Chapter 2: The Daughter Who Remembered

POV: CHELSEA 

I thought I was the only person who remembered my death. Then my daughter looked into my eyes and proved me wrong.

The room was suffocatingly quiet, save for Lily’s ragged breathing. Her tiny, trembling hand was still pressed against my cheek, her skin surprisingly cold against mine.

"Lily..." My voice was barely a whisper, choked with a terror far worse than drowning. "What did you say?"

"You sank, Mommy…," she sobbed, fresh tears spilling over her dark eyes, tracing down her pale cheeks. "You went under the dark water and you didn't come back up. Daddy held my arm so hard it hurt, and he told me to stop screaming for you. He let that lady take your blanket."

My heart shattered into a thousand jagged pieces. A heavy, suffocating pain squeezed my chest until I could barely draw breath. It was one thing for me to bear the memory of being pushed into that frozen, filthy flood; it was an entirely different torture to know my six-year-old baby had watched it happen and carried the scar in her soul.

I pulled her into my arms, burying my face in her soft hair, holding her so tightly I could feel her little heart hammering against her ribs like a trapped bird.

"I'm here, Lily. I'm right here baby," I promised, my voice fierce and steady through my tears. "Listen to Mommy. It’s not going to happen again. No one is taking you from me. Not Daddy, not that woman, not the water. Never again."

She clung to my shirt, her tiny fists bunched in the fabric, nodding against my collarbone.

Our second chance didn't just belong to me. It belonged to both of us.

Before I could say another word, heavy footsteps echoed down the hallway outside her room. The sound of polished dress shoes hammering against the hardwood floor instantly made my blood run cold.

The door swung open, and Daniel stood in the doorway.

He was impeccably groomed, wearing an expensive tailored suit paid for entirely by my money. He was fixing his cufflinks, looking relaxed, refreshed, and completely whole. There was no trace of the monster who had shoved me off a sinking boat. There was no sign of the man who had traded his wife's life for his mistress's comfort.

"Chelsea? Why are you on the floor?" Daniel asked, barely glancing at us as he adjusted his collar in the mirror near Lily’s closet. "Why isn't Lily dressed yet? You know what today is."

I stayed on my knees, my arm wrapped protectively around Lily, staring at his back.

I remembered this morning. I remembered every single detail of it from my previous life. Back then, Daniel had walked in, kissed my forehead, and told me he was driving to the airport to pick up Vicky Lee, his brilliant new corporate colleague from the Chicago branch. In my past life, I had smiled, made breakfast, and welcomed Vicky into our home with open arms, completely blind to the fact that she was already sleeping with my husband and plotting to take my life.

In my past life, I was the humble, devoted wife who stepped back from managing my own multi-million-dollar estate, handing the reins of my family's holding company to Daniel because I trusted him. I had let him play the powerful CEO while I played the dutiful homemaker.

"I'm heading to JFK now," Daniel said casually, checking his watch. "Vicky’s flight lands in an hour. Make sure you prepare a proper lunch for three. She’s staying in the guest room for the next few weeks while we finalize the regional acquisition."

He turned toward me, finally noticing my silence. His brows furrowed slightly as he took in my disheveled hair, my sweat-stained sleep shirt, and the cold, unyielding stare I had fixed on him.

"What is wrong with you?" Daniel sighed, shaking his head with mild annoyance. "Are you still pulling an attitude because I came home late last night? It was a business dinner, Chelsea. I work hard so you and Lily can live in a place like this. Stop being dramatic."

The sheer audacity of his words almost made me laugh. He worked hard? Every asset, this  penthouse, the company he ran, it was all mine. Inherited from my family, built on my bloodline, and handed to him on a silver platter because I loved him.

I slowly stood up, stepping between him and Lily. My posture was straight, my head held high. The quiet, submissive wife he thought he owned was dead, buried at the bottom of a river that hadn't even flooded yet.

"Don't bother looking for us when you get back, Daniel," I said, my voice dangerously calm. "By the time you return with your colleague, Lily and I will be gone from your life forever."

Daniel blinked, caught off guard for a fraction of a second before a patronizing smirk touched his lips. He let out a soft, mocking breath.

"Right. Very funny," he said, waving his hand dismissively as he checked his watch again. "Look, I don't have time for your childish mood swings right now. Just make sure the meal is cooked, the guest room is ready, and wait for Vicky's arrival. We have a lot to discuss regarding the company today."

He didn't take me seriously. He truly believed I was just a dependent, emotional woman throwing a harmless tantrum, someone who would always be waiting for him when he decided to come home.

I didn't argue. I didn't yell. I didn't waste a single breath trying to convince a dead man walking.

Instead, I took Lily by the hand, led her out of the room, and walked straight into the master suite. I pulled her inside, shut the heavy oak door behind us, and turned the lock with a sharp click.

"Chelsea?" Daniel called out from the hallway, his footsteps stopping outside the door. He tried the handle, finding it locked. "What are you doing? Open this door!"

Ignoring his pounding on the wood, I picked up my phone from the nightstand. My fingers are completely steady now.

I unlocked the screen, bypassed Daniel's contact entirely, and dialed a number I hadn't called in five years.

The line rang twice before a deep, authoritative voice answered. "Chelsea? It's been a while."

"Smith," I said, my voice as hard as cold steel, drowning out the sound of Daniel shouting my name from the hallway. "I need a private transport van sent to the apartment immediately, something large enough for my luggage and my daughter's. And I need you to arrange the top divorce lawyer in the state."

I looked at my reflection in the mirror, my eyes burning with a dark, ruthless fire.

"Tell them I want full custody, an immediate freeze on all joint accounts, and the complete revocation of Daniel Bennett's executive authority over my company by noon."