CHAPTER 2

Chapter 2: The Meek Daughter-in-Law

The blue screen hovered right in my line of sight, its pale light glowing silently over the three people standing in my warm living room.

[Document Scanned: Evelyn Family Estate Transfer Agreement]

[Forgery Detected: Land Valuation Underreported by 80%]

Biological Scan: Target Subject 'Leo'—0% Genetic Match]

A cold lump settled in my throat, but it wasn't from the blizzard that killed me in my past life. It was the absolute, icy clarity of knowing every single word out of their mouths was a calculated lie.

"Well? Are you going to sign it or just stare at it all day?" Beatrice barked, her heel tapping a sharp, impatient rhythm on the hardwood floor. "The clinic in Zurich needs the wire transfer confirmed by five o'clock! Every second you waste sitting there like an idiot, your son's lungs are failing!"

Anna leaned closer, her eyes wet with fresh, practiced tears. She squeezed my wrist, her fingers surprisingly strong for someone pretending to be weak and grieving. "Aria, please... I know it’s hard to give up your mother’s land. But Leo is your blood. If anything happens to him because we couldn't raise the cash, how will you ever live with yourself?"

I looked down at Anna’s hand on my skin. The exact same hand that held the rusty butcher's cutlass on the porch. The hand that drove the blade into my collarbone while I bled out in the snow.

My chest tightened so hard I could barely pull in air, but I forced my breathing to stay slow and steady. I couldn't let my hands shake. I couldn't let them see the fire raging behind my eyes. If I refused right now, Ethan would lock down my mother's accounts through a court order before I could touch a single dollar. I needed time. I needed every cent of that estate to survive the freeze.

I dropped my head, letting my shoulders slump forward until my hair hid my face. I squeezed my eyes shut, forcing out two fat, warm tears that spilled over my lashes and splashed onto the contract in my lap.

"I... I'm sorry," I whispered, my voice trembling just enough to sound completely broken. "I was just... I was so scared. Five hundred thousand dollars is everything my mother left me."

Ethan took two quick steps toward the couch, sitting right beside me. He wrapped his arm around my shoulders, drawing me into his chest. His body smelled of expensive cologne and the warm coffee he had been sipping while I sat freezing to death in the future.

"I know, honey. I know how much that land means to you," Ethan said softly, his thumb rubbing my arm in slow, comforting circles. "It breaks my heart to ask this of you. But it's for Leo. Once my company’s international accounts are unfrozen next month, I’ll buy the land back for you. I promise."

"Will you really?" I asked, looking up at him through my fake tears. I made sure my mouth trembled, making myself look as small, foolish, and helpless as I had been for the last five years. "You promise we'll get mother's farm back?"

"Of course, sweetheart," Ethan said, leaning down to press a soft kiss against my forehead. The touch made my stomach turn inside out, but I forced a weak, grateful nod. "I'll handle everything. You just need to sign."

"I don't have my mother's original land deed here," I said softly, wiping my cheeks with the back of my sleeve. "The bank holds the physical title in their downtown vault. They won't release it for a transfer without me signing the release forms in person at the branch."

Beatrice scoffed, crossing her arms tightly over her chest. "Then we go to the bank right now! My car is running outside!"

"Mother, stop pressuring her," Ethan cut in, raising a hand to smooth things over. He looked down at me, his eyes shining with greedy victory. "The bank closes their vault at three o'clock on Thursdays anyway. Aria, can you head down there first thing tomorrow morning? Meet my lawyer at nine?"

"Yes," I murmured, staring down at my lap as if I were completely defeated. "I'll go to the bank at nine sharp tomorrow. I'll sign the vault release, withdraw the deed, and hand everything over to your lawyer. Anything for Leo."

Anna let out a long, dramatic sigh of relief, dropping her head onto Beatrice's shoulder. "Oh, thank God... Thank you, Aria! You're such a wonderful mother!"

"Alright then," Beatrice said, smoothing down her designer jacket and grabbing her leather purse off the counter. "See that you aren't late tomorrow, Aria. The lawyer's time costs two hundred dollars an hour, and we aren't paying for your slacking."

"I won't be late," I whispered softly.

Ethan stood up, patting my shoulder one last time before turning toward the hallway. "I'm going to drop mother and Anna off at the market, honey. Then I have a late dinner meeting with the investors to discuss the new company expansion. Don't wait up for me."

"Okay," I said, keeping my face completely blank as I watched them walk toward the front door.

As soon as the heavy oak door clicked shut behind them, the soft, obedient look melted off my face. I stood up, walked to the front window, and pulled the curtain back just half an inch.

Down in the driveway, Ethan opened the passenger door of his luxury sedan for Anna. As she slid inside, she leaned up and pressed her lips against his in a deep, passionate kiss—right in front of his mother, who just smiled and got into the back seat. They weren't even hiding it anymore once they thought they had my money in their pockets.

A cold, wicked smile spread across my lips.

“Enjoy your celebration,” I thought, watching the red taillights disappear down the dark street. “Because tomorrow morning, you aren't getting a single acre of my land.”

Before I could walk away from the window, the blue screen in my vision brightened, flashing with a loud, electronic chime that echoed straight through my head:

[Main Quest Unlocked: Secure the Evelyn Estate Assets]

[First Task: Acquire 50 Tons of Bulk Grain (Rice & Flour) within 48 Hours.]

[Failure Penalty: System Storage Access Suspended]