I was done with him. I snatched up the rope from the ground and bolted toward the river—but I barely made it two steps before Gilbert's palm cracked against the back of my neck.
As I crumpled into darkness, his voice drifted down, dripping with impatience.
"Of all times to cause a scene."
When I opened my eyes, Serena was sitting at my bedside.
She caught my gaze and let out an exaggerated sigh of relief. "Finally. You've been out cold for a full day and night. Must be nice, sleeping through everything while the rest of us worked ourselves half to death."
Her lips curled. "But don't worry—Ethan's been found. Dead, obviously. At least the body's intact."
I forced myself upright. "I want to see him."
Serena pressed me back down. Something in my calm expression must have encouraged her, because her tone sharpened.
"There's no point. The state experts already warned us—floods breed epidemics. All those drowned pigs and cows are bacteria factories. The solution is immediate burial." She paused, savoring the next words. "Same goes for human remains."
"Of course, nobody wants to go first. So I suggested Gilbert lead by example—bury Ethan alongside the livestock. Once people see the captain doing it, they'll fall in line." Her smile was poison. "So really, you'd just be in the way."
I laughed inside.
But I wasn't going to waste words on her. I slapped her across the face—hard, multiple times—and ran.
The burial pit wasn't far. In my previous life, it had become a mass grave.
I made it just in time. The animal carcasses had already been dumped in, but Ethan's small body still lay at the edge. One minute later, and he would've been thrown in with the rest.
Gilbert stepped into my path, blocking my view of our son. His face was a mask of practiced guilt.
"Ethan's gone. Being upset won't change that."
"I know you think I should've saved him first." He sighed, perfectly rehearsed. "But we're young. We can have more children. Serena only has Marcus. If she lost him, she'd have nothing left."
I wanted to laugh in his face.
Rebirth gives you clarity. I could see exactly what he was doing—performing remorse while painting me as the hysterical wife, building his defense one sympathetic glance at a time.
Just like before.
The crowd gathered, murmuring the same tired lines. Captain Gilbert did everything he could. You need to accept reality. Don't blame him.
Before I could respond, Serena came running over, clutching her swollen cheek, tears streaming down her face.
"Gilbert, I'm so sorry—I couldn't stop her." She turned to the onlookers, voice trembling. "Please don't blame Alex. She just lost her child. She's not thinking clearly."
Her hand dropped from her face, deliberately revealing the red marks.
"This? It was my own fault. I wasn't careful. It has nothing to do with her."
Gilbert's jaw tightened. He rounded on me.
"When are you going to stop with this? You think I'm not grieving? Half this village lost someone—you don't see them losing their minds!"
His voice rose. "And let's be honest—if you'd been watching Ethan properly instead of slacking off, he never would've fallen in. If you had any conscience at all, you'd be begging for forgiveness, not attacking innocent people!"
Serena's sobs grew louder.
She apologized over and over, then yanked Marcus down beside her, forcing the boy to his knees in front of me.
"I don't know how to make this right. I'd trade my own life to bring Ethan back if I could."
