"Amelia, did I mess up… big time?"

In the dim, cold basement, a stunning yet pale man clutched a stiff female body in his arms. His eyes were blank, lifeless, like all the light had drained from them.

"I should've just kept you with me, no matter what. Even if you hated me for it, at least you’d still be alive. Letting you go… giving you up to him… that was the real mistake, wasn’t it?"

Unsurprisingly, silence answered him. But Alexander Grant didn’t seem to notice—or maybe he didn’t care. He murmured again and again, like he'd lost touch with reality.

Amelia—now in her soul state—watched in silence, her expression hard to read.

After they'd cut ties completely, he vanished from her life. No phone calls, no awkward run-ins, no drama. She'd honestly thought he’d moved on. But clearly, the news of her death had burned away whatever cold composure he’d once had. He’d lost it—tracking down her body, digging into every detail of how and why she’d died.

Just then, footsteps echoed outside the basement.

Moments later, a group of men came in, clearly well-trained. They dragged in four people—two men and two women.

The one leading them, Amelia recognized right away. It was Jodie Clark, Alexander’s most trusted right-hand man.

He barely looked like he was bringing in humans. Rough and efficient. One of the guys he hauled in had clearly been worked over hard—bloody, bruised, no clean spot left. The man’s once-clean face now smeared with half-dried blood.

The moment Amelia saw him, rage exploded in her chest.

Marcus Shaw.

The man she'd loved not once, but twice. The one she'd given everything for—only to realize he’d been using her the whole damn time.

Even her death had been part of his plan. Just another move to wring the last bit of value from her existence.

If her soul hadn’t stuck around after death, if she hadn’t been led to the truth behind her deaths in both lives… she might never have seen through everything.

While that burning hate roared inside her, Jodie had already dragged Marcus straight in front of Alexander.

"Sir, we’ve got them."

Alexander flinched slightly, his grip around Amelia’s lifeless body tightening. Slowly, he turned his head.

When his eyes landed on the beaten, crumpled man at his feet, everything in Alexander’s gaze turned sharp and lethal—with a flicker of something bitter underneath.

"I couldn’t even bear to see her frown. And you... you dared—”

Marcus spat out a mouthful of blood, defiant. He already knew it was over. He had nothing left to lose. "But the one she loved… was me. Even if you kill me now, she’s never going to love you back. Alexander Grant, you’re just a sad—ugh!"

Before he could finish the sentence, Alexander grabbed his throat. His eyes blazed red, veins standing out, a demon cast in human skin. Pure rage.

"You? You're nothing. If she hadn’t liked you first, you wouldn't even be worth my time."

Marcus barely had any strength left. With Alexander’s hand crushing his throat, the only thing he could do was claw uselessly at that iron grip.

Alexander wasn’t interested in mercy. He turned to Amelia again, his face softening, voice gentle like he was whispering to her in a dream.

"You always saw things so clearly, always protected the ones you cared about. Bet it never crossed your mind that he’d betray you like this, huh? Let me handle it. Let me get revenge for you. You trust me, right?"

He paused for a second, eyes slightly damp.

"You’re not saying anything—I’ll take that as a yes."As the words fell, a sharp crack sliced through the silence. Marcus Shaw's body crumpled to the floor like a puppet with its strings cut.

The other three watched in terror, eyes wide with panic. Gagged with duct tape, they could only let out muffled, desperate noises.

They were Marcus’s parents and sister—people who not only made Amelia Davis’s life hard but had also played a hand in staging the so-called accident that ended it.

Jodie Clark waved someone over to drag Marcus's body away, then turned to the trembling trio. "Sir, what about these three?"

"Kill them," Alexander Grant said coldly.

"Understood."

Three quick, loud gunshots. Then silence. The three dropped one after another, crimson blooming on their foreheads.

Alexander didn’t even glance their way. He simply lifted his hand. "Everyone out."

"Yes, sir." Jodie figured his boss wanted some time alone with Amelia, so he didn’t ask any questions. With a wave, he signaled the others to remove the corpses and leave.

The basement fell silent again. The metallic stench of blood hung heavy in the air, proof of what had just gone down.

Alexander’s fingers trembled as he tried to brush a lock of Amelia’s hair off her lip. He paused midway, pulled his hand back, and wiped off the blood on his black shirt before trying again.

"Amelia... I did it. I got justice for you. Can you wake up... just once, and look at me?"

His words echoed back at him—empty, unanswered.

"If there’s a next life..." He broke off mid-sentence, eyes shutting tight, voice rough with pain. "You might not find me there."

Off to the side, Amelia’s soul trembled. He didn’t say it outright, but she understood. Her first life was in ancient times, a world where he never existed.

"It’s okay... The road through reincarnation must be lonely, right? Don’t be scared. I’ll join you soon."

Her heart clenched.

"No!"

She tried to scream, but no sound came.

She lunged to stop him—her hand passed right through his body.

She could only watch in horror as he pulled out a gun and pressed it to his temple.

A single shot rang out. The entire basement jolted.

The door slammed open. Jodie and the others stormed in, shouting in panic, rushing to their fallen boss.

But for Amelia, all the noise sounded far away, like echoes underwater. The temperature dropped, her chest aching with a pain that made it hard to breathe. Darkness crept in, and she passed out.

No idea how much time had passed.

A familiar warmth moved closer. Someone grabbed her hands, pinning them above her head.

She hated the feeling of being restrained and instinctively tried to pull away, but the grip only tightened.

"You won’t even cooperate? Amelia, so this is your idea of sincerity?"

Her lashes fluttered open. The bright ceiling light stung her eyes, and she squinted. When her eyes finally adjusted, a striking face came into view—Alexander Grant. Right in front of her.

Only now, there was a mocking glint in his gaze that caught her off guard.

But his scent... the warmth of his touch—it was all real.

She... came back?

And not just anywhere—back to her modern second life?