this what you want? Your stubbornness is cruel, Ava!" He was blaming me. Something inside me snapped. "Fine," I choked out, tears flowing freely. "Fine. You win." My hand shook as I signed. But as my pen touched the paper, a new thought solidified: This wasn't a surrender. It was a strategic retreat. I was free to plan my revenge. The city lights glittered below Mark' s penthouse. Chloe, in a silk robe, raised her champagne glass. "To us. To my new gallery. And… I'm pregnant, Mark." He genuinely beamed. A frantic pounding shattered the moment. Leo, Mark's head of security, stood at the door, pale and soaked. "Mark… it's Ava. There was a fire at the safe house. She didn't make it out." Mark just stared, then collapsed. He unraveled completely, lunging at Chloe, slapping her. "This is your fault! You did this!" he roared. "Ava was my wife!" He didn't care that they were only engaged. Broken, Mark begged Leo to take him to the scene, clinging to a desperate hope it was a mistake. At the burned-out house, a fire captain handed Mark an evidence bag. Inside was a silver bracelet with a jade lotus charm. Her grandmother's bracelet. She never took it off. The final proof. A terrible animal wail tore from Mark's throat. "I did this! I killed her!" he sobbed to the universe, collapsing to his knees. "Ava!" he screamed into the night. "Come back and punish me! Please!" The only answer was the silence of the rain and embers. Days later, Mark was still at the scene, smoking, a hollow shell. Leo, frustrated, spat at him, "You destroyed the best thing that ever happened to you for a cheap, manipulative tramp!" Mark mumbled, "She wasn't who I thought she was. She had a past. Chloe showed me proof. Pictures. Text messages. She said Ava was just using me for my money." "You idiot!" Leo raged. "Those pictures were fake! Chloe set the whole thing up because she wanted you!" The truth, brutal and stark, finally pierced through Mark's grief. He had been played, manipulated. He had thrown away a diamond for broken glass. He crumpled, sobbing quietly. "What have I done?" Leo watched him, then returned to his car and called me. "It's done," he said. "He knows. He completely believes you're gone." I was alive, in a warm, charming flower shop, arranging bouquets. The fire, the body, the bracelet-all a meticulously staged deception. I knew Mark' s money and influence would bury any legal case. My only path to freedom was to die. Leo, the only one I trusted, had arranged everything. My death had to be absolute, brutal enough to shatter Mark's world, forcing his confession. I was no longer Ava the victim. I was Ava the survivor. And my new life had just begun. Six months later, Leo visited my shop. "Mark is… away. Indefinitely," he said, revealing Mark had checked into a psychiatric facility. Then Ethan, my employee, walked in, his smile easy and bright. He was kind, hardworking, with a subtle protectiveness in his eyes. Leo noticed it too. "He looks at you like you're the sun, Ava," Leo smirked. Later, at a noisy bar, Leo revealed Ethan was from old money. "Don't let the ghosts of the past cheat you out of a future," Leo advised. He then shared Mark's final act: discovering Chloe's fake paternity test, her affair, and dismantling her life, piece by piece. She got twenty years. I felt… nothing. My justice wasn't in their ruin. It was here, in this bar, with the possibility of a simple, quiet life. Weeks later, Ethan landed my shop a massive contract, transforming it into a serious enterprise. He was writing his love letter in purchase orders and logistics plans. I knew I had to tell him everything. At the hotel launch party, I saw him. Mark. Gaunt, a shadow. Our eyes met. He stared, then the glass slipped from his fingers. "Ava," he whispered, tears streaming. "You're alive." He stumbled towards me, desperate hope in his eyes. I took a step back. "Do I know you?" I asked, my voice cool. "My name is Claire." Leo appeared, his hand on Mark's shoulder. "You're seeing things, Mark," he said, steering him away. "Her name is Claire. You're confused." Ethan stood beside me. "He seemed to really think he knew you," he said. "He did. He was my fiancé, Mark." "I know," Ethan said. "Leo told me everything. About Mark, Chloe, the attack, and why you can't have children." He knew. All this time. And he had never treated me like I was broken. He took my hand. "None of it matters. Your past doesn't define you. And whether or not we can have kids... that has nothing to do with why I'm falling in love with you." Tears streamed. "There's something else you should know," he added, pulling up his sleeve. A thin scar. "It's a contraceptive implant. I never wanted kids. I just want to find one person to build a life with. Just you, Ava." My armor melted. He embraced all of me, light and dark. "Okay, Ethan," I said, my voice thick with happy tears. "Let's build a life."

My father placed the bank card on the table, calling me the "most capable" in the family, entrusting me with their retirement. I knew it wasn't trust; it was a trap, a way to access my money through guilt. My brother, Liam, smirked, reinforcing their expectation that my success was a family resource – primarily for him. The peace shattered less than a week later when Liam demanded $50,000 for another failed business venture. When I refused, citing his past failures, he escalated, claiming I was hoarding family money. My parents, instead of defending me, sided with him, pressuring me to give in. The climax arrived when Liam physically assaulted me in my apartment, and my own father destroyed my phone to cover it up, blaming me for the outburst. How could my family side with my abuser, enabling his irresponsibility while erasing evidence of his violence? The injustice ignited a cold rage, burning away years of fear and restraint. I grabbed the largest kitchen knife I owned, and with a voice shaking with fury, screamed, "Get out of my house!" The next day, they launched a public smear campaign at my office, accusing me of stealing and being a heartless monster. But I was done being their victim; I was ready to fight back. I challenged them to a live stream, promising to expose every financial transaction and reveal the police report for assault. The game had changed, and I was about to unleash a truth they never expected.

The sterile white hallway of the hospital echoed with the sickening crack of bone. It was my bone, shattered by Daniel Hayes, the man who once swore to cherish me. He'd just slammed my hand against the wall, shielding my ex-best friend, Chloe Davis, who feigned tears behind him. Chloe, the architect of my ruin, had twisted Daniel's amnesia, painting me as a gold-digger and our son, Ethan, as a child of questionable paternity. Daniel, stripped of memory, looked at me with cold fury, then at our infant son with contempt. "Get out," he spat, threatening security. My son, innocent in his bassinet, was disowned. The man who wept with joy at our ultrasound now called his own son a bastard, even shoving Ethan's high chair over, causing a severe injury. His cruelty knew no bounds; I sold our last symbol of love, my engagement ring, for Ethan's surgery, only for Daniel to steal our son at gunpoint. My pleas fell on deaf ears; the police sided with the powerful CEO, and a fabricated court order made me an unfit mother. How could he forget everything? How could he believe such monstrous lies? The man I loved was gone, replaced by a ruthless stranger determined to erase me. But a mother's rage is a force no amnesia can quell. With nothing left to lose, I swore to take back my son, even if it meant tearing down the empire he'd built on our shattered past.

My fiancé, Warden Rex Thorne, was the most powerful man in the state, and I was about to marry him. His promotion party glowed with our future. Then, a shattering scream. Rex' s stepsister, Brenda, stumbled in, clothes torn, pointing a shaking finger at me. "She attacked me! She said she' d kill me!" The room went silent. Rex' s eyes, once full of love, turned to ice. Without a single question, he declared, "You are no longer my fiancée. You are an inmate." He sentenced me to ten years in the chilling, forgotten Old Wing of Blackstone Penitentiary. No trial. No defense. Just banishment by the man I loved, based on a single, venomous lie. How could he believe such a monstrous accusation without a shred of doubt? What dark secret was Brenda hiding to wield such power? My life, once bathed in promised happiness, was now swallowed by the shadows of a brutal prison, where every day was a fight for survival, and the truth was buried deeper than any grave. But in the darkness, a silent protector would emerge, and together, we would uncover the shocking conspiracy that stole my life.

"Daddy, are we really not going?" my daughter Chloe asked, her eyes big and hopeful, clutching the beautiful dress she was supposed to wear to the Memorial Day gala with her mother. My wife, Congresswoman Ava Hayes, had just called, her voice crisp and professional, claiming a last-minute, critical political function with donors. But I saw the disappointment in Chloe's trembling lip, and I knew I had to make it right for her. So, against Ava's instructions, I took Chloe to the gala, hoping for a special surprise night for my little girl. When we arrived, the grand D.C. estate was buzzing with national news cameras, and there, bathed in a spotlight on a massive stage, was my wife Ava. She wasn't at a "critical function" – she was standing next to her Chief of Staff, Mark, publicly introducing him and his son Liam as her "husband" and "our wonderful son." My world tilted, and a cold dread washed over me as Chloe whispered, "Daddy, why is Mommy with Mr. Mark? And why is she calling Liam her son?" I confronted Ava, demanding to know why she was pretending another man's son was hers, when our daughter, Chloe, stood right there beside me. She didn't miss a beat, her smile replaced by a mask of cold fury as she shrieked, "Security! This man is a disturbed constituent! He's been harassing my family!" The crowd, a sea of D.C. elites, jeered, calling me a "stalker" and a "nobody," as Mark put a protective arm around Ava, playing the devoted husband. Then, a text from Ava buzzed on my phone, citing our sacred "Veto Card" to cover this grotesque betrayal for the "campaign," twisting our most intimate promise into a tool of deceit. But the deepest cut came when Chloe, wanting to defend me, ran forward, only for Liam, Mark's son, to shove her back, her head hitting a marble planter. Chloe's cry of pain echoed, and blood trickled from her forehead as Ava shielded Liam, glaring at me with icy eyes, "Stop harassing a child!" Mark, with a patronizing smirk, threw a platinum credit card at my feet, telling me to "get lost" before he had me arrested. As I cradled my bleeding daughter, hearing her whimper, "Mommy doesn't want me anymore," something inside me snapped. The quiet, unassuming stay-at-home dad was gone, replaced by a profound rage that demanded retribution, a quiet fury about to turn the world upside down.

I gave him seven years. Seven years of unwavering support, sacrificing my Georgetown scholarship and a promising career to stand by Carter's side. But at Thanksgiving dinner, while his mother gifted his "friend" Sofia a vintage Chanel bag, my reward was a $20 Starbucks gift card. Then, Sofia moved in, and Carter gave her our master bedroom, relegating me to a cramped guest room. My shock turned to horror when Sofia, fully aware of my life-threatening nut allergy, served me pesto pasta, and Carter forced me to eat it. As I gasped for air, he sneered, "Drama, all for attention." He defended her, even after she gleefully destroyed my deceased grandmother's locket. He then accused me of being violent and crazy, kicking me out of my own home. How could the man I loved for seven years betray me so shamelessly, side with a clear manipulator, and dismiss my suffering as an act? Was I truly just a placeholder, a temporary distraction until his "true love" returned from Europe? The pain wasn't just heartbreak; it was a profound injustice. I wouldn't just disappear. Armed with clarity and a quiet fury, I walked away, not to mourn, but to reclaim the ambitious woman he tried to erase. And when he inevitably came crawling back, offering millions to buy my forgiveness, he'd learn that some things, once broken, can never be bought back.

I just received my SAT scores. Top percentile. A golden ticket to an Ivy League and a desperate escape from my perpetually unsettling family life. But at dinner, even a hint of my triumph was met with a cold, disgusted stare from my father. He snarled, accusing me of insensitivity towards my “struggling” cousin, Jessica—his latest obsession—then banished me to our stifling, dusty basement “to reflect.” A severe asthmatic, I quickly realized Jessica had deliberately sealed the tiny window, knowing the heat and dust would trigger an attack. My frantic pleas for help and my life-saving inhaler were met with mocking laughter from upstairs as my parents drove away, leaving me to suffocate. Every desperate attempt to call 911 or my grandma was mysteriously disconnected or sent back as a fake "pocket dial"—Jessica had intercepted and sabotaged my only lifelines, even bribing our housekeeper to ensure I wouldn't be helped. How could my own parents so readily believe her lies and abandon me to such a cruel fate? The chilling realization that a deliberate murder attempt was unfolding, orchestrated by my cousin and enabled by my family, was a betrayal deeper than the suffocating darkness around me. Yet, through sheer defiance, I clawed my way back from the brink of death, miraculously receiving new lungs. And when I finally walked out of the hospital, I knew my true fight had just begun. Jessica’s reign of terror was over. The truth would come out, and I would finally reclaim my life.

Elena died on the operating table, betrayed by her husband, her unborn child already gone. But death? Just her intermission. She woke up in a whole new world-a beastmen's world, where females are rarer than diamonds and the strongest males go mad without a woman's mark to calm them down. And her? Labelled the weakest female alive. An F-rank body with a joke of a status. But hidden inside? Unlimited mental power. Just as she's figuring out this mess, a system pops up with one hell of an offer: Complete the missions. Bond with assigned males. Save this world. Do all that, and you get a one-way ticket back home. for revenge. Sounds simple? Think again. A Wolf General, colder than a blizzard, who should have ended her-ended up letting her mark him. A Fox Prince, all charming smiles and secret schemes, who started playing games only to lose his own heart. A golden Dragon, sunshine-bright and fiercely possessive, who declares her his destined treasure. A shadowy Serpent, too patient and too dangerous, watching her every move from the dark. A Phoenix King, whose love burns so hot he'd reduce empires to cinders for her. They all need her mark. They all want her. And sharing? Not in their vocabulary. Too bad for them- She's not here for love stories. She's here to survive. To climb. To turn their legendary power into her own stepping stones. And one day. To go back and make her betrayers wish they were never born.

The sensation of falling wasn't like flying; it was heavy, violent, and smelled of burning flesh. Above us, on the crumbling balcony of the Sears manor, Duke Cato Sears turned his back, shielding his cousin Bianca from the smoke as he walked away, leaving my sister Blossom and me to drop into the abyss. As the darkness slammed shut like an iron door, I realized my entire life had been a cruel script written by the people I called family. In my first life, I was the sacrificial lamb of the Dawson manor, sold to a man who eventually watched me die without blinking. My sister Blossom had pushed me into Cato's arms to avoid his rumors, only to laugh when the fire finally consumed us both. My father had measured my value like a piece of livestock, and my step-grandmother didn't even acknowledge my existence while I was being led to the slaughter. I died in that fire, feeling the heat scorch my skin and the weight of a hatred so potent it tasted like bile. I spent twenty years being the weak, manipulated shadow of a girl, only to end up as nothing more than a phantom scorch mark on a "hero's" estate. I couldn't understand why my own blood treated my life like a game they could discard. The injustice of it all burned hotter than the flames that took my last breath. Then, I sat up, sucking in air that tasted of lavender and air conditioning, not smoke. I was back in my bedroom, three days before the engagement ball that ruined my life. Blossom stood at the door, her "sweet" mask slipping as she tried to manipulate me into the Duke's path again. She thought she was the only one who had come back, but she didn't realize that this time, I was going to let her have exactly what she wanted: the Duke, the bankruptcy, and the living hell that awaited her in that house.

A sharp pain shot through my head, pulling me from a deep darkness. I opened my eyes to my luxury penthouse, but I shouldn't have been there. I remembered dying. The memory was cold and sharp: my protégé, Dustin, sold me out, and my husband, Graves, watched our company crumble, leading to my fatal heart attack. Then, Graves appeared, his charming, empty smile unchanged. But he wasn't alone. A young woman, Alex Salazar, stood behind him, clutching her cheap handbag. Graves introduced her as an intern, saying she had nowhere to stay and would be living with us. My eyes fell to her neck, where a dark hickey was partially hidden. The date on the nightstand confirmed it: I had traveled back in time to the exact day Graves brought Alex home in my previous life, the beginning of my long, painful nightmare. Last time, I had screamed and thrown things, starting my humiliation. A strange calm washed over me. I had been given a second chance, not to win him back, but to escape. "Of course," I said, my voice even, "The poor thing. We should take care of her." Graves looked surprised, then relieved. He thought he had won. "In fact," I continued, pulling out divorce papers, "I'll make sure she's comfortable. You just have one small thing to do for me." I wanted the Malibu property. "Give me that, and I'll walk away quietly. You can have your new life. You can take care of this... orphan."

The screams of the "Proving" ceremony were the first thing I heard when I woke up. My eyes shot open, and the scent of pine, sweat, and something metallic filled my lungs. I was back in this godforsaken survivalist compound, mysteriously transported from my office job. A hand grabbed my arm, and it was Gabrielle Chadwick, or Gabby, her terrified eyes pleading. "Molly, help me! Please! They're going to hurt me!" This was the ritual where young men would strike unmarried women with leather belts, and the one enduring the most blows was deemed "most desired." In my past life, I shielded Gabby, taking every blow for her, believing I was protecting a friend. My sacrifice made me the "most honored," granting me first choice of a partner, and I chose Caleb Scott, the compound leader' s son. But my life with Caleb was a private hell of control and brutality, while Gabby, seething with resentment for what she thought was her rightful place, pretended to be my friend. She eventually got her revenge, pushing me off a cliff during a foraging trip. Now, reborn at the start of that same horrifying ceremony, Gabby was playing the same part, her hand clamping my arm, her voice a desperate plea for me to be her shield again. I looked at her, at the calculated fear in her eyes, remembering the sharp, final impact of falling. Not this time.

I stood in the Royal Hall, clutching a glass of warm champagne while watching Senator Levine laugh. To the crowd, he was a pillar of the community; to me, he was the parasite who had already destroyed my life once. In my past life, this gala was the night the monarchy began to bleed. Levine successfully planted his cameras, the Vance empire funded a coup, and the kingdom I loved was sold off to the highest bidder. I lived through the consequences of my silence. I watched my sister, Seraphina, die in childbirth because the medical supplies were intercepted by traitors. I watched the man I loved, Duke Elliot, stripped of his titles and branded a criminal. I spent my final days in a damp, freezing cell, listening to the executioner sharpen his blade while the people cheered for our demise. The injustice burned in my throat like lye. I died wondering how I could have been so naive, how I could have let these monsters walk among us while I played the part of a perfect, quiet wife. Why did the gods let the wicked prosper while my family’s blood watered the palace gardens? What would I have given for just one chance to strike first? Then, the world shifted. I opened my eyes to find myself back at the gala, the scent of sandalwood and rain surrounding me as Elliot rested a possessive hand on my back. I wasn't just a Duchess anymore; I was a ghost from a future that would never happen, and I was ready to erase every name on my list.

The stale smell of burnt coffee and dread filled the air. I knew this night. The final, all-night document review for a billion-dollar merger. Last time, my husband, Mark, the senior partner, abandoned his post for his intern mistress, Chloe, after she ruined critical documents. Their negligence cost us the deal and ruined Mr. Thompson, our biggest client. They pinned it all on me. I was disbarred, sued into oblivion, and died poor and alone, while Mark and Chloe thrived, protected by her powerful family. Now, I was back. Reborn on the worst night of my life, with only four hours to save everything. But the past was insistent. Chloe, with her shrill apologies, again spilled coffee-this time directly onto the irreplaceable signature page. Mark, predictably, jumped to defend her, leaving the crucial filing to comfort his "distressed" mistress. "Chloe needs me!" he hissed, as his phone blared with her manipulative threats: "If you don't come to me this second, I'm going to the clinic! I'll get rid of it!" He shoved me aside, spitting, "The firm has malpractice insurance for a reason." And just like last time, he was gone, leaving chaos in his wake. How could a man jeopardize a billion-dollar deal, his reputation, and his client' s legacy for a flighty intern? How could such selfish, incompetent people rise to power while I was destroyed? This time, I wouldn't just watch. I wouldn't break. With pain in my heart and hip, I walked to the head of the abandoned table. The game had changed. This time, I' d take the lead. And this time, I wouldn' t just survive-I' d make sure they burned for it.

In a world where shadows dance, ordinary Elara's life is irrevocably altered when she crosses paths with Alessandro, a powerful man. Their forbidden love ignites a dangerous flame, tested by secrets and external forces. He's darkness in a tailored suit. She's the light he was never meant to touch. Elara never meant to fall for him let alone crave him. But in the heart of Sicily, under the moonlit heat of his touch, Alessandro De Luca makes her forget every warning. A vampire. A mafia king. A man who kisses like sin and takes his pleasure slowly. She's human. He's not. But when they come together, the night listens. Dangerous. Addictive. Forbidden. And far too late to turn back.

Mo Xuetong has lost everything. Her mother, her child, even her servants, have been killed. Betrayed, disfigured, and alone, she dies trying to destroy the people who deceived her… …and wakes up as a child again. Given a second chance, she vows to make things different. This time she will not be a naïve child. This time she is beautiful, cold, and willing to do whatever it takes to get revenge. But her plans are disrupted when she uncovers a thirty year old conspiracy that changes everything. Will she still be able to change her fate? And even if she does, will her new fate be any better, or will her hunger for revenge destroy her?

I woke up floating. Not in a dream, but tethered to a nightmare. My body lay cold on the bed, while my son, Leo, whispered, "Papa won't wake up." My wife, Eleanor, stood by the door, her face a mask of ice. I was a ghost, able to watch, but powerless to intervene. Then Julian Croft appeared, oozing charm and false sympathy. The man who'd received my liver, the root of my demise. Eleanor dismissed Leo's desperate pleas, accusing *me* of manipulation, of using our son. She chose Julian, leaving Leo behind, a small, trembling figure in our empty home. What followed was agony. I watched my seven-year-old journey miles to her office, only to be publicly humiliated, framed by Julian, and then viciously beaten. Eleanor, blind to the truth, abandoned him again, leaving him bruised and alone in a dark alley. My spirit seethed, consumed by a cold, useless rage. How could she believe such lies? How could she discard her own child so easily? The injustice was unbearable. I was murdered, my son brutalized, and the woman I loved stood by my killer. I longed to warn her, to protect Leo, but I was just air. A silent scream. Then Julian delivered the final blow: my little boy was tossed into the freezing Hudson River. But as Leo's small form sank into the darkness, a desperate hope ignited. A stranger, an angel, pulled him from the depths. My death was real, my son's suffering unbearable. And now, the true battle for justice, and for Leo's future, was about to begin.

When I decided to put my job as a sugar baby behind me, I never thought that 3 supernatural men would appear before me. Renald, the spoiled movie star –also a vampire-werewolf hybrid. Tony, the most wanted bachelor in the whole city –who is a demon. And Michael, the cold billionaire –plus an angel. On top of that, my previous sugar daddy admits that he is an immortal sorcerer AND is the other three men’s father! What is going on???