Reborn For Vengeance, Not For Love

n my previous life, I had stumbled upon this truth in a desperate, last-ditch search for answers, only to have it all end in trage

s confused. My record was spotless. But when I requested the file, I saw it, a fabricated criminal record attached to my father' s name. It was a ghost from the past, a

ng Ashley's success while I was locked in my room, grieving the desecration of my father's memory. My mother had looked at me with c

I now understood that her obsession with "making amends" for her past was the driving force behind her cruelty.

d, hard resolve. I carefully placed the two birth certificates into a new envelope and tucked it securely into

mber I knew by heart. It rang twice b

omp

mpson? It's

e softened. "Chloe, sweetheart. How are you

dy presence in my life, a paternal figure who tried to fill the enormous void my father left behind. My mother, in

tly despite my efforts to stay calm. "Actually, I

alright?" The concern in his

ords catching in my throat. "And I think I know who

esitation. "Where are you? I c

in, his tall frame and serious expression a comforting sight. He looked older than

with concern. "Alright, kiddo. What's goi

the table. "I need you to look at these. And I nee

udied my original one first, a small smile touching his lips. "I rememb

ning the details. The mother's name, Sarah. The father's name, Jake Miller.

ere did yo

e," I told him. "The one my

ther was going to use a fabricated record against my father to get me disqualified. I didn't tell him about my rebirth, I knew that would

change after my father's death, had witnessed her strange, almos

phone and typed it into a law enforcement database. A few seconds later, he swore under his breath. "I knew it. J

puzzle slammed into pla

ild, is she?" I asked, thou

"No, Chloe. It looks like she's his daughter. And if Sarah is listed

mother has built her entire life with you on a foundation of lies. If she's willing to forge docum

efore she can submit that fake file, I want to submit this." I poi

"We can launch an official investigation. Forgery of a federal document,

hed over me. I wasn'

y. Keep the originals somewhere safe, somewhere your mother can never find them. I'm going to start a discreet inquiry into this Jake Miller

surge of strength. T

my voice thick with emotion.

ning. "Your father was the best man I ever knew. I'm not goi

made several certified copies of the birth certificates, storing them in a safety depo

ell of my mother's expensive perfume and the sound of her and Ashley's laughter. T

o Paris!" Sarah was saying, her voice full of excite

y replied, leaning her hea

laughter died. Sarah' s face immediate

he demanded. "I called you six t

," I said,

get over your jealousy, Chloe. Ashley has a bright f

but ice in my veins. The hurt was gone, replaced by a cold, hard certainty. They were cel