The first day of my reincarnation, I realized the Memory-Wipe Potion was watered down. Not only did I have all my memories from my past life, but I also watched as a woman swapped me with another baby girl. Oh, hell no. The life of wealth and luxury I’d spent lifetimes of karma points to secure was being stolen right before my eyes? Not on my watch. Eighteen years later, a girl stormed into my family’s mansion, claiming she was my parents’ real daughter. I just smiled. This was my destiny, and no one was taking it from me. 1 After 800 years of brown-nosing the Administrator of the Afterlife, he finally took pity on me and granted me a chance at reincarnation. I sifted through the celestial archives for ages, finally cashing in lifetimes of good karma for one shot at a life of absolute luxury and happiness. I proudly presented the Fated Life file to the Administrator. “This one. She’s the one I want to be.” Just as I was giggling to myself about the worry-free future ahead, I saw her—a woman, her movements furtive, carefully swapping me with another baby in the nursery. Panic seized me. This could not happen. The second she was gone, I started screaming. I cried until my throat was raw, my voice a shredded mess. Finally, a nurse noticed. She gently scooped me up. “What’s wrong, little one? Are you hungry?” I wailed louder. “Not hungry? Did you wet your diaper, then?” I screamed my head off. “Then what is it?” I was sweating with desperation, wishing I could just open my mouth and tell her what happened. I pleaded, I begged, but all that came out was a pathetic, high-pitched cry. Just as I was about to give up, the head nurse walked in. “Wait a minute,” she said, her brow furrowed. “I don’t remember this baby being in this bassinet.” I stopped crying. And then, I let out a loud, happy gurgle, looking right at her. The sight made both nurses laugh. “What a smart little thing!” The head nurse checked the birth charts, comparing weights and times. Then, her face went pale as she swapped me back with the other baby. The younger nurse looked like she was about to faint. “Oh, thank god you noticed. I can’t even imagine the fallout from a mistake that huge.” The head nurse looked at her sternly. “You have to be more careful. This is the Clark Corporation heiress. If we’d sent the wrong baby home, we’d all be finished.” The stone in my chest finally dissolved. After that day, I never cried again. No one was ever going to steal my life. 2 Coming home with my parents to a sprawling mansion, I smiled with deep satisfaction. I was the heiress to the Clark Corporation. They named me Lila Clark. I also had an older brother, Leo, who was completely and utterly obsessed with his little sister. I’d chosen him specifically. In my last life, my brother had beaten me to death. This time, I desperately wanted a brother who would love me. When I was little, Leo, who was already in elementary school, would wait for me outside my kindergarten every single day. He’d always have a piping hot pretzel tucked inside his coat for me, leaving a red mark on his chest from the heat. When a boy at kindergarten pinched me, Leo rounded up his entire class and beat the kid half to death. When I was in middle school, girls would ask me to pass him love letters and little cakes. He’d throw the letters in the trash and give the cakes to me. “Lila” was the first and last word out of his mouth every day. Growing up steeped in so much love, I’d almost forgotten the chaos of my birth. But of course, on my 18th birthday, the other girl showed up to claim her prize. The party was a massive affair, held at our family’s five-star hotel. A string orchestra played on the main floor while guests mingled, champagne flutes clinking, all wishing me a happy 18th. The presents were stacked to the ceiling like a magnificent Christmas tree. Designer watches, luxury cars, someone even gifted me an entire oceanfront villa. A-list celebrities came to sing “Happy Birthday.” Every important person in the city was there. Luxury brands sent over custom-made gowns. A fleet of drones lit up the night sky, forming a portrait of my face and the words “Happy Birthday, Lila!” I was standing on a balcony, looking down at the glittering crowd below, when she burst in. A girl in a plaid shirt and washed-out jeans pointed a finger straight at my face and screamed, “I’m the real Clark princess!” Her birth mother had swapped us. “Lila Clark is a fraud!” The champagne flute was still in my hand. A shocked silence fell over the crowd. She said her name was Jenna. 3 It was the ultimate gossip-worthy moment. My mother glanced at my father. He shook his head frantically, holding up three fingers in a solemn oath. “I swear, I don’t know that woman! Lila is my only precious daughter!” A small smile played on my lips as I slipped into character. “Mom? Dad? What’s going on?” My mother wrapped a protective arm around my shoulders. “Don’t you worry, sweetheart. We’ll get to the bottom of this.” The next second, Jenna lunged, grabbing my arm and shoving me backward. I stumbled right into the seven-tiered birthday cake. Sticky buttercream ruined my custom designer gown. Gasps rippled through the guests. I struggled to my feet, dazed, and stared at the woman whose face was contorted with a furious jealousy. My parents rushed to pull me up, gently wiping the frosting from my face. My father’s voice was thunderous as he turned on Jenna. “I don’t care who you are! To cause such a scene at a Clark event… it’s clear your mother taught you nothing! Have you no manners?” Jenna seemed momentarily stunned by his authority, but then she latched onto his arm. “Dad! I’m your real daughter! This impostor should be thrown out! She stole my life for eighteen years! Why does she get a party like this?” Her eyes welled up with tears. She looked utterly pitiful. “Today is my birthday, too,” she sobbed. “And I’ve never, not once in my life, had a real birthday party.” My mother helped me up, her expression pained, before turning to Jenna with a rare, severe tone. “Let’s put aside the fact that you’ve come here with absolutely no proof. Even if you were our biological daughter, we would never acknowledge you after a stunt like this! You have no class, no decorum! Look at where you are!” My mother was always gentle; she never spoke harshly. This time, she was truly furious. But something felt off. Something was missing. Where was Leo? I hadn’t seen him all morning. Normally, he’d be glued to my side by now, telling me how beautiful his little sister looked. Thinking back, he’d been distant lately. Could it be? Did he already know about Jenna? My father shot a look at his assistant, who quickly took the microphone and tried to get the party back on track. The rest of us retreated to a conference room in the back. My parents’ brows were knitted with worry. The last eighteen years had been too perfect. This was the scene I had been waiting for. 4 I never knew the identity of the woman who had tried to steal my life. But I knew, with absolute certainty, that she would show up one day. Just as I was lost in thought, the door opened and Leo walked in. “Mom, Dad,” he said, his voice flat. “We’ve been pampering the wrong person for eighteen years. Jenna is our family. She’s my real sister.” Whoa. The brother I’d hand-picked for his sister-doting personality was malfunctioning? Then I remembered. He doted on his sister, not on me. Now that Jenna was his sister, I was just an obstacle. Heh. Interesting. Jenna, now sitting on the sofa, had dropped her aggressive act entirely. Tears streamed down her face, a picture of tragic beauty. She must have just learned the truth herself and rushed here to claim her family, completely losing her composure in the process. Rule number one of the Clark family: never, under any circumstances, tarnish the family’s reputation. In our circle, appearances were everything. My mother spoke first. “Leo! What are you talking about? Are you saying you knew she was your sister?” “Yes. The first time I saw her, I saw the birthmark on her arm.” “I saw it when she was a baby. I remember.” I remembered, too. During the brief time we were switched, my father had brought a five-year-old Leo in to see the new baby. He actually remembered. “So! Lila was the one who was switched!” For a moment, my parents were speechless. Leo pressed on. “I can’t let my sister live like that out on the streets. She has to come live with us.” The brother who had cherished me for 18 years spoke with such chilling detachment. My father sighed. “We need to investigate this properly. In the meantime, this young lady can stay at the villa upstate. After we have the facts, we’ll decide if she’s moving in.” My dear old dad! He was the best. Leo Clark! This means war! But Leo wasn’t done. “No! I won’t have Jenna living so far away! It’s not convenient for us to take care of her. You have no idea how hard her life has been! You haven’t seen the place she lives in!” My mother hesitated. “She can stay here, I suppose. It’s not like we don’t have the room. But Lila isn’t leaving. Even if she isn’t my biological child, I raised her for eighteen years. I won’t be separated from her!” Leo shot back, “Mom! She usurped Jenna’s life of luxury for eighteen years! It’s time for her to go back to where she belongs!” The adoration in my brother’s eyes was gone. In its place was a burning rage, directed at the person who had stolen 18 years of wealth and privilege from his real sister.
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