Reborn As The Billionaire's Obsession

KAIDA REED POV

My husband was killing me.

I blinked, then forced a smile as my gaze locked onto those of Lucien in the mirror.

"You look as beautiful as ever, Kaida," he said, stopping behind me to press a quick kiss to my cheeks. "I brought you your tea. Just a week more and you should be back to normal."

I nodded, taking the drink from him. "Thank you. You treat me so well. I am so lucky to have you by my side, aren't I," I asked while searching his face for any trace of regret. All I saw was his practiced perfection.

I stared into the cup, my heart beating erratically. I knew the tea was poisoned. I'd seen him with my very eyes pouring the powdered substance in, and yet...

I raised the cup to my lips and gulped down the bitter contents.

He watched me drink, his eyes crinkling at the corners as he smiled softly.

"That's my good girl," he praised, then wrapped his arms around me. "Have you stopped coughing yet?"

I nodded, my gaze dropping to his hand, the ring on his finger glinting in the light.

It was our promise of forever. Too bad it was all a lie.

If I knew it was going to end like this, would I have vowed to love him until death do us part? It was too late for regret, especially since I was dying.

"Yes. I feel so much better," I lied.

"I'm glad to hear that," he kissed the corner of my mouth, then sighed. "You don't know how bad I've had it without you these past few weeks. I was so scared, you know. If I lose you, I don't think I can ever move on. I'll probably die too."

I rubbed at his hand, heat burning behind my eyes. "Don't say that. I'm going to get better, and we'll be happy just like we've always been."

He nodded, then straightened.

"I have to leave right now. Will you be okay all by yourself?"

I nodded. "Yes. I'll be fine."

His gaze softened. "I love you. Always."

I fought the tears that threatened to spill. "I love you too. Always."

He smiled, gave a little wave, and walked out of the room.

I exhaled sharply, the tears I had been trying to hold back spilling down my cheek.

"You love me? You want me to go back to how I was? So why the hell are you trying to kill me!"

My chest felt stuffy, and the bitter taste of the tea lingered in my throat.

I wiped at the tears, my movement jerky and furious.

No, I was the fool.

I'd literally thrown myself at him from the moment I set eyes on him. He was my out-of-the-ordinary. My first and only love.

I gave up everything for him. And even when he treated me horribly, I bore it all, because I was willing...willing to love him even if he never loved me back.

Then like an answer to prayers, he changed. He started to treat me well. He was everything I'd dreamed of, and more. And because of that, I forgot all the hurtful things he'd ever done.

I should have known better.

Lucien only started to treat me well as soon as I got sick.

But I only got sick because he was poisoning me.

Seeing it with my own eyes for the first time had been demoralizing. So much that I thought I hallucinated it.

I told myself, there was no way a man who loved and treated me so well would want to kill me. Then I started to get sicker and sicker after each tea he served.

I tried to go to the doctor, but despite showing his worry, he vehemently refused. He said he was going to take care of me and that I probably just had the flu.

I loved and trusted him, so I agreed until I got worse. Then I went to the doctor behind his back-I shouldn't have.

Just as I suspected, Lucien had really been poisoning me. The doctor said I wasn't going to make it unless I started treatment immediately.

I didn't.

Now, I drank the poison willingly. If I were destined to die, it would be perfect to go by the hands of the man I loved and lived my whole life for.

But I needed to know why. I needed to know why he was killing me when he said he loved me with such fierce passion in his eyes.

I needed to know where I went wrong-What I did wrong. I needed to know why he was breaking his promise to love me forever.

I got up, noticing how much thinner I'd gotten. "How did you let it come to this..." I asked myself, my gaunt red eyes staring back at me. I sucked in a breath then raised my chin, my hands clenching.

Yes, I was a shadow of the girl I was once, but I was still Kaida Reed; I should at least hold my head high.

Grabbing my purse, I walked out of the room.

The driver was waiting at the door.

"Ma'am?" He looked surprised to see me, but I couldn't blame him. For some months now, I haven't gone out anywhere.

"Take me to the company. I don't feel like staying home today."

"What?" He stuttered, his eyes darting around wildly. "Sir Lucien told me to make sure you stay home and rest. He said you're very sick".

"I'm not, so let's go."

He hesitated, his eyes darting around before locking onto mine. "I am sorry ma'am, but you can't go to the company."

I scoffed. "What? I can't go to my own company?"

Sweat dotted his hairline. "Sir Lucien said-"

"It seems you forgot that I am your employer, and not Lucien, Mason," I cut in, then exhaled. "Are you really going to stand there and tell me what I can or cannot do?"

"You really can't go to the company, Miss Kaida. Lucien would kill me if I took you there. But-but, I can take you anywhere else. If you need some fresh air-"

"Fine!" I snapped, cutting him off. It wasn't his fault for not listening to me. I was the one who put Lucien in charge of everything. I was the one who told all my workers that his word was law and never to be disobeyed. I was the one who gave him the power to imprison me.

"Take me to Helena's, or am I also not allowed to visit my sister?"

He scratched at his neck. "Of course you are ma'am, but-"

"I don't want any excuses. Let's go," I said, and he hurried to get the car door.

I entered, then stared off into the distance, my blood boiling hot in my veins.

God, I hated that my life had come to this. How did everything go so wrong?

The drive was short, and as Mason pulled into Helena's driveway and stopped, I couldn't help but notice that something was off.

Yanking off my seatbelt, I got out of the car and then walked toward the familiar-looking car parked in the driveway.

I stared at the house in front of me, then back at the car.

What the hell was Lucien doing in my sister's house?

KAIDA REED POV

I didn't bother to ring the doorbell. I yanked the door open with trembling hands and stepped inside.

I walked up the stairs, every step bringing me closer to her bedroom door making my heartbeat roar in my ear.

There was no way what I was thinking was true, but since he was poisoning me, I couldn't rule out the possibility of him also cheating. But with Helena. My sister. It couldn't be.

I stopped at the door, reached for the handle, and froze as I heard Lucien's voice

"You look so beautiful," he grunted, the sound of skin slapping against skin filling the air.

I froze, my lungs closing up.

Why was Lucien in Helena's room? My eyes widened. Were they having sex?

"How beautiful," Helena moaned, panting heavily.

I pushed the door a bit with a trembling hand, everything catching fire inside of me as my eyes locked on the naked bodies on the bed.

"Ethereal," he grunted, fucking into her at a slow and languid pace. "If I can, I'll live inside of you forever."

"Then why don't you come by more often," she groaned, her finger digging into his ass to push him deeper as she met his thrust. "It's been a week. You used to come to me every day. Are you starting to feel pity for Kaida?"

"Of course not," his voice was sharp. "It's just that I have to monitor her these days. I found out she went to the hospital a few weeks ago. That bitch. She never listens to simple fucking instructions".

His words were like ice-cold water dousing over me.

"I wish I could just kill her now," he groaned, flattening his tongue on one of her nipples, and sucking hard.

Her hand flew to his head, her finger grabbing chunks of his hair-hair I never got to touch since he refused to be intimate with me-and tugging hard.

"Oh God, just like that!"

"You like that, huh?" He grinned, pounding into her harder. "Should I just kill her when I get home..." He grabbed her neck. "Should I?"

Helena threw her head back, her nails digging into the sheets. "You can't. Isn't she already at death's door... All you have to do is increase the dosage as we planned, and she'll be out of our lives soon."

He threw her leg over his shoulder, sweat slicking his back. "But I really can't take it anymore. Just when is she going to die, huh? Why do we have to meet like this because of her? We love each other and yet I have to treat you like some freaking mistress."

I couldn't breathe. Darkness crept up the edge of my vision, and for a second, I feared I was going to faint.

Helena pushed him onto his back, straddled him, and then sank onto his length.

They both moaned in unison, then sighed contentedly.

I felt sick to my stomach.

Lucien's eyes slipped closed as she started to ride him.

"Do you have to torture yourself so much? I don't complain, do I?"

He grabbed her hips, his face contorted in pleasure. "That's because you're a literal angel. I should have just killed her after we merged our companies. I defeated Zavian and got everything I'd ever wanted," he thrust into her sharply, making her yelp. "Well, maybe not everything since the fortune your father left is still in her name-"

She kissed him then, all tongue and spit. "And that's all the more reason we can't make any mistakes. If we're going to be together, you can't be a suspect in her death. Everyone has to believe she died naturally after falling sick."

The pain in my chest intensified.

"I know that, but I am so tired of pretending to love her. Breathing the same air as her makes me sick... She'll never compare to you, Helena. I only live for moments like this, when you and I get to be together."

"Me too. Oh God, me too."

Lucien flipped her on her stomach, pushed her face into the sheet, dragged her ass up, and filled her up in one hard thrust.

She moaned into the pillow, her ass pushing back on him.

"You know what I regret the most. Getting married to her just because she saved my sister's life."

She grabbed the bed frame as he slammed into her over and over again. "Oh my god, Lucien... I'm so fucking close."

"Come for me," he rasped, his head thrown back. "Show me who this pussy fucking belongs to."

Helena's body tightened, a sharp cry escaping her open mouth as she came. Lucien grunted, his hip pistoning in and out, her juices coating the length of his dick.

The ground beneath my feet shifted, and I turned, my breath coming out in short, sharp gasps as I stumbled down the stairs.

I must have made a noise because the door suddenly opened behind me, and I heard someone gasp in shock, followed by frantic steps coming up behind me.

My lungs felt like sandpaper, every sharp intake of air hurting more than the last. I was almost at the front door when sharp nails dug into my arms and spun me around.

Lucien's breath came in harsh pants.

Did he run down the stairs to catch up to me?

He looked pissed off and the loving look that used to be in his eyes was nowhere to be found.

"What the hell are you doing here!" he roared, his grip bruising. "What did you hear! Tell me!"

I yanked my hand from his hold, then stepped back from his towering presence, my teary gaze moving from his to those of Helena.

"Do you have any right to ask me that question?" Tears spilled down my cheek, my vision blurry as I stared up at the man I loved and married. "How can you do this to me? If you didn't love me anymore, why didn't you divorce me?" My heart broke into a million pieces at his blank stare. "Why did you have to do something so cruel! What did I do to deserve this?"

Helena scoffed, stepping in front of Lucien. "Are you really going to ask such an obvious question? You heard everything, didn't you? Gosh, you're even more pathetic than I thought."

"I am pathetic? You're the one sleeping with her sister's husband-"

She laughed, cutting me off. "Sister? Stop being so delusional, Kaida. From the moment we met until now, you've never considered me family. Isn't that why you've done all you can to make my life miserable?"

"What are you talking about? I've been nothing but nice to you!" I yelled as rage slowly replaced the ache in my chest. "If I hated you so much, would I have gotten you this house for your birthday?" I shouted, stepping toward her.

Lucien shoved me. Hard. I crashed into the door, the hit knocking the air out of my lungs.

"Don't even think about hurting her. Did you think buying her a house was going to erase everything you did to her? All you do is use your money to buy people and get what you want, so cut the fucking billshit!"

There was no way this was real. It couldn't be.

"Is that why I deserve to die? I've never done anything to hurt you. I let you have everything you want-"

He scoffed. "You let me? Just because I got a little help from you, you think you made me, don't you? News flash, Kaida, I was a millionaire. With or without you, I'd still have been successful."

"Would you?" I asked, stepping in his face, "I was the one who convinced my father to invest in your company. I merged father's company with yours against his will and worked for two years to make sure you had no competition, and you dare say that to my face! My father died hating me because of you!"

"If you hadn't ruined Helena in front of him, the company wouldn't have been yours. You're only receiving karma for all the shit you did."

My gaze cut to those of Helena's. "Is that the lies you told him, that I ruined you in front of Father?"

She smirked. "Lies? Didn't you have a DNA test done to prove that I wasn't a true Reed... Because of what you did, Father cut me out of his will, but it wasn't enough for you, was it? You knew Lucien, and I loved each other, and you went after him, too."

My hands struck against her cheek before I could stop myself.

Helena gasped, her hands moving up to cup her cheek.

I was going to slap her again when Lucien's fist drove into my face. I crashed to the floor, the whole side of my face on fire.

I blinked, the blood in my vision making it hazy.

Did Lucien just hit me?

KAIDA REED POV

"I told you not to fucking touch her!" He roared, grabbed my arm, and yanked me up from the floor. "Your father is no longer here to protect you, and in case you forgot, I own everything now. Everything," he said, then shoved me. Hard.

I stumbled, my hand reaching for the wall to steady myself.

The silence that followed seeped into my bones like ice. I couldn't believe it, but it was reality. Lucien had really hit me.

"I don't deserve this," I whispered, my teeth sinking into my lip. "All I've done is love you...so why am I being punished like this?"

He scoffed, then leaned in. "Because you forced a love that wasn't meant to be."

I died a little inside. "I forced it?" I met his eyes. "You said you loved me. You asked me to marry you. How did I force anything?"

Helena jabbed a finger into my chest. "Are you really asking that question. You gave his sister your kidney. You literally forced him to love you!"

"I didn't do it for him." My chest burned as I spoke. "Nessa was my friend long before she was his sister."

"Please," Helena scoffed, "The only reason you saved her was that you knew Lucien would have no choice but to pick you if you played the martyr."

"That is not true." My hands fisted in my hair as panic clawed up my throat. "You were all there at the hospital. I only agreed to donate because the doctor said any delay and she'd have died."

They both stared at me like I was out of my mind.

It was no use. They were going to blame me until the very end to cover up their own guilt. They could only be saints if I were the sinner.

"No matter how you try to paint it, Kaida, the truth is that you only did what you did to get me to marry you. You were obsessed with me. You made sure nothing stood in your way".

"Stop lying to yourself, you bastard. The real reason you're doing all this is that you want to take over everything I have."

"Yes!" He thundered, the veins on his neck bulging. "After sacrificing so much of my time, I at least deserve that much. And just so you know, if Helena hadn't proposed to kill you slowly, I would have done it a long time ago."

He took a deep breath and pointed at my face. "I have to admit, it was pretty satisfying watching you suffer. Watching you being so pathetic made all the years I spent by your side fucking worth it."

I blinked back tears, my hands curling into fists. "Well, I hope it was fun while it lasted because it's all over now. Even after finding out that you were poisoning me, I was ready to die at your hands because I loved you so much. You are right, I've been foolish, but you have to be a bigger fool if you think you two will ever be together."

"What are you going to do?" he scoffed, then gripped my chin, tipping it up so I was staring into his dark, cruel eyes. "Are you going to report me to the cops? Will you finally tell them that I was the one who killed those men on the night of our engagement..."

I blinked, swallowing the ball lodged in my throat. How did he know? On that night, I thought he hadn't seen me.

He grinned, all dark and evil. "Look at those eyes, Kaida. You can't hide your emotions to save your life."

My nails dug into my palm. "I don't know what you are talking about."

"Yes, you do." He leaned closer. "I won't let you destroy everything I've worked so hard to build, Kaida."

Fear slithered down my spine.

"What are you going to do? If you kill me, you won't get anything."

He laughed, then scoffed. "Is that what you think?"

"It's what I know, so don't do anything stupid."

I turned to leave and cried out in pain as Lucien grabbed me by the hair. His grip was so tight, it felt like my hair was being ripped out of my skull.

"Where the hell do you think you are going?" his eyes bored into mine. "You don't think I am going to let you leave here alive, do you?"

Pain exploded as his fist slammed into my stomach.

I doubled over, then collapsed to the floor, my hands scrabbling uselessly against the tiles as I tried to breathe and failed.

"You should have fucking stayed home as I told you to!"

A kick landed against my ribs. Then another. I cried out, vision blurring as something cracked deep inside me.

No. Anymore and I was really going to die.

I tried to crawl away, my knees giving out at every attempt.

Mason.

I needed to scream for Mason. He was the only one who could help me.

But I was so weak.

"You look so fucking pathetic. Where do you think you're crawling to, huh?" he stomped hard on my ankle.

I screamed, my vision darkening.

I must have passed out for a second because when I blinked, there were red stains on the tiles. Blood?

It was my blood. I was coughing up blood.

"What the hell are you doing" Helena screamed. "You can't kill her here. All our plans will be ruined!"

"I don't care!" Lucien's roar tore through the haze in my head.

Feeling a surge of energy, I pulled myself to my feet and stumbled into the kitchen.

"Fucking hell, you just can't stay down, can you," he snarled as he came after me.

Reaching out with a shaky hand, I grabbed the knife on the counter and turned, holding the blade in front of me.

A swift kick from him had me crashing to the floor. The knife skidded out of my hands.

I lay still, my vision hazy as more blood poured out of my mouth.

All the good times we shared flashed in my head, but this time, Lucien's face was all dark and gnarly. Everything I thought had been love was all tainted, and it hurt so bad that I wanted to die.

"You shouldn't have done that, Kaida," he sneered, leaned down, and picked up the knife. He inspected it, the dark grin on his lips stretching. "You should have drunk the poison I gave you and died like a good little girl."

He knelt over me and grabbed my neck. "If you did, you wouldn't have had to die like this."

I clawed at his arm, my vision dimming, my chest burning.

"Please," I gasped, tears slipping down the side of my face. "Please, Lucien. Don't kill me. Don't...I won't say anything-I swear."

He leaned in, his voice a cold whisper. "You used to tell me you'd die for me, so why are you begging for your life now? Was it all a lie? We both know I fucking hate liars!" he roared and before I could brace for it, he drew his hand back.

Something sharp drove into my chest.

The room went silent.

Ba-dump.

Ba-dump.

I blinked once. Twice.

Lucien's face blurred as darkness swallowed the room.

"Everything is mine now," he whispered, pressing his lips to mine. "Don't be such a fool in your next life, okay?"

I opened my mouth, but only blood spilled out.

He got off me, wiped my blood against his pants, and grinned.

"Great," Helena huffed, throwing her hand up. "Now we have to get rid of her body."

"Don't worry. Mason will take care of it."

Mason? Was Mason in on this, too?

Lucien must have said something, but I didn't catch it.

My eyes slowly slipped closed.

I was dying.

I was dying and they were going to get away with everything.

No. It can't end like this.

It can't.

I need another chance.

Darkness closed in, the thought burning brighter than the pain.

I needed another chance to take back everything that was stolen from me.

Just one more chance, and I swear I'll destroy them.

Every last one of the people who hurt me.