Beneath The Glass Tower

I was a brilliant scientist, but in my family, I was always the shadow to my perfect, manipulative sister, Jetta. On the day I was set to receive the prestigious Harrison Award, my family was only focused on her graduation party, dismissing my life's work as a mere hobby. That same day, I was brutally attacked in my own lab. The men who did it used Jetta's keycard and sneered that she sent them to "teach me a lesson" and put me in my place. Bleeding out on the cold floor, I made one last desperate call to my fiancé, Hayden. "Stop being so dramatic," he snapped before hanging up. "This is Jetta's big day. Don't you dare ruin it for attention." My mother came downstairs, saw nothing but a mess, and left a voicemail scolding me for being selfish. My soul ripped free from my body, forced to watch them celebrate. I saw the love in Hayden's eyes-not for me, but for Jetta. To them, my death was just another one of my "attention-seeking stunts." Now, as a ghost trapped in my own home, I watch them find my body and slowly piece together their neglect from my journal. But they've overlooked the one thing that will expose it all: the memory pendant around my neck, which recorded every horrifying second of the truth.

My life has been a tempest of shattered dreams. Once, I dared to imagine a perfect world: Alpha Sean's hands tangled in my hair, our daughter Ellie's laughter a melody, sunlight spilling through our cabin like liquid gold. But reality struck like a lightning bolt. Sean's indifference turned to ice; Claire's scheming slithered into our lives like a venomous snake. Then came the unthinkable-Ellie's light snuffed out by Claire's cruelty, her last breath a whisper I'll hear until I die. That day, the naive she-wolf died with her dream to see her father. Through it all, Ellie's smile haunts me, to burn the world down if I must, to make them pay. For her. Always for her.

I was in a high-end mall, browsing a toy store for my friend's daughter's birthday, when my world tilted on its axis. Through the polished glass storefront, I saw him. My husband, Julian. He was in the café opposite, seated beside the sprawling indoor children's play area. He wasn't alone. A woman, Seraphina Vance—a social media influencer whose perfectly curated life I’d occasionally scrolled past—was laughing, her head tilted just so. And between them, a little boy of about four, gleefully mashing a piece of cake into his own dark hair. Julian’s hair. They looked like a family. A perfect, happy family. An icy dread washed over me. I remembered Julian refusing to have a baby with me, citing the immense pressure of his work. All his business trips, the late nights… were they spent with them? I recalled a night six months ago when Noah had supposedly been sick. Julian had stayed out all night, his voice strained over the phone, telling me a "critical client had a medical emergency." The lie was so easy for him. I must have stared too long. The little boy, Noah, noticed me. He picked up a toy water pistol from their table, aimed it directly at me through the café’s open front, and squeezed the trigger. A jet of cold water hit my silk skirt, leaving a dark, spreading stain. Seraphina Vance turned, her eyes meeting mine. There was no surprise, only a flicker of amusement. She offered a saccharine smile. "Oh, dear. He's just playing with you," she cooed, her voice dripping with condescension. My heart hammered against my ribs. I turned and walked away, my legs unsteady. I needed to leave, to breathe, to think. In the underground parking garage, I fumbled for my keys, my hands shaking. As I passed Julian’s sleek sedan, something on the passenger seat caught my eye. A heavy, cream-colored card with embossed lettering. "You are joyfully invited to the Christening of Noah Thorne." It was real. More real than a fleeting email. A physical invitation to a life I never knew existed. How could I have been so blind? My phone felt heavy in my hand. I didn’t call my best friend. I didn’t call a lawyer. I called the director of the Zurich Architectural Fellowship, a prestigious program I had deferred for him, for us. "I'd like to accept the fellowship," I said, my voice eerily calm. "I can leave immediately."

In the city of Asterhaven, Maxwell Porter’s disdain for his wife, Zoey Bradford, is common knowledge. He feels trapped by her desperate refusal to dissolve their union, leading him to request a divorce ninety-nine times. However, the hundredth attempt yields a shocking result. Instead of her usual resistance, Zoey responds with a chilling, icy composure. Accepting his demand at last, she agrees to end their marriage, leaving Maxwell to face the reality of the freedom he once craved.

Clara Vane had everything-wealth, status, and the man she loved. But on the night meant to celebrate her future, everything was stolen. Betrayed by her best friend Sienna and pushed from a rooftop, Clara's life ended in a single, shocking moment. Then she wakes up three years earlier, given a second chance. This time, she will not be a victim. Armed with the knowledge of the future, Clara watches, plans, and turns the greed and arrogance of her enemies against them. Each calculated move brings her closer to revenge and transforms the innocent girl she once was into a woman of power and precision. Her path crosses with Alistair Thorne, the city's most feared CEO-a man whose cold, commanding presence makes her pulse race. Dangerous, brilliant, and impossibly alluring, he becomes both ally and challenge, drawing Clara deeper into a world of high stakes, wealth, and deception. As betrayal lurks behind every door and danger waits in every shadow, Clara must outsmart those who once destroyed her. In a city built on power, money, and lies, she has one choice: rise, survive, and take everything back.

For three years, Adriene Rodgers gave up her brilliant Wall Street career to be the perfect, devoted wife to billionaire Dallin Morales. But one night, she overheard him talking to his lawyer, a confession that shattered her world. "Adriene is exactly what I need her to be. A perfect social shield to keep the cameras busy so Elaina can live in peace." Elaina was his late brother's widow. Dallin coldly admitted that touching his wife made him physically sick, and he only stomached it by closing his eyes and thinking of Elaina. From that moment, the nightmare escalated. Elaina framed Adriene at every turn—slashing Adriene's beloved dog to death and throwing herself into a pool to play the victim. Dallin blindly believed the widow. He shoved Adriene so hard she cracked her head open on the marble deck, leaving her bleeding on the ground while he tenderly carried Elaina away. The ultimate betrayal came when Adriene's father went into sudden cardiac failure. Desperate, she begged Dallin for the life-saving hospital funds. Instead, Dallin ruthlessly froze every single one of her bank accounts. "Go get on your knees and apologize to Elaina. Do that, and I will unfreeze your cards." Standing in the freezing rain while Dallin's Rolls-Royce sped off to comfort Elaina's fake panic attack, Adriene's heart finally turned to ice. How could she have wasted three years of devotion on a man who would use her dying father as a bargaining chip for a manipulative parasite? She didn't shed another tear. After borrowing money to save her father, she secretly signed the divorce papers and left them in a Hermès anniversary box on his desk. Then, she pulled out her old resume and sent it directly to his biggest corporate rivals. The submissive wife was dead, and it was time to burn his empire to the ground.