Chapter 1

The first thing I felt was the annoying beep of my alarm. My eyes snapped open. Sunlight streamed through the window of my Silicon Valley mansion. This wasn't the sterile white of a Monaco hospital. This wasn't the crushing pain in my chest. I sat up, my heart pounding, but not from a heart attack. It was today. The day Ava was supposed to die. The day my previous life’s misery began. But I wasn't the grieving fiancé anymore. "I was reborn," I whispered, the words tasting like ash and power. My objective was clear: reclaim my life, expose the vipers.

I remembered the Monaco gala vividly, decades from this very morning. Ava, radiant and cruel, on Liam Knight’s arm, their children laughing beside them. My Ava, my fiancée, who had "died" in a tragic rock-climbing accident. The shock of her alive, living off the fortune I’d naively given her "grieving sisters," Chloe and Zoe, had stopped my heart. Decades of deception, funded by my idiocy. That old Ethan died in Monaco. This new Ethan remembered everything.

I knew Chloe and Zoe would call soon. Their voices dripping with fake sympathy. Their hands already itching for Ava’s "inheritance." They’d ask about shares, about the foundation money. The thought made my stomach churn, not with grief, but with cold anger. My mind was already racing, my first strike forming. They thought they were clever. They had no idea who they were dealing with now.

I grabbed my phone, my fingers surprisingly steady. My assistant, David, answered on the first ring. "Ethan? Is everything alright? You’re up early." "David," I said, my voice devoid of emotion. "Get my legal team on a conference call. Now." "Sir? Is there a problem?" "Just do it." Within minutes, the call was connected. Three of my top lawyers. "Gentlemen," I began, "Ava Monroe is about to be reported deceased in an accident." A stunned silence. "My instructions are as follows: First, freeze every asset, every account, every trust fund linked to Ava Monroe, Chloe Bishop, and Zoe Chandler. Effective immediately." "Second, rescind any company stock, gifted or promised, to any of them. Terminate any pre-nuptial benefits for Ava." "Third, as soon as the official report of Ava's 'death' comes in, you will formally notify all relevant authorities: DMV, State Department for her passport, all banks, Social Security Administration. Her identity is to be rendered void for travel and financial transactions." "Ethan, this is... drastic," one lawyer finally managed. "It’s decisive," I corrected. "Do it."

I remembered the endless checks I’d written. The "grief counseling" retreats for Chloe and Zoe that cost a fortune. The "charity donations" in Ava’s name that lined their pockets. Ava, in my past life, had faked her death to elope with Liam. Chloe and Zoe were her accomplices, her "sisters" from my mother’s ill-fated mentorship program, designed to find me a "grounding" partner. They grounded me alright. Into the dirt. Millions. They bled millions from me, all while I mourned a ghost. No more. My lawyers confirmed they understood. The plan was in motion. The first pieces were moving on my chessboard.