Building a Second Life

s, each beat of the heart mo

was dying, wasted by an illne

failure: I had refused to play the villain, refused to hurt my ado

ed, my body shutting down because I wouldn't sabotage

tered, radiant in a tailored dr

d, feigned concern, but her ey

t, while Liam, naive and ki

eanor, with a cruel smile, claimed t

, a phoenix I had carved for h

"misguided love," then nonchalantly tossed it into a s

ystem bond terminated, her triumph

cal thing, burning h

oice offered me a second c

ce my designated role as