My long-lost sister, Doreen Parrish, who had been missing for 18 years, was finally found.

I felt sorry for her, believing she had suffered in the mountains. But in the end, she set me up and destroyed my innocence.

She erased all the evidence and went straight to my fiancé, saying, "I couldn't bear to see you kept in the dark and made a fool of!"

My mother and I were caught in a web of schemes until we lost everything and went bankrupt. Desperate, we turned to my father for help, only to find he who had married into wealth was now parading around with his childhood sweetheart.

"I endured humiliation for twenty years, and now, everything belongs to me. Women should just stay home and know their place.

"You only live a good life because you were born into the right family.

"Children should take their father's surname. No matter how rich a woman is, she shouldn't try to lord a man!"

It turned out that Doreen was my dad's secret love child he had hidden for 18 years.

***

I was reborn—back to the day I brought Doreen home.

In my previous life, I felt so sorry for her. She was kidnapped and sold to a remote mountain area when she was young, where she suffered bitterly.

So that afternoon, I took her to a luxury mall and bought her several outfits.

But I didn't notice that she had fair, flawless skin and delicate fingers.

That night, the eve of my engagement, Doreen brought a tramp into our house.

"Grace, look how poor that tramp is. He'll freeze to death if we don't help him," she said.

Thinking she was young and naive, I firmly reminded her that strangers shouldn't be brought into our home.

I never imagined that despite her silence, she would sneak the tramp in at midnight.

That night, I was assaulted. Broken and devastated, I wanted to call the police.

But Doreen wiped away the evidence and said in a soft voice, "It was consensual. How can you turn around and call the cops now?

"Even the police said there were no signs of resistance. You were the one looking for excitement. Don't shift the blame onto someone else.

"Even a tramp has his dignity!"

I barely picked up the pieces of myself and forced myself through my engagement.

But then Doreen posted all the photos in the family group chat, throwing me into the center of a storm of scandal.

With tears in her eyes and an apologetic expression, she said, "I meant to delete them, but I accidentally sent them to the group chat.

"Besides, how could you keep something like this from your fiancé? I couldn't bear to see him kept in the dark."

Blinded by rage, I lunged at her. But she covered her face and cried out. "I warned you, if you're getting married, you shouldn't be looking for excitement.

"You can't lose your mind just because I told the truth!"

Doreen had me committed to a mental hospital, where I was tormented until I died.

It was only after my death—after lingering as a ghost for years—that I discovered the truth. Doreen was never my lost sister.

She was the secret child my unfaithful dad had with some mistress!

The person who ruined me stood before me once again.

I wanted nothing more than to tear her apart.

"You like these clothes? I'll take you shopping for some this afternoon," I said with a fake smile.

"No, thanks. They must be very expensive. That money can buy me a lot of meals." Doreen lowered her eyes and fidgeted with the corner of her dress, looking anxious and wronged.

My mom felt sad for her and hugged her close. "My poor girl, you've been through a lot. From now on, I'll get whatever you want for you!

"You must be tired from the trip back. Let Grace show you around and help you get familiar with the house."

I led Doreen upstairs. "This is my room. Come to me if you need anything."

"Can I take a look inside?"

I opened the door. The room was arranged by my mom with only the finest furnishings. Even the piano outside the suite was a luxury Steinway worth millions.

Doreen's eyes lit up when she saw the room, and a fleeting glint of greed crossed her gaze.

"Grace, I'm so jealous of you. Back home, all of us had to squeeze onto a single bed.

"I don't need much. Just a small bed would be enough."

"This is your room. You arrived so suddenly that we haven't furnished it properly. I'm getting engaged in two days. Once things settle down, I'll take you shopping."

Doreen showed up out of the blue, just a few days before my engagement.

After my death, I had a long time to think things over. I was marrying into the Moyer family, a powerful household. The wedding would be attended by countless high-society figures.

It was the perfect time to introduce Doreen and establish her as the second daughter of the Parrish family.

"Are you getting engaged?" Doreen's eyes widened in surprise.

"That's wonderful! I get to witness the happiest moment of your life!" she said, reaching out to hold my hand and pretending to be sisterly and close.

I yanked my hand away.

The person who got me killed in my previous life was standing right in front of me, putting on this fake, overly dramatic act. It made me feel disgusted at any touch.

My abrupt reaction startled her.

"Sorry, I'm not comfortable with physical touch." It was true that I was a bit of a clean freak, so I couldn't stand being forced into it.

"I was too forward. Please don't be mad at me," Doreen said, her lips pursed like she was about to cry.

I ignored her act.

After settling everything, I made up an excuse about work and went back to my room.

I quickly finished what I had to do and watched the clock slowly move toward five.

Just like in my previous life, around five o'clock, Doreen came knocking on my door.

"Grace, I still have some things left at my old place. Could you come with me to pick them up?"

I stopped what I was doing and looked at Doreen with a half-smile. She must have felt uneasy under my gaze.

"It's okay if you can't. I just feel a bit scared going back there alone."

In my previous life, Doreen used the same excuse to get me to go with her to pack her things. And that was how everything bad started.

Earlier, I had thought about this in my room. Doreen's intention to harm me hadn't changed. Instead of waiting for trouble, I should take the lead since I knew what was coming.

So I agreed to go with her and drove to an old neighborhood.

The house was where Doreen and her mom lived. To make things easier for her plan, her mom had gone to stay in a hotel for a few days.

The room wasn't messy, just kind of old and worn out. Doreen pretended to pack for a while, wiped her forehead, and then sat down on the sofa.

"Gosh, Grace, there's so much stuff here. I can't pack everything in one night. How about we stay here tonight?" she said, looking at me to see my reaction.

"You don't think my place is too shabby, do you? I don't make much from my part-time job, so this is the best I can afford. And it's pretty far from home. Going back and forth would be such a hassle."

"Sure," I agreed quickly, cutting off any other excuses Doreen might have had.

"Okay, you wait here. I'll make us something to eat."

Doreen went into the kitchen. After some time, she came out with soup, a dish, and two drinks.

Since we were eating the same food, I figured the problem had to be with the drinks.

I got Doreen busy with something else, switched the drinks, and waited for her to start eating before I did.

As the drinks were slowly finished, her chopsticks suddenly slipped from her fingers and fell to the floor. I knew I was right.

I got up, walked out of the room, and headed back to the company.

I knew that what was going to happen next didn't need my help to unfold.

In my last life, I woke up in that small room with a disheveled man lying beside me. The discomfort in my body made it clear what had happened.

I was in a panic, desperate to get away, when my dad Luther Rogers burst through the door, with Doreen right behind him.

The messy room made Doreen scream, "Grace! Were you assaulted?"

My head was spinning, and I trembled uncontrollably. Luther took me home, and we all sat in the living room.

Instead of comforting me right away, he loudly demanded, "What exactly happened here?"

I remembered what Doreen said last night. "Grace, look how poor that tramp is. He has never had a family, and he has to freeze outside on a night like this.

"There's only one room in this place. Why don't we get a hotel and let him stay here? We're about to move out anyway."

I said no to Doreen, telling her that while it was good to be kind, she never knew who she could trust, and it was always better to be careful.

I suddenly realized it was all because of Doreen. I lunged at her and grabbed her by the neck.

But Luther slapped me away, shouting, "What's your problem with Doreen?!"

I screamed back, "She let that man in!"

Doreen put on a hurt expression. "I felt bad for him. And I told you, we could go stay in a hotel together.

"I waited for you all night, but you never came. I thought you left me behind and went home by yourself."

"And... And..." Doreen hesitated like she wanted to say more but couldn't.

My mom stepped forward and hugged her. "You can't blame Doreen for this. She meant well and didn't know this would happen."

"And what? Tell us, Doreen!" Luther sat on the sofa, annoyed.

"Oh, I'm not sure if I should say this." Doreen blushed a bit.

"Just say it! I'll back you up!"

Doreen glanced at me, then at Luther. "Last night, Grace told me she was getting married soon, but she didn't know anything about that stuff between men and women."

She seemed to make up her mind. "She asked me if she could find someone to practice with.

"I told her, 'You're about to get married. Don't do this. If it gets out, it'll bring shame to our family.' I don't know if this has anything to do with it, but...the tramp might be the safer choice. Grace..."

I felt blood rushing to my throat. "You're lying! Doreen, you liar!"

Luther kicked me away. "You've got no shame! How could you do something like this? You've disgraced the whole family!"

He ordered a few strong guards to hold me down because I was kind of hysterical. "Take Grace to the hospital. Don't let anyone see her."

Just thinking about it made me shiver all over.

I didn't sleep that night. At eight in the morning, I got up.

I called Luther and pretended to be panicked.

"Dad! Doreen isn't answering my calls.

"I hope nothing bad happened to her!"

"What do you mean? Wasn't Doreen with you last night?" Luther's voice was seething with anger.

"I had to leave early for work, and Doreen said she'd wait for me to pick her up this morning. But I've been calling her, and there's no answer."

When we got to Doreen's apartment, it was already 8:30. I wasn't worried that she'd wake up early at all.

In my last life, I only drank half of that drink and slept until nine. Last night, Doreen probably got too excited about her plan and drank the whole thing.

The dose was doubled, and I got here half an hour earlier.

Standing at the door, Luther wanted to talk to his sweetheart.

"Dad, stop wasting time. Let's break the door down!" I looked anxious.

After asking several people and still getting no news about Doreen, Luther also got worried and agreed.

The moment the lock hit the floor, I kicked the door open.

Right after the door broke, Luther was more frantic than me. This should have been his first time here, but he rushed straight to the bedroom like he knew the place by heart.

"Ah!!" Luther's legs gave way under him at the sight.

The room was way messier than it was in my last life. Doreen even had an arm draped over the tramp.

Luther was so shocked that he could barely speak. He staggered forward to wake them up.

When Doreen woke up and saw me standing in the doorway, she was stunned for a few seconds. Then she finally saw what was going on in the room.

"Dad, Dad, what happened?" Doreen was babbling. "How could it be me?"

Luther was heartbroken. He turned to me, and before I could say anything, he slapped me.

"You bitch! Did you do this? You're as evil as your mom!" He blurted out whatever came to his mind.

I covered half my face. "Dad, what are you talking about? I don't get it."

"Is...this Doreen's boyfriend?" I pretended to be hurt, but inside, I was about to burst with glee.