Celeste POV
"Sisters forever!" Vivienne repeats, putting her arms around me in a tight hug. "Isn't that wonderful?"
My body goes stiff. Every muscle yells at me to push her away, to run, to do something. This is the girl who watched me die. The girl who laughed while poison burned through my veins.
But she doesn't know that I remember.
That's my advantage.
So I force myself to hug her back, even though feeling her makes my skin crawl. "Yes, Vivienne. Wonderful."
She pulls back and studies my face. For a terrible moment, I think she sees the truth in my eyes. But then she just smiles wider. "You look pale. Are you feeling okay?"
"Bad dream," I say quickly. "Just a bad dream."
"Well, shake it off!" She bounces toward the door. "Mother wants us downstairs for breakfast. She's making your favorite—honey cakes!"
Helena isn't my mother. She's the woman who married my father three years after my real mother died. The woman who spent years turning him against me.
But I smile and nod. "I'll be down in a minute."
The second Vivienne leaves, I lock the door and lean against it, breathing hard.
This is real. I'm really eighteen again. I have six months before the Selection Ceremony. Six months to change everything.
But first, I need to know exactly when I am.
I rush to my desk and find my journal—the one I kept regularly when I was younger. I flip it open to the last entry and my heart stops.
June 15th. Father mentioned today that we'll attend Lord Brennan's garden party next week. Vivienne is excited. She says there's a fox shifter going who's incredibly handsome. I can't wait to meet him!
June 15th.
One week before I meet Damian for the first time.
One week before I fall in love with the man who will kill me.
I sink into my chair, my hands shaking. The time is perfect. I haven't met him yet. He doesn't have his claws in me yet.
I can avoid him completely.
But that's not enough. Avoiding Damian won't stop Vivienne from stealing my fortune. It won't stop Helena from turning Father against me. It won't protect me from everything that's coming.
I need a plan. A real plan.
I grab a fresh page in my book and start writing everything I remember:
Helena is embezzling from Father's funds. The money goes to a secret bank under her birth name.
Vivienne has been stealing my jewelry for two years and selling it. She keeps the money hidden in a box under her stairs.
Father will get sick next year—Helena is slowly killing him with something in his tea.
Damian is working with Vivienne from the start. Their affair starts three months after my wedding.
My hand cramps from writing so fast, but I can't stop. Every detail counts. Every piece of information is a tool I can use.
A knock on my door makes me jump. I quickly hide the book in my desk drawer.
"Celeste?" It's Father's words. "Are you coming down? Breakfast is getting cold."
"Coming, Father!" I call out, my voice calm even though my heart is racing.
I check myself in the mirror one last time. The girl looking back looks young and innocent—nothing like the broken woman who died in a dungeon.
Perfect.
Let them think I'm still dumb. Let them think I'm still the sweet, trusting daughter they can control.
I'll play their game. But this time, I'll win.
Downstairs, the dining room is exactly as I remember. Father sits at the head of the table, reading his newspaper. Helena serves tea with a gentle smile. Vivienne chatters about the planned garden party.
Everything looks normal. Happy, even.
But I know the truth now. This whole family is dying from the inside.
"Good morning, darling," Helena says kindly, handing me a cup of tea. "You look tired. Did you sleep well?"
I take the tea carefully. Is it poisoned? No, not yet. Helena doesn't start poisoning Father for another year, and she never bothered poisoning me—Damian and Vivienne handled that themselves.
"I slept fine, thank you," I lie, taking a sip.
"Excited about Lord Brennan's party?" Father asks, finally looking up from his paper. "It'll be good for you to interact more. You spend too much time with your books."
In my first life, I blushed and agreed softly. I was always trying to please him, always trying to be the perfect daughter.
Not anymore.
"Actually, Father, I need to discuss something important with you." I set down my teacup and look directly at him. "My inheritance."
The room goes quiet. Helena's smile freezes. Vivienne stops mid-bite.
"Your inheritance?" Father frowns. "What about it?"
"Mother left everything to me in her will—the properties, the investments, the cash. I want to take care of it now, instead of waiting until I'm twenty-five."
Helena's hands go white around her teacup. "Celeste, dear, that's not appropriate conversation for breakfast—"
"I'm eighteen now," I continue, ignoring her. "Old enough to bond with a shifter, old enough to marry. That means I'm old enough to handle my own money."
"Your father has been managing it perfectly well," Helena says, her voice tight.
"I'm sure he has." I smile at her, sweet as poison. "But it's mine. I want it in my name."
Father looks uncomfortable. "Celeste, this is sudden. What brought this on?"
"I've been thinking about my future," I say quietly. "About making smart choices. About protecting what's mine."
The words hang in the air like a threat.
Vivienne recovers first, letting out a nervous laugh. "Sister, you're being so serious! What's gotten into you?"
I turn to look at her. Really look at her. She's so good at playing dumb. Those wide violet eyes, that worried expression. If I didn't know better, I'd believe she actually cared.
But I do know better.
"Just growing up, I guess," I say softly.
Something flickers in Vivienne's eyes. Suspicion? Worry? It's gone too fast to tell.
"Well, we can discuss your inheritance later," Father says, clearly wanting to end this conversation. "Let's finish breakfast peacefully."
But the damage is done. I can feel Helena and Vivienne trading looks when they think I'm not watching. They're worried now. Wondering what changed.
Good. Let them wonder.
After breakfast, I head back to my room, planning my next move. I need to protect my inheritance before they can touch it. I need to gather proof of their crimes. I need to— "Celeste."
I spin around. Vivienne is standing in my doorway, her sweet smile gone. In its place is something cold and calculating.
"We need to talk," she says, closing the door behind her. "About what you said at breakfast."
My heart starts racing, but I keep my face neutral. "What about it?"
She steps closer, studying me like a problem she can't quite solve. "You've never cared about your fortune before. You've never questioned Father or challenged Mother at the table. Something's different about you."
"Maybe I'm just tired of being walked over," I say carefully.
"Or maybe..." Vivienne tilts her head. "You know something you're not supposed to know."
The air between us crackles with stress.
Does she think I remember dying? That's impossible. Right?
"I don't know what you mean," I say.
Vivienne's smile returns, but it doesn't reach her eyes. "Of course you don't. You're just sweet, innocent Celeste who would never suspect her loving family of anything wrong."
She turns to leave, then stops at the door.
"By the way, sister, I'd be careful if I were you. Accidents happen to girls who ask too many questions." Her violet eyes sparkle with something dangerous. "It would be such a shame if something bad happened to you before the Selection Ceremony."
The door shuts with a soft click.
I stand frozen, my blood running cold.
She just threatened me.
Six years early.
Which means my being reborn has already changed things in ways I didn't expect.
And if Vivienne is ready to hurt me now, before I've even done anything... What else has changed?