Chapter 3

That night, my meeting with the Franklin family went very well. In this life, I had the experience and insight from my previous life.

So I not only signed the partnership contract in my family's name, but the Franklin family's steward even gave up 3% of the profits from the shares to me. It was a huge win.

Also, with Rose and Ben by my side this time, I didn't fall down the stairs at Château Reverie Dining like I did in my previous life. No more bleeding all night with no one coming to help.

Instead, I made it home safe and sound.

But even though I didn't take that fall in this life, and the baby was still inside me, I still felt a strange, uneasy feeling I couldn't explain.

Then, that night, I dreamed of all the miserable, humiliating scenes from my previous life.

I woke up, drenched in cold sweat. I was so thirsty that I couldn't stand it, so I put on a robe and got up to go downstairs for a glass of water.

But just as I was holding the railing and stepping down, something sudden happened. A huge shove came from behind me. I lost control and tumbled down the stairs.

Suddenly, the pain hit me, sharp and fierce, like a ten-inch needle stabbing deep into my body. I couldn't even breathe.

I reached down with trembling fingers and touched a wet, sticky pool of blood beneath me.

At that moment, I felt like I was back in Château Reverie Dining like I had been in my previous life. The wind was howling outside, the room freezing and pitch black. No one answered me all night.

The despair drained every bit of color from my face.

Just before my body gave out and I passed out, I forced my eyes open a crack. In a daze, I thought I saw a familiar figure flash by on the stairs.

*****

When I woke up again, I was in the hospital.

I touched my belly without thinking. The flatness instantly told me everything. My face twisted with grief, and my eyes suddenly went red.

Two lifetimes, the previous life and this one. I just wasn't meant to have this child.

But I had clearly avoided the stairs where I slipped in my previous life. So why did I still fall down the stairs in this life and lose the baby?

"Grace, the baby is gone." Greg's face was right in front of me, with a hint of blame. "How could you be so careless?"

After hearing that I'd lost the baby, he acted just like in my previous life, distant, calm, like he didn't really care.

The occasional flicker of something complicated in his eyes was probably just regret. Regret that the child who shared his blood was gone.

Marian tugged at Greg's sleeve and put on a show. "Greg, Grace just lost her baby. She must be devastated. How can you talk to her like that?"

Then she placed a soft pillow behind my back and gently took my hand.

But I didn't want her pity. I pulled my hand back and said coldly, "Save your fake kindness."

Marian's face went stiff. For a second, I saw a hint of embarrassment flash in her eyes. She could barely keep up appearances.

Greg noticed she was hurt. He frowned a little and wanted to say something.

But when he saw how heartbroken I looked, he held back.

He stood there in silence for a moment, then tried to comfort me. "It's okay. We can have another child later. Just focus on getting better."

But I cut him off, "There won't be another."

"What did you say?" Greg looked at me with a frown.

I didn't answer. Instead, I closed my eyes, my face full of sorrow. "I didn't fall by myself. Someone pushed me down the stairs."

Before Greg could say anything, Joanna finally walked into the room, taking her sweet time. She looked displeased and questioned me, "What do you mean by that?

"Are you trying to say that the old servants who've been with this family for decades, longer than you've been alive, would try to hurt you?

"You need proof to throw around accusations. You're a bad luck charm. You lost your own baby, fine. But now you just try to blame those decent, honest old servants. They've taken care of us for years. And you have no proof?"

I looked at Joanna, who had come in late. I felt completely cold inside. I knew I was never someone she liked.

But all these years after I married Greg, I still respected her and took care of her. I always thought of her first in everything and put her before myself.

But I never thought that in her eyes, I wasn't even worth as much as her servants.

"True or not, we'll find out soon enough." I closed my eyes coldly and ignored them.