Chapter 2 Rise From Dead

Branches and thorns tore at her flesh as she fell, ripping her skin apart. Blood soaked her clothes. Her throat felt like it was being crushed by an invisible hand, suffocating her-yet her mind was terrifyingly clear.

Scenes flashed before her eyes, one after another, like a cruel movie reel.

She had defied her father to fall in love with the poor but ambitious Steven. To marry him, she had fought so hard that her father collapsed from a heart attack in fury.

On their first wedding anniversary, she transferred ten percent of her shares-her father's gift-to Steven. Her father rushed to confront her... and died in a car accident on the way.

So that was it.

Steven had approached her from the very beginning for her family's fortune.

And her gentle, obedient stepsister-the one who always pretended to be kind-was the real murderer behind her father's and brother's deaths.

She hated herself.

Hated her blindness.

Hated her stupidity.

Hated that she had fallen in love with a wolf wearing a human smile.

She had mistaken enemies for family-loved them, respected them-only to let them destroy the people who truly loved her.

If there is another life...

Even if she had to crawl out of hell itself, she would make those beasts pay in blood.

'Dad... Darius...

I was wrong. I'm so sorry.'

'My baby...

Mommy couldn't protect you. I'm useless.

In the next life, find a better family. Don't ever be my child again...'

Her falling body finally slammed into the valley floor.

She lay in a pool of blood, staring blankly at the sky. Her body twitched uncontrollably as blood bubbled from her lips.

As life slipped away, she saw a man.

His hands were locked in handcuffs, yet his smile was gentle-warm.

"Andrea, don't be afraid," he said softly. "I killed them. You don't need to feel guilty."

Sam...

Sam...

The man she had hurt the most.

The one she owed the most.

'Sam... if there is another life... let me protect you this time, okay?'

"Sis-hey, sis. Wake up. It's morning already..."

"Shh," a woman said gently. "Lower your voice, young master. The young lady hasn't fully recovered yet. Let her sleep a little longer."

The voice was familiar-warm, steady, comforting. It wrapped around Andrea like a memory.

It felt as though she had been trapped in an endless nightmare. Now that she was finally waking, the grief she had buried came crashing back, tearing through her chest as if a blade were twisting in her heart.

"Ms. Dorian," a boy asked anxiously, "why is my sister crying?"

The woman sighed softly and leaned closer. "She must have had a bad dream."

Warm fingers brushed Andrea's cheek, clumsily wiping away her tears.

"Sis?" the boy said, his voice tight with worry. "Did you have a nightmare? Don't be scared. Your handsome, brave little brother is here. No one's going to bully you while I'm around."

"Darius... Darius..."

Andrea forced her heavy eyelids open.

Through the blur of tears, she saw a familiar face-handsome, youthful, still carrying traces of boyish innocence.

Her brother.

Her Darius.

"Darius!"

She threw her arms around him, sobbing uncontrollably. "Thank goodness... I can still see you. I missed you so much!"

Darius froze for a second, clearly caught off guard. Then he hugged her back, patting her back in an awkward, careful way.

"Hey, hey-easy," he murmured. "I'm right here. I'm not going anywhere. You'll see me every day from now on." After a pause, he added softly, "Be good, okay? Stop crying. You'll make yourself sick."

Andrea laughed and cried at the same time.

This was her brother-loud, lively, handsome, unbearably precious.

How could she ever have believed he was rebellious and hopeless?

She really had been a fool-letting that vicious mother-and-daughter pair poison her mind.

"Miss, please don't cry anymore," the older woman said softly. Her hands-rough with calluses-held a tissue as she gently wiped the tears from Andrea's face. "Your health is still weak. If your father sees this, he'll be heartbroken."

"Ms. Dorian..."

Andrea looked up at the familiar, gentle face, and her tears fell even harder.

Ms. Dorian had worked for the Reed family since Andrea was born. She had raised Andrea and Darius almost as her own, caring for them with a devotion that went far beyond duty. In Andrea's heart, Ms. Dorian was no different from a second mother.

"Alright, alright... don't cry," Ms. Dorian coaxed, forcing a smile even as her eyes turned red. "I'll make your favorite dessert later, okay?"

She had always treated the young miss like her own daughter. Seeing her hurt-how could her heart not ache?

It took a long while before Andrea finally calmed down.

But confusion crept in.

'What's going on?

Wasn't I dead?'

Why was she seeing her brother-who had already died-and Ms. Dorian, who should have retired back to her hometown years ago?

Was this... the final hallucination before death?

She bit down hard on her tongue.

"Hiss-!"

Pain shot through her.

Not an illusion.

This was real.

Maybe God had heard her unwillingness to die. Her regret. Her remorse.

Maybe she had been given a second chance.

...

Inside the bathroom, Andrea stared at her reflection in the mirror. The face staring back at her was clearly younger-soft, unscarred, untouched by suffering.

After a long moment, her breathing grew uneven.

She had really been reborn.

Back to when she was twenty.

That winter-when she had accidentally fallen into the lake, and Steven had pulled her out.

Their first meeting.

The moment his name surfaced, her blood seemed to boil. Hatred surged through her like a savage beast, clawing at her soul. Her hands trembled, and the fury burning in her eyes was enough to chill anyone who saw it.

Since I've been given another life...

She would never allow those people to control her fate again.

She would protect the ones she loved.

And she would make every single person who had hurt her pay-one by one.

"Sis? Are you okay?"

Darius's worried voice pulled her back to reality.

Andrea took a slow, steady breath, forcing the hatred in her eyes to fade. She opened the door and stepped out.

"I'm fine," she said calmly. "Where's Ms. Dorian?"

"She went downstairs to make you something to eat," Darius replied, still studying her closely. "Are you really okay? If anything feels off, you have to tell me, alright?"

He could feel it-something about his sister had changed since she fell into the water. He just couldn't explain what.

Andrea smiled and ruffled his hair. "I'm really fine. Stop worrying. How about you? How's school lately? Anyone giving you trouble?"

She remembered.

This was his first year of high school.

Back then, Darius had excellent grades-but somehow, he started skipping classes, getting into fights, making their father furious. Later, he even got mixed up with a gang... and after that-

Darius lifted his chin proudly. "Me? Bullied? No way. And don't worry about my grades-I'm ranked first in the entire grade."

"Of course you are," Andrea said with a laugh, patting his shoulder. Then her expression grew serious. "Darius, no matter what trouble you run into, remember this-you can always come to me. I'll help you. Don't forget, I'm your real sister."

Darius froze.

Then a bright smile spread across his face, and he nodded hard. "Yeah! I know, sis!"

Ever since Sandra moved into their home, his sister had rarely spoken to him like this. She always preferred spending time with Sandra instead.

Now she was close to him again.

It felt like he was floating.

"Sis, may I come in?"

A gentle, sweet voice interrupted them.

Andrea's heart clenched.

Her fingers tightened instinctively as her gaze locked onto the closed door. Hatred surged back into her eyes.

She would never forget that voice.

Its owner had joined hands with Steven and destroyed the Reed family.

Darius muttered under his breath, "Ugh. The annoying one."

Andrea snapped back to herself and relaxed her tense body.

Calm down.

If she lost control this easily, Sandra-and her so-called gentle mother-would notice something was wrong.

She rubbed Darius's hair and lowered her voice. "From now on, even if you don't like someone, don't show it. Enemies love exploiting emotions like that. Understand?"

Darius stared at her as if she'd grown a second head.

"Sis..." he said slowly, frowning. "Are you sure you're my sister-and not an alien who took her place?"

He had warned her countless times that that mother-daughter pair weren't good people-only to be scolded every time for being immature.

And now?

Not only didn't she yell at him-she actually said that.