Chapter 1

Tom Williams' hand froze in mid-air. He had clearly expected me to scream and stop like I always did before, and he had already braced himself for it.

He stared at me with wide eyes, his face full of disbelief as he mumbled, "What did you just say?"

Barbara Morris was caught off guard, too. Then, her sharp eyes narrowed as she let out a cold snort. She mocked, saying, "Well, it looks like you finally know your place."

I ignored her mockery and turned to straighten Tom's collar instead. "Honey, I was being stubborn before. I didn't understand her vision. I took a closer look at it just now, and that wall really is blocking the light and keeping all the good energy out of our home. Mom's only insisting on this because she wants what's best for us. After all, she wants you to make it big."

Tom ate that right up. With my flattery, his tense face immediately relaxed, and he stood up straighter.

He replied, "Damn right! What the hell do you know anyway? Mom's been around way longer than you, so you think she'd ever hurt me?"

He turned to look at Peter Stone, the man from the licensed construction company. "You hear that? My wife agrees now, so get to work!"

Peter refused no matter what. In the end, he left with his crew.

Tom felt humiliated and spat viciously at Peter's retreating back, saying, "Screw you! What kind of idiot turns down a paying job?"

Barbara was even more furious, pointing her finger right at my nose as she started yelling. "Gabrielle Hughes! What kind of garbage contractor did you hire? They're a bunch of cowards! Did you set this up on purpose just to piss me off, huh?"

She scoffed and said, "You just can't stand to see Tom succeed! You can't stand the thought of us living in a big luxury home!"

I forced down my rage and put on a frightened expression. "Mom, please calm down. It was indeed my fault."

I poured a cup of water and held it out to her with both hands. "These licensed companies have too many rules and regulations. They're too rigid; no flexibility at all. However, I heard from a friend the other day about a contractor named Rex Dawson who specializes in high-end renovations of this kind.

"The guy's got skills and guts. As long as the money's right, there's no wall he won't tear down."

Tom's eyes lit up. He threw his cigarette butt on the floor and crushed it violently under his foot.

He said, "For real? Then, what are we waiting for? Call him now! This is my house, and I don't need someone else's permission to smash a wall!"

I pulled out my phone and scrolled to the number of that blacklisted construction crew I had seen on the news in my past life.

In my previous life, that same Rex had caused several residential buildings to collapse due to code violations and had a notorious reputation.

Before long, the call connected.

I deliberately put it on speaker. "Hello? Mr. Dawson? We want to install floor-to-ceiling windows, but there's a pretty solid wall, and other crews won't take the job..."