The Vengeful Phoenix: No Longer Their Victim

The screech of tires was the last thing I heard.

Then, a crushing weight, a flash of white, and a final, searing thought: Chloe.

I woke up with a gasp, my heart hammering.

I was in my dorm room, the morning sun slanting through the blinds.

The date was March 15th. The day it all began.

The day I died. The day I was reborn.

The door creaked open.

Chloe, my gymnastics teammate, poked her head in, her smile a mask of sweet innocence.

"Ava, you up? Big news!"

I didn't say anything. I just stared at her.

The memory of her shoving me into traffic burned behind my eyes.

In my first life, I saw her as a struggling friend. Now, I saw a predator.

She bounced into the room, her cheap perfume filling the air.

"So, for Spring Break, I'm treating the whole team! A VIP shopping spree on Rodeo Drive!"

This was the lie that launched my ruin.

"They need everyone's ID for the list," she said. "Can I just get a quick pic of your driver's license?"

In my first life, I handed it over without a second thought, eager for approval.

That simple act had allowed her to steal my identity, my future. My credit ruined, my career ended.

All while my boyfriend, Liam, had stood by her side. Even helped her.

This time, my voice was ice.

"No."

Chloe' s smile faltered.

Liam walked in, wrapping his arms around her. "What's going on, ladies?"

Chloe' s eyes welled up instantly. "Ava's being so weird! She won't even let me see her ID."

Liam looked at me, his handsome face clouded with disappointment.

"Ava, come on. Don't be selfish."

He hadn't defended me as I lay dying in the street. He chose her. Always her.

Rage simmered, cold and potent.

I wasn't that naive girl anymore.

They wanted my ID? They wanted my life?

This time, they would pay.

And it would be glorious.

The screech of tires was the last thing I heard.

Then, a crushing weight, a flash of white, and a final, searing thought: Chloe.

I woke up with a gasp, my heart hammering against my ribs. I was in my dorm room, the morning sun slanting through the blinds. My phone buzzed on the nightstand. The date was March 15th. The day it all began.

The day I died.

I was reborn.

The door creaked open. Chloe, my gymnastics teammate, poked her head in, her smile a mask of sweet innocence. "Ava, you up? Big news!"

I didn't say anything. I just stared at her, the memory of her shoving me into traffic burning behind my eyes. In my first life, I saw her as a struggling friend. Now, I saw a predator.

She bounced into the room, her cheap perfume filling the air. "So, for Spring Break, I'm treating the whole team! A VIP shopping spree on Rodeo Drive. I got a huge inheritance, can you believe it?"

The lie was as familiar as the scar I didn't have yet on my knee. This was the start of her plan. The plan that used my identity, my future, to fund her fantasy and destroy my life.

"To get the VIP access, they need everyone's ID for the list," she said, her voice dripping with fake excitement. "Can I just get a quick pic of your driver's license?"

In my first life, I handed it over without a second thought. I was a people-pleaser, desperate for my team's approval.

This time, my voice was ice.

"No."

Chloe's smile faltered. "What? Why not? It's just for the rewards program."

"I said no."

Just then, Liam, my boyfriend and the university's star quarterback, walked in. He wrapped his arms around Chloe's shoulders in a friendly hug. "What's going on, ladies?"

Chloe's eyes welled up instantly. "Liam, I'm trying to do something nice for everyone, and Ava's being so... weird about it. She won't even let me see her ID."

Liam looked at me, his handsome face clouded with disappointment. "Ava, come on. Don't be selfish. Chloe's trying to be generous. What's the big deal?"

"The big deal is that I don't want to," I said, my voice flat.

In my first life, this was the moment I caved. His disappointment was a physical blow. I hated it.

Now, it was nothing.

He sighed, running a hand through his perfect hair. It was a move that always made me melt. Now it just looked rehearsed. "You're being spoiled, Ava. Your parents pay for everything. You don't get what it's like for people like Chloe."

I remembered the car. I remembered Liam standing on the sidewalk with the rest of the team, his face a mask of horror and guilt as Chloe screamed, "She was jealous! She ran out into the road!"

He didn't defend me. He chose her.

"You have no idea what you're talking about, Liam," I said, my voice dangerously quiet.

His savior complex flared. He saw a damsel in distress in Chloe, and a spoiled princess in me. "Just give her the damn license, Ava."

I turned my back on them. "Get out of my room."

Chloe started sobbing. "I just wanted to do something nice! Now everyone's going to think I'm a liar!"

The other teammates, drawn by the noise, were gathering at the door. They shot me dirty looks. "What's your problem, Ava?" one of them, Jessica, snapped. "Chloe's being amazing, and you're ruining it."

"Yeah, just because your dad's an architect doesn't mean you can look down on us," another added.

They saw Chloe's feigned poverty and my comfortable background, and they drew their own simple, cruel conclusions.

Liam's voice was a low command. "Ava. Apologize to Chloe. And give her the license."

I laughed. It was a cold, empty sound. "No."

Chloe made one last attempt, her voice thick with fake sincerity. "Ava, please. Let's not fight. This is for the team. For us."

"There is no us," I said, looking from her to Liam. "Now get out."

The dam of their patience broke. They left, slamming the door behind them, a chorus of angry whispers following them down the hall. I was alone. Just like I was when I died.

I went to my desk to grab my bag for practice. My wallet was gone.

I knew, with chilling certainty, that Liam had taken it.

A few hours later, my phone buzzed. It was a notification from my credit monitoring service.

Alert: A new collections account has been reported.

I opened the app. A $50 co-pay from a campus health visit last year. In my first life, I was horrified. I' d paid it instantly, wanting to clear the tiny black mark from my otherwise perfect record. Liam had been with me, sighing about how irresponsible it was to let things like that slide. He used it as another reason I needed to be more "aware," more like him.

This time, I smiled.

This was the key.

I remembered the chaos of my previous life. The frantic calls from banks. The fraud alerts I couldn't clear because Chloe had my Social Security Number and answers to my security questions. She' d used my SSN to open five high-limit credit cards and a personal loan for $50,000. It all went through because my credit was pristine.

But not this time.

A recent delinquency, even a small one, followed by a sudden, massive burst of credit applications from different banks? It was the biggest red flag in the financial world. It screamed "identity theft."

I put my phone down. I didn't call the collection agency. I didn't pay the bill. I let the small debt fester, a tiny poison pill for Chloe' s grand scheme.

The next day at practice, the atmosphere was frigid. The team practiced in silence, but their glares were loud. During a break, Jessica "accidentally" spilled her water bottle all over my gym bag.

"Oops," she said, not sounding sorry at all. Chloe rushed over with a towel, dabbing at my bag with a concerned look.

"Oh, Ava, I'm so sorry this happened. Are you okay?"

It was a performance for the coach. I just looked at her. "I'm fine."

Later, I overheard them talking in the locker room.

"I can't believe she's still being like this," Jessica whispered. "Chloe is taking us to Rodeo Drive, and Ava's acting like a total bitch."

"I know, right?" another voice chimed in. "And did you see her face when Liam tried to talk to her? So cold. He's a saint for putting up with her."

A saint. I almost laughed. The saint who stole my wallet, photographed my Social Security card, and handed my entire financial identity over to a sociopath.

The day of the trip arrived. I didn't go with them. I told the coach I was feeling unwell. She looked at me with concern, noting the tension that had fractured her team.

I stayed in my dorm and waited.

Around noon, my phone started lighting up with fraud alerts.

American Express: We have detected unusual activity on a new account. Your card has been frozen.

Chase: A recent application is under review. Please contact our security department.

Citi: Your new personal loan has been flagged and is currently suspended.

One after another, they rolled in. The banks' security systems had worked perfectly. Chloe' s new toys were useless.

I picked up my phone and made a call.

"Hi, this is Ava Ashford. I'd like to speak to the General Manager of the Rodeo Drive property, please. Tell him his grandfather is calling."

There was a confused silence on the other end, then a flurry of activity. A moment later, a smooth, professional voice came on the line. "Miss Ashford? This is Robert Sterling. How can I help you?"

My grandfather, Arthur Ashford, was a reclusive real estate tycoon. He owned a portfolio of iconic commercial properties on the East Coast, but his crown jewel, a secret indulgence, was this one. The most famous luxury shopping district in Beverly Hills. He'd put it in my name as a trust, a legacy I was never supposed to know about until I was thirty.

But in my first life, after I died, my grieving parents found the documents.

"Mr. Sterling," I said, my voice calm and clear. "I'm going to be visiting one of your tenants this afternoon. A designer boutique. I won't be buying anything. I'm just there to watch a show. I'd appreciate it if you made sure your staff doesn't interfere."

"Of course, Miss Ashford. Consider it done."

I hung up, a cold smile playing on my lips. The trap was set. Now, it was time to watch the animals walk into it.