Chapter 1: Death, Betrayal, and Ghostly Truths

I died in a car accident. Just like that. The world snapped to black, and for a moment, all I felt was shock—cold and absolute, like the silence after a scream.

Everything slowed down. My phone buzzed in the cup holder, the screen lighting up with Savannah’s name. Through the speaker, I could barely make out her voice—her words were raw, ragged with sobs. “Mom, I failed half my finals. I’m so stupid. I don’t deserve to be your daughter! I don’t want to live anymore!”

My heart stopped. Panic hit like a punch to the gut. I gripped the steering wheel, knuckles white, and slammed on the gas, weaving through the winding roads of Maple Heights. She was staying there. The houses out there sat behind iron gates and old oaks—the kind of place you move to when you think you’ve made it. I just prayed I’d get there in time.

I kept my foot down, barely letting up on the pedal. My eyes darted between the road and the phone, every curve sharper than I remembered. When I hit that last bend—a notorious hairpin near the old quarry—I slammed on the brakes. My foot went straight to the floor. Nothing. My heart shot into my throat. The car shot off the ridge, tumbling end over end. Glass exploded. Metal shrieked. For a split second, I thought, This can’t be happening. Then, a burst of fire. My body was lost in the flames, nothing left to recognize.

But I didn’t vanish. Not all of me, anyway. My soul hung there, suspended in the bitter, black air, shivering and helpless. Everything felt distant. Strange. The world had turned cold.

Red and blue lights flashed across the trees. I watched the police roll up, radios crackling. Then Marcus, my husband, pulled up in his navy SUV, leaping out before the car even stopped. He fell to his knees, his wail echoing across the night—a performance so raw, so perfect, it could’ve won him an Oscar. For a second, I almost believed it myself.

Savannah arrived soon after, her face streaked with tears. The two of them clung together, father and daughter, sobbing so hard even a rock would feel it. Their grief looked so real, so crushing, that for a moment I forgot everything else.

“Savannah—” I reached out, desperate to comfort her. To brush the tears from her cheek, just like when she was little and scared of thunderstorms.

My hand slipped right through her. Cold. Empty. That’s when it hit me. I was dead.

Everyone gathered around, staring at the twisted wreckage. Their voices were muffled, distant. I tried to scream, to reach out, but I was nothing more than a shadow.

When the last siren faded, I realized my soul was tethered to Marcus. I couldn’t fight it. I was pulled along, trailing him like a ghost as he left the scene. I watched him drive back to the home we’d built together—the one with the blue shutters and the tire swing in the backyard.

The cops came by, did their routine sweep, then left. Savannah got a call from her guidance counselor and, after a tense conversation, headed back to school. The housekeeper disappeared. Now it was just Marcus and the nanny, Lila Monroe, in the living room.

What happened next? I couldn’t believe it.

I saw Lila throw herself into Marcus’s arms, nuzzling up to him like she’d always belonged there. They kissed hungrily, stumbling into the bedroom, clothes falling away as they went. It was primal. Desperate. Like they’d been waiting years for this moment.

They spent the whole afternoon tangled together. Right there, on the bed where our wedding photo still hung above the headboard. My wedding photo. I watched, sick to my stomach, powerless to look away.

When they finally stopped, Lila curled against Marcus’s chest, looking utterly content. She lay there for a moment, smiling like a cat who got what she wanted. “This is perfect. No more sneaking around,” she purred, eyes half-closed. “Now I get to be Mrs. Whitaker.”

I never knew when their affair started behind my back. Looking back, maybe the car accident wasn’t an accident at all. The realization was cold and sharp. I’d been murdered.

Rage seared through me, hotter than the flames that took my body. I lunged at them, claws out. But I passed straight through. Powerless. I tried again, and again, but nothing I did touched them. I was a ghost, nothing more.

Suddenly, Lila sat up, hand on her belly. “Oh no, you were pretty rough just now. Did you hurt the baby?” she teased, shooting Marcus a playful look.

“Relax, I know what I’m doing. He’s fine,” Marcus said, patting her back with a smug little grin.

“Ugh, this little troublemaker. If he hadn’t come along, we wouldn’t have had to rush things. The cops were here today. Are you sure you didn’t leave any evidence in the car?” Worry flickered in Lila’s eyes, her voice suddenly tight.

“Now you’re nervous?” Marcus lit a cigarette, blowing smoke toward the ceiling. “I told you there was no need to rush. We could’ve taken our time, made sure everything was airtight.”

“How could I not rush? I want my son born with your last name. I want to marry you, and all the Whitaker money will be his someday!” Lila grinned, her eyes glittering. “If Mariah knew she worked her whole life for my son, I bet she’d claw her way back from the grave.”

She was right. Right then, I wanted nothing more than to come back and choke the life out of them. Maybe the universe refused to let me die clueless, so it let me see the truth like this.

The two of them had an affair, got pregnant, and killed me so their child could be born into luxury. Thinking of my company and fortune falling into their hands made me want to scream. I couldn’t accept it.

And then there was Savannah. What would they do to her? Savannah wasn’t Marcus’s biological daughter. That worried me. With how ruthless he was, would he hurt her? Especially now that Lila was pregnant with his child. I started to worry, the kind of worry that gnaws at your soul.

Just then, the front door opened. A cheerful voice called, “Dad, Mom, I’m home!”

I froze. It was Savannah. But I was dead. Why was she still calling me Mom? Was it just habit? The word sounded strange now, echoing in the empty house. My heart squeezed, tension prickling under my skin.

I floated from the bedroom to the living room and saw Savannah smiling, her mouth curled up at the corners. A wave of discomfort hit me. Her real mother had just died. She shouldn’t be smiling like that. But I didn’t have time to dwell. All I wanted was for Savannah not to go upstairs and see those two together. If she caught them, they might silence her. Maybe they never planned to let Savannah live, but if she didn’t find out yet, maybe she’d have more time.

As I worried, the two of them appeared at the top of the stairs. I hadn’t expected them to be so bold, walking down hand in hand in front of Savannah. My daughter—she must be terrified, right? I turned to look, but she ran up to them, grinning.

“Dad, Mom!” she called. I wondered if I was hearing things. But no—Savannah hugged Lila’s arm, all smiles. Lila stroked her head. “So, what did your teacher say?”

“Oh, just a failed class. I’ll retake the exam,” Savannah said breezily. “That counselor even hinted I should slip him a Starbucks gift card and said I’d pass. What a joke—he doesn’t even grade the papers!”

“Just send him a Venmo tip. It’s not like we’re short on money,” Lila said, pulling Savannah down to the sofa. “Maybe he really can help. But you can’t slack off. You’re about to graduate. What if you fail again and don’t get your diploma?”

“Mom, you’re so good to me.” Savannah rested her head on Lila’s shoulder, her voice softening, almost childlike. Hearing her say that stung.

“Of course I am. I’m your real mom—who else would look after you?” Lila said gently. Her words hit me like a punch to the gut.

Savannah looked at Marcus, then at Lila. She hugged them both, tears shining in her eyes. “Dad, Mom, our family can finally be together.”

My mind was spinning. They were a family. Lila was Savannah’s real mother. Then who was I? No, something wasn’t right. I started to recall the past. My stomach dropped.

I remembered every ache from carrying her for nine months. That pain in labor, a whole day and night, burned in my memory. Even though I passed out after giving birth, before I fainted, the doctor brought the baby to me and said, “Congratulations, you have a daughter.” I remembered that clearly. I saw the little baby swaddled up before I finally passed out. So I was certain—I gave birth to a daughter.

If Savannah was really Lila’s biological daughter, there was only one explanation. They switched my baby. My breath caught in my throat. The horror of it sank in.

From the moment I woke up in the hospital and saw Savannah for the first time. I remembered her face. After that, I was with her every day. No matter how busy I was, I tucked her in every night. I watched her grow from a tiny baby to a toddler, step by step. There was no way someone could have switched her during that time. So, if the baby was switched, it had to be the day I gave birth, when I was unconscious. The baby I saw when I woke up in the hospital wasn’t mine.

So, where was my real daughter? They brought Savannah to me, but where did they send my own child? The thought made me sick.

“So, what about that girl?” Lila’s voice snapped me out of it. My heart jumped. That girl? Which girl? Was it... could it be?

I tensed up, heart pounding. Marcus coughed awkwardly. “What do you mean, what about her? Just ignore her. Mariah’s dead, so there’s no risk of the truth coming out.”

“No!” Savannah raised her voice. “As long as she’s around, I’ll always be reminded I’m a fake. I don’t care, she annoys me!”

“She can’t bother you now,” Marcus said.

“Daddy, you don’t love me anymore,” Savannah pouted, clinging to his arm. No wonder Marcus doted on Savannah so much. I used to be touched by it. Of course he doted on her. She was his real daughter.

“If you ask me, that girl’s a ticking time bomb. If the truth ever comes out, as Mariah’s real daughter, she’d inherit part of the fortune. Can you accept that?” Lila’s eyes glinted. “Nip it in the bud, and there’ll be no more trouble.” My heart stuttered. Ticking time bomb.

Marcus thought for a moment, then nodded. “Fine, I’ll take care of it.”

Take care of it? My blood ran cold. What were they planning to do to my daughter?

I watched Marcus head for the garage. I tried to follow, but couldn’t get through the door. He drove off and disappeared into the night. No! I couldn’t let him hurt my daughter.

I summoned everything I had and rushed for the door. Then, a blinding white light. I blacked out.