Out Of Prison, Conquer Them All

"Corinna Shaw, your family is here to take you home." The prison guard unlocked Corinna's handcuffs and threw a backpack at her feet. It landed on the floor with a dull thump.

Keeping her head down, Corinna walked out of the prison gates with the worn gray canvas backpack slung over her shoulder.

The bright sunlight stung her eyes. She narrowed them and kept her gaze on the road ahead.

A familiar Bentley was waiting by the curb. Standing beside it was her eldest brother, Edwin Shaw. He was wearing a perfectly tailored suit and was looking down at his phone.

The moment he saw Corinna, he slipped his phone into his pocket and blocked her path. He wore a cold expression as he said, "Come on. Mom and Dad sent me to take you home."

Without saying a word, Corinna walked straight past him.

Edwin frowned and blocked her path again. "Still mad?"

Corinna came to a halt and slowly lifted her eyes. There wasn't the slightest trace of warmth in them. "Shouldn't I be?" she sneered.

For a moment, Edwin was unsettled by the look in her eyes. The feeling disappeared just as quickly, replaced by indifference. "Paige already had a hard enough childhood. You only spent three years taking the fall for her, while the Shaw family raised you for eighteen years. Was that really asking too much?"

Only spent three years taking the fall for Paige? That was easy for him to say. It wasn't until the moment she died in her previous life that Corinna finally found out the truth. The story about the babies being switched at birth had been nothing more than a carefully crafted lie.

Her biological parents had trusted a fortune-teller who declared she carried a cursed fate that would destroy them. They had brought Paige Shaw into the family instead, believing Paige's destiny would bring wealth and good fortune. Together, they created a web of lies that slowly pushed her toward destruction.

Three years earlier, Paige had caused a patient's death during a heart bypass operation through her medical negligence. Since she happened to be at the hospital that day, Paige passed every bit of blame onto her.

To protect Paige, the entire Shaw family forced her to plead guilty and serve the prison sentence in Paige's place.

Throughout those three years behind bars, not one member of her family ever came to see her.

Paige even bribed the prison guards and inmates to torture her. Ground glass was mixed into her meals, and razor blades were hidden inside her bedding. In her previous life, she endured endless suffering until she finally died inside those prison walls.

The hatred she carried was so overwhelming that it gave her a second chance, sending her back to her third year in prison.

This time, she would never again cling to the foolish hope that her family would care about her.

"Edwin." A faint, mocking smile appeared on Corinna's face. "The day you all forced me to take Paige's place was the day I repaid every debt I owed the Shaw family. Listen carefully. From today onward, I don't want anything to do with any of you."

Edwin's face instantly darkened. "Corinna, have you gone insane?"

His eyes flashed with annoyance as he glared at her. "How long are you planning to act like this? You're a woman with a criminal record. Where do you think you can go? You'll end up homeless and bring shame to the Shaw family."

Just then, the low rumble of an engine approached. A sleek black Maybach rolled to a halt beside Corinna.

Edwin's brows drew together. One look at the customized Maybach was enough to identify its owner. It belonged to the Carter family, the richest and most influential family in Stellacrest.

Why would the Carters come all the way to a prison in the middle of nowhere?

Before Edwin could make sense of it, the rear window slid down. The driver bent his head respectfully, saying, "Ms. Shaw, please get in."

For a brief moment, Edwin thought he had heard wrong. His eyes widened as he turned sharply toward Corinna.

Corinna had no interest in saying another word to him. She opened the car door and got inside.

The Maybach drove off immediately, leaving Edwin rooted to the spot, looking infuriated.

He watched in disbelief as the car disappeared. Since when had Corinna become associated with the Carter family?

Inside the car, the air was completely still.

Corinna leaned against the soft leather seat and slowly closed her eyes. Scenes from her previous life rose one after another in her mind.

Jayden Carter, the most powerful man in Stellacrest, was a mysterious man. His influence reached every corner of the city, from corporate boardrooms to back alleys. Some months ago, he had fallen into a coma because of a strange illness.

His condition had continued to worsen day after day. The Carter family had sought help from countless renowned specialists, yet none of them could come up with a cure for him.

Eventually, word spread that anyone who could cure Jayden would be rewarded with a marriage alliance with the Carter family.

After Corinna died in her previous life, Paige stole the antidote formula she had left behind and used it to cure Jayden.

Grateful for saving him, the Carter family fulfilled their promise and formed a marriage alliance with the Shaw family. From that moment on, the Shaws entered the ranks of high society, while Paige married into the Carter family and lived a life of unmatched wealth and privilege.

In this lifetime, while she was still in prison, Corinna had written a letter to Theodore Carter, Jayden's grandfather. She told him she could heal Jayden, asking for only one thing in return, which was her release from prison before the end of her sentence.

Just as she had anticipated, Theodore accepted her terms.