Chapter 2 The Mirror That Lies

Amira gasped awake.

Not in a hospital. Not in hell.

The air smelled faintly of lavender and alcohol. A glass chandelier above her bed tinkled softly in the breeze, casting delicate rainbows across unfamiliar cream-colored walls.

She sat up slowly, her limbs trembling. Her body felt strange - lighter somehow. Her hands were smoother, smaller. Younger?

Where am I? she thought, heart pounding.

Her eyes caught the full-length mirror on the wall. She climbed out of bed and walked toward it, barefoot across the cold marble tiles.

She stopped.

The woman staring back at her wasn't Amira Lawson.

Gone were her dark curls and soft brown eyes. In their place: a stranger's face - sharp green eyes, flawless porcelain skin, long jet-black hair, and full, kissable lips painted blood red.

"No... no..." she whispered, stumbling back.

This was Sasha Kline. The same woman who had ruined her marriage - the seductive mistress who had replaced her in Jason's bed. The woman who had died in a car crash just days ago. She remembered hearing about it on the news, shortly before her own murder.

But now... she was Sasha?

A sudden knock jolted her.

The door opened - and Jason Lawson walked in.

Amira's breath caught.

Her husband. The man who had betrayed her. Or so she thought.

He looked at her - and smiled gently.

"You're awake," he said, approaching. "I was so worried, Sasha. I thought I'd lost you."

She stiffened.

He didn't recognize her. Of course not.

To him, she was the other woman.

But to her? This was her second life.

Her second chance.

And this time, she held the power.