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After My Best Friend's Family Slept, I Burned the House
NovelShort
new
Completed
My best friend's house was hit by the typhoon and couldn't be lived in, so she begged me to take her whole family in for a while. I told myself she was my only best friend. Letting them stay a few days wouldn't hurt. But after her family moved in. My treasured red wine, the luxury goods I'd just bought. All of it was taken by my best friend and her younger brother. And my expensive jewelry kept going missing, again and again.
Chapters (4)
第1章
My best friend's house was uninhabitable after a hurricane, so she begged me to take her whole family in for a while.
I figured she was my only real friend.
Letting them stay a few days wouldn't hurt.
But once the whole family had moved in.
The red wine I'd been saving, the designer things I'd just bought.
All of it disappeared, taken by my best friend and her brother.
My expensive jewelry started vanishing too, piece after piece.
When I finally understood how serious it had gotten.
I told them to leave.
That very night.
My best friend's brother forced himself on me.
And my best friend, along with their parents.
Just stood in the doorway with their arms crossed, laughing.
In the end I was strangled to death.
Their family buried my body under a tree in the garden.
Then forged a suicide note and seized everything I owned.
When I opened my eyes again.
I was back a few days before Lewis Simmons assaulted me.
I slipped quietly out of bed and left the bedroom, meaning to catch them while they were still asleep.
And burn this house to the ground.
...
The moment I stepped out of my room, the living room was pitch black and dead quiet.
I crept toward the storage room on the balls of my feet.
Remembering the humiliation of my last life.
I decided to make the whole family pay.
They loved taking over my house, didn't they?
Then I'd set it on fire.
And burn them all with it.
After I dug the gas can out of the storage room.
And turned to leave.
The living room light flicked on.
I froze where I stood, my heart stopping cold.
Because there, at the turn of the staircase.
A pair of cold eyes was fixed on me.
"Irma Pruitt."
"You're still up this late?"
"Can't sleep again?"
My best friend's mother came toward me, looking puzzled.
The smile on her face was gentle and kind.
But to me.
That smile was pure ice.
Because she was the one who ordered her son to assault me.
I forced a hard swallow.
And pushed a faint smile onto my face.
"Maura Simmons, why are you awake?"
"Oh, I couldn't sleep."
"Lewis and his girlfriend are on the verge of breaking up."
"He cried all night."
I knew about this. In my last life I'd even comforted Lewis, told him not to take it so hard.
Only for him to turn his eyes on me the very next day.
"Her family thinks we're too poor."
"They don't want to marry their daughter off to Lewis."
"As his parents, it eats at us too."
"Who doesn't want to be rich?"
"But rich people are the few, aren't they?"
I nodded. "Maura, maybe Lewis just hasn't met the right one yet. Don't worry yourself over it."
"Well."
My best friend's mother let out a long sigh.
"Hm?"
Only then did she notice the gas can in my hand.
"Irma, what's that you're carrying?"
"It almost looks like a gas can."
My heart slammed against my ribs all at once.
The cold sweat came before I could stop it.
If she caught on to what I meant to do.
There was a very good chance I wouldn't live to see the morning sun.
"Maura, I remembered my car's low on gas. I was worried I wouldn't make it to a station tomorrow."
"So since I couldn't sleep, I figured I'd top it off."
She took the gas can out of my hand.
"You're a young lady of this house. Leave the heavy, dirty work for Lewis to do tomorrow."
"I'll go make you a glass of milk."
A moment later.
She handed me the milk she'd fixed.
"A glass of milk helps you sleep."
I stared at the milk.
But I couldn't bring myself to reach for it.
Because I knew.
She'd put something in it.
第2章
"Irma, what's wrong?"
"Nothing, Maura."
I made myself take the glass of milk.
"It's cooled down now. Drink up."
My best friend's mother pressed me to finish it.
If I didn't, she'd get suspicious.
So I drank it down in one go, right there in front of her.
A strange smile crossed her face. "Good girl. You'll sleep well tonight. Good night."
"Good night, Maura."
I turned and went back to my room, and once the door was shut,
I rushed straight to the bathroom and forced my fingers down my throat.
The milk I'd just swallowed
came back up in seconds.
Ten minutes later.
Knock, knock, knock.
Someone was at my door.
Then
her mother's voice came through it.
"Irma, are you asleep?"
My eyes were open, but I didn't answer.
After a moment,
Lucretia's brother's voice came from the hall.
"Mom, is the little heiress out?"
"She's asleep."
"But she's locked the door from the inside."
"What? Locked it?"
"Then how am I supposed to get the jewelry?"
"Relax. I've got a way."
I don't know what her mother did,
but somehow that dead-bolted door swung open.
I lay on the bed with my eyes shut, not daring to move a muscle.
I heard them clearly, creeping into my room.
And just then,
Lucretia came in too.
"Keep it quiet, get in and get out. Don't wake her."
"She won't wake up. I put sleeping pills in the milk she drank."
"She's out cold, sleeping like the dead."
"Don't believe me? Look."
Her mother walked to the bed.
She even lifted my hand and swung it around a couple of times.
When I didn't react,
Lewis laughed.
"Ha, dead to the world, all right."
"Mom, how much did you put in?"
"Careful she doesn't wake up at all."
Lewis said it without a care. "Better if she never wakes up."
"She's just lucky, born into a rich family."
"Never wanted for a thing her whole life. Everything she owns is expensive."
"Look at this gold necklace. Worth a hundred grand, easy."
"If I had money like hers,
my girlfriend would marry me in a heartbeat."
Lucretia patted her brother's shoulder.
"All right, quit feeling sorry for yourself."
"You want a car, you want a house, you want money for a dowry."
"Haven't I handed you a fat sheep to fleece?"
"She's dumb as a rock, no brains at all."
"A whole drawer of expensive jewelry."
"She'll never notice a few pieces missing."
"Grab it and let's go."
Lewis scooped up a few gold pieces,
and just as they were about to leave,
her mother said suddenly, "Sweetheart, we've come this far anyway."
"Why not..."
"In for a penny, in for a pound."
"Just make her disappear."
Lucretia's voice dropped. "Not yet, Mom."
"Why not?"
"Haven't I been working like crazy to copy her handwriting?"
"There are still a few flaws."
"If something happens to her now,
I can't promise the suicide note will fool the police."
Her mother asked, "So we keep waiting?"
"Mm. Give it a couple more days."
"You can't rush these things."
"She's already in the bag."
"No hurry over a day or two."
Her mother mulled it over for a moment,
and in the end she agreed with her daughter.
Once the three of them had left the room,
once I heard the door close,
I couldn't hold it in any longer and gulped for air.
Cold sweat poured off my whole body.
A little closer,
and I'd never have seen tomorrow's sun.
第3章
My heart had been slamming so hard it hurt, and only now did it start to settle.
I picked up my phone, ready to call the police.
Then I stopped.
I held back.
There wasn't enough evidence yet.
And even if I could get them charged, the most they'd face was theft.
A few years inside, and they'd be right back out.
I remembered the humiliation and death that had ended my last life.
I decided to let my revenge come harder than that.
They'd already stolen my jewelry tonight.
They probably wouldn't come back.
Little by little, I drifted off to sleep.
Early the next morning.
My best friend's mother had made breakfast.
The moment she saw me come out of the bedroom, she waved me over.
I walked to her.
"Irma, you must have slept well after that milk last night."
I nodded with a smile. "I did, ma'am. Slept straight through till morning."
"You just feel things too deeply. That's why you can't sleep."
Just then Lucretia came down the stairs.
"Want me to sleep in your room tonight?"
I looked at her. "It's fine. I'm used to sleeping alone."
"Honestly, what am I going to do with you."
"If you still can't sleep tonight,"
"remember to call me."
I gave a small hum. "Sure."
It wasn't until after breakfast that I noticed Lewis hadn't shown his face all morning.
When I asked, they told me.
He'd taken my car to go see his girlfriend.
Lucretia caught my hand.
"You won't be upset that my brother took your car, will you? You're my best friend."
I shook my head. "Not at all."
"Thank you."
"You're the best."
Not long after, my best friend's mother left carrying a bag of something.
She said she was taking out the trash.
But I knew perfectly well.
There was no trash in that bag.
It was the expensive lobster and prime rib.
They'd stayed at my place for a few days now.
And they'd nearly cleaned my home out.
Still.
I glanced up at the clock on the wall.
Watching the seconds tick away.
I knew.
Something even more outrageous was about to play out.
Toward evening.
Lewis drove my car back.
He came with a pretty girl beside him.
She was his girlfriend, Gwendolen Stanley.
In my last life.
Lewis had used my car to bring his girlfriend to my house.
And lied that the place was his.
While I.
I was the "maid" he'd hired.
Back then, in a fit of anger, I'd told Gwendolen the truth.
And demanded the whole family move out.
That same night, I met a brutal end.
This life.
I wasn't about to make the same mistake again.
So when Lewis strolled into the living room with his arm around his girlfriend, playing the young master, I decided to play along.
第4章
“Baby, I'm done pretending. Time to lay it all out.”
“The truth is, my family's loaded.”
“This right here is my real home!”
Lewis said all this to the girl beside him.
Then shot me a look, quick.
I caught it and nodded.
“What?”
Gwendolen's face went blank with shock.
“Lewis, this... this mansion is really yours?”
“Of course.”
“Don't believe me? Ask her.”
“Who's she?”
Gwendolen looked at me.
“The maid we hired.”
Playing along, I walked over and bowed to them.
“Young master.”
“Mm.”
Lewis nodded, soaking up every second of it.
“Huh?”
“This young a... maid?”
Gwendolen eyed me, half in doubt.
“My mom hired her.”
“I thought she was too young to be any good, but turns out she works hard.”
“Well? Go make the tea.”
“Yes, young master.”
I hurried off to make it right away.
Seeing that I really was the ‘maid,’ Gwendolen was over the moon. “Baby, if your family's this rich, why lie to my parents that you had no money? They were furious.”
“Ah, my mom says a family shouldn't flaunt its wealth. She told me to keep it low-key.”
“Here. A gift for you.”
He pulled the stolen gold necklace out of his pocket.
Gwendolen couldn't stop grinning.
Lucretia came out of her room, said hello to Gwendolen.
Then came to the tea station to explain herself to me.
I smiled and told her it was fine.
She gripped my hand. “Sis, I was really scared you'd be angry.”
“How could I be angry when it helps your brother?”
“You're the best friend a girl could ever have.”
Smiling, I carried the finished tea out.
That evening, after Gwendolen ate dinner at the house,
Lewis walked her out.
No telling what the two of them talked about.
When he came back, Lewis was oddly worked up.
“Mom, sis, Gwendolen agreed to marry me.”
“But she says she's bringing her parents over in a couple of days.”
Lucretia pursed her lips. “Let them come, then.”
“Her parents are sharp. I don't think they'll be that easy to fool.”
“If this slips, I'll never marry Gwendolen in my life.”
A vicious glint flashed through Lucretia's mother's eyes.
Then she asked her daughter. “How's your part coming along?”
“I practiced another eight hours today.”
“It should be ready.”
Lewis shot to his feet. “No sense dragging it out. We do it tonight!”
“What are you all talking about?”
I came in from the garden to the living room.
The moment they saw me, their faces changed.
Lewis frowned and asked me in a low voice. “You... heard all that?”
I nodded. “I did.”
Lewis turned and traded a look with his mother.
Maura narrowed her eyes, signaling him to move.
Lewis didn't waste a moment.
He strode straight at me.