Chapter 1

When the gas explosion set the villa on fire, I used every ounce of strength I had to carry my unconscious mother and brother out to safety.

But when they woke up, they gathered around my cousin, whose hair had been singed by the flames, showering her with concern.

The butler asked anxiously, "Where's Keira?"

Mom shouted furiously, "That ungrateful wretch Keira ran off first thing!"

"Thank god for Celeste---she even had her hair burned trying to save us."

Mom and my brother looked at me with intense disgust, completely missing the flicker in my cousin's eyes.

They didn't know that at that very moment, I was lying collapsed inside the villa.

A heavy solid wood bookshelf had crushed my legs.

In the towering flames, my right hand was charred black, exposing the white bones beneath.

And the chandelier on the ceiling was swaying dangerously, about to crash down on my head.

Mom and my brother crowded around my cousin, the whole family rushing to the hospital to fuss over her singed hair.

My brother, Hayden Hayes, patted her head consolingly. "Don't worry. Worst case, we'll make Keira cut her hair and give it to you."

He frowned irritably. "Where is Keira anyway?"

At that, Mom slapped the table twice in anger. "That ungrateful girl saw the fire and ran faster than anyone!"

"She's probably lying around sleeping somewhere right now, completely indifferent to whether we live or die!"

Mom's judgment of me continued.

Until the police called with news of my death, she suddenly froze like a machine jamming.

The disgust hadn't faded from her face yet, making her expression look almost comical.

I floated in midair, watching their reactions, and couldn't help wanting to laugh a little.

In the car ride home, Mom and my brother both wore expressionless faces.

Only their occasionally clenching fingers betrayed their inner turmoil.

Quite a crowd had gathered at the villa entrance, and my body lay on a white gurney to the side.

After getting out of the car, Mom grabbed my brother in a daze. "That... that's Keira's body, isn't it?"

"No... this can't be possible..."

Hayden took two steps back, panic flashing across his face as he asked repeatedly.

"You're working with Keira to put on a show, aren't you? She loves lying and playing tricks---this is fake too, right?"

When the villa caught fire, I had been in the garden watering flowers and turning soil.

My cousin Celeste had accused me of stealing her bracelet, and Mom, without asking any questions, had punished me by making me clean the entire villa garden alone.

When I saw the billowing black smoke, I rushed into the fire without hesitation.

Mom and my brother had already been knocked unconscious by the smoke. I used all my strength to rescue them from the villa one by one.

The scorching smoke seared my lungs---every breath brought tears of pain.

In his confusion, my brother grabbed my hand and mumbled, "Save Celeste... go save her..."

Gritting my teeth, I rushed back into the flames.

When I found my cousin, she was huddled in a corner of her room, curled up and screaming.

When she saw me, her eyes lit up. "Keira! Save me! Please save me!"

I draped the wet bedsheet over her. After just two steps, I saw the bookshelf beside us start to tilt.

I instinctively tried to dodge, but Celeste shoved me hard.

The intense pain made me cry out. When I came to my senses, the heavy solid wood bookshelf had already pinned my legs.

I looked at Celeste in disbelief.

A flash of struggle crossed her face, but it all turned to cold indifference in the end.

She said, "Keira, you only have yourself to blame for always competing with me for everything."

Then she ran out of the villa without hesitation, shouting as she went.

"Aunt! Hayden! Where are you? I'm so scared!"

I instinctively called out "Mom"---it's every child's natural response in extreme panic.

The fire in the villa grew fiercer. I could clearly hear the sound of my skin splitting from the burns.

I tried turning my body, pushing hard against the bookshelf on my legs, veins bulging on my forehead.

My nails all broke off from the force, leaving my fingers bloody and mangled.

But the bookshelf on top of me didn't budge an inch. Moments later, I collapsed heavily back to the ground.

Turning my head, through the bright second-floor window, I could clearly see the three people in the garden.

Mom and my brother had regained consciousness.

Celeste threw herself into Mom's arms. Hayden tenderly touched her hair.

The whole family wore expressions of relief at having survived, but no one cared whether I lived or died. No one even mentioned me.

The chandelier overhead suddenly made a harsh creaking sound.

I looked up, then closed my eyes in despair.

Before my consciousness plunged into darkness, I felt only endless confusion and bewilderment.

I was clearly their daughter and little sister, so why wouldn't they love me?

Hatred rose in my chest. I really didn't have to die.

...

When the half-charred body was wheeled before Mom, she collapsed to the ground in shock.

She kept repeating, "Impossible---Keira wasn't even in the villa, was she?"

Then she broke down crying.

"I'm sorry, Keira... I'm sorry, Mom could have saved you, you didn't have to die..."

Hayden shook his head in a daze, looking at my body in disbelief.

"No... this isn't Keira, she's not my sister."

"My sister was beautiful---how could she look like this now..."

I finally heard the words I'd wanted to hear.

But now, it was all too late.