Darkness.

It felt like hell. Fear gripped Eliza White's chest so tight she could barely breathe. The warehouse stank of rot and decay, and she was nothing more than a fish on a cutting board—helpless, in pain, waiting to be mutilated inch by inch.

She couldn’t tell which hurt more: her battered body or her broken heart.

Limp and bloodied, every bone like it had been smashed, Eliza had lost even the will to live. The worst part? The man she'd once trusted with her soul—Leonard Carter—clung to Sophie Johnson as they both watched it all. Enjoying it. Smiling.

Then came the crash of boots and a sharp tug on her hair. The man with gold-rimmed glasses yanked her head up by the roots, forcing her to look at the phone screen in his other hand.

Blood from the gash on her forehead slid into her eyes, trickled by her lips, its metallic taste flooding her throat. She blinked through the sting, forcing herself to look.

“See that? That’s the guy who gave up everything for you,” the man sneered. “Lost it all. Because of you.”

On the screen, Victor Thompson sat behind the wheel of a car, face like stone. He suddenly jerked the steering wheel, the vehicle spinning out, then smashing straight into a cliff. Flames exploded, engulfing the sky. His face was soaked in blood, but it was the sorrow in his obsidian eyes that tore Eliza apart.

“No…” she gasped, feeling like a hand had reached into her chest and was crushing her heart.

Her body shook violently. Helplessness. Rage. Misery. It was all too much. She’d been a fool—believing the wrong people, leading him into ruin.

Staring at the pair who had destroyed her, her breath trembled. Her voice was hoarse, venom laced in every word. “Sophie Johnson... Leonard Carter… even if I die, I’ll haunt you.”

The blood on her face had dried and cracked, falling into the corners of her mouth as her lips curled into a twisted smile. She looked like a ghost crawling out of hell.

Sophie flinched for a split second. But she quickly recovered, snuggling into Leonard's arms, laughing like a queen above it all. “Dead or not, you look like complete trash now.”

Her voice turned cold. She glanced at the five men standing around Eliza. “Enough with the show. Toss her in the sea.”

Freezing salt water smothered her, but it couldn’t numb the suffering.

The water forced its way up her nose, down her throat. Her lungs burned. Her skin felt like it was being sliced open. Still, she didn’t struggle. Eyes wide open, she let the black sea swallow her whole.

Just before consciousness faded, her hands drifted to her belly.

Inside her... was their baby.

Gone.

“Ah—!”

Eliza jolted awake, breathless. She wiped her soaked face, confused.

Soft music poured into her ears. The lights around her flashed in dizzying colors. Her eyes stung.

She shut them tight, trying to adjust. When she opened them again, she was in a lavish private room. A huge screen was playing a music video titled “Rebirth,” and five or six girls sat around her, laughing and chatting.

Then that face appeared—sweet, delicate features, a fake smile, unbelievably familiar.

Sophie Johnson.

She held a cup of water, fussing like nothing had happened. “Sis, did you really doze off just now? We’re just getting started. Come on, let’s play Truth or Dare!”

Eliza’s mind went blank for a second.

And then, as the sorrowful melody played on, it hit her.

She was back.She remembered this all too well—it was the third month after Sophie Johnson had “taken her in.” Sophie said she wanted to introduce her to some friends. That night, she had also met the man she unintentionally killed.

She had really come back!

Even the heavens couldn't stand how miserably she died the first time, huh?

After her mother passed away, she left the mountain where she’d lived for twenty years, clutching the token her mother gave her, to look for the father she’d never met.

Cut off from the world since birth, she was clueless and almost starved to death on the streets.

It had been freezing that night. She was curled up in rags beside a bar when Sophie spotted her and brought her home.

Back then, she thought she was the luckiest girl ever—little did she know, that was when the nightmare began.

“Hey sis, you lost. Truth or dare?”

Sophie’s chirpy voice snapped Eliza White back to the present.

Eliza took a slow breath, forcing down the rage boiling inside her. She lifted her head with an innocent smile. “I’ve never played this before… I’ll go with dare.”

“Dare is fun! Anyone got a good one?” a girl with a messy bun piped up from Eliza’s right.

Eliza had seen her maybe twice before, couldn’t recall her name. After that night in her past life, Sophie never brought her around this group again.

A few seconds passed before someone jumped to their feet. “I’ve got a great one!”

“Spill it!” The bun-haired girl egged her on.

“Go next door and kiss a hot guy.”

Here we go.

Same crap as last time.

A chill crept through Eliza’s heart. But she feigned wide-eyed innocence, casting her eyes down shyly. “Um… that sounds kind of… awkward?”

“Oh come on, what’s the big deal? Maybe you’ll find a real catch in there.” Sophie grinned, tugging her up and nudging her toward the next room.

Just like before, Sophie and a couple of girls pushed her straight to the door.

Eliza stood in front of the private suite, her heart aching. This was where she first met Victor Thompson… and that sickening lie of a man, Leonard Carter.

Back then, Leonard gave her the softest smile, so she walked toward him. Only to be humiliated—the guy laughed her off in front of everyone, even encouraged them to mock her.

Later, she overheard their plan—it was all scripted by Sophie and Leonard.

“Go on, sis.” Sophie’s fake-sweet voice grated against her ears.

Shaking off the past, Eliza inhaled deeply and pushed the door open.

And there he was.

That cold, handsome face she once couldn't bear to look at.

Victor lounged back on the sofa, legs crossed. His dark eyes glinted beneath long lashes, sharp and unreadable.

He glanced at Eliza, then looked down, lashes sweeping low to mask his gaze.

To the others, Eliza probably looked like a stunned, clueless girl. Four pairs of eyes in the room landed on her—except his.

Leonard smiled at her like the perfect gentleman and asked, “Miss, may I help you with something?”

Polished and soft-spoken. That was always his mask—a cover for his selfish, twisted soul.

Eliza would tear it off. One day, she'd make sure everyone saw exactly how two-faced he really was.

She ignored his fake charm, locking her gaze solely on Victor’s cool, distant figure.

Then came the voice from behind the door.

“Eliza, what are you doing? Don’t chicken out—it’s dare, remember?”