In my previous life, my brother Elliot Quinn's close female friend, Ava Sutton, told him she wanted to camp on the mountaintop and watch the stars.

Wanting privacy, he took all the bodyguards from home with him.

Unexpectedly, the rival whom Elliot had once humiliated took the opportunity to break into the house seeking revenge.

My pregnant sister-in-law fought to protect me with everything she had, while my three-year-old nephew got hurt badly trying to save me.

I called Elliot over and over, begging him to come home.

Knowing that the situation at home was urgent, he had no choice but to leave Ava Sutton behind and rush back.

Elliot's rival was captured, but from the mountaintop came terrible news. Ava had vanished after sending her last message.

"I know your sister and wife have been waiting for me to die. Well, they got what they wanted."

Elliot coldly deleted the message and told me not to overthink it.

Afterward, Dad punished him, and he lost control of the family business.

But after the corporate gala, while I was in the backyard, Elliot killed me mercilessly.

His face was cold and cruel as he said, "You're the one who made me come back. That's why Ava died. Go and make amends to her!"

When I open my eyes again, the front gate of the villa echoes with the voice of Elliot's rival.

The pounding at the villa's front door snapped me back to reality.

I hauled my pregnant sister-in-law, Sophie Barnes, and my three-year-old nephew, Henry Quinn, into the hidden room of the study.

"Gracie, what are you doing? We have plenty of bodyguards at home. There's no need to hide here," Sophie said.

"Yeah, Aunt Gracie. Didn't Grandpa say we shouldn't let anyone know there's a hidden room unless it's absolutely necessary?" Henry reminded me.

They stared at me in bewilderment, panic rising in their eyes.

They still had no idea that my brother, Elliot Quinn, had taken every single bodyguard from the house for his close friend, Ava Sutton.

"Sophie, Elliot took everyone with him. It's just the three of us at home now."

I threw all my strength into pushing the iron cabinets against the door. They screeched loudly as they shifted, and I knew the intruders would surely find their way to the study soon.

Sophie was stunned, unable to believe that Elliot, who was always so cautious and composed, could do something this absurd.

We were the wealthiest family in Eldoria. Security had always been our top priority. How could there possibly be a moment when not a single guard was left behind?

But seeing the panic on my face, Sophie had no choice but to believe me.

"Call him, then. Tell him to get back here!"

Sophie held her waist with one hand and clutched Henry's hand with the other. Her whole body trembled.

Instead of dialing Elliot, I called the local police station. I rattled off our address, explained the break-in, and begged them to send help right away.

I didn't trust Elliot to come racing to our rescue.

After all, in my previous life, by the time Elliot returned, Sophie had already died with her unborn child, and Henry had been badly hurt.

After I hung up, the thought of the storm raging outside made my heart clench. The weather had been rough these days, and the villa was a good half-hour from the nearest police station.

I couldn't even bring myself to imagine how I was supposed to keep this tragedy from happening again before the police arrived.

Before long, the sounds of the intruders searching echoed outside the door.

I instinctively covered Henry's mouth. Even my own breathing slowed to silence.

That was when Sophie managed to get Elliot on the phone. "Darling, please come home. There are intruders in the house," she cried, her voice trembling.

But on the other end, Elliot laughed mockingly. "Come on, honey. Don't be dramatic. I know pregnancy makes you paranoid, but I need to be with Ava tonight. Just get some rest, alright?"

"I'm not being paranoid!" Sophie nearly screamed. "There really are intruders! Come back now, or our baby and I will die!"

Elliot's tone turned sharp and icy. "I know pregnancy makes you clingy. That's why I told Ava this would be the last time I'd see her. Isn't that enough for you? What else do you want from me?"

"And tell Gracie that if she doesn't want to end up the way she did last time, she'd better stop meddling in our marriage," Elliot said coldly.

His words made my heart sink to my stomach.

So I wasn't the only one reborn. Elliot was too!

But why would he think I was lying? He should know how Sophie had been violated, how she and her unborn child had died, and how Henry had been badly hurt in that previous life.

Why, with a second chance at life, had he become this cold? Was it because Ava once said that Sophie and I were in it together?

The footsteps outside stopped just on the other side of the wall.

Soon, louder bangs rattled the door, and the safe rattled with a metallic clang.

We could only watch as a gaping hole was smashed through the door. The intruders, lit by the light behind them, immediately caught sight of the three of us.

They grinned and snorted. "Well, well. Didn't expect to actually find someone hiding in here," said the leader.

I stepped in front of Sophie and Henry, inching backward.

However, the men crawled through the gap. The leader kicked the iron cabinet out of the way and shoved the door fully open.

"Did you really think you could hide? We're not amateurs. We're here because someone paid us to settle a score. Don't blame us. Blame Elliot for crossing the wrong people."

My whole body trembled with fear as I stared at the dagger gleaming coldly in his hand.

Their sinister gazes fell on Sophie.

"I know her. That's Elliot's wife. I wonder what it's like to sleep with a pregnant woman."

Sophie glared at them, clutching Henry as she backed away. "Stay away from us!"

Swallowing my terror, I leaned close to her and whispered, "There's a switch behind that vase. Run out when I open it. Once you're outside, head to the Flynn residence and find Lionel. Tell him to come save me."

The man with the knife drew closer. We had nowhere left to run.

I had already died miserably once. This time, I couldn't let Sophie and Henry suffer the same fate, no matter what.

"Gracie, I can't leave you here alone."

I pinched her arm hard, desperate to snap her out of it. "You're carrying a baby, and Henry's only three. Listen to me. Take him and get out of here. I'll hold them off. If you can find Lionel, we still have a chance."

Just then, the man lunged at us.

But before I could move, Sophie twisted the switch with one hand and shoved Henry into my arms with the other. Then, she threw herself forward, wrapping her arms around the men's legs.

"Gracie, go! Take Henry and run!"

Her voice was thick with grief and the ache of separating from her child.

"Sophie!"

Just as the door was about to shut, I caught sight of the man choking Sophie and slamming her hard onto the floor.

Every shred of reason shattered inside me.

"Gracie, go! Find help!"

A chill ripped through me, but the will to survive crushed everything else.

I knew if I stayed, the three of us would be doomed. So I clutched Henry tight and bolted through the small door at the back of the hidden room.

Once outside, I didn't dare look back. I just ran, sprinting for my life.

Along the way, I fell and scraped my knee. A large patch of skin peeled back to reveal bloody flesh. Still, I gritted my teeth and sprinted madly toward the Flynn residence.

By the time I reached its iron gates, I slammed the doorbell and pounded on the gate in a frenzy.

"Lionel! Lionel! Please save Sophie! Lionel, help us!"

The lock clicked, and Lionel Flynn appeared in casual clothes. His brow furrowed as he took in my battered state.

Instead of helping me up like I expected, Lionel just stood over me and looked down with a cold expression.

"Isn't this just an act with Sophie? How did you end up like this? You really went all out, dragging Henry into it too, just to trick Elliot into coming home."

His tone dripped with disdain. To him, I was nothing but a liar playing along with Sophie's schemes.

"Lionel, I'm not acting! Sophie's trapped at home! There are intruders in the house. Please, take your bodyguards and save her!"

He glanced at the wound on my knees with a hint of amusement, then shook his head helplessly. "If Elliot hadn't warned me first, I might've actually believed you. But he already told me you and Sophie made up this nonsense about intruders breaking into the house because you're jealous he took Ava camping."

My chest burned with fury. "Don't listen to him, Lionel! This is real! They came for revenge! They were hired by the man Elliot offended not long ago when he landed that big deal!"

I pulled up my call log and shoved my phone at Lionel. "I'm not lying. I even called the cops. I was just afraid they wouldn't get here in time. I'm really worried about Sophie. Please, I'm begging you. Help her!"

Lionel didn't believe me. He even scoffed impatiently. "Filing a false police report can land you in jail. Sophie's jealousy has really crossed the line. I know you two are close, but how could you go along with something like this?"

"Lionel! We're not lying! I'm telling the truth!" I screamed hysterically, tears spilling down my face.

But my desperation still didn't sway him. He shot me a look full of disdain, then turned and walked away.

I grabbed his arm with everything I had. "Lionel, please. Sophie's pregnant. Just do me this one favor. Go check on her. If you don't, she's going to die!"

He looked down at me, his expression cold. "Gracie, Elliot told me not to get involved in your family matters."

His words pierced straight through me.

Before Ava showed up, Lionel had been my childhood sweetheart. We had only been a step away from getting engaged.

But once Ava entered the picture, both Elliot and Lionel changed. Lionel grew distant, and Elliot came home less and less, and later every time.

They both showed Ava special treatment, and it led them to do all sorts of foolish things.

Lionel even forced a female employee at the company to change her name just because she also happened to be called Ava.

Elliot was worse. When Ava complained that a client had looked at her the wrong way, he ruined the man's entire company. He deliberately drove prices into the ground, even at a loss, just to crush him into bankruptcy.

And because of that, the man he destroyed had come looking for revenge.

Desperate, I held Henry in my arms and pleaded again. "Lionel, I'm begging you. Just go take a look. I swear I'll never bother you again after that."

He froze at my words.

All these years, my greatest dream had been to marry him. Even after Ava came between us and we drifted apart, I never once gave up on loving him. And yet today, I actually told him I would never bother him again.

He knew I would never make light of our relationship.

Even the maid standing nearby couldn't stand to watch any longer. "Mr. Flynn, maybe you should go. Ms. Quinn would never make up something like this."

Lionel hesitated. I took the chance to smash my head fiercely against the bluestone slab. "Please, Lionel. Save Sophie. I'm begging you."

At last, compassion flickered in his eyes. "Fine. I'll go. But let me make one thing clear. If I find out this was all an act, you and Sophie will pay for it."