Born Again, Not Your Doormat​

"Catherine! This new song you wrote—you have to give it to Harper to sing!"

Catherine Stone had just woken up when she heard that familiar voice. Then the memories from her past life clicked into place. She was reborn.

She looked toward the door. Sure enough, her second brother, Jordan Taylor, burst in a moment later.

He came at her with impatient reproach. "Since when did you get so disobedient?"

Catherine almost laughed. "I wrote the song. Why should I give it to Harper?"

Jordan hadn't expected her to talk back. Catherine had always been obedient, always agreed to his requests.

He sighed, softening his tone. "Harper's career is taking off. This song could win her the Aureate Awards. It means a lot to her."

"It means a lot to me too." Catherine got out of bed slowly. "Why do the good things always have to go to her? I'm your real sister, aren't I?"

Jordan frowned. "You're both my sisters. Don't start with that real-or-not stuff."

Catherine knew he only said that because he favored Harper. He hated when anyone called Harper the adopted daughter.

When Catherine was four, Jordan had traded her to human traffickers for a bag of candy. She wasn't found and brought back until two years ago. During the years she was missing, her parents adopted Harper and loved her like their own. Even after Catherine returned, they said they'd treat her well, but everything she liked had to go to Harper first.

Catherine had real musical talent. Before coming back to the Taylors, she'd already made a name for herself in the industry. But since returning, every song she wrote had been taken by Harper.

She'd craved family affection. She'd been afraid of being disliked. So she swallowed all her grievances. In her past life, she and Harper were in a car accident together. Everyone rushed to save Harper first. No one paid attention to Catherine, even though she was more seriously injured. By the time anyone bothered, the window for treatment had closed. She died.

Not this life.

She quietly slipped the voice recorder from her drawer into her pocket. She'd been using it to capture a demo of her new song. It was still on.

"I'm not giving the new song to Harper." Catherine took out her backpack and started packing. "If she wants to win awards, let her write her own songs. Stealing other people's work by playing pitiful and sweet-talking her brothers—that's just asking for bad luck."

"You—" Jordan's face darkened. "If Harper could write songs, would we need you?"

"Exactly." Catherine zipped up her bag and slung it over her shoulder. She gave Jordan a mocking smile. "Since I can write songs so well, do I even need you guys? Jordan, as of now, you're fired as my manager."

Ever since Catherine returned to the Taylor family, she'd terminated her contract with her previous agency, and Jordan had become manager for both her and Harper. They were family, so no contract had been signed. Her verbal notice was enough.

"Have you lost your mind?" Jordan was furious and shocked. This was the first time Catherine had ever defied him.

Catherine didn't bother arguing anymore. She walked out of the room and ignored him no matter how much he called after her.

Her backpack was light, barely full. But this was everything she'd owned in two years with the Taylors. Pathetic, when she thought about it.

She remembered what happened after her miserable death. She'd longed for love and never gotten it. She died with intense resentment and unwillingness, her ghost drifting in another world. No body, no hunger. Just darkness and bitterness every day. Then a voice asked: if given one chance for revenge, could she let go of her hatred and start over?

Catherine agreed without hesitation.

So she was sent back to one year before the car accident—to this exact moment.

But she only had one year to get her revenge. She also had to find a way to extend her own life. If time ran out and she hadn't earned more, she'd return to that other world, consumed by resentment, never able to live again.

Catherine glanced at the numbers on her arm that only she could see: a countdown of 365 days.

She had no time to waste on these people.

She went downstairs and found her parents and brothers all sitting in the dining room. She checked the time. It was exactly lunch, but no one had come to call her.

In the past, to win her family's favor, Catherine had memorized everyone's tastes and cooked for them whenever she had time. No one had ever appreciated it.

"Come to your senses?" Marsha Scott signaled a servant to bring out another steak, then looked at Catherine with reproachful eyes. "If you'd just given the new song to Harper earlier, none of this would be a problem. But no, you had to make a scene and upset everyone."

Catherine walked calmly down the stairs. "I didn't agree."

"Bang!" Marsha slammed her knife and fork onto the table. "Will you ever stop? You need to know when enough is enough."

"You're the ones who won't stop." Catherine didn't back down. "You're forcing me to give up my song. And when I refuse, you blame me for everything. You're the ones who don't know when to quit."

Her attitude shocked the whole family. When had she developed such a temper?

Marsha's expression soured. "Harper was the Taylor family's eldest daughter. You came back and took her place. Isn't it only right to compensate her a little?"

"Nice try twisting the facts." Catherine laughed. "I was always the real daughter. She took my place. Now you're saying I stole hers?"

The eldest brother, Wyatt Taylor, stepped forward with a cold look. "At the end of the day, you're just targeting Harper because you resent her for taking your position."

"Pathetic." Catherine's laugh turned bitter. "Since you all love her so much, fine. From now on, she can be your only sister."

Marsha frowned. "What do you mean by that?"

"I'm done with the Taylor family. Pretend you never found me. These past two years—I'll consider them a nightmare."

Marsha grew even angrier. "Being a Taylor daughter is your good fortune. And you call it a nightmare? Do you have any conscience at all?"

"Save that good fortune for Harper. I don't want it." Catherine turned to leave.

Jordan hurried down the stairs. "There's a limit to throwing tantrums. You think running away will work? You'll be the one who suffers. Think carefully. If you leave the Taylor family, you'll just go back to living in poverty."

"So you do know I suffered for years." Catherine turned slowly, her eyes stabbing into Jordan like knives. "If you hadn't been greedy back then and traded me for that bag of candy, would I have been taken by human traffickers?"

Jordan hadn't expected her to bring this up. She'd clearly promised never to mention it again.

Marsha and the other brothers knew nothing about this. They all stared at Jordan in surprise.

"Jordan, is this true?"