I drove Lydia to the mall. By the time we came out, night had already fallen.

Meanwhile, Evelyn checked her home cameras and saw that I still hadn't shown up to feed the dog. She assumed I had bailed and hurried to call Trevor.

I was about to drive Lydia home when Trevor's name lit up my screen. I put the call on speaker so she could hear.

"Hannie, didn't you say you'd feed Evelyn's dog? Did you forget?"

I pretended to be surprised. "Oh, yeah! I would've forgotten if you hadn't called. I'll go now."

Trevor grunted. "Hurry up, then. Don't drag it out."

After I hung up, I gave Lydia an apologetic look. "Sorry, Mrs. Hayes. Evelyn asked me to feed her dog, but I forgot. How about we stop by her place first, then I'll take you home?"

Lydia had practically watched Evelyn grow up, so she cared for her far more than she ever did for me. When she heard we were going to Evelyn's place, she agreed without a second thought.

All that shopping finally paid off. I had managed to get her to come to Evelyn's place with me.

In my past life, after I was disfigured, Lydia came over just to humiliate me and tell me to stay away from Trevor. She said she would never let an ugly woman like me set foot in their house and even claimed that Evelyn had always been her choice for a daughter-in-law. She blamed me for getting in the way.

When we reached Evelyn's apartment and were about to step into the elevator, I turned to Lydia. "I think I left my phone in the car. Why don't you go up first?"

Right then, the elevator doors slid open. So, Lydia went in.

I stayed where I was, smiling at Lydia as the elevator doors closed.

A moment later, I took another elevator to the floor below Evelyn's place and slipped up the fire stairs.

I had just stepped into the stairwell when a bloodcurdling scream tore through the hallway.

"Help!"

I stayed in the stairwell. Even with the door between us, Lydia's screams pierced my ears, mixed with furious barking.

I pressed against the fire door, afraid the dog would catch my scent, and called the police immediately.

Lydia's screams drew the neighbors, but maybe fate had shifted this time. The kind neighbor who had saved me before wasn't home, and no one else dared to step in.

Pit bulls were fighting dogs and were already banned in the city. I had no idea how Evelyn had even gotten one.

When that dog reared up, it stood as tall as a grown woman. It had also been starved for days. Maybe Lydia wasn't enough to fill its stomach.

The police arrived quickly. It took a struggle, but they finally put the dog down.

Lydia lay there covered in wounds. She clearly hadn't gotten off easy.

When the apartment manager saw the scene, his legs nearly gave out. He called Evelyn right away.

"Ms. Summers, your dog attacked someone. You need to come back immediately!"

Evelyn sounded almost excited. "How could that happen? I'm on my way!"

She had no idea I wasn't the one who'd been mauled.

Once the timing was right, I finally showed up. I forced out a few tears and rode with the ambulance to the hospital.

I stayed there all night, taking care of things.

My parents came as soon as they heard about the attack and only relaxed when they saw I was fine.

Lydia's surgery took hours. When they wheeled her out, she was wrapped in bandages from head to toe with only her eyes showing.

Evelyn flew back from Hanoe Island that same day, and Trevor rushed back from his hometown.

When they met, their faces could barely conceal their excitement.

The blood on the hallway floor hadn't even been cleaned yet, so they could easily imagine how badly I must be hurt.

They hurried to the hospital. Before they reached the ward, they ran into my parents in the hallway.

Trevor instantly put on a somber expression. "Is Hannie... Is she alright?"

I had already briefed my parents. They didn't say much and just patted his shoulder. "Go see her."

Trevor and Evelyn went into the ward and saw a woman lying on the bed, wrapped in bandages.

Lydia's eyes widened when she saw Evelyn, and a harsh rasp clawed its way up her throat.

"Hannie, how could you be hurt this badly?"

Trevor walked over, pretending to be concerned, and then got straight to the point. "Evie rushed back overnight the moment she heard you were hurt. Don't hold it against her."

Evelyn stood there with tearful, reddened eyes. She took the bandaged hand on the bed and said, "Hannah, I'm sorry. Mojo has always been such a good dog. I don't know what came over him."

Lydia almost choked on her rage, but she couldn't get a word out. She let out a harsh roar and pulled her hand back.

Seeing this, Trevor stood up and snapped, "You must've done something wrong when you fed Mojo. That's why he bit you. This is your fault. You only got hurt, but Mojo lost his life!"

Lydia had never imagined Trevor would say that. She glared at him, her voice rasping even harsher as she snarled, "Get out... You idiot!"

When she wouldn't back down, Trevor went for the final blow. He pulled out a mirror and held it up to her.

"Look at you! Who else would want you besides me? I'd have nightmares just looking at you. If I were you, I wouldn't even want to live. Who'd want to walk around looking like that?"

He kept pushing, hoping she'd die of rage so his plan would finally succeed.

Just then, I walked in carrying a kettle of hot water. "Honey, what are you saying?"