I was lying in bed, scrolling on my phone with my pregnant belly heavy in front of me, when a local news alert popped up.

'Wife killed in suburban murder case. Husband stabbed her to death after she refused intimacy during pregnancy.'

I clicked it open, only to realize the article was dated for tomorrow.

And the killer's name? My husband's.

At first, I thought it was some sick prank or a glitch on the site. But then I saw the photo attached to the piece: our wedding picture.

My face had been completely blurred out.

The moment my heart seized, the bedroom door creaked open.

My husband stood there, licking his lips, his smile so chilling it made my blood run cold.

"Honey, I want you tonight."

The News for Tomorrow

"Julian, I-I'm not feeling well. The baby's been restless."

My voice trembled. My mind replayed the news alert I'd just seen.

When I said that, Julian Lawson's smile fell away, and impatience hardened his tone. "Again with not feeling well? What are you crying over this time?"

I froze. Julian never spoke to me like that. He'd never raised his voice before.

I opened my mouth to protest, but he lunged forward and gripped my wrist hard. "Are you seeing someone else? Is that why you keep finding excuses so I can't touch you?"

A cold breath of panic hit me.

A creeping dread rose inside me. Could that news story actually be real?

I tried to pull away and climb out of bed, but he was frighteningly strong. He yanked me back and slammed me down.

Pain stabbed through my belly.

He scanned the room and grabbed the kitchen knife from the nightstand—the one I used to peel apples.

The blade pressed against the side of my neck, cold and bright.

"If you're that unwilling, I'll send you and your bastard on your way."

Pain exploded. Blood poured out.

I watched his face contort into something I didn't recognize as mine to keep loving, and then the world tilted into darkness.

I jerked awake, sitting bolt upright, gasping.

I looked down. My body was unhurt. My phone screen still glowed. The clock showed I'd jumped back ten minutes.

The same bloody news alert had just popped up again.

The bedroom door clicked and opened. The same familiar face stepped in and repeated that phrase that had chilled me to the bone.

"Honey, I want you tonight."

This time, I didn't meet force with force.

I steadied myself, pulled up a smile, and softened my voice. "Darling, the baby's been so fussy today. I'm exhausted. Maybe another night?"

I thought that gentle dodge would buy me time.

His impatience flared faster than before. "That line again? Elena, do you think I'm stupid?"

He closed the distance between us; his obsession looked darker this time.

"Elena, do you not love me anymore?"

Before I could answer, he attacked like a furious animal.

But I was ready. I rolled to the other side of the bed, and he missed.

Flushed with anger, he snatched up the knife. I thought it was over.

As he raised the blade, my eyes caught the back of his hand. There, near the base of his thumb, was a pale brown birthmark.

My pupils contracted. Julian didn't have a birthmark.

The one with that mark was his twin brother, Jayden.

Julian and Jayden were identical in looks but nothing alike in temperament.

Julian had always been gentle; Jayden was brooding and withdrawn, someone I'd always been wary of.

Because our in-laws were superstitious, believing twins could harm each other, Jayden had been sent to the countryside to be raised by elders and only came home when he went to college.

He had never been close to us, and his relationship with Julian was distant at best.

Why would Jayden pretend to be Julian and come here to kill me? Where was the real Julian?

A thousand terrifying thoughts flashed through my head. Survival instinct surged, and I fought to get up again.

The Fourth Wake

This time, he didn't give me a chance to speak.

The knife slid into my belly with the same sick, precise motion.

When I opened my eyes for the third time, I sprang up and ran to the door, slamming the bedroom lock tight.

At almost the same moment, someone turned the handle outside.

My phone lit up. The nightmare news alert appeared on schedule.

"Honey, open the door."

I pressed my back to the wood, my heart banging in my ribs. My hand shook as I dialed Julian.

After a few rings, he answered.

"Elena?" Julian's voice came through—familiar and tired—and I felt the dam inside me break. Tears poured down my face.

"Darling…"

"Sorry, honey, an emergency came up at work. I'll probably have to stay late. Go to bed early. Don't wait up."

My heart sank to the floor.

It was Jayden at the door.

The pounding grew harder, more frantic.

"Elena, open up! Why did you lock the door?" he shouted.

I jabbed the phone close to my mouth and replied, "Julian, whatever you hear, don't come home. Call the police. Call right now!"

I hung up, took a deep breath, and forced myself to shout back at the door with everything I had. "Jayden!"

The hammering stopped.

One second. Two seconds.

Then, the assault resumed—wilder, more violent.

"How did you know?" he asked.

No sooner had he spoken than the door split with a massive crack. He'd grabbed an axe in the hall and was chopping at the wood; splinters flew.

Through the new gap came Jayden's cold, amused laugh. "Elena, now that you know, I won't pretend anymore. Tonight, you have to die."

…

For the fourth time I woke up reborn, lying in bed, my body ice-cold.

There were fewer than five minutes before Jayden would push through.

I forced myself to stay calm and think. I needed something to defend myself. A fight over the knife would leave me at a disadvantage. He was stronger.

My eyes swept the room and landed on the vanity.

In the drawer sat a can of pepper spray. I'd bought it a little while ago because I'd been scared walking home alone at night, purely for self-defense.

I sprang up and slid the spray under the comforter where I could grab it quickly.

When I was done, I didn't lock the door. Instead, I walked over and eased it open just a crack.

A few minutes later, Jayden came in.

I didn't wait for him to speak. I threw back a corner of the blanket and smiled at him like a woman waiting in bed.

"Honey, you're home. I've been waiting for you," I said, my voice soft.

He froze.

He stood there, as if he couldn't understand.

I sat up, letting a strap of my nightgown slip off my shoulder, and curled a finger at him.

"What are you waiting for? Come on over." I tried to sound inviting.

The wary look in his eyes slowly slid away and was replaced by hunger. He thought he had me.

When he let his guard down and leaned over me, I snatched the pepper spray from beneath the blanket and blasted it into his face.

"Ahhh!" His scream tore through the house as he clutched his face and rolled across the bed.

Seizing the chance, I scrambled off the bed and bolted for the door. Living room, foyer, front door—I could be out!

I grabbed the doorknob and twisted it.

The door didn't budge.

I looked down. A big, shiny deadbolt hung across it.

Behind me, Jayden's screams gave way to heavy, staggering footsteps closing in. "Heh… Elena, you really gave me a nice surprise," he croaked.

I froze.

Then, I turned my head stiffly.

Jayden clutched his watering eyes with one hand while bracing himself against the wall with the other, swaying unsteadily. His face was scorched an angry red.

"Go on, run. Why'd you stop?" His voice was hoarse as he advanced step by step. "Did you really think a little toy like that could keep me back?"

A Door to Betrayal

I stared at the lock and felt my heart sink a little further.

"Jayden, why are you doing this? Julian is your brother. I'm your sister-in-law."

I tried to stall, my mind racing to find a way out.

"Brother?" Jayden laughed until he doubled over. "When did he ever treat me like one? Growing up, all the good things were his—our parents' love, the name-brand schools, everything. And now even a beautiful wife like you belongs to him."

His voice snapped, his face twisting.

"What gives him the right? What am I missing that he has it all?"

"So, you decided to kill me?" I shouted. "You think murdering me will get you those things?"

"You're right. Killing you won't give me those things," Jayden explained, a cruel edge in his smile. "But he'll lose everything. He'll be smeared as a wife-killer, ruined, left with nothing. And I'll take his life and enjoy what's left of it."

Sudden clarity hit me.

This wasn't mere revenge. He wanted to replace Julian. Destroy him, then live as him.

"You're a lunatic," I spat.

"You think I'm crazy? You'll be crazy with me soon enough," he said, then lunged.

I screamed and dodged, circling the living room couch to keep some distance, but I was heavily pregnant, I had no stamina.

He was stronger. He cornered me against the sliding glass doors until there was nowhere left to back up.

He closed in, and the familiar knife appeared in his hand.

The same knife.

"Elena, stop fighting it. Just be good and take the final road."

I stared at him, and, strangely, my mind sharpened at that moment. I could not die—not like this, not shrouded in this confusion.

"Wait!" I yelled. "Do you really think killing me will make it easy for you to take his place? Julian's company is in deep trouble. Their cash flow's collapsed and they're about to go bankrupt. If you replace him now, you'll be inheriting a mess and tens of millions in debt!"

I was gambling on the fact that he didn't know about Julian's problems.

He hesitated, looking at me with sudden doubt. "Are you lying to me?" he asked.

"You can check for yourself," I replied, keeping my voice steady. "He's been a wreck—pacing, taking calls in the study at all hours. Do you think he was calling to chat?"

I laid out my case calmly, trying to plant a seed of doubt.

Jayden's expression wavered. I knew my gamble was paying off.

Just when I thought I could buy a little more time, his phone suddenly rang.

He pulled it out, glanced at it, answered, and put it on speaker.

A voice I knew all too well came through.

"Jayden, how's it going? Is she dead yet?"

My head buzzed as if something had exploded.

Time froze.

I stared at the name on Jayden's phone screen: Julian.

Julian's voice was impatient over the speaker.

"Why aren't you saying anything? Have you done it? Don't forget what we agreed to. Once she's dead, that ten-million insurance payout is ours. Half for you, half for me. That'll cover the company's shortfall."

Jayden hung up and forced a mocking smile. "Elena, you hear that? Your perfect husband sent you to the grave for money.

"Not only did he know I was going to kill you, but this whole plan was his idea from the start."

Something inside me shattered.

It wasn't brothers at odds or a twisted desire to take over.

It was the man I loved and trusted most—my husband—conspiring with his own brother for money, plotting to kill me and the child I carried.

The news alert had been true.

The killer was Julian, but he had used someone else's hand.

No wonder Jayden always managed to show up right on time in every rebirth.

No wonder he had a key and could slip into the house without the slightest effort.

It was Julian who had paved the way for him all along.