Second chances: Love or revenge?

Ella woke up suddenly, gasping. The air around her felt thick and hot, as if someone had cranked up the heat to unbearable levels. Squinting her eyes open, she was met with the eerie orange glow of flames licking up the walls, smoke filling every corner of the room. She couldn’t breathe. Her throat scratched with every gasp, her lungs screaming for relief. Instinctively, she covered her mouth with her sleeve and tried to rise. That’s when she stumbled, her feet catching on something soft yet unyielding. She glanced down and froze. “Dad…” The word came out as a broken whisper. Her father lay still beside her, his face peaceful yet hauntingly lifeless. He had no visible injuries, nothing to suggest he’d been hurt—yet here he was, lying motionless. Panic clawed at her chest, but amid the terror, a strange familiarity washed over her. She recognized this place: her father’s factory workshop, his beloved pharmaceutical lab. Her mind raced, piecing together fragments of memory

Ella heart skipped a beat, her mind racing. Had Aunt Laura, Lila's Mom figured it out? "Lila is our daughter, who else could she be? Laura, you’re getting old and confused!" Lila's dad’s voice boomed across the living room. Aunt Laura's eyes narrowed, eyebrows arching up. "James Peterson, did you just call me old?" Her dad, known across the neighborhood for his strict but silent demeanor, rarely spoke to Aunt Laura so directly. Yet here he was, standing his ground with a tone Lila had only ever seen him use with stubborn vendors at the farmer’s market. “Stop talking nonsense and just tell us where the child was last seen!” His voice was sharp and commanding, cutting through Aunt Laura's attempted rebuttal. Aunt Laura’s face lost its color, her fingers clenched into a tight ball. After a pause, she muttered unwillingly, “The paternity testing center.” Ella's heart dropped. Could Aunt Laura have taken both children for a DNA test? “You had them tested? Laura, have you completely

"Mr. Lucas, Captain Dan has recovered, but the doctor says he needs a six-month observation period before he can fly again. Do you think we should hire another pilot?" Secretary Zane reported over the phone, his voice echoing in the hallway. Standing by the glass walls of the mall, Lucas looked out with his usual unreadable expression. Expanding the Apex group’s business into Asia meant he had to fly overseas almost every month, so having a dependable pilot was essential. Just as he was about to respond, Lucas spotted Ella in the distance—and three little kids trailing behind her. Something in his mind shifted, and before he knew it, he said, "Look into a journalist named Lila Kane. I want to know why she knows how to fly a plane." There was a beat of silence on the other end, then Zane’s voice returned, tinged with shock, "Sir… Are you saying you want Ms. Lila to be your pilot?" Zane immediately regretted those words. Lucas hated it when people tried to guess his intentions, and

Ella said indifferently: "She's in the entertainment department, and I'm in the international news department. We can't get along with her. She shouldn't be so idle as to stretch out her hand so long to punish me." It's a pity that Ella guessed wrong this time. Not only is Amy idle, but her hands are longer than she imagined. --- That night at Montgomery's Manor, the atmosphere in the dining room was thick with tension. Lucas placed the newspaper down, his gaze icy as it met the butler’s. “He still refuses to eat?” The butler sighed, shaking his head as if he were a parent dealing with a rebellious teenager. “Young Master Theo has locked himself in his room since he got back this afternoon. He’s declared a hunger strike, sir.” Lucas raised an eyebrow. “A hunger strike? For what?” “Unless you—” the butler hesitated, glancing nervously at Lucas’s growing impatience. “Unless Reporter Lila apolot for the incident this afternoon. He wants you to admit you were wrong, and—uh, he wan

“Reporter Lila, it's alright if you don’t understand yet,” said Amy softly, almost too soft to take seriously. “I’m sure you’ll get it… sooner or later.”Ella was pretty sure she was on to something now. Ah, yes. These two really did think she had planned the whole “earring on the plane” scenario on purpose. She almost laughed. Really? Who did they think he was—a dollar? Some kind of irresistible attraction everyone must adore? The ego in that thought was almost enough to knock him off his chair.Keeping a straight face, she replied, “Miss Amy, don’t flatter yourself. Not everyone likes to re-wear someone else’s… choices.”With that, she was done. Done with the nonsense. Rising without another glance, she walked away, ignoring the expression Amy wore—a mix of shock and frustration—and left her to stew in it. Some people just needed a reality check.When Ella finally joined the crew for the shoot, she braced himself. She’d been expecting Amy to keep finding ways to mess with her