Josh worked quickly. Before long, he had cremated Caleb's body and returned with a small urn of ashes.

Back at the house, the funeral was set up. Neighbors, having heard the news, filtered in to help—their eyes lingering on the memorial photo and that little ceramic pot, their sighs heavy with pity.

I didn't have to act much. Haunted by the memories of my last life, my face was naturally pale, my eyes hollow. I looked every bit the shattered widow.

Josh, meanwhile, held Catherine in his arms as he said to me, "Catherine just found out she's pregnant. Staying here might harm her health. She doesn't need to keep vigil."

He settled her gently into a seat, all tenderness and care.

I ignored their display of affection, but Catherine turned to me and spoke anyway.

"Riley, now that you're… alone… if you need a man's help around here, you can't expect Josh to do it for free, right?"

Her eyes glittered with naked greed.

Josh chimed in, "Riley, you still have those gold pieces from your mother, don't you? The bracelets and earrings. You should give them to Catherine. You're a widow with a child now—when would you ever wear fancy jewelry?"

I lifted my head sharply, staring at him with icy disbelief.

Those were my mother's life savings—the only keepsakes she left me before she passed.

How dare he?

Yet Josh showed not a trace of guilt. He pressed his demands as if they were perfectly reasonable.

"You don't wear jewelry while doing housework and farm chores anyway. Giving them to Catherine puts them to good use. And Josh mentioned some money he left in the house for me to handle. You should hand that over, too."

I let a silence hang, then covered my face with my hands. My shoulders shook. "There… there is no money," I sobbed, the picture of broken despair. "Josh spent it all. Even my mom's jewelry and money is gone. There's nothing left."

"That's impossible!" Josh snapped, losing his composure. "He told me there was some money!"

I lowered my hands, my voice trembling but clear. "Then he lied to you. Probably too ashamed to admit he had nothing."

I looked around at the gathered neighbors, pouring every ounce of helplessness into my words. "Caleb, your brother is gone. You're the only man left in the family. Instead of helping us, you're trying to squeeze money from his widow? Are you trying to drive my daughter and me to our graves?"

Of course, none of it was true, but Josh had no way to refute it.

The villagers around us looked at me with sympathy and urged him to help his widowed sister-in-law.

His expression darkened. "My brother wasn't a liar."

A cold laugh escaped me. I stood up, walked to the corner, and dragged out a worn duffel bag—all of Josh's belongings.

"This is all the worthless things he left," I announced. "Let me burn it for you, so you can stop dreaming about money that never existed."

One by one, I tossed in his military manuals, letters, and then his clothes into the fire. The flames caught and climbed.

Josh instinctively stepped forward to stop me, but hesitated—his face turning pitch-black—as he forced himself to stay still.

Finally, I picked up the gifts he'd given me over the years and tossed them into the heart of the fire.

"Riley!" he burst out, a strangled sound. "Those were from Josh! How could you?"

My voice trembled. "He's gone. What use are objects from a dead man? And you—hounding me for money the very day he's buried! Where would he have gotten that kind of money? Tell me!"

I spoke with such grief and tears that even the neighbors were moved.

Josh's face turned ashen, but he could do nothing except watch as I burned everything.

Later, in the back room, my little girl, Natalie, tugged on my sleeve. Her wide, confused eyes looked up at me. "Mama… that's Daddy. Why is everyone saying he's Uncle Caleb?"

A sharp ache stabbed through my heart. Even my daughter recognized that was Josh—yet he refused to acknowledge it, hardening his heart even toward his own child.

I pulled her into my arms, holding back my tears. "Sweetheart, listen to Mama. That man is not your daddy. Your daddy… he's gone to heaven."

I didn't waste another day. With the death certificate in hand, I went straight back to the military district headquarters. I reported my husband's passing to the commander and requested that Josh's military status be revoked.

The commander sighed.

"We received the notification about Captain Perkins," he said, his voice respectful. "The nation thanks him for his service. Please, if there's anything you or your daughter need..."

"Sir," I said, cutting to the point before my courage could falter. "I need a job. Here. Anything at all—cleaning, clerical, mess hall work. I just need to support my daughter."

He studied me, surprised. "The work is hard, Mrs. Perkins. And it would mean relocating to base housing. A fresh start, but far from everything you know."

That was exactly what I wanted. I nodded firmly.

The paperwork was swift. Josh Perkins was officially, permanently listed as deceased. A modest pension and death benefit were processed for his next of kin—me.

When I returned home, my mother-in-law was sitting in the courtyard. As soon as she saw me, her voice turned shrill and cutting.

"Look what the cat dragged back," she sneered. "My son just died, and you're gallivantin' around. A curse, that's what you are. A husband-killing curse."

My breath caught. Natalie was hunched on the dirt by the corn pile, her tiny hands raw and blistered as she shucked ears twice the size of her arms.

A hot, pure rage boiled up in me. I swept her into my arms. "She's five years old! Look at her hands!"

"Useless!" my mother-in-law spat, hands on her hips. "Couldn't even give my boy a son. Dead weight needs to earn its keep. You think this is a charity?"

A cold clarity washed over me. "Since my husband is dead," I said, my voice surprisingly steady, "we have no place here. We'll leave. We won't be a burden to the Perkins family anymore."

She moved with shocking speed, blocking the path. "Leave? And who's gonna tend to Catherine when my grandson comes? You think you can just walk away after all the food you've eaten over the years?"

Catherine appeared in the doorway, one hand resting on the slight swell of her belly, a smug smile playing on her lips. "She's right, Riley. You failed where I succeeded. I'm carrying the future of this family. The least you can do is make yourself useful."

Josh stepped up beside her, his arm a protective bar around her shoulders. His eyes on me were cold, commanding. "Mom's not as strong as she used to be, and Catherine needs rest. Stop this foolishness and do your duty, Riley."

I almost laughed. Duty? Where was his duty when I was alone in a hospital bed, bringing his daughter into the world? Where was their concern when my water broke, and I had to carry myself to the hospital alone, with not a single soul from this family by my side?

And now they expected me to work myself to the bone serving them?

Jaw clenched, I carried Natalie back into the room and carefully applied ointment to her hands.

As I stepped out, I overheard Josh and Catherine speaking.

"Josh," she whined, "look at Riley's attitude. If you hadn't taken Caleb's place to stay with me, who knows what she would've done to me."

His voice was soft and gentle. "Don't worry, Catherine. For you and our child, I'll protect you for the rest of my life. Mom supports you too. Why else would she agree to me replacing Josh?"

My fingernails dug into my palm, and I nearly bit my lip raw.

So the child she carried was Josh's. She and my mother-in-law had known about the impersonation from the beginning.

They had been entangled far earlier than I ever imagined. I was the only fool kept in the dark, deceived all the way to my death in my past life.

Looking at my sleeping daughter, I forced myself to breathe. For her sake, we would leave soon.

Sure enough, two days later, the commander sent word: a job had been arranged for me, and I could start anytime.

I immediately packed our things.

But the moment I stepped out the door, I came face-to-face with Josh's dark, stormy expression.

His eyes dropped to the train tickets in my hand, and his voice turned icy.

"Riley, just where in the hell do you think you're going?"

I tightened my grip on the train tickets, instinctively shielding Natalie behind me.

"Where I go is none of your business. You don't get to control me, Caleb."

I deliberately stressed his fake name.

Josh's expression stiffened, but he quickly recovered, adopting a tone of practical authority. "Catherine is pregnant. She needs someone to take care of her. If you manage the house like before, I won't let you go hungry."

I looked at him, my gaze unwavering. "Josh is dead. As an outsider, I wouldn't dare impose on your family. We are just a helpless widow and child. Catherine is your wife—you take care of her."

With that, I turned, taking my daughter's hand to leave.

But Josh moved swiftly. In two strides, he was upon us. Before I could react, he snatched the tickets from my hand and, in a few brutal motions, tore them to pieces.

"You're my sister-in-law," he said, his voice dropping to a threatening register as the scraps fluttered to the ground, "I'm doing this for your own good. How are you going to survive out there? Here, you'll have food and a roof. Be sensible."

The sight of our escape, shredded and scattered, sent a tremor of pure rage through me. I shoved him hard in the chest. "So you do remember I'm your sister-in-law! Then stay away from me!"

He didn't retreat. Instead, he closed the distance again, his old impatience and arrogance rolling off him in waves. "Don't make this harder than it has to be. I'm offering you a place to stay. What more do you want?"

I almost laughed in his face. The hypocrisy was breathtaking. In my past life, he had let his mother throw us out into the cold. Now that I was choosing to leave, he sought to imprison me.

"You are my brother-in-law, not my keeper. I am free to go. What right do you have to stop me?"

He frowned, as if I were a stubborn child, and made a show of offering a grotesque compromise.

"Riley, are you really this heartless? The moment my brother dies, you can't wait to run? Fine. If it's security you're after, I'll take responsibility for both households. Isn't it just a husband you're missing? I'll give you a proper title. Catherine's child can even be raised as yours—"

I didn't let him finish. The revulsion and fury exploded in me. My hand swung with all the force of my betrayal, my grief, and my lost years. The slap cracked across his face, snapping his head to the side.

Shock, then instant, black rage contorted his features. "Have you lost your mind?!"

"You're not going anywhere today!" he snarled.

He grabbed my arm and shoved me toward the house. I clenched my brows, resisting with everything I had.

At that moment, the gate to the property swung open. The commotion broke Josh's focus.

And when Josh saw who entered, shock froze him in place.