Chapter 1

The night my parents were kidnapped, my brother, Silas, chose to go bungee jumping with Clarice, the foster girl we grew up with.

I didn't try to stop him this time. Instead, I called the police and prepared the ransom money myself.

In my previous life, Silas had abandoned Clarice to save our parents.

The bungee cord snapped that night, and Clarice plummeted into the canyon. Her body was never found.

Silas never said a word of blame back then.

But on my birthday, he drugged me and dragged me to that very same cliff.

"You planned that kidnapping to get attention, Vivienne. You're a monster!" he screamed.

"Clarice is gone, so you don't deserve to live either!"

Then he pushed me.

When I opened my eyes again, I was back on the day of the kidnapping.

This time, Silas didn't stay to help. He ran straight to Clarice.

Little did he know, he would soon be crawling back in regret.

1

I snapped my eyes open, my forehead drenched in cold sweat.

My heart hammered against my ribs like it was trying to break free.

The terrifying sensation of falling hadn't faded yet, but the room around me was hauntingly familiar.

I checked the time on my phone.

I had been reborn.

It was the exact day my parents were taken.

In five minutes, the kidnappers would call. They would demand a ransom within the hour, or they would kill them.

I was the daughter the Beaumont family had lost eighteen years ago.

I had only been back with my real parents for a year. They were everything to me.

I couldn't let the tragedy of my past life happen again.

I rushed downstairs to wait by the landline. Silas, wearing his tactical gear, followed right behind me.

"Vivienne, who are you putting this act on for? Mom and Dad aren't even here."

"Weren't they kidnapped because of "you" anyway?"

Silas let out a mocking laugh.

At that moment, I knew. He had been reborn too.

His expression told me everything. He wanted me to suffer.

In our last life, Silas was convinced I orchestrated the kidnapping to win our parents' favor.

I had no idea where he got such a ridiculous idea.

This time, Silas decided to ignore my "trap" entirely.

"Don't say I didn't warn you, Vivienne. Filing a false report is a crime."

"Don't come crying to me when you're behind bars."

I wanted to scream, but the sharp ring of the phone cut me off.

Every ring felt like a needle stabbing my heart.

Silas acted like he didn't even hear it.

As he headed for the door, he shot me a look of pure disdain.

"Do whatever you want. I'm going bungee jumping with Clarice."

"Nothing is going to happen to them anyway. Don't bother me."

That wasn't what happened last time.

In the previous life, Silas used his detective skills to find the kidnappers' hideout.

He brought our parents back safely in just an hour.

Back then, I was so focused on our traumatized parents that I didn't notice the simmering rage in Silas's eyes.

It was only when he tied me up at the cliff that I learned the truth.

Clarice had called him dozens of times during the rescue.

Because Silas didn't pick up, she went bungee jumping alone and died in that accident.

The phone kept ringing like a death knell.

I picked it up, and the kidnapper's voice growled into my ear.

"Twenty million dollars. Have it ready in two hours, or your parents are dead."

My eyes widened in horror.

What? In my last life, they only asked for ten million!