Ella closed her eyes, and she felt her soul leave her flesh. She stood just above her lifeless body.
Isn't life extraordinary? In her wildest dreams, never had she ever thought one day she would see herself in such a sorry state. She thought 'who would want to see themselves like this? Even the craziest person would not want to see themselves like this'.
While in her thoughts, she heard footsteps getting louder. She turned to the direction the footsteps were coming from and a person walked towards where body laid.
The person continued to walk towards her lifeless body. Unfortunately, it was dark, and all she could make out was, the person was a woman but not her identity. The woman approached her body and knelt down. It was then that Ella could make out the face, the woman was none other than her eldest sister, Maria Palmer.
Ella felt sorry for her sister. She thought her sister would be hurt seeing her in this state, however laughter pierced through Ella's thoughts. Her sister's sudden laughter confused Ella. 'Has my sister gone into hysterics from seeing my dead body'. Ella was so worried seeing her sister like this, she wanted to apologise for the pain she had caused her sister and tell her she loved her very much.
Maria continued to laugh "ha ha ha Ella, Ella, Ella. Never have I, in my wildest dreams thought you were this stupid. Finally, you're out of my way, from now on everything belongs to me." said Maria. Her sister continued to laugh at her Ella's dead body, but Ella thought Maria was hurt by her death. Hearing Maria's words, Ella's mind went blank for a moment.
'What does she mean by this?' Ella thought. 'Was her sister happy because she had died? No, no, no why would she be? But my sister said just now, with her own mouth. Why is she behaving like this?' Ella could not believe her ears, nor could she ignore her sister's statement Ella could not understand. Her sister loved her the most, she doted on her.
Ella's stood there trying to process everything when she heard "now I am the only daughter of the Palmer family. I am the only heir to the estate uncle Israel has. I wonder how he will feel when he finally realises that all his estate will end up in the hands of the brother he never wanted to acknowledge. I am the next CEO of Palmers Inc. And oh, the future Mrs Xavier McCann. I wonder how sister will feel knowing I beat her to taking him away from you." said Maria cheerfully. Ella felt so confused, 'Papa has a brother? I thought I was Maria's only sister? what is she talking about? Who are these people?' Ella was lost in her thoughts.
Ella stood there, she felt cold all over as if her body had been suddenly drenched in ice water. She couldn't process what was happening fast enough. It dawned on her; Maria had killed her. She planned the abduction, she planned her murder, her sister Maria Palmer that she loved the most and trusted unconditionally had planned her demise. No, she's no sister of mine. Ella could not believe her eyes and ears. Her sister, Maria Palmer had killed her. Her sister that she had always cherished, her sister that she had always believed to be kind, loving and gentle had killed her.
Just because Maria wanted everything from her father, she had killed her own kin. How cruel could she be? To kill the one person who loved her so unconditionally, trusted her so blindly. Suddenly memories of her arguments with Xavier came flooding her memory. Ella had misunderstood him. 'Xavier had never cheated on me. He could never and he didn't' thought Ella sadly. Then Maria's voice broke into her thoughts. "oh Ella, Ella, Ella, how foolish you have been. You're stupid that you believed Xavier would cheat on you." Maria mocked. "What? Did you feed your brains to the dogs? What a fool. Grandma will be so proud of me. Finally, after so many years, I can go home and bring wealth to my family" mocked Maria.
Ella started laughing crazily. Her life was a joke, the worst joke she'd ever witnessed. Just because she trusted her evil sister, she'd hurt the one person who'd loved, protected, and cared for her, only her. 'Father has a family?' she thought.
"Ella, because of you, Xavier never looked at me. He only sees you and only loves you. Do you know how much I hate you and for how long I've hated you, Ella? He always looked at you with so much love in his eyes, as if the world begins and ends with you, but you always just ignored him. Still, Xavier treats you like you're the most precious jewel of his life. I have loved him for over a decade, he never cared for me, not even a little bit". Said Maria.
Maria glared at Ella's dead body with hatred and continued her speech; "He always ignores me just because you don't like it when he looks at other women. Do you know how much effort I put into getting his love and care? Only because of you, he looked at me like I don't even exist in his eyes". Maria paused seemingly caught in her memories, then continued. "Even our parents always gave you everything you wanted. They also only cared for you only loved you. So, for Xavier and everything else I had to do this. See I had to make you vanish from our lives. From now on, you'll be out of our lives for good. Next week Xavier will marry me; I will be Mrs Xavier McCann, ME. So, you see my dear foolish sister, I won" Maria giggled.
Ella stood there frozen as every argument she'd had with her parents and Xavier played out in her mind. She stood there unable to digest everything Maria had just told her. Maria sounded like a maniac, but she sure had points. she Ella had been a fool.
"Come here" called out Maria. Two men walked over to Ella and Maria. Maria stood up and ordered "Toss her body in the ocean. Make sure no one can find her body". She looked at back at Ella's body with a smile and said "Goodbye little sis. Let's not meet in your next life. If we meet again in our next life, your life will be the same as this. This is your fate". Maria turned on her heels and walked away.
Ella begun cursing herself. Because of Maria, she had hurt everyone, not only that, but she could also not make amends because this crazy witch had killed her. Ella cried uncontrollably, suddenly her vision became blurred, and everything turned pitch black.
꧁ ........ ꧂
Ella's eyes trembled as she hesitated to open them, however she could no longer continue sleeping. She opened her eyes, the room was bright, and the surface she laid on felt familiar. Ella sat up; the bed was enormous. 'Where am I? ' Ella wondered. Ella looked around, and everything looked so familiar to her yet strange. Ella pulled herself into a kneeling position on her bed while she looked around. As she took everything in, her eyes widened, and her jaw dropped in disbelief. 'This is my room!' Elle thought and fell back into a sitting position. 'Did they inject me with a hallucinogenic substance of some sort' she thought to herself. 'NO, NO, NO IMPOSSIBLE' shouted Ella in her mind.
Ella closed her eyes and opened them; she was met with the same scene. Ella repeated this numerous times before drawing one long breathe to calm her nerves. She realised she wasn't dreaming; this is all real. With eyes wide opened, Ella was baffled. She jumped off her bed, quickly dashed to her bathroom. Ella looked into the mirror, touching face, she could not believe what she saw. There were no scars on her face, meaning, she had not been kidnapped yet. Ella released the breath she was holding. She walked over to where her phone was charging and checked for time and date. 'What? Thursday,14th April XXXX' Ella thought. This means her wedding was Saturday, the coming week.
Ella sat down trying to process everything. When she had run away from her wedding, someone had kidnapped her. She ran away from the wedding because she thought Xavier had cheated on her. After leaving her hotel suite in a fit of rage, someone had kidnapped her. That someone had gone as far as to ruin her face with acid, and it turned out this was all her elder sister, Maria's plan. Ella clearly remembered the pain, she remembered Maria's mini monologue over her dead body, she remembered how her sister killed her using her own trust and love against her. She remembered how her sister is plotting on stealing her father's wealth to give to her long-lost uncle. 'If all the pain and memory are real, does that mean i had been reborn?' Thought Ella.
'Oh my god, I have been reborn. Given a chance to make things right. Protect my family' Ella felt like someone had dropped a massive blessing from sky to her lap.
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To say Ella was shocked was an understatement. She clearly remembered everything, her life before the pain, the pain before her death and the finality of her death. She was so sure that everything was real. She marvelled 'I have truly been reborn. Am I really here? In this world or is this just life's way of showing me what I have lost?' She felt dizzy from all that she had experienced since she opened her eyes.
With a 'thud', Ella sat on the floor of her bathroom. Her breathing erratic, her heart beating fiercely, her emotions threatening to spill over and mind spinning. She struggled to understand what was happening. Finally, she closed her eyes and tried to calm herself through breathing exercises. At that moment, her dead body in all its miserable state flashed before her eyes. She opened her eyes as fast as she had closed them with a shiver running down her spine.
She always thought rebirth and reincarnation were nothing but old folk tales to give hope to those suffering. She had believed there would be some ritual, an offering or something, but here she sat, numb, not knowing how to feel about this opportunity. But look at her life now. This old folk tale has given her a new lease on life, a chance to make amends, a chance to protect her parents how they had protected her, to love Xavier how he had loved her and most of all to ensure her father's company does not end up in the hands of the enemy, whomever they were.
Ella laughed with glee; she couldn't remember the last time she was this excited. The Gods have granted her dying wish. Before her death, all she asked for was a chance to prove herself to the man who'd loved her with his all, a chance to be filial to her loving parents. Now she can protect her parents, Xavier and change her fate.
The thought of Xavier brought tears to her eyes; now that she's been given this opportunity, she would love him unconditionally. She will show that evil bitch Maria exactly who Ella Palmer is. Just because she loved and cherished that bitch in the past, she took advantage of her kindness and trust and made a fool out of her. 'Maria, I will make you pay for everything you have cost me' vowed Ella in her heart.
'Maria, you want to be Mrs Xavier McCann so bad, keep dreaming. I am the only Mrs Xavier McCann. I will show you why you always felt in danger in my presence. I will step on you, your dreams and your families wishful thinking. I will crush you like the parasite you are. You have seen a sister who loved and trusted you blindly, but now you will see the demon that resides deep down' Ella promised.
Ella stood up from the floor, stepped into her ensuite. She took a quick shower and washed her hair. she could not shake the feeling of being dirty after those thugs and her 'sister' touched her. Once she towel-dried her hair, Ella chose to wear high waist jeans, white oversized t-shirt and sneakers. It had been a long time since she dressed so casually. Maria always told her as the young miss of the Palmer's Ella had to maintain her status by dressing extravagant at all times. Ella put lip balm while admiring her clear olive skin tone.
Ella headed downstairs. Her parents sat at the dining table and Aunt Josie was serving breakfast. With the absence of Maria from the table, Ella made her way to her seat and thought 'at least I'll be able to enjoy my breakfast with my parents. If I saw that witch now, I just might accidentally on purpose stab her in the eye with a fruit knife' sneering in her heart.
Ella looked at her parents with a pleasant smile. Her father, Israel Palmer, was generally a stern and gloomy man but to her mother, his wife, he was a gentle and loving husband who doted on her. In other words, he was hopeless against his wife.
Her mother, Sarah Palmer, was a cheerful and gentle woman who was always extremely affectionate towards her husband, in private and in public. Ella never knew any other family besides these two. In fact, if not Maria's little revelation, Ella would have continued to believe her parents were two orphans who happened to be smiled upon by fortune. Well, she was sure her father was smiled upon by fortune considering his brother had even snuck a child in to steal everything. You see she never asked about her parents' families, all she knew is that her Paternal grandmother was a baker, and her grandfather an army general. Her mother said her father was a businessman and her mother was a stay-at-home mom. neither ever mentioned siblings.
Aunt Josie was the Palmer's housekeeper. She and butler Joe were responsible for the Palmer's day-to-day domestic life. Ella was not sure when they joined the family but for as long as she could remember these two have always been around. Aunt Josie pretty much ran the house, the trust her parents afforded her always made her feel like she was family. As for Uncle Joe, Ella remembered this man as always being by her father's side until she was 5 then he became Butler Jo.
Other than that rotten witch, Maria, everyone generally loved her. Ella was treated like a princess. She understood everything after her rebirth. Ella had always thought that Maria was her biological sister. The actual truth was, Maria was adopted.
Her parents struggled for years to conceive after their marriage, even with all the technology and medicine they just couldn't. Eventually they gave up and adopted a baby girl. They poured their love and care into that child as every other parent do. A year after Maria's arrival at the Palmer's household, they discovered Sarah was pregnant. The Palmer's were blessed with a beautiful baby girl and named her Ella.
Although it was only a year after they adopted Maria that they conceived Ella, not once did they neglect Maria. They continued to love her as their own flesh and blood. Sometimes Ella would feel envious when she saw her parents love and spoil her elder sister. Ella never held any grudge towards Maria, in-fact she was happy for sister. However, when a person gets blinded by jealousy and nurture limitless greed, they lose their humility and become dangerous, as Maria had.
Ella looked up and looked between her parents. She could barely hold the tears that broke out with a loud sob, telling them how much she loved and missed them as she was dying. She had been angry with them, because she'd always felt that her parents pushed her into the marriage with Xavier. She believed they ignored her thoughts and feelings, but now she understood why they had granted and advocated for this union. Her parents always knew what was best for her. They knew what was best for their daughter's future and they always wanted the best for Ella.
Ella stood up, walked towards her father and hugged him from the back. This shocked Sarah and Israel. Her father tilted his head and looked at his daughter, instantly his facial expression softened.
"Baby, what happened?" Asked her father.
Her mother still dazed in disbelief. Sarah and Israel knew their daughter did not want to marry Xavier, but still they pushed for the marriage. That was why Ella stopped talking to them, and her sudden action had shocked them to the core. "Nothing daddy, I just want to thank you for your love and care" said Ella in a shaky emotional voice. 'I'm sorry dad, because of some fake witch, I hurt everyone who's ever loved me' thought Ella. She could not say her last thought out loud, she didn't have the guts.
Ella felt she'd already hurt her parents enough for all her lifetimes, she would not hurt them anymore. Ella vowed she would bring her parents pride and joy for the rest of their days. Her tears fell without her knowing as she locked her death story away in her heart. When Sarah saw the tears falling on her daughter's face, she felt like someone had squeezed her heart too hard as she struggled to adjust her breathing. Sarah also began crying.
"Darling, we know we're forcing this marriage with Xavier on to you, but please trust us. We feel he is the most suitable person for you. He will love only you with his whole heart for the rest of his life. We can only trust him with your happiness," said her father. To a father the safety and happiness of his daughter mattered the most. A daughter is like the father's mother.
Ella looked up and said "Dad, mom, I was wrong. I know what my heart wants. I also know that mom and dad only want what's best for me. Now that I've calmed down and my heart and mind are one; even if Xavier doesn't want to marry me, I will force him" she gave a proud and bright smile as if she were an empress who'd just handed down an official decree.
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