After dating Gabriel Lowe for three years, we finally saved up enough money to buy a villa for ourselves.

I personally designed this villa. But what I didn't expect was that the gas line in my villa would explode on the day Gabriel and I were meant to receive the keys.

Not only did the entire villa get reduced into ruins, but the explosion also killed the neighboring family of three. On top of that, the fire even destroyed their antique painting that was worth 500 million dollars.

Since I took responsibility for the explosion, I faced massive compensation claims. My mother-in-law and Gabriel had tears streaking down their faces as they promised to help me tide over this crisis, even if it meant selling everything under their name.

I was touched by their words, so I used all of my assets in compensating the victims. After that, I spent the next 20 years in prison, only to die of severe illness there.

But when I was on the verge of dying, I saw Gabriel with his arm around his first love, Jasmine Wade. Apparently, they were here to visit me.

They grinned maliciously at me outside the bars.

"The truth is, the family didn't die at all. The painting was a cheap imitation, too. I bribed them so that they could fake their deaths and leave the country. That's how I successfully got my hands on all of your assets.

"If I didn't do that, how would I be able to marry Jasmine and move her into the villa?"

It turned out that my decades of atonement was nothing but a huge scam targeted at my wealth and life staged by others.

When I open my eyes again, I've returned to the day I'm meant to receive my keys.

This time, I've personally checked all the pipes, installed seven safety valves, and taken away all the blueprints.

Let's see how the explosion will occur now that there aren't any leak points!

But at 3:00 pm, the explosion in the villa still occurs…

I shot up in bed, gasping for air.

Sweat ran down my forehead, soaking my silk pajamas. My phone screen glowed beside me, the date showing the exact day of the house handover.

I had been reborn.

Memories from my past life still churned in my mind, and the burning sensation of being scorched by flames seemed to linger on my skin.

Gabriel Lowe was still soundly asleep beside me, a smile playing at the corners of his mouth, probably dreaming of striking it rich.

I got up and went into the bathroom to splash water on my face. The woman in the mirror looked pale, but her eyes were sharp. This time, I wouldn't let the tragedy repeat itself.

I changed into a crisp work outfit, grabbed my toolbox, and headed straight to the new villa. Dawn had barely broken, and the development was so quiet I could only hear birds chirping.

After opening the front door, I quickly located all the gas line connections. I pulled out an industrial-grade leak detector and checked for leaks inch by inch.

The readings showed everything was normal. Still uneasy, I took out several cans of high-strength sealant and sealed every connection that could have been tampered with.

After that, I installed three explosion-proof safety valves on the main line. If there was even the slightest irregularity, the valves would automatically cut off the gas supply.

I also replaced the smart lock on the front door, changing the passcode to a sequence of numbers only I knew. To make sure everything was airtight, I gathered all the construction blueprints in the house and took them with me. I even grabbed the spare key from the entryway shoe cabinet.

When I finished, I stood in the center of the living room and surveyed my work. This house was the result of my hard work. Every single detail embodied my dedication.

Satisfied, I locked the door, checked the perimeter one more time, and only after making sure that nothing could get in did I head to the office.

The entire morning, I sat in my office staring at the surveillance footage. The villa entrance remained quiet. No one approached.

I picked up my coffee and took a sip, though my hands trembled slightly. If I could just make it past 3:00 pm, everything would be over.

Time crawled by. I stared at the screen at 2:50 pm, my heart pounding so hard I could feel it in my throat.

At 2:55 pm, my phone buzzed. It was a message from Gabriel. "Honey, come home early tonight. I have a surprise for you."

I let out a cold laugh and ignored it. Just then, the image on the screen shook violently. Immediately after, static filled the screen.

Before I could react, a deafening boom erupted outside the window. The ground shook, and the glass windows of my office buzzed and rattled. I rushed to the window and looked toward the south side of the city.

A thick black column of smoke shot straight into the sky, and piercing sirens wailed in the distance. The television news cut in with a breaking report.

"A massive gas explosion has occurred in the southern residential district. The entire building has been leveled. The number of casualties has not yet been confirmed."

I'd sealed every possible leak. So why did it still explode?

I grabbed my car keys and rushed out of the office, speeding all the way to the scene. Before I even reached the development, police tape blocked the road. The area had turned into a disaster zone, the air thick with the acrid stench of burnt debris.

I shoved past the security guard trying to hold me back and stumbled forward. The scene before me was even worse than in my previous life. The villa hadn't just collapsed—the neighboring house had been half blown apart too.

Several firefighters emerged from the rubble carrying a stretcher. A white sheet covered the body, but charred limbs still hung over the edges.

"A family of three. All gone," someone nearby murmured. "It's horrible. I heard the child was only five."

My head buzzed. In my past life, that family of three had faked their deaths. So how did they actually die this time?

A crowd had gathered in front of the wreckage. The moment I appeared, Gabriel spotted me. His eyes were bloodshot, tear tracks streaking his face as he lurched toward me.

"Evelyn! Look what you've done!"

With that furious shout, he slapped me hard across the face. My head snapped to the side, and I tasted blood.

Gabriel's mother, Patricia Wilkinson, collapsed to the ground, sobbing hysterically. "Oh God, this is terrible! I told you not to mess with the gas lines during the renovation, but you wouldn't listen! Now look what happened! You've killed people!"

Camera flashes exploded around me as reporters shoved microphones in my face.

"Ms. Summers, was this accident caused by a design flaw?"

"We heard you illegally modified the gas lines for aesthetic reasons. Is that true?"

Before I could answer, several people burst from the crowd. They were the victims' relatives.

"Murderer! Give me back my brother!"

A middle-aged man lunged at me like a madman. He grabbed my hair and yanked me to the ground. Pain shot through my scalp. My blazer tore open, buttons scattering everywhere.

Gabriel made a show of trying to pull him off, but secretly shoved me, making me fall harder.

"Stop! Please stop! We'll pay compensation!" he shouted, playing the part of a responsible partner taking charge.

At the edge of the crowd, several men in suits watched with cold detachment. They were the debt collectors, those so-called antique dealers who'd been circling the neighboring family.

"We want 50 million dollars. Not a cent less," the leader said flatly.

Just then, the fire department released their preliminary findings. A captain approached me, his expression grave.

"Evelyn Summers? We found severed fragments of the main pipeline at the scene."

He held up an evidence bag containing a section of broken pipe. "The cut is fresh. Violent, deliberate tampering caused the leak. And…"

He paused, his gaze sharpe. "Your fingerprints are the only ones on this pipe."

My head jerked up, and I stared at the evidence bag.

Impossible. This morning, I'd only inspected and reinforced the lines. I hadn't cut anything.

Satisfaction flickered in Gabriel's eyes, but it was gone in an instant. He turned to me with a pained expression.

"Evie, why would you do this? I know you wanted to save money, but you can't gamble with people's lives!"

Accusations crashed over me like waves.

"Monster!"

"She killed a whole family just to save money! Someone like that deserves to be executed!"

I opened my mouth to defend myself, but my voice was drowned out by their fury. This was a carefully orchestrated trap, and they wanted more than just my money.

The police stepped forward with handcuffs. "Evelyn Summers, you're under arrest for criminal negligence resulting in death and involuntary manslaughter. You need to come with us."

As the cold metal snapped around my wrists, I desperately tried to figure out where things had gone wrong.

I lifted my head, my gaze cutting through the crowd. Beyond the police tape, beneath a tree, stood a woman in a white dress.

Jasmine Wade stood there with a coffee cup in hand, watching me with a dark, triumphant smile.

Our eyes met, and Jasmine raised her cup in a mock toast. Her lips clearly mouthed the words, "Go to hell."

The interrogation room's fluorescent lights were blinding. The detective across from me flipped through his notes, brow furrowed.

"Evelyn Summers, honesty will work in your favor. Why did you cut the gas pipe?"

I took a deep breath, forcing myself to remain calm. "I didn't cut any pipe. I went to the villa this morning to reinforce the safety valves and seal the connections."

I met the detective's eyes. "I have proof. Before I left, I recorded a full inspection video with timestamps. It's already uploaded to the cloud."

The detective stopped writing and looked up. "Where's the video?"

"On my phone."

He shook his head. "When you were brought in, you didn't have a phone on you."

My stomach dropped. It had been chaotic. I'd been shoved into the police car in the confusion. Gabriel, or someone working for him, must have taken my phone then.

"What about my briefcase? I had blueprints inside, and my tablet."

The detective pulled out a clear evidence bag containing my briefcase. "We have the bag, but there's no tablet inside."

He put on gloves and reached into a compartment, pulling out something heavy. It was a small electric pipe cutter. Rust-preventive paint residue from gas pipes covered the blade.

"We found this in your bag." His voice turned cold. "It has your fingerprints on it."

I stared at the cutter, the absurdity of it all washing over me. Gabriel really had spared no expense framing me.

"That's planted evidence," I said evenly. "The development has security cameras. Check them. I left the villa at 7:00 am. The explosion happened at 3:00 pm. Someone else must have gone in between those times."

The detective sighed and slid a file across the table. "We checked the footage. From the time you left this morning until the explosion, no one entered that villa through the main gate or underground garage. You were the only person who went inside."

I froze. How was that possible?

Unless Gabriel had another way in.

He had a spare access card I'd given him ages ago. And the development had a side entrance where the cameras had been broken for months. Someone familiar with the layout could easily avoid the main surveillance and climb over the wall through that entrance.

The situation was dire. My fingerprints on the weapon, gaps in the surveillance footage—everything pointed straight to me.

Just then, the interrogation room door opened, and an officer stepped inside. "The suspect's family has posted bail."

Half an hour later, I walked out of the interrogation room.

Gabriel stood in the lobby looking haggard. The moment he saw me, he rushed over and pulled me into his arms, tears flowing on cue.

"Evie, you've been through so much. I know you didn't do this. They must have it wrong."

He was sobbing, but then, his voice dropped to a whisper. "Hon, the neighbors are demanding 50 million in compensation. If we don't pay, they'll go to the media and make sure you rot in prison."

He pulled back and took a document from his jacket. "This is a property transfer agreement. Sign over your assets to me, and I'll sell everything I have to cover the rest of the debt. I'll shoulder this for you."

I looked at the document. His signature was already there. Only mine was missing.

In my past life, I'd signed right here, moved to tears by his so-called sacrifice. Then he'd kicked me straight into prison.

I raised my head and looked at Gabriel's face, so full of manufactured concern.

"Let's talk about this at home. I'm dizzy."

Wild joy flashed in Gabriel's eyes before he masked it. "Of course, of course. Let's go home. I'll make you some tea."

We returned to our temporary apartment. Gabriel bustled around, fetching my slippers and draping a blanket over my shoulders.

Patricia sat on the couch, her face dark and unreadable. But I could feel her eyes boring into me, cold and expectant, like she was just waiting for me to drop dead.