Chapter 1
After the angel–demon war, my sister’s husband returned safely–but mine died in battle.
Everyone pitied me.
But I knew: The survivor wasn’t my brother–in–law. It was my husband Damon.
Identical twins. Equal power. No one suspected.
“Celeste,” Damon whispered, “This is for the realm. My brother was the Dragon Prince. His death would start a civil war. And your sister… she’s too fragile. I’m just comforting her–for now.”
“When it’s safe,” he vowed, “I’ll return to you.”
I believed him–until he sentenced me to death for “conspiring with demons.” As the blades fell, I saw him embrace my sister.
Then I woke up.
Back to the victory day when Damon first betrayed me.
This time, I remarried instantly.
He never knew: By abandoning me, he lost his only path to the Dragon Clan.
“Phoebe, Damon… he fell in battle!”
The phantom agony of a thousand cuts made my body tremble. When I opened my eyes again, those were the first words I heard.
The speaker was the Dragon King.
He had only two sons. One was the crown prince, who had married my sister, making her the princess. The other was my husband, Damon.
Now, the Dragon King, a man who by all rights should be dead and gone in my memory, sat upon his throne, gazing at the coffin before him, his
face a mask of grief.
But I couldn’t suppress the wild joy surging through me.
I was reborn!
Before I could speak, my sister’s voice cut in from beside me. “Little sister, I know you’re heartbroken. If you need to cry, just let it out.”
She looked down at me, her expression one of pity, but her perfectly applied makeup was unblemished by tears.
I looked up, my gaze passing over her to the man standing at her side.
No, that wasn’t my brother–in–law. My brother–in–law was already lying in that coffin.
The man before me was my husband, Damon.
The man who should have been holding me close was now holding my sister’s hand, their fingers intertwined.
He noticed my stare and turned to me, his eyes wide with feigned surprise.
I scoffed inwardly, Damon’s acting was as superb as ever.
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In my past life, though I’d sensed something was wrong, it had taken me a long time to gather the proof I needed to confirm that the man beside
my sister was, in fact, Damon.
But this time, I saw right through him.
A wail of grief tore through the hall.
“My son, oh, my son!”
The Dragon Queen threw herself onto the coffin, huge tears rolling down her cheeks. She then pointed a trembling finger at me. “It was you! You Jinxed him! You, you cursed my son to death!”
Chapter 1
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The Queen and I had never gotten along. She thought I wasn’t demure enough, not graceful enough to be worthy of her son. I had once worried
about her disapproval.
Damon had sworn to me, “If my mother ever gives you trouble, I will always, always take your side.”
Smack!
The Queen slapped me hard across the face. Still not satisfied, she raised her hand again.
The King, jolted from his grief, quickly ordered the guards to intervene. “That’s enough!”
The hall descended into chaos.
Through it all, Damon stood silently to one side, holding my sister’s hand. He even seemed worried the commotion might frighten her. He pulled a
shimmering aquamarine stone from his pocket and presented it to her like a precious treasure, whispering soothingly, “Serena, my love, I got this
just for you.”
A bitter laugh escaped my lips.
The phoenix clan is born of fire, yet I had always yearned for an aquamarine. In my last life, I had begged Damon to bring one back for me. He promised promised he would, but it never arrived.
So, it wasn’t that he hadn’t found one. It was that the gift was never intended for me.
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me yet now stood by and did nothing.
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Even though my sister had no need for it. Even though he had once promised to always protect
Sensing my gaze, my sister, Serena, shifted uncomfortably, moving to block my view of Damon. “Little sister,” she chided, “why are you staring at
my husband like that? Father is speaking to you.”
The Dragon King spoke, his voice weary. “Phoebe, according to our customs, when one spouse dies in battle, the other must remain a widow for a
hundred years.”
