Chapter 1

The heavy scent of lilies filled the room, a smell I associated with funerals, with endings.

Victoria Thorne sat across from me, her posture perfect, her smile a thin, painted line.

"Elara, dear," she began, her voice smooth as old silk, "Thorne Consolidated is prepared to offer you a partnership. A very, very lucrative one."

She slid a ridiculously thick contract across the polished mahogany table.

"Ten million dollars, Elara. To simply associate with my son, Julian. To bring your family's... unique good fortune to his endeavors."

I looked at the contract, then at Victoria's expectant face.

The memory hit me then, not as a dream, but as a sharp, cold reality.

My first life.

Julian's 30th birthday gala, a glittering affair. He stood on stage, handsome, powerful, a king in his domain.

He had just passed the age his family's male heirs were cursed to die before.

Thanks to me. His wife.

His arm was around Isabelle Hayes, her blonde hair shimmering under the chandeliers.

"For years," Julian's voice boomed, amplified by the microphone, "I was told the Vances possessed a Midas touch. That Elara's presence guaranteed success."

He laughed, a harsh, ugly sound.

"It was a charming old wives' tale. A clever deception."

His eyes, the eyes I once loved, found mine in the crowd. They were cold, full of contempt.

"Elara Vance used these stories to ensnare me. A fraud. A trick."

Isabelle clung to him, a picture of innocence.

The world tilted.

My assets were frozen that night. My reputation, meticulously built, shattered by morning.

He didn't stop there.

Julian arranged for me to be taken, driven far from the city to a desolate, hazardous waste site. One Thorne Consolidated had owned, then abandoned.

The metallic tang of chemicals, the suffocating stench of decay.

That's where I died. Alone. Terrified.

My small hometown, Harbor's Crest, a place known for its unique maritime crafts, had subtly prospered with my connection to Julian.

After my public disgrace and death, it withered. Julian's vindictiveness, or perhaps the loss of my protective luck, brought economic collapse, a smear campaign that painted them as charlatans too.

I blinked, the memory receding, leaving a bitter taste.

I was back. Reborn. On the very day Victoria Thorne first made her offer.

My hands were steady as I pushed the contract back towards her.

"No," I said. My voice was quiet, but it cut through the room's silence.

Victoria's smile faltered. "I beg your pardon?"

"I said no, Mrs. Thorne. I reject your offer. I want nothing to do with Thorne Consolidated or your son."

The shock on her face was almost satisfying. The powerful matriarch, stunned.

She recovered quickly. "Perhaps the sum isn't to your liking? We can discuss..."

The door to the private room opened.

Julian Thorne strode in, all arrogance and tailored suit. He was reborn too, I knew it instantly. But he didn't know I knew the full extent of his betrayal, or the depth of my change.

"Mother, what's taking so long?" He glanced at me, a flicker of annoyance. "Still trying to convince her?"

He turned to me, his expression condescending. "Elara. Your refusal. A negotiating tactic, I presume? A little display of pique?"

He smirked. "I'm going to marry Isabelle, you know. But perhaps, if you behave, we can come to a... discreet arrangement. For old times' sake."

I met his gaze, my own cool and steady.

"I want nothing from you, Julian. And I wish you and Isabelle the future you both so richly deserve."

His smirk vanished, replaced by a flicker of confusion, then irritation.

Victoria looked from me to Julian, her expression hardening. "Elara, this is a significant opportunity..."

"An opportunity I decline," I repeated. "My family's 'luck,' as you call it, is not for sale. Especially not to the Thornes."

The Vance Midas touch was real. Generations of us had it. Those we were close to thrived. The Thorne men, however, were cursed. Spectacular failure, public ruin, or early death before their thirties. Julian had been teetering on that edge before me.

"I believe," I said, my voice deliberately soft, feigning a simple disinterest, "that some families are meant to rise, and others... well, perhaps their time is simply up."

I stood. "Thank you for the tea, Mrs. Thorne."

Victoria was speechless for a moment, then a dangerous glint entered her eyes. "You will regret this, Elara."

"I doubt it," I said, turning to leave.

Julian grabbed my arm as I passed him. "What game are you playing?"

His touch was repulsive. I pulled my arm free. "No game, Julian. I simply choose not to be your good luck charm any longer."

He looked genuinely bewildered, as if the idea of me not wanting him was incomprehensible.

I walked out, leaving them in stunned silence. It was a small victory, but the war had just begun. I knew Victoria wouldn't let this go. She needed me for Julian, especially with his thirtieth birthday looming again in this new timeline. Escaping the Thornes wouldn't be so easy.