Chapter 1

The scent of woodsmoke and damp earth was the first thing Elara knew.

Then, memory, sharp and cruel, flooded back.

Sadie' s smiling face, Beau' s careless laugh, the grinding pain as the wagon tipped.

Her wagon, filled with her prize-winning preserves.

Elara sat bolt upright, not in the ravine, but in her own bed in Havenwood.

Sunlight streamed through the window. It was spring.

Her first life, a nightmare played out, was over. She was reborn.

Sadie, her childhood best friend, had always watched Elara' s skill with jams and preserves, a dark envy in her eyes.

Elara made art from local flora, forgotten recipes her grandmother taught her.

Sadie wanted the Harvest Festival Preserve-Making Championship, the admiration, and Beau Sterling.

Beau, handsome, rich, the son of the Sterling Orchards family, Havenwood' s biggest catch.

And shallow. Utterly shallow.

In that first life, Elara had innocently told Sadie about a local legend.

The legend said the Preserve-Making Champion would marry Beau Sterling, securing a special status.

Sadie, ambitious and manipulative, used that.

She, with Beau' s casual help, had sabotaged Elara' s wagon on the way to the festival. An "accident."

Now, Elara breathed the clean Vermont air. She was alive. And she remembered everything.

Her kindness was gone, replaced by a cold cunning.

This time, she would protect herself. She would protect Havenwood.

Her first move: Sadie.

Elara found Sadie by the river, skipping stones.

"Sadie," Elara said, her voice carefully neutral.

Sadie turned, a flicker of surprise in her eyes. "Elara! You' re up early."

"Thinking about the Harvest Festival," Elara said, a small, almost sad smile on her face.

"It' s months away," Sadie said, but her eyes sharpened.

"I know. But I don' t think I' ll compete this year," Elara lied smoothly. "And certainly not for Beau Sterling."

She let a hint of distaste color her tone when she said Beau' s name.

Sadie' s posture changed, a subtle straightening. "Not interested in Beau?"

"He' s... not my type," Elara said. "Besides, his mother, Mrs. Sterling, she' d want someone more... traditional for him, wouldn' t she? Someone who embodies the old Havenwood spirit."

Sadie was silent for a moment, watching Elara.

"You really think so?" Sadie asked, a new light in her eyes.

"I do," Elara said. "Someone who really wants to be the Harvest Queen, to uphold those traditions. It wouldn' t be right for someone like me, who just likes making preserves for fun, to take that from someone who truly desires it."

Sadie' s smile was slow, spreading across her face. "Maybe you' re right, Elara."

She looked away, a thoughtful expression. "Maybe I should focus on that."

Elara nodded. "It would suit you, Sadie."

Sadie left, a new spring in her step, a gleam of triumph in her eyes.

Elara watched her go.

Fool, Elara thought. You have no idea what you' re walking into.

The Harvest Festival was the heart of Havenwood. Winning meant status, especially for young women.

Elara' s skill was unmatched. People already whispered she was the favorite.

Her withdrawal would make Sadie the clear frontrunner, if Sadie played her cards right.

And Elara knew Sadie would.

In this new life, Elara felt the town' s eyes on her. Her rebirth, though unknown to them, had changed her.

She was quieter, more observant. Some found her distant.

Her parents, respected figures, worried. Her father, the mayor, noticed her new seriousness.

She ignored the whispers. She had a larger purpose.

She needed an ingredient from her grandmother' s oldest recipe book.

The Moonpetal Blossom.

Rare, found only in the deep woods, blooming under specific moonlight.

The book said it could counteract certain toxins, subtly enhance flavors.

It was crucial.

She found the tattered book, its pages brittle.

The entry for Moonpetal Blossom was faint, almost overlooked.

It detailed the conditions for its bloom, the remote grove where it grew.

Elara knew she had to find it. Her plan, her life, depended on it.