Chapter 1

In my previous life, my husband, Edward Harrington, sacrificed me to make his childhood sweetheart, Charlotte Evans, his rightful wife.

He deliberately drugged me, hoping to destroy my reputation.

I managed to dodge his trap, but he didn't hesitate to set me on fire and burn me alive.

This time around, I forced that drugged honey water down both Edward and Charlotte's throats.

I wanted them to taste the hell they had so carefully prepared for me.

*****

Back in my previous life, Charlotte showed up at our house, looking for shelter.

Edward didn't care about my feelings at all. He spent every day glued to her side, acting like I didn't even exist.

And as if that wasn't enough, he openly promised to take her in as his mistress, giving her the same status as me.

Of course, I refused. But I never imagined they'd drugged me and ruined my name to get what they wanted.

And then, they took every last bit of my property for themselves.

When I realized something was wrong, I dragged myself out of the room, barely able to stand.

Edward and his men rushed in, only to find the room empty.

He sent his right-hand man to hunt me down.

To prevent any more accidents, he even poured kerosene outside the room. The fire roared to life, sealing off any chance of survival.

Staring at the raging flames, my eyes burned with resentment and despair.

Before I died, I gave my shadow guard one final command. No matter what it took, he should kill Edward and his family.

If I was going down, I was dragging them down with me.

When I opened my eyes again, I couldn't believe I was back on the exact day they murdered me.

Staring at the familiar honey water in front of me, I felt like the flames were still licking at my skin. The agony from those burns clung to me, refusing to let go.

I could barely hold onto my sanity. I almost hurled the honey water straight at Edward's face.

Edward caught me staring at the honey water without touching it. He gave me a questioning look. "Isabelle, what's wrong?"

"Nothing," I replied, shaking my head gently as I put on my usual dignified smile.

I took the honey water and set it aside. "Edward, I need to talk to you," I said and gestured for everyone else in the room to leave.

Edward didn't know what I wanted, but he didn't stop them.

Soon, it was only the two of us in the room.

Catching his puzzled look, I turned away and poured him a cup of coffee.

With a quick tap on the ring on my index finger, a hidden white powder slipped into the tea and vanished without a trace.

In my previous life, I never guarded myself against him, because I never suspected he could be so cruel.

Now that I knew what a hypocrite he really was, I was ready to use every weapon at my disposal.

"Isabelle, the guests are still waiting outside. What did you want to talk about?" he asked. Maybe it was guilt that made him surprisingly patient.

"Edward, about what you said before regarding Charlotte, I finally made up my mind," I said and casually handed him the cup.

Edward didn't expect me to bring it up so suddenly. He straightened up a bit, took the cup, and took a sip without thinking.

"Isabelle, are you really okay with her being my mistress and living with us?" he asked, his voice full of excitement.

"No, making her a mistress would be far too unfair. You and Charlotte grew up together. Only the position of lawful wife would suit her," I replied.

"Isabelle, really?" Edward shot up from his seat, his eyes practically glowing with joy. "Don't worry. Charlotte is gentle and kind. Even if you end up as my concubine, she and I will never treat you badly. We—"

But before he could finish, his vision suddenly blurred. He pointed at me, the joy in his eyes replaced by pure terror.

I walked over to the window and blew a finger-sized whistle I always carried with me.

In a couple of seconds, a shadowy figure appeared right in front of me.

"Drag him to the second room on the west side," I ordered.

The shadow was my personal guard, Shane. He only obeyed my commands and was one of my safeguards for survival.

Shane saw Edward unconscious and, without a moment's hesitation, disappeared with him.

I was about to leave when voices drifted in from outside.

"Miss Evans, Mr. Harrington and Mrs. Harrington are talking right now," Penny, my maid, said.

"How dare you! I have something important to discuss with Edward. Who do you think you are to stop me?" Charlotte snapped.

Charlotte's family used to be part of the nobility. But they fell from grace after a serious mistake and her whole family was demoted to commoners.

Without her family's backing, the engagement between Charlotte and Edward was off the table.

Charlotte ended up marrying someone else, and Edward, under his mother Wendy's arrangement, married me instead.

A month ago, Charlotte showed up in Capital City, seeking out Edward.

They'd been star-crossed lovers before. And now that they were reunited, sparks flew between them.

They made no effort to hide their affair in the house.

Wendy pretended not to see any of it.

I thought it wouldn't matter much if Edward took her as a concubine or mistress. But what I never expected was that what they were really after was my place as his lawful wife.