Chapter 9

Harper family estate.

The moment Elizabeth's car rolled to a stop, Susan Lane called out from inside, her voice filled with joy, "Mrs. Harper, Elizabeth is back!"

Elizabeth looked at Susan, like she hadn't seen her in ages. She walked straight over and hugged her tight.

In her previous life, after her parents died in that crash, Susan had been dragged down by Victoria, ended up in prison, and passed away alone behind bars.

"You're finally home, Miss. Your parents have been missing you so much."

Elizabeth pressed her lips together slightly, giving a soft "Yeah." Her tone was calm. "I know."

Since her marriage to Alexander, she hadn't returned once in a whole month. The Harper family was in financial trouble, and they'd used her marriage to secure funding. To her, they'd practically sold her off.

So yeah, she walked into that marriage holding nothing but resentment.

Clearing her head, she pulled out her phone, fired off a quick text to Alexander, and finally stepped inside.

Barely through the door, she got hit with Donna's yelling: "Elizabeth, get on your knees!"

Elizabeth looked up at her parents standing before her. She dropped to her knees without arguing—she owed them this. At least this time around, she had a second chance.

"Dad, Mom... I know you're mad at me for not coming home sooner. I was wrong. I promise I'll make it up to you. I'll come back more often."

Albert and Donna Harper froze, completely thrown off. This wasn't what they pictured. The daughter who'd thrown tantrums before the wedding was now calmly apologizing?

Donna's face was still dark. "Stop trying to fool us. If you hated us for marrying you off to Mr. Blake, you could've said something. Running away like that—do you know what kind of danger you could've brought to yourself and the Harper family if you ticked him off?"

"I didn't run away, Mom," Elizabeth said, her voice steady. "I just wanted to get some air, take a short break. Alexander knew where I was."

Donna slammed a palm down on the table. "You're still lying to us? What was the deal with that fake abortion paper Victoria helped you get? Planning on using that to force Mr. Blake into a divorce, weren't you?"

Elizabeth blinked, not expecting that, then turned her eyes to Victoria.

Last night on the phone, Victoria had only mentioned her parents finding out she'd taken off.

But here she was, throwing her under the bus again. Clearly, she'd underestimated how far Victoria was willing to go.

"Mom, I didn't. As soon as I got that abortion report from my sister, I told Alexander everything. He knows. I really want to make this marriage work. I'd never lie to him."

"Sweetheart, there's no need to hide things from us." Albert looked at her, eyes filled with guilt. "We know you've been suffering. Before the wedding, you didn't even want to marry him. If you're still hell-bent on divorcing him, then even if the whole Harper family falls apart, I won't let you suffer. I'll figure out a way to talk to Mr. Blake."

Elizabeth panicked a little, quickly trying to stand, but rushed too fast and her knees gave out. She nearly fell.

Victoria moved fast, catching her right away—but in the process, her fingers tugged Elizabeth's collar down and brushed aside the bangs covering her forehead. Seeing the bruises, she gasped, eyes wide with concern.

"Elizabeth, what happened to you? You're covered in bruises. Did Mr. Blake do this to you?"

She sounded innocent, even sweet. But only Elizabeth caught the flash of jealousy and triumph buried in her eyes.

In that moment, everyone's gaze locked onto Elizabeth's exposed skin and bruised forehead.Elizabeth reached up and adjusted her collar, looking at her parents. "Mom, Dad, Alexander didn't hurt me. I love him. I don't know who told you I ran away, but yeah, I admit the abortion report was fake. I asked Victoria to help me find someone to forge it. At first, I really did want to force him into a divorce.

"But after spending this past month together, I've fallen for him. And he loves me too. So please, just believe me—I didn't run away."

Victoria's face instantly stiffened when she heard that, though she quickly put on a concerned look. "Sis, that's not what you told me before.

"I brought you the report yesterday, and because Alexander was home, you deliberately said you loved him in front of me. You can drop the act now. You told me yourself he caused your injuries. Last night, one of my friends even saw him at a bar, with another woman in his arms!

"I mean, I'm your little sister, and even I can't stand watching this. I even heard your back is covered in bruises—don't put on a brave face just to keep Mom and Dad from worrying."

Tears streamed down her face as she played the part of a heartbroken, caring sister perfectly.

If Elizabeth hadn't lived through this once already, she would've bought into Victoria's innocent facade again.

The whole fragile act was just a cover—she had her parents totally fooled.

But how did she even know about the injury on her back? Had she...?

A flicker of coldness passed through Elizabeth's eyes at the thought.

"Victoria, why are you saying this? The bump on my forehead—I hit it accidentally. When did I ever tell you Alexander caused it?"

No way Victoria would tell everyone she helped her plan the escape. As long as Elizabeth didn't admit to it, no one could prove anything.

Victoria stared at her for a long second, her expression full of disbelief. "Elizabeth, what's going on with you? You told me that just yesterday, remember? Back at the Garden?"

"I remember what I said—and I definitely never told you I wanted a divorce.

"You've been doing everything you can to make me look bad in front of Mom and Dad. You'd love to see me and Alexander split, wouldn't you? All the status and comfort I've brought to this family came from marrying Alexander. If we divorce, what does that make the Harper family? Dishonest and unreliable. Is that what you're aiming for?"

Donna and Albert Harper gave Victoria a puzzled look after that.

"Victoria, why would you say those things?" Donna asked, her voice unsure.

Victoria bit her lip, staring at Elizabeth, looking crushed. "How could you say that about me, sis? We grew up together. I'd never want anything bad for you. I just want you to be happy, that's all.

"You weren't like this yesterday. You've changed overnight. Did Alexander threaten you or something?"

Her eyes were misty, like she was holding back tears—so fragile it made people want to comfort her.

But Elizabeth, who'd lived two lives now, knew exactly what kind of venom hid behind that soft look.

Still, that fake act worked like a charm on her parents.

"Elizabeth, your sister's only trying to help you," Donna said, her tone a mix of concern and mild reproach. "You shouldn't talk to her like that. She told us what happened because she cares."

Elizabeth looked over at her mom, knowing that pushing the issue further right now wouldn't work. Victoria was a master manipulator, and it would take time to expose who she really was.

"Mom, I'm just stating the facts—not slandering her. But what about her? How did she know I'd run away for sure? And how did she find out about the injuries on my back? Did she get someone to spy on me at the Garden?"

As soon as the words left her mouth, Victoria's face stiffened. Donna and Albert both turned to stare at her, their eyes narrowing slightly.

"Victoria, how exactly did you know about that?"