Chapter 1 Chapter 1

"Hang on, Jeanette! I swear I'll get you out of here!" That familiar voice snapped me back to reality and made me break out in a cold sweat. I opened my eyes just in time to see the burnt wooden door—warped from the flames—crash down, missing my face by inches. Terrified, I pulled my mother-in-law, Phyllis Mason, back into the bedroom. "Don't open the windows, Phyllis! That'll just make the fire worse," I said. I quickly scanned the room, grabbed a pillowcase, soaked it with bottled water, and handed it to her so she could cover her mouth and nose. I could hear the sirens getting louder outside. Phyllis' face lit up with relief. "Don't be afraid. Caleb's here with the rescue team. We'll be fine." I looked at her hopeful face, then lowered my gaze, my heart heavy. I had no clue how to tell her that one day, Caleb Holt would end up killing her granddaughter for the woman he truly loved. The fire raged on, and the heat inside was unbearable. The tiles beneath our feet were almost too hot to stand on. I managed to get Phyllis to a safer spot when I heard Caleb's voice from the other side of the door. "Bri, Bri, are you in there? Don't worry. I'm here to get you out!" The door crashed open with a loud bang. The fiery red flames blocked my view, but I could hear Brianna Jones crying. "I'm on the balcony, Cay! Help me! I'm so scared!""Everyone, follow me! Stop wasting time searching! Follow me straight to the balcony to rescue her!" As soon as Phyllis heard that, she clutched her chest and started gasping. "Caleb... That brat... How could he..." She didn't finish her sentence before her eyes rolled back, and she collapsed from anger and fear. Through the thick flames, I saw Caleb holding Brianna in his arms, carrying her out. The whole place was burning, and the tears in my eyes vanished as soon as they hit the air. I bit my tongue to keep from screaming for help. I didn't owe Caleb anything anymore—not in this lifetime. He left with Brianna. I quickly covered my mouth and nose, struggling to hoist Phyllis onto my back. It took everything I had, and my stomach twisted with pain as I tried to keep myself from collapsing. Caleb's child was inside me, and his mother was on my back. I stood there, surrounded by flames, hearing their voices echo in the distance. "Is anyone else in the house, Bri?""No, Cay. Jeanette said she was pregnant and too fragile to deal with anything. We had a small argument, then she locked me in and set the place on fire before running off.""That evil woman! The second I get my hands on her, she's going to pay!" My legs gave out, and I nearly collapsed. Just then, another voice spoke up, "I heard something from the bedroom, Caleb. Someone might be in there. What if Jeanette—""Bri already said that Jeanette started the fire!" Caleb cut in. "She wouldn't stick around! Now, let's go! Bri's always struggled with her health. We need to get her to the hospital now!"

Chapter 2 Chapter 2

The pain in my stomach hit so hard that it felt like I almost bit my tongue off. I fought to push through the burning heat. Just then, Phyllis stirred on my back, coughing from the smoke. She clung to me and shouted at the top of her lungs, "Caleb! Your wife and kid are stuck in here! Who the hell do you think you're sending to the hospital?" I paused, straining to hear anything from outside. But all I heard was silence. Caleb was long gone. The fire had warped the wardrobe. It crashed down, blocking our only way out. My hands were shaking as I poured the last of the water onto the towel and handed it to Phyllis. She looked at me, tears streaming down her face. She opened her mouth to say something, but then, we heard the sirens again from downstairs, just like when the rescue team showed up earlier. Caleb must've taken off with Brianna. The fire was getting worse by the second, and all I could think was that we were probably done for. Phyllis coughed a few more times, then went silent on my back. The fire was creeping closer and starting to singe my clothes. Then, I heard someone shout from outside, "Jeanette! The security guard says he didn't see you leave the building! Are you still in there?" I couldn't hold the tears back anymore and shouted as loud as I could. A moment later, someone charged through the flames with a fire extinguisher. I couldn't hang on any longer and passed out right there. When I came to, Phyllis and I were safe outside the building. Our rescuer was Caleb's coworker, Samuel Jacobs. His face was covered in soot, and when he saw I was awake, he gave me a weak smile. "I knew I heard voices in there, Jeanette, but Brianna kept saying no one was left…" He barely managed to say those words before he collapsed. Panicked bystanders quickly called an ambulance for the three of us. Thankfully, none of us were seriously hurt. But Phyllis had some ongoing health problems, and Samuel had inhaled a dangerous amount of smoke, so they were both out cold. When Caleb heard what happened, he rushed to the hospital. The second he saw me, he brushed past the nurses and stormed over to me, slapping me hard across the face. "You shameless woman! How could you be so heartless? Why did you try to kill Bri? You weren't even home! Why go back into that fire? Do you realize you almost killed Sam, too? I can't believe I married someone so cold! You'd be a murderer if anything had happened to them!" I was still shaking from the terror of almost dying when he hit me, knocking me to the ground. And that was when Brianna poked her head out from behind him. "I know you hate me, Jean," she said, weakly leaning on Caleb's shoulder and coughing hard. "But did you ever think about how many lives you put in danger?" When Caleb saw her spit up blood, he turned around and kicked me hard as I tried to get up. "You monster! Why didn't you just die in that fire? I should've dragged Sam out and left you to burn!" He loomed over me, his eyes full of pure hatred. Brianna curled up in his arms and gave me a smug look. I was too exhausted to argue. Blood was pooling beneath me, and the pain was so intense that I could barely manage to whisper, "Doctor… Call a doctor…" Caleb sneered at my suffering. "A doctor? Did you ever think that if you'd killed them, they wouldn't have had a chance to call one for themselves?" I stared at him, tears stinging my eyes. He was over the moon about our baby before Brianna showed up. He'd even set up a nursery and picked out a name—Janet Holt. Caleb always said giving our kid his last name and a name close to mine would be the best gift of all. But now, as blood poured from me, he just turned away and covered Brianna's eyes. "That's gross. I don't want you to see that."

Chapter 3 Chapter 3

I woke up and found myself in a ward. The nurse saw I was awake and deliberately threw the medicine bottle into the trash with a loud clink. Her voice was dripping with sarcasm as she said, "You really are a tough one. After all the harm you caused, the only thing you lost was your baby. Guess you're lucky." My throat felt like it was burning, and I couldn't get a word out. All I could do was swallow her insults in silence. Suddenly, the nurse slammed the door open with a loud bang and shouted to the people outside, "The suspect's awake! Get her out of here. We don't want her messing up our hospital. She actually went after a fallen hero's daughter! What a joke! She should've just been left to burn!" Two people at the door grabbed me without saying a word, and before I knew it, I was being taken to see Caleb. There was a table between us. His face was stormy like he was about to snap. He wasted no time laying the blame on me as soon as he spoke. He said, "You're cold-blooded for trying to kill someone, Jeanette Sloan. Since you were pregnant, I might be able to push for probation, but you're still going to prison!" Then, like even speaking to me would ruin his reputation, he turned his head away with a stiff jerk. My throat felt raw, and when I tried to speak up for myself, all that came out was a harsh cough. Brianna rushed in, crying her eyes out. She practically threw herself into Caleb's arms. "I just had another nightmare, Cay. I dreamed I was burning alive in the fire. I'm so scared…" Caleb's face, which had just started to soften, tightened again as soon as he heard her. "I don't get how Bri, of all people, could've done anything to offend you, Jeanette! Why do you hate her so much that you keep trying to hurt her? Her dad gave his life on a rescue mission, and this is how you treat the daughter of a fallen hero, huh? "You… You're…" He couldn't finish his sentence. He clenched his fists and pounded the table in frustration. Someone handed me a cup of water. I took a few big gulps before I could get the words out. "I didn't start that fire. Brianna did. She's the one who should be blamed and locked up. And you should be in jail too, Caleb. You failed in your duty." Caleb slammed his hand on the table again and jumped to his feet. He leaned in, his eyes burning into mine. "Bri is always innocent and sweet! How can you slander her like that? She already told me what happened! It was you—yeah, you, you spiteful woman—who started the fire over some small argument!" Brianna immediately broke down in tears. "She's trying to set me up again, Cay. I'm so scared. All I ever wanted was to be your friend. Is that really such a crime? Why won't you just stop trying to kill me, Jean?" She lunged at me, grabbing my arm and shaking it. I pulled away in disgust, and as soon as I did, she collapsed backward and screamed, "Cay, help! She pushed me!" Caleb jumped to his feet instantly, pulling Brianna into his arms, then used his free hand to grab me and shove me to the ground. "You actually hurt her right before me, Jeanette? Are you seriously that shameless? If you weren't pregnant, I'd have you thrown in jail right now to teach you a lesson!" he barked. I looked up at Caleb, who was seething. He still looked so familiar—the person who once promised me the world. But now, any hopes I had about us were long gone. In my past life, when Brianna took her own life, he thought I was the one who killed her. Now, with Brianna still alive, he still blamed me for starting that deadly fire. I just couldn't see the point of this marriage anymore. "Let's just get a divorce, Caleb. Take me to court if you want. Now that the baby's gone, I'm curious to see if you can still get me thrown in jail," I said flatly. Caleb's brows knitted together as he snapped, "What the hell are you talking about? What do you mean the baby's gone?"