Chapter 1

The last thing I saw was my sister Carrie' s smiling face, her eyes cold.

"He never loved you, Sarah-Beth," she said, her voice smooth like poisoned honey.

"You were just a placeholder, a stepping stone from a lesser branch of the family."

Then, the darkness took me, the pain from my stomach, where my baby had been, finally ending.

My husband, Jack Beaumont Jr., the rising political star, had stood by, watching. He chose her. He always would. They killed me and my unborn child.

A gasp tore from my throat, and I sat bolt upright in bed.

My hand flew to my stomach. Flat. But not the empty, aching flatness of before.

This was different.

Sunlight streamed through the bedroom window of our Charleston townhouse.

I knew this room, this day.

My eyes darted to the calendar on the bedside table. June 14th.

The day my doctor confirmed my pregnancy.

The day it all started to unravel in my past life.

I was back.

My heart hammered against my ribs, a wild bird trapped.

I had a second chance.

A chance to make them pay.

A cold, hard knot formed in my chest, where grief and shock had been moments before.

This time, Sarah-Beth Miller would not be the dutiful, overlooked wife.

This time, I would be the one pulling the strings.

The door opened, and Jack walked in, already dressed in one of his crisp, tailored suits.

His blond hair was perfectly combed, his blue eyes bright with ambition.

"Morning, sleepyhead," he said, his voice full of forced cheer. "Big day today, right? Doctor's appointment."

He leaned down to kiss me, but I turned my head slightly, so his lips brushed my cheek.

He didn't seem to notice, or if he did, he didn't care.

"Yes, Jack," I said, my voice surprisingly steady. "A very big day."

Later, at the clinic, the doctor smiled warmly. "Congratulations, Mrs. Beaumont. You're pregnant."

Jack, sitting beside me, beamed. He squeezed my hand, a little too tightly.

"That's wonderful news, darling!" he exclaimed, loud enough for the other patients in the waiting area to hear. "A Beaumont heir! This will be fantastic for the campaign."

His eyes shone, not with love for me or our child, but with the glint of political calculation.

A family man. That was the image he wanted.

I smiled back, a sweet, innocent smile that didn't reach my eyes.

"Yes, Jack," I murmured. "Fantastic."

He would get his "family man" image, but it would cost him everything.

My new goal was clear: I would protect my child, and I would destroy Jack and Carrie.

This time, I knew their weaknesses, their desires, their secrets.

And I would use every single one.