Chapter 4

With her freshly tattooed, swollen wrist, Nicole became the belle of the Hamptons. She wore bracelets that just happened to draw attention to the star-shaped mark. The whispers grew louder.

She caught the eye of Harrison Bishop, the eldest son of the state governor. He was the heir apparent to a political dynasty, handsome, charming, and utterly convinced of his own importance.

To seal the deal, I "gifted" Nicole a binder full of my own work. It contained detailed political strategies, social policy proposals, and talking points I had spent years developing in my past life, observing the political landscape as a ghost.

"I wrote these a while ago," I told her, feigning shyness. "They're probably silly, but maybe you can use them to impress Harrison."

She snatched the binder, barely thanking me. She passed the ideas off as her own, and Harrison was mesmerized by her "brilliance."

While Nicole was basking in her newfound glory, I was busy. She would give me her old, cast-off designer clothes and handbags as "gifts." I took every single one to a high-end consignment shop in the city.

The money I made was my seed capital.

My first call was to a woman named Maria Fuller.

In my past life, I learned about her story. She was once a rising star in journalism. She was investigating a scandal involving Elizabeth Blakely's ruthless brother. To silence her, Elizabeth and her brother framed Maria, destroyed her career, and bankrupted her family.

I found her working as a waitress in a dingy diner, a shadow of her former self.

I sat in her booth and slid a folder across the table. It contained everything I knew about the Blakelys' finances, their weak points, and the evidence of how they destroyed her.

"I want to destroy them," I said simply. "And I think you do, too."

She looked at me, her eyes filled with a pain I recognized. "Who are you?"

"I'm the girl who's going to help you get your life back," I replied. "And then some."

My second move was to get myself invited to a political fundraiser where I knew both the Bishop and Scott families would be present. The Scotts were another powerful dynasty, rivals to the Bishops. While all eyes were on Nicole and Harrison Bishop, I sought out the black sheep of the Scott family.

Ethan Scott. The fourth and youngest son.

He was always in the background, overlooked in favor of his older, more prominent brothers. But I knew something they didn't. I knew from my time as a ghost that he was the most intelligent and ambitious of them all. He was just waiting for his chance.

I found him on the terrace, watching the party with a cynical expression.

"Boring, isn't it?" I said.

He glanced at me, unimpressed. "If you like watching peacocks, it's the event of the season."

"I think you and I have a mutual interest in seeing certain peacocks get their feathers plucked," I said, my voice low. "Starting with Harrison Bishop and his brilliant new girlfriend."

His eyes sharpened. For the first time, he really looked at me. "And why would you be interested in that?"

"Let's just say I have a vested interest in seeing the Blakely family get what they deserve," I answered. "And I think you have an interest in proving you're more than just the fourth son. I can help you with that. You can help me with mine."

A slow smile spread across his face. "I'm listening."

The game was afoot.