My entire life has been lived in the shadow of my sister Cassandra's glow.
She was the Rinaldi family's cherished Principessa, the prize every heir coveted.
And on the eve of her engagement party, I awoke from a coma... reborn.
Just as she had in my past life, she wore that same sickeningly sweet smile, playing the part of the generous older sister for all to see by insisting that I, her bastard half-sibling, choose my husband first.
But this time, I would not fall for her act.
In my last life, I naively believed she genuinely had my best interests at heart.
I foolishly yielded, letting her guide my hand. I chose Angelo, the Caruso heir who feigned madness—a man known for his explosive, unpredictable rage.
I became his keeper, a wife in name only, never receiving a shred of the affection I deserved.
The peace shattered at the christening of Cassandra's eldest son, when gunmen from a rival family stormed the church. A bullet was meant for the infant heir in her arms.
In that instant, Angelo—the man everyone believed had been lost to madness for years—moved with terrifying clarity.
He lunged to protect Cassandra, but in the chaos, he shoved me directly into the path of the bullet. The slug that pierced my body also shattered my heart.
As I lay in a pool of my own blood, I saw him shield my sister, his body a barricade against any further attack.
Only then did I finally understand. He had never been ill. His family had never abandoned him.
He’d faked it all. The madness was a performance, a fortress he’d built because he could never have Cassandra, an excuse to refuse any woman who wasn't her.
In the final moments of my life, he apologized. "I'm sorry, Seraphina. I lied to you. But I can't… I can't let anything happen to Cassandra. In the next life, I swear I'll make it up to you."
When I opened my eyes again, I was back on the night our father ordered us to choose our husbands.
This time, it was their turn to beg.
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1
"You choose first, my dear Seraphina."
"Given your background… you need a powerful husband to protect you."
Cassandra cooed in that sickly sweet voice, playing her role as the loving sister, just as she had in my past life.
Her eyes, however, betrayed her. Her gaze was fixed on one man.
Marco, heir to the formidable Volpe family, whose power far outstripped that of the supposedly insane Angelo.
It was an open secret that she and Marco were in love, that our father intended to unite their houses.
In my previous life, to preserve her perfect love story, I chose Angelo, his violent reputation be damned.
I thought I was being selfless, looking at the bigger picture. I never imagined I was walking into a living hell.
Even now, the ghost of that bullet tearing through me is a phantom pain in my soul.
The slug ripped through my flesh. I collapsed onto the hard marble, a pool of my own blood instantly warming the stone beneath me.
Angelo's private doctors rushed in but didn't spare me a single glance.
They swarmed Cassandra, who had only a minor scrape, treating her like she was at death's door.
Through my fading consciousness, I watched her curl into Angelo’s arms, her sobs wracking her body. “Angelo, it hurts so much… It’s all my fault. I was angry with Seraphina and sent my bodyguards away in a fit of pique…”
The family elders praised her to the heavens. What a pure Principessa! So grievously wounded, they thought, yet she refused to speak a single ill word against her bastard sister.
She basked in their sympathy while I lay on the ice-cold floor, my life bleeding away.
Only when my heart had nearly stopped did she finally gasp, a dramatic performance of sudden realization.
"Save Seraphina! Why are you all just standing there? Go to her, please!"
Her tears traced perfect paths down her flawless cheeks.
In the moment of my death, I finally saw my dear sister for the viper she truly was.
So when my father, Don Giovanni, asked who I wanted, a faint smile touched my lips.
"Since my sister is being so considerate, I'll accept her kind offer."
"I want Marco."
"What did you just say?" The smile on Cassandra's face shattered. Tears instantly welled in her eyes.
"Seraphina, you know that Marco and I…"
In the corner, Angelo, who had been staring blankly into space, snapped his head up, his eyes wide with shock.
The terrible wrath of a Don descended upon the hall, freezing the air.
My father's hand cracked across my face, the sharp sound silencing the crowd's murmurs.
"Know your place! Marco is the heir to the Volpe family."
"Do you really think a girl of your station is worthy of him? He needs a wife of equal standing!"
"Besides, you know how your sister feels about him. How dare you challenge her in public? Are you trying to humiliate this family?!"
My mouth filled with the coppery taste of blood, but I couldn't suppress the laugh that escaped my lips.
I straightened my spine and met his gaze.
"Papa, if you'd already decided, why bother with this charade? Are you afraid someone might accuse you of playing favorites?"
Cassandra's eyelashes fluttered. "Seraphina, don't say that. Papa loves you too. How could you be so cruel?"
As we argued, Angelo, who had been in a daze, suddenly stood.
"Don Giovanni, I propose a trade."
"I will offer half the profits from the Caruso family's East Coast ports—control of all shipping and trade routes—as a bride price."
"On one condition: I marry your eldest daughter, Cassandra."
I stared at Angelo, a disbelieving rage searing through me.
I couldn't believe it. The monster who had hidden behind a mask of madness for three years was actually stepping forward now.
His eyes met mine across the room. For a fleeting second, a hint of regret flashed in their arrogant depths before he looked away, almost ashamed.
Something wasn't right. I searched his face, and then a chilling realization hit me like a shard of ice. He remembers. He remembers everything.
So, even after watching a bullet tear through my heart in our past life, he still couldn't bear to see Cassandra with another man.
To have her, he was throwing his biggest chip on the table.
Half the profits from the Caruso ports. The moment my father heard the offer, greed extinguished the fury in his eyes.
He had always planned to use his daughters for alliances. This was a deal he couldn't refuse.
What's more, the Carusos were far more powerful than the Rinaldis. To be chosen by Angelo was a distinct honor.
"Done!" Father didn't hesitate. "Since Don Angelo is so taken with Cassandra, the marriage is settled. Seraphina, you will marry Marco."
The moment he finished, Marco shot to his feet.
He sneered, his voice dripping with contempt. "Marry her? Don't make me laugh."
"A bastard who's barely fit to see the light of day?"
"Seraphina, take a good look in the mirror. You could never hold a candle to Cassandra."
