My husband, an Army regimental commander, was killed in action. Before his body was even cold, I didn't hesitate.

I filed for his death certificate and notified the Army, the Social Security Administration, and our bank. Then, three days later—on the very day his twin brother married his childhood sweetheart—I moved out, changed the locks, and remarried quietly at the courthouse, taking my son and the full line-of-duty death benefits with me.

To everyone else, I was heartless. Cold. I let them curse me. I just looked into my “brother-in-law's” bloodshot eyes and felt a quiet, cruel satisfaction.

Only I knew the truth.

In my last life, I discovered the body sent home wasn't my husband's at all—it was his identical twin brother's.

I ran to confront him, but by chance I overheard him and my mother-in-law whispering.

"Mom, Sarah is strong. And we have our son. She'll be okay. The benefits will take care of her. But Amy has waited for my brother all these years. If she finds out he's dead, she might do something drastic."

Their words struck me like lightning. I tried to expose them, but my husband knocked me out.

He told everyone grief had driven me insane. He locked me in the garage apartment and, with cold detachment, married his sweetheart.

And when that woman complained my son was too loud, my husband slipped sleeping pills into our boy's juice—right as my crying child was coming to look for me.

My son never woke up.

The day they buried him hastily, I ended my life in the garage, utterly broken.

When I opened my eyes again, I was back to the day they delivered my brother-in-law's body to our home.

"My son! My son! How could you leave like this? What am I, an old woman, supposed to do now? What about your wife and child?"

My mother-in-law's shrill, heart-rending cries dragged me back to my senses.

My gaze fell on the body lying in the coffin—a face identical to my husband, Tommy Robinson. I lowered my eyes, while a violent storm rose in my heart.

I had been reborn. And I had been reborn on the very day Tony Robinson's body was sent back.

That's right—the man lying in the coffin was not my husband, Tommy, but his twin older brother, Tony.

In my previous life, when news of Tommy's "death" arrived, I cried until my heart tore apart. I threw myself onto his body—only to suddenly notice that he did not have the small red mole behind his ear.

In that instant, I understood: Tommy wasn't dead at all. The "elder brother" escorting the body back was my real husband.

Filled with joy that he was alive—and confused as to why he'd do such a thing—I was about to confront him, when I accidentally overheard a conversation outside my mother-in-law's door, a truth even more shattering.

"Tommy, are you really going to take Tony's place and marry Amy in three days?"

My husband, who had faked his death, answered without hesitation.

"Of course, Mom. Tony and Amy were engaged for so long. She's been waiting for him to come back all this time. Now that Tony is no longer with us, what if she can't take the shock and follows him in death?

"You watched her grow up. Can you really bear to see her die with your own eyes?

"I'll marry Amy instead. If we have children, we'll register them under my brother's name. At least he'll have heirs legally."

My mother-in-law was clearly moved, but she still hesitated.

"Then what about Sarah? She's just a woman, and your son is only two and a half. Aren't you afraid she won't be able to hold on? Aren't you afraid she'll remarry?"

Hearing this, Tommy actually laughed.

"Mom, don't worry. Sarah is completely devoted to me. She wouldn't remarry! She's tough. Besides, we have our son. For our son's sake, she'll definitely endure everything."

If I'd never heard those words, I really would have done exactly what he said—stayed with their family for the rest of my life and raised our son to adulthood.

But after learning the truth, all I felt was injustice.

Furious, I pushed open the door, ready to expose Tommy's true identity in front of everyone—only for him to strike the back of my head without the slightest mercy.

When I woke up again, I had been locked inside the garage. I called out for help, but no one answered.

Tommy told everyone that I had lost my husband and gone insane from grief. No one believed me anymore.

From inside the garage, I watched him, beaming with joy, marry his childhood sweetheart, Amy Parker, and I heard with my own ears as they consummated their marriage.

Meanwhile, my two-and-a-half-year-old son and I cried desperately because we couldn't find each other, disturbing Amy's sleep.

She complained only once.

And Tommy, like a madman, went out and bought sleeping pills, slipping them into our son's food.

The flesh and blood I had carried for ten months died less than thirty feet from me.

After my son died, they felt no guilt at all. Amy held Tommy's arm and looked down at me from above.

"Poor Sarah, your fate is truly terrible. Your bad luck killed your husband, and now you've killed your son too. If it weren't for Tony's mercy, I wouldn't even have let you stay in this house.

"But to make me feel at ease, he already compensated me with all your money on behalf of his brother. From now on, you can just stay obediently in the garage."

"Tony" stood beside her, saying nothing. He only looked at her with eyes full of indulgent affection.

Only then did I finally realize: after marrying me, his heart had always belonged to his childhood sweetheart.

For her, he gave up his identity and his family. In his eyes, neither I nor his own flesh-and-blood son were worth even a single strand of Amy's hair.

Anger and hatred burned through me, but I couldn't even escape this tiny garage. In the end, I found a rope and ended my life in despair.

Even in the final moment of suffocation, I regretted marrying a beast like Tommy.

Fortunately, I had been reborn. There was still room to change everything.

Tommy was so certain I'd stay with him and his family for life?

Then I absolutely won't.

After making up my mind, I pinched my thigh hard and forced myself into a picture of heartbreaking grief. I threw myself onto "Tommy's" body and cried until I nearly fainted.

Even the relatives and friends who had come to mourn couldn't help but feel their eyes sting.

"Ah… what a pity. The family's lost its support. What will she do now?"

"Yeah. If I remember right, Finn is only two and a half this year. Poor child… Tommy's wife is going to have a hard life from now on."

I received their pitiful looks, yet my heart grew colder with every word.

Relatives of the Robinson family who were barely more than acquaintances understood how hard it would be for a woman like me to live as a widow. Tommy, however, had never considered any of it.

All it took was one sentence—"she's strong-willed"—for him to feel justified in pushing me into suffering.

Even now, he wore an indifferent expression as he arranged "Tommy's" burial. Then, in front of everyone, he openly announced his wedding date with Amy.

Someone asked in confusion, "Tony, why are you in such a hurry? Your brother just passed away. Why rush into marriage?"

"Tony" waved his hand. "Tommy and Amy grew up together too. His dying wish was for me to marry Amy as soon as possible and give him a big, healthy nephew!"

When a person dies, and only one person is there at the end, whatever that person says becomes the truth.

Using a "dying wish" as a shield, and with both my mother-in-law and me keeping our heads down in silence, no one else dared to voice their doubts, even if they felt it was improper.

After everyone left, "Tony" held Amy's hand and stopped me in my path.

"Sarah, my dear sister-in-law, I have a favor to ask you. I know Tommy left you quite a bit of money and jewelry. Could you lend me a few gold pieces of jewelry to help Amy keep up appearances?

"You'll be in mourning for my brother anyway. It wouldn't be appropriate for you to wear gold, right?"

He used the word "favor," but his tone left me no room to refuse.

Inside, I cursed him for his shamelessness.

Forcing me into widowhood out of nowhere wasn't enough—how did he even have the face to covet my assets?

I glanced at his solid, muscular build and knew better than to argue with him.

"Tony, you're too polite. We're all family. Of course I can. I'll personally deliver them to Amy on your wedding day."

Amy's eyes instantly reddened with emotion.

"Tony, you're so good to me. You're the best husband anyone can ask for in the whole world."

"Tony" chuckled softly and affectionately tapped the tip of her nose.

"That's nothing. I wish I could give you all the good things in the world."

Amy gave him a shy, pretended-to-be-angry punch, her tone tinted with deliberate display.

"Oh, stop it. Sarah is still here. She just lost her husband—don't do this in front of her."

"Tony" glanced at me.

"Sarah definitely isn't that petty. Besides, Sarah, you're my brother's widow, and Finn is my nephew. We definitely won't treat the two of you badly in the future."

At those words, a flash of displeasure passed through Amy's eyes. She didn't want her own husband looking after another woman.

Just then, my two-and-a-half-year-old son, Finn, walked out of the room, stretching out his tiny arms as he went straight toward Tommy.

"Daddy, hug me! Hug me!"

Amy's face darkened instantly, and she stepped in between Finn and Tommy.

"Finn, he's not your daddy. He's your uncle."

Finn lifted his little head, his small mind unable to understand what she meant.

He tried to move closer to Tommy, but Tommy heartlessly shoved him away.

"I'm not your daddy. Sarah, you need to teach Finn properly. Luckily, we're at home. If someone else were to see this and misunderstand, what then? Our family has very upright family traditions!"

Finn fell to the ground and burst into loud sobs.

I rushed to pull him up. Hearing Tommy speak so righteously, my whole body trembled with anger.

I bit it back, again and again, until I finally forced it down.

"I'll teach Finn properly, Tony."

Tommy let out a breath of relief, then belatedly felt a flicker of pity for the child.

He reached out, wanting to pat Finn's head and comfort him, but Amy spoke up.

"Tony, you promised to go shopping with me. Let's not waste time."

Watching their retreating backs, the anticipation in Finn's eyes slowly dimmed, and even his crying weakened.

"Mommy, Daddy left… does he not want us anymore?"

My nose stung. I reached up and gently stroked his head.

"Finn, that wasn't your daddy. Your daddy is already dead. He won't be coming back. Mommy will find you a new daddy to stay with you, okay?"

Finn didn't understand what "dead" really meant.

But watching Tommy, who never once looked back, he seemed to half understand. Holding tightly to my hand, he nodded.

Tommy didn't know that in this world, he wasn't the only one with a childhood sweetheart.

I made up an excuse to go out and called Ricky Sterling, the boy who'd grown up with me since childhood.

When he learned that I wanted him to introduce someone so I could remarry, he got angry.

"Did Tommy treat you badly?"

Just that one question was enough to make my eyes turn red.

I briefly explained the situation. On the other end of the line, I heard the sound of someone punching a wall.

"Fine. I'll introduce you to someone reliable."

I finally relaxed. I just needed to wait for the day Tommy and Amy got married and leave. From then on, I would have nothing to do with the Robinson family ever again.

But before that, I still had many things to handle.

Because I was "Tommy's widow," canceling his military registration went especially smoothly, and I collected the compensation payment as well.

I separated the portion meant for my parents-in-law and deposited the rest into my own savings account.

When I got home, I gathered everything that had anything to do with Tommy over the years and stuffed it all under the stove.

By the time Tommy came back with Amy, those things had long since turned to ash.

He didn't notice a thing. Seeing me in the kitchen, he spoke to me out of habit, just like before.

"Sarah, make some rib noodle soup for dinner."

Only after Amy pinched his arm did Tommy snap back to reality. He cleared his throat twice to cover it up.

"Amy, I remember Tommy used to say that Sarah makes the best rib noodles. Let her make some for us to try."

Amy's suspicious gaze swept back and forth between him and me before she snorted coldly.

"It's just rib noodles. Does it matter who makes them? After we get married, I'll learn to cook them for you too."

Tommy hurriedly took her hand. "That won't do. Did I marry you to make you work? There will be people to handle the housework. You just need to take care of yourself and give me a big, chubby son."

Amy was quickly coaxed into smiling, and the two of them went inside together, laughing and talking.

Standing there, I thought about what Tommy had just said, and I couldn't help but let out a soft laugh.

My mother-in-law had always been in poor health. He had to make money to support the family. Now Amy had to be "well taken care of" too.

Other than me, who else could possibly do the housework?

So this was his plan all along—turning me into a maid to serve their whole family.

Even knowing his intentions, I said nothing.

After all, I'd be leaving in just two more days.

I acted as if I had no temper at all, letting Tommy and Amy run me ragged with errands.

Even my mother-in-law, who had long been talked over by Tommy's sweet words, couldn't stand it anymore and scolded them a few times. Only then did they restrain themselves a bit.

But Amy had been spoiled since childhood. Even if she listened on the surface, she refused to accept it in her heart.

Whenever she felt uncomfortable, she threw tantrums at Tommy.

Tommy indulged her completely. She said her feet hurt from walking, so he bought her an SUV.

Then came the washer–dryer set, the stainless-steel fridge, and even a brand-new 70-inch TV that not many families in town could afford.

When those stuffs were delivered to the door, the Robinson family became the talk of the entire small town.

Everyone was stunned by the lavish way Tommy was preparing for the wedding.

"Tony, you're really spoiling your fiancée. Those things aren't cheap, are they?"

"Yeah. With these stuffs, you couldn't spend this much even if you were marrying a well-off girl from the city, right?"

Tommy only looked at Amy with doting eyes.

"So what if it costs money? I just want to give Amy the best and make her the happiest bride."

Hearing that, many people felt both envy and jealousy.

Then someone sharp-eyed noticed me standing silently to the side and deliberately stirred trouble.

"With the Robinson family's solid foundation, when Tommy married Sarah back then, he must've spent a lot too, right?"

The smile on Tommy's face froze. He lowered his head and didn't dare look at me.

I knew why he felt guilty, so I sighed softly.

"When Tommy married me, he hadn't spent a single cent on me."

I hadn't meant to expose things so directly. The neighbor trying to stir trouble was momentarily left speechless and could only force an awkward laugh.

"Well… maybe conditions were bad back then."

Even she sounded guilty when she said it.

Both sons of the Robinson family had been in the army. Now that one had "died," the compensation money must have been substantial.

Spending lavishly to marry Amy now was clearly favoritism.

The way people looked at me turned even more sympathetic.

Seeing that Tommy seemed to be lost in thought, Amy's eyes flickered.

"I really didn't think this through. I didn't consider how Sarah might feel. This is my fault. Tony, return those things. I don't want Sarah to feel wronged."

The tiny trace of guilt Tommy had just felt toward me vanished.

"She doesn't have these things because her fate is bad. She's not worth that much. What does that have to do with you? Amy, you're just too kind. Be careful in the future, or some scheming woman will bully you!"

Between the lines, he was already suspecting that I might be jealous of Amy and had deliberately put them in an awkward position.

I didn't bother to argue. I just watched him work hard to move the items into the room he shared with Amy, and sneered to myself.

There was no way the money in Tommy's hands was enough to buy all of that.

But if he added the military compensation money, it would be more than enough.

I'd originally thought he would personally come ask me for it. I never expected that on the eve of the wedding, the one who came to see me instead was my mother-in-law.

She carefully studied my expression and spoke cautiously.

"Sarah, you should've already collected Tommy's compensation money, right? That's a rather large sum… maybe I can help you keep it?"