No matter what, since heaven had given me a second chance at life, I absolutely could not allow the tragedy of my previous life to repeat itself.
I returned to the bedroom and began ordering small home surveillance cameras online.
In my previous life, when Megan first came to work in our home as a housekeeper, I had wanted to install cameras, but Daniel felt it would be disrespectful to someone living under our roof.
Thinking back on it now, it was precisely because of our kindness that we had walked step by step into her trap.
The question that had plagued me, the one I couldn't grasp even as I died, suddenly returned, despite all my careful preparations.
How could the child she was carrying be Daniel's?
After we got married, Daniel and I started trying for a baby, but no matter how long we tried, I never got pregnant. It was only after going to the hospital for tests that we learned he had azoospermia.
The doctor had been blunt. Daniel could not have children at all. Even IVF had no chance of success. He felt deeply guilty toward me and wanted a divorce.
Nevertheless, over all those years, our relationship had been good. We had never even had a real argument.
I refused to divorce him. After all, life is long, and the one who stays by your side is your partner, not a child.
That was why, when Megan reported him online in my previous life, I did not take it seriously.
Daniel felt the same way. He believed he had done nothing wrong and even turned around to comfort me, telling me not to be angry.
We thought she had gone crazy trying to extort money.
Who would have thought that she would swear over and over again that the child was his? She even went to do a paternity test.
When the results came out, both Daniel and I were stunned.
The child's biological father was Daniel.
With such powerful evidence placed in front of everyone, the police came directly to our home and, in full view of the public, handcuffed him and took him away. Just like that, Daniel was sued and taken to court.
On the day of the trial, Megan invited dozens of media reporters and online influencers.
The judge ruled that Daniel was guilty of rape and sentenced him to seven years in prison.
After the verdict, she stood outside the courthouse, crying bitterly in front of the cameras. "I always believed that bad people would never escape the punishment of the law. Thank you all for supporting me. I will continue living, no matter what!"
That was not all.
She publicly played the victim even harder, tearfully recounting her suffering to the reporters. She claimed we were a perverted couple who treated her like a breeding machine, beat her, and kept her confined in our home.
Daniel was left utterly defenseless and sent to prison.
As the wife who had helped evil thrive, I was also swallowed by online abuse.
People blocked our front door and poured filth there. Every day, I received death threats.
Daniel was expelled from the university overnight, becoming a symbol of hypocrisy in a suit and tie. His students were ashamed of him.
On the very day the verdict was announced, I was fired from my company. I was even forced to give up the home I had lived in for ten years as compensation to her.
In the end, I also met a miserable death in the street, with no one coming to my aid.
When I recalled the agony and despair I felt just before dying in my previous life, my entire body still trembled, as if I had fallen into an icy abyss.
Sometimes, I even wondered if she had stolen a used condom from Daniel and used it for IVF.
But... that was impossible because even the doctor had said Daniel had azoospermia. The odds of success were slim even with IVF.
Furthermore, it was not as though we had never tried over the years. Every attempt had ended in failure.
At dinner, Megan bustled in and out of the kitchen.
I watched her carefully. This middle-aged, thickset woman weighed over 300 pounds. Even if she were pregnant, it was impossible to tell.
Daniel was away on a business trip, attending an academic conference. He did not come home that day.
Taking advantage of the empty house, I went online and found a very well-known private investigator, Marco Hale. I asked him to look into her background.
Facing the battle ahead, I needed to gather every piece of evidence that could work in my favor.
The cameras were installed overnight. Aside from the bathroom and my bedroom, there were no blind spots.
Marco was efficient as well. He promised to uncover her background within a week.
With everything set, I lay restlessly in bed, waiting for May 18 to arrive. It was the day that had condemned me to eternal ruin in my previous life.
I did not sleep at all. When I got up in the morning, the woman who stared back at me in the mirror had two deep, dark circles under her eyes.
Megan was not a live-in housekeeper. She usually arrived around nine in the morning.
In my previous life, on this very day, I had left early to go to the airport to pick Daniel up. Today, I followed the same path as before.
Before heading out, I even gave Megan a call.
"We won't be home at all today. You don't need to cook lunch or dinner. Just clean up."
On the other end of the line, she sounded gentle and respectful, completely different from the woman who would later cry in front of the courthouse.
I told Daniel to go straight to the university after landing and not come home.
I did not go to the airport either. Instead, I turned and walked into a cafe.
Once inside, I took a seat in the corner, pulled out my tablet, and connected to the home surveillance feed.
Today was my only chance to catch her slipping, and I did not dare miss a single second.
Megan arrived right on time at nine. As usual, she began by cleaning the house.
Up until noon, everything looked normal.
Just as disappointment began to creep in, she suddenly strode straight into my bedroom under the camera.
When she came back out, she was wearing my silk sleepwear. She had also put on my jewelry, around her neck and on her hands. She sat on the sofa, elegantly lifting a glass of red wine, every bit the mistress of the house.
At that moment, the doorbell rang. She rose unhurriedly and went to open the door.
A young woman walked in.
When I saw her face clearly, I nearly dropped the coffee cup in my hand.
The person who had come to my home was Daniel's prized student, Sophie Ward. The diligent, hardworking student that Daniel often praised was now clinging affectionately to Megan's arm.
"Mom, you really do look like some kind of rich lady wearing that." She took out a bottle of cold-pressed juice and pulled her to sit on the sofa.
When Sophie saw the red wine on the coffee table, she frowned. "Mom, why are you still drinking red wine? If someone finds out, they'll start questioning the pregnancy."
"What are you worried about? The child isn't going to be born anyway. Once the paternity test is done, the task is complete."
As she spoke, she took another small sip of wine and casually poured a glass for Sophie. "Sophie, after today, it's all going to be brighter days ahead. This house will be ours sooner or later."
Sophie glanced around the room. Greed flickered briefly in her eyes. "Hmph. After scheming for so long, this is the day we have been waiting for so long.
"Mom, this afternoon, just follow the plan and post everything online. I've already hired paid commenters. By tomorrow, the two of them will be completely ruined."
Megan laughed even more brightly, placing a hand over her lower abdomen. "You really are a clever one to have come up with a trick like this. Now that no explanation would ever clear that professor’s name."
"Mom, you still need to be careful. Remember, after the paternity test, you must immediately go and... deal with that thing... otherwise... the two of us will..." Sophie leaned close to her ear, whispering.
Was this the truth behind the pregnancy?
I hurriedly turned the volume in my earpiece all the way up.
Megan patted Sophie's shoulder, brimming with confidence. "Don't worry. I've been very careful. I definitely won't slip up. Once the test results come out, I'll go take care of what I prepared..."
