Chapter 2

Eleanor blocked my path outside the Montgomery family's mansion, her face a mix of struggle and grim determination. I said nothing, but instantly, a vision flashed before my eyes: steel and concrete crashing down, her bloodied spine, and her words whispered into my ear.

"If I had known he would die, I wish I'd never brought you home."

So, this was her choice. In another life, she'd choose to abandon me from the very start.

Fine by me.

Those ten years of hellish marriage in my previous life—she hated me, I resented her. We tortured each other day and night, finding release only in death. Now, to be able to cut all of it off at the source, I felt a strange sense of relief.

I looked at her and calmly nodded. "Okay."

A flicker of surprise crossed Eleanor's eyes; all her prepared arguments got stuck in her throat.

"What did you say?" she almost instinctively blurted out.

"I said I understand," I repeated. "Since it was a mistake, let's just leave it at that. Thanks for bringing me here; I should head back to school."

With that, I turned to leave.

But her hand shot out, grabbing my arm. "Julian!"

She sharply called out my name, her voice laced with a hint of panic. "What kind of attitude is that? Didn't you always want to find your family? Now that I'm saying you're not, you're giving up so easily?!"

I turned back to her, finding it somewhat amusing. She'd gone to great lengths to lie, precisely because she wanted me to give up, didn't she? Now that I was doing exactly what she wanted, she wasn't satisfied.

"What else?" I countered. "Eleanor, are you telling me that what you said wasn't the truth, and I actually *am* the Montgomery family's real son?"

Upon hearing that, the panic in her eyes intensified, and her grip on my arm tightened unconsciously. She lowered her gaze, not letting me see her expression.

"Let's just drop this. Don't ever bring it up again, and don't go near the Montgomery family."

"I understand." I pulled my hand free, rubbing my wrist where her grip had left it red. "I won't bring it up again, and I won't go near them. Eleanor, are you satisfied now?"

She looked at my empty hand, as if she'd lost something important, her expression momentarily bewildered.

She didn't know I'd been reborn too. In this life, I wouldn't step through that door again, wouldn't become a Montgomery, and certainly wouldn't… become her husband again. She wanted to protect her childhood friend, to complete their world. I'd gladly hand it to her.

"I'm leaving." I didn't look at her again, turning towards the bus stop.

Behind me, Eleanor's voice chased after me, tinged with irritation. "Stop! I'll drive you back."

Eleanor didn't take me back to my school dorm. Instead, she drove straight to a luxury apartment in the city center. I watched the rapidly receding streetlights outside the window, understanding perfectly. In my previous life, after we married, this had been our home. It had held our tenderest moments, and it had also witnessed how we slowly became a resentful couple, eventually consumed by hatred.

The car stopped. She unbuckled her seatbelt and turned to face me. In the dim light of the car, her expression was unreadable, but her tone had softened considerably, unlike her harsh voice at the Montgomery mansion gate earlier.

"Let's go inside. We need to talk."