Chapter 1 A Second Chance
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Sabrina Sterling had pondered more than once that if she could turn the clock back to when she was three, she’d never join the Sterlings. That way, on her 28th birthday, she wouldn’t have ended up getting killed by her beloved father and brother.
On that fateful day, Sabrina and her sister, Brianna, were kidnapped by their father’s enemy.
The kidnapper tied them up in an abandoned factory and offered their father, Matthew, a cruel option: he had to kill one of his daughters to save the other.
Without hesitation, Matthew chose Brianna.
And Sabrina’s brother was on the same page with him.
Matthew picked up the knife thrown by the kidnapper and stabbed Sabrina right in the heart.
To make sure Sabrina was dead for good, her brother stabbed her again.
As Sabrina’s spirit floated above, she laughed bitterly, seeing her body lying in a pool of blood.
Turned out, the family she had always protected wanted her dead.
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Day one of the nightmare, her brother let the kidnapper disfigure her to save Brianna.
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Day two, her father allowed them to break her hands so Brianna would suffer less.
Day three, they decided to have her injected with a deadly poison to keep Brianna alive.
at the
When the poison kicked in, they finally arrived factory- not for her, but for Brianna.
As her dad and brother rushed Brianna to the hospital, Sabrina died, disfigured and betrayed by the ones she loved the most.
For some reason, Sabrina was given a second chance. She did. turn the clock back, just like a miracle.
When she came to, Sabrina was stunned to find herself back at seventeen, just six months after she’d returned from abroad.
In a faded black jacket and jeans, she knelt by a hospital bed at Los Angeles Medical Center.
Stubbornness was written all over her pale face. And her tightly clenched fists were the only sign that gave away the storm inside. her.
“Sabrina, apologize now!” Matthew barked, his face darkened.
Not long back, Sabrina had gotten into a fight with Brianna, and Brianna had tumbled down the stairs.
Chapter 1 A Second Chance
The security footage showed that Sabrina shoved her.
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However, when Sabrina defended herself, no one was buying her story.
“I didn’t do it,” Sabrina shot back, looking up real slow, just like she’d done in her past life.
It’d been years since she last saw her dad. Yet, her tone was flat, harboring zero love or intimacy as if he was no other than a stranger.
A sharp slap struck Sabrina’s face, turning her head.
The next second, a crimson stain appeared at the corner of her lips.
“Liar! How dare you talk back! You’re so disappointing.”
Sabrina noticed the disappointment and disdain flickering in Matthew’s eyes.
If he were a judge, she would surely be sentenced to death.
Suddenly, a laugh escaped her lips.
“Thankfully, I’m not your biological daughter; otherwise, you’d be even more let down.”
“What’d you just say?” Matthew raised his hand again, but this time, it just hung there, like he couldn’t decide what to do with.
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- it.
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She stared at him, her eyes as steady as a rock. “Forget about making me say sorry. Or else, I won’t hesitate to finish her off.”
Her feelings for the Sterling family had fizzled out ages ago, snuffed out by their own doing in her previous life.
Matthew looked like he’d seen a ghost, wondering why Sabrina had changed so much out of the blue.
He said in disbelief, “Wh–what the hell happened to you, huh? How come years of living overseas didn’t straighten you up but got you more full of yourself instead?”
Once upon a time, Sabrina was an absolute angel. But ever since she got back from abroad, she’d done a complete 180.
Instead of being the loving soul she used to be, she turned into a real piece of work–spiteful and selfish, like a porcupine all bristled up.
Over the past six months, Matthew only found himself more and more disappointed in her, his adopted daughter.
Sabrina’s gaze still lingered on her father. Thick tension was swinging in the air.
And in that split–second, it hit her like a ton of bricks–Matthew would never treat her the way he did with Brianna.
After all, she wasn’t his real daughter.
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While Sabrina was in the middle of the storm, it was a whole different story at Brimmma’s bedside.
There, it was all warm fuzzies and concern
Surrounded by people who adored her, Brianna was pampered like a princess, happy and carefree.
It was just ridiculous.
Sabrina had never felt an ounce of that kind of love in her whole life, not even on her deathbed.
She decided she’d had enough of this charade.
Standing up, Sabrina dusted off her knees like there was something there, and said, “I’ll skip your family soap opera. Golla get out of here.”
With a cold look at the lot of them, Sabrina spun on her heel and walked away.
In her past life, the Sterlings had never shown her love, and in the end, they’d taken her life.
She’d already given her all to the Sterling family, so, Sabrina decided that she owed them nothing.
“Stop right there.”
A cold, authoritative voice cut through the air.
Chapter 1 A Second Chance
Sabrina glanced back at her so–called eldest brother, James Sterling.
“Stay out of the way, bummer,” she quipped.
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“What kind of attitude is that? I’m your big brother, for heaven’s sake!”
With that, James stepped forward, his eyes narrowing.
He grabbed her wrist tightly, disbelief plastered on his face. Even if Sabrina had had some bad ideas before, she’d never dared to openly defy him.
My big brother? You don’t even come close. Just a big bag of hypocrisy.
A flash of disgust crossed Sabrina’s face as she thought so.
“Get your hands off me, you creep,” she hissed, shoving him away like he was a slug.
James wasn’t ready for her strength. He almost–lost his balance.
Immediately, his anger flared up. “Sabrina, what the hell is wrong with you? You pushed Brianna down the stairs and almost killed her, and you can’t even own up to it? What kind of sister are you? You’re so messed up.”
I almost killed Brianna?
Chapter 1 A Second Chance
She almost died?
If that’s the case, I’d be six feet under a dozen times over.
nas
James, you’re still the same old story–putting on a show of being a fair brother, but always siding with Brianna.
At the thought, Sabrina glanced at Brianna, the center of the show, only to find it funny.
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She taunted, “Are you all blind? She doesn’t look like a patient at all. I don’t get it. Is she really that good at acting or are you just as dumb as rocks?”
Brianna’s cheeks were rosy, and the scrape on her arm had healed ages ago. Also, a bunch of people were there at her
service.
In sharp contrast, Sabrina was as pale as a ghost, looking more like the one on the sickbed.
Kyle Sterling, their second brother, stared daggers at Sabrina.
His veins popped out on his forehead as he said through gritted teeth, “Sabrina, the audacity! Who are you to talk about Brianna like that? If it weren’t for you, she wouldn’t have gotten hurt!”
As he spoke, Kyle tightened his fists, his eyes blazing with hostility. “She’s always been such a sweetheart and never hurt you! You’re just green–eyed and full of spite.”
The look on his face made it clear that Sabrina was his
Chapter 1 A Second Chance number–one enemy.
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Sabrina was pretty sure that if Brianna wasn’t in the room, Kyle would go for her throat. In his eyes, she was just a pain in the ass that might scare off Brianna.
She loathed Kyle even more than James.
With a sneer, Sabrina retorted, “Who the hell do you think you are? And what’s the deal with the Sterlings anyway? You call this spite?”
Out of the blue, Sabrina marched up to the bedside. Before anyone could blink, she landed a stinging slap on Brianna’s face.
“Idiot! Now that’s what I call spite!”
The rush of satisfaction she felt was almost intoxicating.
Back in the day, before the rightful heiress, Brianna, made her return, Matthew took James and Kyle under his wing.
They were like the brothers from a fairytale, spoiling Sabrina rotten. But once Brianna was in the picture, they became the sharp blades that pierced straight through Sabrina’s heart.
To her, they were full–blown abusers.
Sabrina moved like lightning, catching everyone around her off–guard.
Matthew’s face went as white as a sheet, and he sprang up from
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his seat. “You’re out of your mind! How could you hit your own sister?”
He rushed forward and shielded Brianna protectively, soothing her, “Don’t worry, Brianna, Daddy’s here. No one’s gonna lay a finger on you.”
“She’s lost it,” the two brothers said, standing in front of Sabrina defensively, their expressions guarded.
Seeing them team up against her, Sabrina felt like laughing out of sheer disbelief.
She was dying to know why they all believed that she was the bad guy while Brianna was always the innocent one.
Sabrina wasn’t in the mood for the farce.
She raised an eyebrow, gave the Sterlings a cold look, and declared, “Keep getting on my nerves, and I’ll turn this into a bigger mess.”
Sabrina was out of her mind; she wouldn’t deny it.
And the Sterlings themselves were behind it.
Snuggled up in her father’s arms, Brianna covered her face and whined pitifully, “Sabrina, did I do something wrong? Please don’t hate me. I’m your sister.”
“You’re not my sister. I don’t have a father or a mother.” Sabrina. shot her a disdainful look.
Chapter 1 A Second Chance “Sabrina.”
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Brianna called out again, her eyes welled up with tears right away. She looked all sad and pitiful.
“Ugh, Brianna, aren’t you sick of playing the victim?” Sabrina scoffed.
Ever since she could remember, that was Brianna’s go–to move, and the dimwitted Sterlings always fell for it.
Without giving Brianna a chance to reply, Sabrina continued, “If you want me out of the Sterling family, just keep your mouth
shut.”
Brianna pressed her lips together and finally chose to stay silent.
The room fell into an icy silence.
Then Sabrina declared firmly, “I’ll transfer all the money I’ve taken from the Sterling family to Mr. Matthew Sterling’s
account.”
“What are you up to?” Matthew’s eyes widened in bewilderment, his brows furrowing.
Realizing her implication, he added, “Don’t you forget who’s been footing the bill for you all these years. I’ve been so blind, raising an ungrateful brat like you. And now, you turn on your own old man.”
Chapter 1 A Second Chance
In Matthew’s mind, he’d babied her too much, spoiling her rotten over the years.
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Sabrina forced a bitter smile. “Yeah, that’s right. But I’m just an adopted daughter, not your flesh and blood. Otherwise, you wouldn’t have sent me away for five years and let me fend for myself, right?”
As she finished, memories of those years overseas welled up, filling her with a seething resentment..
She’d begged Matthew countless times before to come get her, but he’d never bothered.
“You hate me?” Matthew was shocked as he caught the hatred glinting in her eyes. His heart sank.
He stared at the hearing aid in Sabrina’s left ear in a daze, and a twinge of guilt shot through him, but it vanished in a flash as he thought of the past.
“Don’t you forget it was all your fault. Sending you away was for your own good,” he uttered, with a silent warning lurking. beneath.
A shiver ran down Sabrina’s spine.
“I’m moving out today,” she blurted out, trying to hold back her emotions.
The Sterling family wasn’t worth a single ounce of her feelings.
Chapter 1 A Second Chance
“Mr. Matthew Sterling, our father–daughter relationship is
over.”
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As soon as she said that, the others exchanged looks, stunned.
The Sterling family had significant status in Los Angeles. Even if one didn’t excel, being part of that family still guaranteed a life of leisure that many could only dream of.
But Sabrina, the fool in their eyes, had the audacity to just walk
away.
Brianna observed the scene unfolding, feeling satisfied.
“Sabrina, I know you’re just joking. Please don’t be mad at Dad. It’s my fault for making you unhappy.”
Sabrina cooled her face.
This bitch is pathetic. She deserves an Oscar.
Since I’ve been reborn, if someone annoys me, I’ll kick their
asses!
She muscled her way through the crowd and landed a stinging slap on Brianna’s face.
Then, she seized Brianna by the throat and tightened her hold.
“Didn’t your mama ever teach you not to bult in when others are speaking? Keep this up, and I might just change my mind about leaving.”
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Brianna’s face turned purple from the pressure. She was gasping for air and on the verge of passing out.
Finally, there was a hint of fear in her eyes.
Seeing that she was on the verge of suffocating, Sabrina let go.
It wasn’t until then that the Sterlings all breathed a sigh of relief.
James and Kyle’s faces darkened as they failed to protect Brianna.
Watching his sister get slapped and nearly strangled sent Kyle into a rage.
“Sabrina, you want to die?” Kyle yelled, swinging his fist toward her face.
Just as his punch was about to land on her face, Sabrina sidestepped and delivered a fierce kick to him.
The blow landed with tremendous force, and Kyle let out a grunt, collapsing to the ground like a rag doll.
“What a loser,” Sabrina snorted, watching as he coughed up blood and struggled on the ground, unable to get up.
In her previous life, the entire Los Angeles had gossiped about how she was spoiled, vicious, and foolish.
What they didn’t know was that she had always obeyed the
Chapter 1 A Second Chance
Sterlings, desperate to protect the very people who now despised her.
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The resoluteness on Sabrina’s face left Matthew momentarily
stunned.
He didn’t even bother to reprimand her for hitting Brianna and Kyle.
“Y–you… You really wanna cut ties with me?” Matthew, completely distraught, blurted out.
For a fleeting moment, he felt like he was about to lose something truly precious.
“Yeah, I do,” Sabrina answered without a second thought.
She couldn’t give a hoot about what they thought of her.
Matthew laughed out of sheer anger, “Once you’re out of the Sterling family, you’re nobody. I won’t give you a cent. You sure you’ve thought this through?”
“Yep. I will never regret it,” Sabrina retorted firmly.
“Then get out of here! Once you cross that threshold, don’t you ever think about coming back,” Matthew roared, seething with fury as he chucked the bowl in his hand at her.
He couldn’t believe the young girl had the balls to follow through.
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In his eyes, Sabrina couldn’t make it on her own without him.
Staring at the shattered bowl on the floor, Sabrina felt nothing deep down.
At the age of three, she was adopted by Matthew.
At first, Matthew had doted on her. However, it all changed a year later when he brought back his biological daughter and her mother, Hailey Sterling.
They’d once had their good old days as father and daughter, but now, those memories shattered, like the broken bowl that was beyond repair.
After leaving the hospital, Sabrina headed to Fridman Group with her luggage in tow.
In her previous life, she had learned from Hailey that her biological father was the business tycoon, Theodore.
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