Chapter 1

The day the Reyes family claimed me, I became the filthiest joke in all of Kingston.

A woman with a ruined face, tainted by scandal, someone who should have been dead and crawled out of the gutter, turned out to be the Reyes family's legitimate, long-lost eldest daughter.

Everyone in Kingston laughed behind my back. They called me a fallen woman, damaged goods and said I didn't deserve the title of heiress.

I'd been married to Hector Sherman for ten years, living a life where we treated each other like polite strangers.

I once saved him as a child, and clung to those memories, fooling myself into believing that this was the happiness I deserved.

But when my life was flickering out, and I was left bedridden, barely holding on.

That was when he finally dropped all his masks. He stood by my bedside, tears in his eyes, and every word he spoke cut straight through me.

Hector stood there, eyes red at the corners, and anyone watching would think he was the victim.

But no matter how desperately I searched his gaze, I couldn't find even a hint of pity, only overwhelming disgust.

"Sierra, because of you, I can't be with the one I truly love. Every single day spent with you makes me sick," Hector said.

I gasped for air, blood trickling from the corner of my mouth.

Hector added coldly, "If I'd known saving me would cost me ten years of this torment, I would've rather died on that street."

Rage and heartbreak crashed over me. His words snuffed out my very last breath.

I died unable to rest in peace, my soul left trapped in the Sherman Estate, unable to move on.

Just a year later, Hector went and married my cousin, Jocelyn.

I watched as he looked at her with such tenderness, while he made me feel utterly worthless.

Trapped in the Sherman Estate for hundreds of years, I lost all sense of who I was, and even forgot what I hated. That was, until a mystic showed up and barely spared me a glance.

When my soul was finally torn apart, the memories of my previous life flooded back.

I finally remembered, back then, I was dragged into the shadows by traffickers to save Hector.

I endured beatings, had my fingers broken, my face destroyed, and fell into hell. That was all for him.

I gave up my life, my innocence, and every bit of light in my world, so he could live.

But to Hector, I was nothing but dirty. He saw me as someone unworthy of him.

In his eyes, saving him was the biggest disgrace of his life.

Fine. This time, I'd do exactly as he wished.

If there was ever a next life, Hector. I wouldn't save you. Not ever again.

*****

When I opened my eyes again, I found myself back at six years old.

The familiar scene before me made my heart flutter. I reached up and pinched my cheek, unsure if this was real.

My little face stung from the unexpected force.

"Oh dear, my little miss, why are you pinching yourself all of a sudden?" The nanny turned and saw the red mark on my cheek, then reached out to touch it, worry written all over her face.

My mother smiled and wrapped her arms around me. "Are you so happy about going out with your brothers for Halloween that you've gone a little silly?"

I suddenly snapped out of it, hugging her desperately as big tears rolled down my cheeks.

I frantically tightened my grip around her neck. "Mom, I don't want to go."

Seeing me cry and refuse to calm down, my father and brothers quickly tried to soothe me with gentle words.

In the end, they relented and let me ride with my mother in the carriage, guarded by a heavy escort.

As the carriage slowly rolled through the marketplace, the crowd suddenly broke out into chaos.

Peering through the window, I caught sight of ten-year-old Hector, separated from his servants.

Someone clamped a hand over his mouth and nose, and his body went limp in an instant.

Hector stared at the carriage, his gaze fixed on me. And his eyes were filled with terror and desperate for help, exactly as it had been before I died.

In my previous life, I'd leapt out of the carriage without hesitation, fighting off the kidnappers with everything I had, only to end up snatched away with Hector all the same.

I risked my life to shove him toward freedom, but I was the one who got dragged into hell and endured unspeakable suffering.

But when he was dying, he still said he'd rather I'd never saved him at all.

Fine. This time, I'd do exactly as he wished.

Expressionless, I shrank back into my mother's embrace and slowly averted my gaze.

I saw nothing, heard nothing, and left him to die.

But as the carriage rolled away, a sudden tightness gripped my chest.

In the chaos, I clearly saw a kidnapper carrying another child off in the opposite direction.

I grabbed my father's sleeve, my voice trembling. "Dad... could we look the other way, please? I think there's another child over there."

I wasn't sure why I spoke up. Maybe it was just instinct.

Heaven had given me another chance at life, and even though I hated Hector, I couldn't bring myself to drag an innocent into this mess.

Maybe destiny was just working in its own mysterious way.

My father looked puzzled, but he didn't hesitate. "Search the west alley," he ordered.

When I woke up again, I was back home with the Reyes family.

My mother, tears streaming down her face, hurried to my side. "Sierra, you're finally awake. Are you okay? Does anything hurt?"

When I didn't say anything, the doctor came over and checked my pulse. "Please don't worry, Mrs. Reyes. She's alright now, just a bit shaken up.

"Let her rest and take her medicine, and she'll be back to herself soon."

My father and brothers gathered around me, finally letting out a sigh of relief. "Thank goodness my little Sierra is safe."