Chapter 4

Stephanie stared at me with such intensity that it felt like she would tear me apart the moment I refused. I hesitated, then finally nodded, even though my mind was filled with questions.

The second I agreed, Mom carefully placed the earrings she always carried with her on the dining table. Stephanie reached for them in excitement, but Mom slapped her hand away. "Thank Irene first. These earrings were originally hers. If she hadn't agreed, you wouldn't even be allowed to touch them."

Stephanie forced out a stiff thank you, then happily put on the earrings.

"Irene, don't be sad. I'll buy you an even better pair," Mom said.

I studied Stephanie closely. Why wasn't she reacting at all? Did that mean the Soul-Sworn Earrings from my previous life had been fake?

A few days later, Mom mysteriously called me into her room. "Irene, try these on. This pair is even better than Stephanie's."

The moment I saw the earrings inside the box, a chill ran through me. They were identical to hers.

Mom noticed my confusion and began explaining, "Both pairs were crafted by the same jeweler. Of course, they look the same. This pair simply uses better materials."

She suddenly leaned close to my ear. "You're a star. Naturally, you deserve to wear the finest."

The smile on her face only grew more unsettling, and I shivered despite myself.

"Don't just stand there. Try them on and let me take a look," she urged.

I took a deep breath to steady myself. Every instinct told me something was terribly wrong. Mom kept urging me, and when she finally reached out to put them on me herself, a scream from outside saved me.

Mom dropped the earrings and rushed out.

"Stephanie, what happened?"

Stephanie's hands were trembling as she held out a pregnancy test.

"Mrs. Quinton, I'm pregnant. You're going to be a grandmother."

Mom stared at the test for what felt like forever, and finally, tears welled in her eyes. Stephanie's eyes were brimming with tears as well.

As I watched the two of them celebrate, everything fell into place. Stephanie's pair had to be fake. The earrings Mom wanted me to wear were the real Soul-Sworn Earrings.

I didn't understand. Why would she do this to me?

However, the slap of reality came quickly. The results from the hospital had arrived that morning. She wasn't my biological mother.

Questions flooded my mind, and I locked myself in my room, going over every detail from the past weeks. I still didn't know whose daughter I really was, but at last, I understood why Mom had been so desperate to use me to swap fates with her.

As I walked past Mom's room that night, I heard her talking with Charlie.

"Charlie, now that Stephanie is pregnant, there are things you need to know about this family. I had a reason for refusing her the earrings she wanted before. I had them made by a jeweler, and he told me that if I wanted someone's life, I had to put the earrings on her. As long as Irene wore them, I could swap my life with hers. Not only her beauty, but even her fortune would transfer to me."

A cold wave surged from my feet to my scalp, but I forced myself to keep listening.

"I already swapped the earrings. Once she puts them on, she won't last a week."

My entire body trembled.

"What are you doing?"

I spun around and found Stephanie standing behind me without me noticing.

She opened her mouth to call for someone, but I clamped a hand over her lips.

"Don't scream," I whispered. "I'll tell you a secret."