I've kicked my 28-thousand-dollar high-tech drone into the lake.

In my previous life, when my company held a team-bonding session by camping out in the mountains, my colleague, Melissa Schubert's beloved pet dog—that she views as her own son—has gotten lost in the woods.

With tears trickling down her cheeks, she tugs at my sleeve.

"I can't live without Max! Please use your drone to look for him!"

Eager to help Melissa out, I immediately power on my drone and start scouring the woods for Max.

But Melissa thinks I'm being far too slow on the controller, so she snatches it from me and starts messing around with the controls.

As a result, the drone spirals out of control and crashes into the woods. As soon as its battery explodes, it starts a forest fire immediately.

But when faced against the police, Melissa doesn't hesitate to throw me under the bus.

"Lauren was the one who kept flaunting her stupid drone! Not only did she set fire to the mountain, but she also killed my dog!"

On top of having to pay a huge fire insurance claim, I also get sentenced by the court, leaving me with a criminal record.

My dad is forced to work at a construction site just to help me gather the funds needed for the compensation. That's when he accidentally falls off the scaffolding, resulting in him getting paralyzed permanently. All of my relatives have also cut ties with us.

When I open my eyes again, I've returned to the cliffside on the day of the camping trip. This time, I don't hesitate to kick my drone into the lake.

A second later, Melissa rushes to me while bawling at the top of her lungs.

"My dog has gone missing! Quick, help me look for him with your drone!"

I turn around to look at her.

"You should be calling the police and asking a professional search-and-rescue team for help if you want to look for your dog. Why are you looking for me instead?"

"Lauren Brooks, are you out of your mind?"

Melissa Schubert stared at the ripples spreading across the lake, her eyes practically popping out of her head.

"That was a professional-grade drone you paid 28 thousand dollars for, and you just kicked it into the lake! What about my dog, Max?"

She turned toward me, mascara-stained tears running down her face.

I looked at her coldly.

Memories from my past life came flooding back. This same person had once cried pitifully in front of the police, pointing at me and claiming I had been showing off the drone. This same person had sent me to prison for three years.

My dad worked in construction to scrape together money for my bail, and ended up falling and breaking his spine, leaving him paralyzed for life.

Meanwhile, Melissa had taken donations from her online followers, bought herself a new dog, and carried on her picture-perfect influencer lifestyle.

I forced down the hatred rising in my chest and said, "I told you—if your dog's missing, call the police."

Brushing off the dust on my pants, I added, "That drone was mine. If I wanted to hear it splash, that's my business. It has nothing to do with you."

"You're heartless!" Greg Hawthorn stepped forward, shielding Melissa behind him. "If something happens to Max, can you take responsibility?"

I sneered, "She let her dog run off without a leash. Why should I take responsibility?"

"How could you say such a thing?" Frank Woodruff, our supervisor, pushed through the crowd, his beer belly leading the way. "Lauren, we're all colleagues here. We came here for team-building, and we should all help each other out.

"Melissa's in trouble, and instead of helping, you deliberately destroyed search equipment. You're being nasty and destroying team harmony!"

I looked at them, feeling nothing but disgust.

Melissa grew even more dramatic. "Lauren, let me make this clear. If Max doesn't come back, I'll sue you for refusing to help!"

Others chimed in.

"I always thought Lauren was nice. Who would've guessed that she's so cruel?"

"Don't cry, Melissa. We'll help you look."

I couldn't be bothered to explain. I turned to leave.

"Stop right there!" Melissa rushed forward and grabbed my arm. "Since the drone's gone, you're coming with me into the woods to search. If you don't bring Max back, you're not leaving here today."

I yanked my arm free. "Get out of my way."

"I'm not moving!" Melissa dropped to the ground, stubbornly throwing a tantrum. "Everyone, look! The murderer is trying to run away. My dog Max was killed because of her!"

She yelled loudly, but I noticed her gaze flicking toward me, gauging my reaction.

Greg immediately blocked my path, clenching his fists and cracking his knuckles menacingly. "Lauren, Melissa asked you to go into the woods to look for Max. Are you deaf? If you refuse, I'll make sure you never leave this campsite."

I pulled out my phone. "Fine. I'll call the police right now. Let them decide who's really the one causing trouble."

I had just pressed 911 when a large hand suddenly snatched the phone away.

"What police?" Mr. Woodruff gripped my phone, his face darkening. "This is a company team-building trip. How will it look if you call the cops over? Do you want the entire industry laughing at us?"

Staring at my empty palm, I finally understood—they weren't just trying to force me to search for the dog.

"Mr. Woodruff, are you restricting my freedom?"

"I'm teaching you discipline!" he snapped, shoving my phone into his pocket. "Until Max is found, I'll be holding onto this. You'll get it back when the dog returns."

In my last life, this was how it had started too.

Melissa climbed to her feet and walked up to me, a smug smile playing on her lips. "Did you hear that, Lauren? Now, get into the woods and find my dog! If you don't find him, you can die in there for all I care."

"I'll say this one last time. I'm not going."

Melissa's smile froze.

"Lauren, don't push your luck!" Greg immediately butted in. "Mr. Woodruff gave you an order. You dare defy him?"

I shot him a glare. "I don't know if the company can or cannot survive without me. But I do know this—if I die in that forest, every single one of you here will be guilty of murder."

My eyes swept across the group of colleagues who had been watching. Those who had been cheering Melissa on earlier now looked away guiltily.

Melissa raised her voice again. "Stop trying to scare everyone! Max is a good boy. If he's fine in there, you'll be fine too. You're just selfish and cold-blooded!"

As she cursed me, her eyes scanned the campsite until her gaze finally locked onto my tent, which stood at the edge of the site. I had pitched it alone the day before.

Melissa strutted over. "You won't go search, huh? Then don't even think about staying here either!"

She yanked hard on the guylines. The stakes ripped out of the ground.

"What are you doing?" I rushed forward.

Greg blocked me like a wall, shoving me back. I slipped and crashed onto the gravel. My palm split open, blood oozing out.

"Melissa can do whatever she wants. Who are you to stop her?"

In those few seconds, Melissa had already torn my tent apart. She threw my waterproof mat into the mud, stomped dirty footprints across my sleeping bag, and finally dug through my backpack, pulling out a wooden safety charm.

My dad had gotten that charm for me from a church. In my last life, I had clung to it during my time in prison.

"You're still carrying around this crappy old thing?" Melissa sneered disdainfully at the charm, dangling it in the air. "You won't even save a dog. What's the point of having this? God isn't going to protect someone as cruel as you."

"Give it back!" I scrambled to my feet and lunged toward her.

Startled, Melissa stepped back, but she still hurled the charm with all her strength. It flew through the air and dropped straight into the blazing campfire.

"No!" My mind went blank. I reached into the flames without thinking. The fire singed my hair, and the back of my hand seared in pain.

By the time I pulled the charm out, half of it was already charred. The word "peace" that my dad carved on the back was now blurred.

I clutched the scorched wood against my chest, tears streaming down my face.

"Oh, come on. It's just a piece of wood. Is it really worth crying over?" Melissa folded her arms and laughed. "If you'd just agreed to search for Max earlier, this wouldn't have happened. See, this is all your own fault."

I slowly lifted my head. The fire roared, and inside me, flames burned just as fiercely.

"Melissa." My voice was hoarse. "You'd better pray your dog comes back alive. If not, I'll make sure you pay for this."

Melissa flinched, but quickly straightened her posture. "Who are you threatening? Mr. Woodruff, look at her. She refuses to help, and now she's trying to intimidate me!"

Mr. Woodruff frowned and waved his hand dismissively. "That's enough, Lauren. Haven't you embarrassed yourself enough? If you won't search for the dog, then stop getting in the way.

"When we're back at the office, I'll dock your entire month's performance bonus. Now, pack up your junk and leave the campsite."

I stared at them, then suddenly laughed. "Fine. I'll go."

I kept the burned charm carefully, ignoring my dirty backpack scattered on the ground.

"Wait!" Melissa called after me.

She pulled a document and a pen from her bag. "You can leave, but you have to sign this first."

It was a handwritten disclaimer that read, "Lauren Brooks deliberately destroyed the search equipment, causing Max's disappearance. Therefore, Lauren Brooks agrees to bear full responsibility for compensation."

I laughed in exasperation. "Have you lost your mind? I'm not signing that. What are you going to do about it?"

Melissa smirked and gave Greg a look. Greg immediately stepped forward with several male colleagues and surrounded me.

Melissa leaned close and whispered in my ear, "If you don't sign today, I'll strip you naked and throw you into the woods. Let the wild boars have a taste of you."

I looked at the men circling around me. Some avoided my gaze, others watched with amusement.

We were in the middle of the jungle, where there were no surveillance cameras.

I forced myself to stay calm. My hand reached into my pocket, pressing the switch on my voice recorder. It was the one I usually used for meetings.

"Melissa, this is extortion," I said with deliberate slowness. "I kicked my own drone into the lake. Your dog ran off on its own. Why should I be responsible?"

Melissa laughed like I had just told a joke. "Extortion? Go ahead and report me! You've got no evidence. Your phone's in Mr. Woodruff's pocket. Who's going to prove that I forced you?"

She leaned in smugly, jabbing her finger into my shoulder.