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.

"Evie, drink some chamomile tea. It'll help calm your nerves," Gabriel said, walking over with a cup of tea, his face full of concern and sympathy.

I took the cup, deliberately letting my hand shake so a few drops spilled.

"My hands are shaking too much. I can barely hold a pen," I said and pushed the document away. "Let me rest for a bit. I'll sign after I finish this."

Gabriel nodded eagerly. "No rush. Drink first."

He stood beside me and watched as I brought the cup to my lips. Using the motion of tucking my hair behind my ear as cover, I quickly poured most of the tea into the large potted plant next to the couch. Then I made a show of wiping my mouth and set the empty cup back on the table.

"I'm so tired."

I pressed my hand to my forehead and slumped against the couch. Within a minute, my breathing slowed and evened out.

Gabriel shook my shoulder. "Evie? Hon?"

I didn't move.

Once he confirmed I was out, the concern melted off his face, replaced by something twisted and ugly. He straightened up and spat, "Fucking finally."

Patricia jumped up from the couch, her voice dropping to a harsh whisper. "Get her to sign now! We can't wait any longer!"

Gabriel grabbed my hand, trying to force my thumbprint onto the document, but I'd tucked my hands beneath me. After a few attempts, he couldn't pull them free.

"Stubborn bitch," he muttered. "Whatever. I gave her enough to knock her out for hours. When she wakes up, we'll make her sign. Right now, we need to cover our tracks."

The two of them walked into the study and shut the door.

I opened my eyes. They were perfectly clear.

I slipped off the couch without a sound and padded barefoot to the study door. It hadn't fully closed, and voices filtered through the gap.

"You said it was just going to be a fake death for the insurance money!" Patricia's voice trembled with panic. "How did the family next door actually die? This is murder! If people find out, we're finished!"

"Keep your voice down!" Gabriel's voice turned vicious. "It was that idiot Jasmine! I told her to saw through just enough to cause a small leak for a minor explosion. Who knew she'd lose her mind and cut straight through the main line?"

"So what do we do now? That family is actually dead!"

"Good riddance!" Gabriel gave a cold laugh. "Dead men tell no tales. That family was greedy anyway. They took the 200 grand to fake their deaths and leave the country. Now that they're actually dead, no one knows we paid them off.

"As long as Evelyn signs and takes the fall, that 50 million in compensation is just smoke and mirrors. The money stays with us, and the house becomes ours."

"What about Jasmine?"

"That bitch is a problem too." Gabriel's voice dripped with irritation. "But we still need her for now. Once we get the money, I'll dump her."

I heard every word through the door.

So that was it. The scam from my past life had turned into a massacre in this one, all because of Jasmine's stupidity and jealousy. Three lives lost, but to them, it was nothing more than an inconvenience to manage.

I took a deep breath and crept back to the couch, settling into position. Gabriel emerged from the study with the document in hand, grinning like he'd already won. He walked over and stood above me, looking down.

"Evelyn, don't blame me for being cruel. Blame yourself for being too rich and too stupid," he said and reached toward my collar.

I snapped my eyes open.

Gabriel jerked back, his hand freezing midair. "H-Hon? You're awake?"

I looked up at him, a strange smile curling my lips. "Yeah. I'm awake."

I sat up, my gaze cutting across his face like a blade. "Gabriel, what do you think would happen if the police found out who really bought that pipe cutter?"

All the color drained from his face. "What are you talking about?"