Chapter 2

I gasped, air filling my lungs.

My eyes snapped open.

I was standing in the grand hall of the Lumin estate.

The annual Concord Gala.

Music played, Lumin in their finest attire mingled.

This was the day. The exact day Damien had chosen me in our previous life.

My head spun. Rebirth?

The memories of my agonizing death, Kaelen's cold eyes, Damien's betrayal – they were vivid, sharp.

I touched my chest. My Lumin Core, it was there, faint, Tier 1, just as before.

But I knew more now.

My gaze swept the room, landing on Damien.

He was across the hall, talking with his father, Alistair Thorne.

Damien looked up, his eyes meeting mine.

A flicker of something cold, something knowing, passed through them.

He looked away, a sneer touching his lips.

He remembered. He had to.

My heart pounded. This wasn't just a second chance for me. It was for him too.

The ceremonial chimes rang.

It was time for the Choosing.

Alistair Thorne stepped forward. "Damien, my son, make your choice."

Damien moved, not towards me, but towards Selena.

She stood there, radiating a soft glow, her chin high.

"I choose Selena Vance," Damien announced, his voice carrying through the silenced hall.

Gasps rippled through the crowd.

Selena was my cousin, yes, but her mother was a controversial figure, her lineage less direct than mine to the Vance founders.

I was supposed to be the safer, if weaker, choice.

Damien' s contempt was a public declaration this time.

He wanted everyone to know I was nothing to him.