The rain outside the hotel fell in thin silver threads, tracing the glass like forgotten tears.
Inside, Adrian Vance sat silently, his eyes fixed on the small wooden box before him. It looked old—ancient even—its surface worn smooth by time and grief.
It was his father's heirloom.A simple signet ring with the Vance family crest, worth little in gold but priceless in memory.
Three years ago, this ring had been buried with him.Because three years ago, Adrian Vance was dead.
He remembered everything—the betrayal, the lies, the car explosion that had ended his life. And standing at the heart of it all was Elena Moore.
The woman he had loved.The woman who had sworn she loved him back.The woman whose single mistake had led him to ruin.
And now… he was back.
"Elena," he said softly. His voice was calm, too calm. "You said you found this in my father's old storage?"
Elena smiled nervously, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. "Y-Yes. I thought it would make you happy. It's important to you, isn't it?"
He turned the ring over in his palm. In his past life, she had given him this same ring—just days before his death.
History, it seemed, was trying to repeat itself.But this time, he wouldn't play the same role.
Adrian stood up slowly. His chair scraped across the marble floor, sharp and final.
"Elena," he said. "About our engagement…"
Her eyes brightened. "You mean the ceremony? I've already started—"
"I'm canceling it."
The words dropped like stones into the silence.
Her lips parted, confusion clouding her pretty face. "Canceling? Adrian, what are you talking about?"
He looked at her then—really looked—and for a fleeting second, pity crossed his expression. She still didn't understand.
In his past life, he had been blinded by that face, by her innocence, by the warmth she gave when he was drowning in loneliness.Now, all he felt was clarity.
"You don't need to understand," he said. "Just know this—we were never meant to walk the same road."
He slipped the heirloom ring onto his finger. The cool metal burned against his skin, a promise, a reminder.
In another life, this moment had led him to death.In this life, it would lead him to power.
As he turned to leave, the rain stopped outside. The first ray of sunlight cut through the clouds, glinting off the ring like a blade's edge.
Adrian Vance had returned.And this time, he wasn't here to love.He was here to rewrite everything.