Semua Bab Rebirth: What’s Left Of Me: Bab 111 - Bab 119

{TW: Suicide attempt} The memory came back like a bullet to the skull—sudden, searing, and impossible to ignore. I was seventeen. A parking garage bathed in that awful yellow-white light, nearly abandoned except for the low hum of flickering fluorescent tubes above me. The scent of oil and cold concrete filled the air. My footsteps were quiet, deliberate, echoing through the still space as I closed in on her. Gianna Lionetti. A cloth gripped tightly in my hand, soaked in chloroform. She didn't even have time to scream. I grabbed her from behind, pressing the cloth to her mouth and nose with a vice grip. She fought hard. Nails like razors dug into my wrist, her limbs thrashing with the kind of panic only people on the edge of death can summon. It took a full minute and a half—ninety long seconds of struggle—before her body finally sagged, unconscious in my arms. I eased her down like a sleepwalker, like she was fragile glass. Then, almost robotically, I opened the passenger door,

A week had passed, and no one had found Declan's body. Things were moving fast, and without speaking to my dad first, I took the initiative and bought everything related to McIntyre Corporations. It was a massive undertaking. We had to fire the entire board and replace them with our own people. The financial webs were deep, tracing money from offshore accounts, and the intel I'd gathered? It was a goldmine of blackmail material, exposing nearly every business owner, politician, and high-ranking official in the city. My dad didn't hesitate for a second. He immediately used this treasure trove to his advantage. He worked quickly, killing the news of Declan Sr.'s disappearance so that no one outside our circle would know what happened. My mom, of course, was confused. The official story was that Declan had fled to avoid the scandal, but I later realized something: My dad hadn't lied to her—he just didn't want to ruin her newfound peace. She had taken a liking to Jason, and Dad didn't wa

{TW: violence} Eli jumped to his feet, his face twisted with desperation and rage as he lunged forward again. "FUCK!!! YOU'RE DOING ALL THIS BECAUSE OF ONE LITTLE BOUNTY ON YOUR HEAD?! JUST BECAUSE I CALLED YOU A FAG?!!!" He swung wildly, fists flying in every direction. He was panicking. Even still, one of his punches landed hard on my cheek. "FINE THEN!!! I APOLOGIZE!!! JUST LET THIS SHIT GO NOW!" Eli snapped. I kicked his knee, making him stumble. "I'M BEING FUCKING SINCERE!!!" he yelled, breathless, spit flying from his mouth as the fight devolved into something brutal and ugly. Then, with a sharp upper swing, I felt something slice from my cheek to my forehead—blood immediately clouded one of my eyes. I staggered back, vision blurry. Another blow slammed into my face. Then another. My ribs caught a few good hits before I dropped to a knee, trying to gather myself, focus. "What's wrong, Jack?" Eli sneered, looming over me. "After all that effort you put into living like a

I looked around the bright space, blinking through the haze of gold and white. The floor didn't feel real beneath my feet—it was too soft, too quiet. The kind of silence that wraps around you like cotton, comforting and terrifying all at once. "What the hell is this?" I muttered, spinning as the door behind me clicked shut. "So you're back," a woman's voice echoed across the space. I turned, and there she stood—a figure that looked more divine than human. Her presence glowed with a radiant gold that shimmered like sunlight caught in glass. Her hair flowed like liquid fire, and her eyes were endless, filled with stars. No wings, no halo—yet she was the most godlike thing I had ever seen. "Looks like you've accomplished your goal of getting revenge on Elijah Roth," she said, her voice calm and echoing like it came from inside my own head. "How was it? Are you satisfied?" I exhaled slowly. "Yeah... thanks to you, System." But even as I said it, the words felt hollow. Like I'd said t