Reborn as the Kingpin's Caged Bird

1: 1

The year I turned eighteen, fate handed me two choices.

I could become the secret kept woman of Paul Griffin, the man who ran everything beneath the surface of Harbor City, or I could go back to the Fox family, that dynasty of art-world names, and take my place as their true daughter.

In my last life, I chose the second.

The day they brought me home from the slums, I thought everyone would ache for me, for the eighteen years I'd spent with no one, scraping by.

Instead, the first thing my birth parents said when they laid eyes on me was, "You don't stand right, you don't sit right, you're not fit to be seen. The day you learn some manners is the day you get to call yourself a Fox."

My brother said it too. "Eleanor Pruitt, do something about that cheap, threadbare air of yours. Don't embarrass this family."

I told myself the Foxes were simply cold by nature.

It wasn't until the day I died that I finally understood. They'd already poured every scrap of love they had into their fake daughter, Bridget Fox. There was nothing left over for me.

When I opened my eyes again, I was back on the very day the Foxes came to collect me.

Standing in the familiar streets of the slums, I dialed the number I'd carried in my memory for a lifetime.

"Mr. Griffin, I'll be your kept woman. I agree."

01

I was nervous. My voice shook.

The man on the other end was silent for a moment, then gave a cold, flat, "Mm."

As if we weren't discussing something as intimate as being kept.

His tone gave nothing away, and without thinking I opened my mouth to say more.

The next second, the call cut off.

At the same time, a message landed on my phone.

【Wait for me at home.】

I let out a breath.

Paul Griffin kept his word. Whatever he promised, he did.

Just then, a black chauffeured van pulled up in front of me.

The butler stepped out, took his place beside the door, and said, "Miss Pruitt, Mrs. Fox has sent me to bring you home."

His words were respectful. The look in his eyes was contempt.

I took out my phone and sent Paul Griffin a message.

【Mr. Griffin, the Foxes have come for me.】

He answered fast, just a single 【Mm】.

But I knew what it meant. He was giving me his permission to go.

I smiled a little and told the butler, "Put my luggage in the car for me."

"Miss Pruitt, the Fox family has prepared a complete set of everything you'll need. You don't need to bring any luggage."

In my last life, the butler had said those exact words and then dumped my things at the roadside.

As if my past eighteen years were filth that couldn't be carried into the Fox house.

This time, I didn't swallow it. I picked up my bags, turned, and walked away.

For a second his composure slipped, but he collected himself quickly. "Miss Pruitt, don't keep Mrs. Fox waiting too long."

I didn't so much as glance at him, not until he caught up and blocked my path.

"Miss Pruitt, where exactly are you going?"

I looked up at him, my voice even. "A servant of this family won't even obey his own mistress. A place with that little discipline? I'm not going back to it."

He held my gaze. I don't know how long it lasted before he lowered his head and took the bags from my hand.

"Miss Pruitt, Mrs. Fox is still waiting for you at home."

I let out a scornful laugh, then turned and got into the car.

The butler followed behind me with a calm face, and I knew he wouldn't let it go.

Sure enough, the moment we hit the road, the car veered off in an unfamiliar direction.

He drove me around the beltway three full loops, and by the time we reached the Fox house the sky had gone completely dark.

The family was already seated at the dinner table, and every one of them frowned the instant they saw me.

Every one except Bridget.

Head down, eyes red, her voice thick with hurt.

"Sister, I know you don't like that I exist, but you didn't have to drag it out on purpose. Dad, Mom, and our brother have been sitting here hungry this whole time, waiting for you."

I looked at her, and for a moment the world went hazy, my mind dragged straight back to the day I died.