Chapter 1

The last thing I remembered was the cold, metallic taste of blood filling my mouth. Mark' s face, the face I once loved more than my own life, was twisted in a cruel smile as he watched me bleed out on the floor of the company he stole from my family. My family, ruined. Our name, dragged through the mud. And me, dead at twenty-four. All because I had loved the wrong man.

He had whispered one last thing to me, his voice a venomous hiss.

"You should have just stayed a stupid, useful tool, Chloe. Did you really think I could love someone like you?"

That was my first life. A life of brilliance, of devotion, and of absolute, soul-crushing stupidity. I was Chloe Sterling, heir to the Sterling-Ross Group, a woman with an almost supernatural intuition for market trends and corporate strategy. It was a gift, a unique ability to see the patterns others missed.

It was that gift that saved Mark.

I remembered the day clearly. He was just a junior executive then, charismatic and ambitious, but caught in a hostile takeover bid that was about to ruin him. His company was on the brink of collapse. I saw the flaw in his rival' s strategy, a single, fatal vulnerability. I spent three sleepless nights drafting a counter-offensive, a plan so precise and aggressive it not only saved his company but allowed him to swallow his rival whole.

As a reward, his family, the powerful Thompson dynasty, offered me anything I wanted. I asked for Mark. Our engagement was announced the next week, a celebrated union of power and talent. I thought it was the beginning of our fairy tale.

It was the beginning of my end.

Mark used my insights to build his empire, all while systematically dismantling my family' s. He charmed my father, manipulated my board, and turned my allies against me. The whole time, my best friend, Sarah, was right there, patting my back and telling me I was just being paranoid. She was the one who fed Mark my strategies. She was the one who helped him frame my father for embezzlement.

The day our company went bankrupt, Mark announced his engagement to Sarah. My family was destroyed. My father had a heart attack. I was left with nothing but the bitter taste of betrayal. And then, he killed me.

A blinding white light flooded my vision, and the suffocating feeling of death was gone. I gasped, taking in a sharp, painful breath. My eyes shot open.

I wasn' t in the cold, empty office. I was in my old bedroom at the Sterling mansion, the morning sun streaming through the bay windows. My hands flew to my throat. No wound. No blood. I scrambled out of bed and looked in the mirror. It was me, but younger. It was the face of a twenty-two-year-old Chloe, vibrant and untouched by tragedy.

My phone buzzed on the nightstand. The date on the screen made my heart stop. It was the day of the hostile takeover. The day I first saved Mark.

I had come back. I had been given a second chance.

A slow smile spread across my face, but this time, it held no warmth. It was cold, sharp, and hungry for retribution. Hope? A new beginning? No. This was a chance for justice. This was a chance for revenge.

The phone buzzed again. It was my assistant.

"Miss Sterling, Mr. Thompson is facing a complete buyout. His board is in chaos. He' s been trying to reach you all morning. He says you' re the only one who can help him."

I let the phone ring. I pictured Mark' s face, handsome and confident, now probably pale with panic. In my first life, I dropped everything and ran to his side. I had been his savior.

This time, I would be his spectator.

I walked over to the window and looked out at the sprawling gardens, feeling a sense of calm I hadn' t felt in years. I let his calls go to voicemail, one after another. I imagined him pacing his office, his desperation growing with every unanswered ring. Good. Let him sweat. Let him feel the helplessness I felt when he took everything from me.

Hours passed. The sun began to set, painting the sky in hues of orange and purple. My phone finally lit up with a news alert.

Thompson Tech Narrowly Averts Hostile Takeover. Last-Minute Save by Junior Analyst Sarah Jenkins.

A photo accompanied the article. It was Sarah, standing beside a visibly relieved Mark. She was looking up at him with wide, adoring eyes, her hand resting on his arm. He was smiling down at her, a look of gratitude and dawning affection on his face.

Just as I remembered. Just as I had planned.

The bait was taken. The players were in position. The game had just begun. And this time, I knew all the rules.