MY SECOND CHANCE

Rose's POV

I didn't wait for their response. I walked down the stairs, heading back to the hall where my father's funeral was being held.

I sat back on my chair, and I could feel the eyes of everyone in the room looking at me, whispering behind their hands. I picked up my phone and started going through my contact list, I had more advantage now that I knew everything that had happened before, and this time, I was going to change everything.

Richard and his mum came downstairs a moment later and sat right beside me. They were pretending everything was just fine for the sake of the guests, but they kept darting their eyes at me, wondering what exactly had come over me to make me act so strange.

A tall man wearing a sharp black suit and an expensive black polished shoe climbed onto the podium, looking down at the crowd with a somber face.

"Let's welcome the only child of Mr. Hawthorne, to say her last words and goodbye to her father," he said, and then he bent his head in sadness.

Immediately, Richard leaned closer to me, his breath hot against my ear as he whispered. "You are not fit right now, I will represent you." He tried to stand up to his feet, but I didn't let him. I used one hand to pull him back down hard into the chair he was sitting in.

He turned fiercely and looked at me, his face twisting into something ugly.

"What the... fuck is wrong with you?" he barked at me, a little bit too loudly, his eyes already burning with a rage he could barely hide.

That was typical Richard. He could never control his temper when things didn't go his way.

"Mr. Hawthorne has a daughter," I said coldly. I got up from my seat, clicking my heels gently against the floor as I walked to the stairs, while everybody in the hall clapped in unison.

In my past life, Richard was the one who represented me and made this speech. Because I lay depressed and sick on my bed, that had been his first bold step in showing himself to the public as the true child of Mr. Hawthorne. I recalled then that he didn't even say he was representing his wife. It was all over the news as he announced himself as the only child and heir.

I confronted him about it then, but he just told me I was being selfish. He said we were both married and that meant we were one. Back then, I actually thought he was my savior, not knowing he was just a snake preparing to poison me.

This time, I had changed this particular moment and reclaimed my power. I got to the podium and tapped at the mic, the sound echoing through the quiet room. I adjusted my spine, standing as tall as I could so I could look more confident in the eyes of everyone watching. I didn't show any weakness, and I didn't shed a single tear.

I began to speak, my voice coming out clear and strong. "My father was a kind man, a man who built everything he has brick by brick just to give me this luxurious life I have today. And again, he has given me a second chance to live, and this time, I won't let him down."

They all clapped for me, though I could see the confused expressions on some of their faces. They were probably wondering what I meant as a second chance to live.

Richard whispered something to his mother, and I knew by the way they glared that they were talking about me. I just smiled at them, giving them a gentle, mocking wave from the podium. Cameras and lights flashed at me as my dad's old colleagues and friends got up from their chairs to take pictures with me. After the greetings and the fake gentle gestures, the crowd finally started dispersing. Everybody was going back home their separate ways.

From a distance, I saw that same man who had caught me from falling earlier. He was tall, with very light skin, blonde hair, a broad chest, and oddly piercing blue eyes. I could tell he was a man who loved the gym by the way his suit fit his frame. He looked so young, probably around my age or maybe just a little bit older.

He just stood there smiling at me from far away. I decided to walk closer to him.

"Thank you for catching me right on time," I said, giving him a small smile. He let out a gentle smile too, and he reached out his hand in an attempt to shake mine.

"My name is Derek Hamilton, a friend and... let's say, a student of your father," he laughed softly.

Student? My dad wasn't a lecturer and I had never seen this man before in my life. He looked familiar in a strange way, but I was sure I hadn't seen him with my father. I shook his hand regardless, feeling the strength in his grip.

"I am about leaving," he said, handing me a thick, expensive-looking business card. "Please call me if you need anything... any help at all. I will come running to protect you." He smiled one last time and turned around.

Suddenly, I saw several guards also turning their backs to follow him. From the way he dressed so expensively and the amount of guards that followed him, I could tell he was probably a powerful mogul.

As I watched him go, my mind started racing. I needed to find new maids and guards, people I could actually rely on, but how? How do I find people who won't be poisoned or bribed by the snakes I had in my life?

How do I cut my friend and my husband out of my life for good? I could decide to divorce him, but I remembered the first and last time I got angry and told him about a divorce in my past life, he had gotten very violent with me.

The thorns I had in my life weren't ones I could just pluck off and throw away. They wouldn't let me go easily, so I needed a full proof plan. I needed to avenge my father's death. I don't want prison for them, I want Katherine and Richard both dead.

Suddenly, I felt a rough hand grip my arm from behind, pulling me around.

"Who is that man you were talking to just now?" Richard demanded.

He gripped my arm tightly, his fingers digging into my skin hard enough to leave a bruise. I locked eyes with him, and I didn't look away. His eyes were burning with a jealous fury, and so were mine.