Chapter 1
Marguerite Lopez died at eighteen.
On the overpass, her brakes suddenly failed. To keep from hitting anyone, Marguerite wrenched the steering wheel hard.
The car smashed through the guardrail and plunged into the river below.
As the water submerged the vehicle, in her last moments, she had a dream.
She dreamt that her life was a novel, and her three younger brothers were the villains.
Theobald, a ruthless CEO who was always fingering a string of rosary beads, was in love with the heroine and constantly at odds with the hero. In the end, his empire crumbled.
Simon, a notorious A-lister who picked fights with everyone, relentlessly targeted the story’s leading man-an A-list actor-on a reality show, and was eventually hounded by online mobs until he fell into a deep depression and took his own life.
Aaron, a school bully who spent his days fighting instead of studying, hospitalized the hero’s straight-A student brother and ended up in prison.
As for her, she was the hero’s sainted first love who died in high school. Her only purpose was to create a misunderstanding between the hero and heroine.
The sheer rage of it all brought her back to life.
When she opened her eyes, she was standing in front of a large shopping mall.
A massive billboard on the building advertised the year: 2025.
Marguerite realized she’d been reborn, but she’d time-traveled eleven years past her death, right into the thick of the plot.
She hurried into the mall and found a restroom to see what she looked like.
The girl in the mirror had the same delicate, beautiful face and was wearing the same black dress she’d picked out for her date that day.
A whirlwind of emotions churned inside her.
She had jumped eleven years into the future, but she was still eighteen.
And she was broke, without even a phone.
What a cruel twist of fate. She already felt a suffocating pressure, as if a python were coiling around her chest.
She turned on the faucet, the cold water chilling her fingers as she forced herself to accept the situation.
If she had one great strength, it was her resilience. When her parents died unexpectedly, leaving her to care for her three brothers-the youngest only two- she had quickly come to terms with that reality, too.
Turning off the water, Marguerite pulled a paper towel from the dispenser to dry her hands.
Just then, two salesgirls in white blouses and black skirts walked in. They were clearly work friends, hiding out in the bathroom for a break.
“Did you hear? The mall is closing in half an hour. They’re already clearing everyone
out p>
“Yeah, I heard the CEO is coming and booked the whole place p>
This was juicy gossip. Marguerite couldn’t help but perk up her ears. Closing a bustling mall on a whim.
Just like a novel CEOs were always so ridiculously over-the-top.
“It has to be for Hannah Carter! The boss probably doesn’t want her to be bothered by common folk. I saw on Tik Tok that he even funded a movie for her p>
“They’re so perfect together! He must regret how things ended. Their chemistry was off the charts back then. I live for the redemption arc! Can’t wait to see him grovel p>
Their conversation wiped the smile from Marguerite’s face.
Hannah Carter? Wasn’t that the heroine of the novel?
And if they were talking about “him,” they meant the hero, Joshua Green.
Which meant the brainless CEO had to be her dear brother, Theobald.
She was planning on finding Theobald first anyway.
This just made things easier.
Still, there was one thing she wanted to buy on credit first.
She turned to the two engrossed salesgirls. “Excuse me, do you know if this mall
has a Septwolves store p>
The girls finally noticed another
person in the restroom-a young
woman who looked to be about their
age with a strikingly beautiful
doll-like face that put many
celebrities to shame.
One of them, a sucker for pretty faces, stared, momentarily stunned.
The other helpfully replied, “Yes, on the second floor. Are you buying something for your dad p>
Marguerite smiled. “No. I’m buying it to smack someone with p>
The salesgirls were speechless.
Marguerite had already cased the joint. The mall was high-end and, being midday, packed with shoppers.
Kicking everyone out would cost a
fortune in lost revenue, but that wasn’t the worst part. It was the damage to the mall’s reputation. kicking thếm out in the middle of
lunch? Fat chance they’re ever
coming back here!
No wonder Theobald’s empire was destined to crumble. With business sense like
this, who else would go bankrupt?
When she was eighteen, Theobald
was only fifteen, a freshman in high school. He was brilliant in his studies and already had a sharp mind for business. Back then, he’d made a small fortune scalping gaming consoles and used it to buy her a designer handbag.
Their family had owned a real estate company before their parents died, so it wasn’t surprising he now owned this mall.
What was surprising was that his brain had apparently been eaten by zombies.
As Marguerite walked out of the restroom, leaving the two salesgirls staring after her, she was approached by a security guard.
“I’m sorry, miss, but the mall is closing for the afternoon. Please make your way to the exit p>
“I need to speak with your manager about something important,” Marguerite said politely. “Could you please contact him for me p>
With the CEO here, the manager would surely be on-site.
The guard didn’t know what she wanted, but customers requested to see the ᴛʜɪs ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ ɪs ᴜᴘᴅᴀᴛᴇ ʙʏ.net
manager for all sorts of reasons every day.
“Alright, I’ll get in touch with him for you p>
He pulled out his phone and dialed the manager’s number. The call was answered almost immediately. “What is it p>
“There’s a young woman on the first floor who wants to see you. She didn’t say what it’s about p>
“I’m busy today. Tell her to come back tomorrow p>
The guard looked at Marguerite. “The manager says he’s unavailable p>
Marguerite offered a polite smile. “Give me the phone. I’ll talk to him p>
Mr. Wood was busy chatting with the imposing man sitting in the office’s executive
chair, his fingers working over a string of rosary beads.