The darkness was endless.
Elena drifted in it, weightless, her body cold, her chest heavy. The last thing she remembered was Alexander's face—bloodied, broken, still whispering that he loved her.
"If there's another life, I'll wait for you."
"Then I'll protect you, Alex. I'll love you, even if the world burns."
Her vow echoed, louder, louder, until the blackness shattered—
BANG!
Her ears rang. The acrid sting of gunpowder burned her nose. Her body jolted upright.
She wasn't in the cellar. No chains, no torches, no stone walls.
Instead—white lights blazed above her. A polished conference table stretched before her. Floor-to-ceiling windows overlooked the glittering skyline of the city at night.
And in her trembling hand—
A gun.
Smoke curled from its barrel.
Her heart stopped.
On the ground before her, clutching his shoulder, blood seeping between his fingers, was Alexander.
But not the man she'd watched die in the cellar. This Alexander was younger, sharper, his suit torn by the bullet she had just fired. His ice-blue eyes, so familiar, burned with fury and disbelief as they locked on hers.
Her stomach twisted violently.
No… this can't be…
She staggered back, the gun clattering to the floor. "No… no, no, no—"
Memories collided in her skull. The cellar. The chains. Victoria's mocking smile. Adrian's dagger. Alexander's arms around her as they died together. Her vow.
And now—this.
This was the moment.
The day she had betrayed him in this life. The day she had tried to kill him for Adrian's plan.
But instead of death, she was alive. He was alive.
Tears blurred her eyes as she dropped to her knees, blood pounding in her ears. "I'm alive… Alex, you're alive…"
His jaw clenched, his voice hoarse with rage. "Do you even understand what you've done, Elena?" His men froze around the room, staring at her like she was insane. "You dared to raise a gun at me—for him?"
Her body shook violently. She wanted to crawl to him, to beg, to hold him the way she once had. But his glare cut through her like a blade.
The echoes of her past life's vow thundered in her chest. Protect him. Love him. No matter what.
Her trembling hand shot out, grabbing his phone from the table. Before anyone could stop her, she scrolled to the number she knew too well—Adrian's.
And she pressed block.
Right in front of him.
The room fell silent.
Alexander froze, his breathing harsh. His icy gaze narrowed, suspicion flashing with confusion.
Elena's voice cracked, but she forced the words out through tears. "This time, I choose you. Always you. I'll never betray you again, Alex. Never."
Her vow burned on her tongue, searing into her soul.
And for the first time since she opened her eyes, her heart steadied.
This was her second chance.
And she would burn the world before letting Victoria, Adrian—or even fate—tear Alexander from her again.
--