Chapter 1

Maggie flashed me a bright smile, holding out her phone and debit card. "Lina, can you hold onto these for me? The wedding's about to start, and I don't want to lose them. Keep them close, okay?"

My stomach twisted as I took an instinctive step back.

Then it hit me—the card in her hand. I'd been reborn right at the beginning of her twisted game.

In my past life, everything had played out exactly like this. Maggie had used the same excuse—the wedding, the urgency—and begged me to guard her precious belongings. She'd claimed the card held her parents' generous gift money.

Fool that I was, I'd agreed. And then, in front of everyone, she'd accused me of stealing. The card was empty. Her unhinged husband, Logan, had attacked me. Killed me.

This time, though, I took the card and phone with a sweet smile. "Don't worry, Maggie. I'll keep them very safe."

We both knew this was a game now. The only question was—who would win?

Before I could say more, my aunt Miranda Anderson dragged me away to meet some relatives.

Miranda gestured dramatically to the card. "This is the gift money we gave our daughter. Every last penny is in there—not a single dollar missing."

Miranda, of all people, handing over a fortune? Yeah, right. How had I ever fallen for this in my past life?

Just then, Logan's mother, Rachel Miller, appeared.

"Mrs. Miller!" I called, guiding her to a front-row seat.

The wedding unfolded just as I remembered.

Maggie glowed on Logan's arm, her smile radiant. He gazed at her like she was his whole world. But beneath that picture-perfect moment? A scheming liar and a dangerously unstable man.

When the officiant handed Maggie the mic for her speech, her eyes locked onto mine—gleaming with the smug confidence of someone about to spring a trap.

"As you all know," she began, voice dripping with sweetness, "my parents gave us a very generous gift. But there are conditions." She paused for effect. "Every cent goes toward our new home—mine and my husband's."

Rachel's tense expression softened slightly.

Maggie's parents, Vincent and Miranda, had demanded an outrageous 1.88 million dollars as a "gift"—along with the house in Maggie's name alone. Locally, the norm was around 180 thousand.

Rachel had reluctantly agreed to the money. But the house? That was a fight waiting to happen.