Chapter 1

In my past life, my sister was assaulted by the mentally disabled guy next door.

My parents called the police, and the guy's grandmother cried harder than my sister ever did, claiming my sister had seduced her grandson.

Everyone treated my sister like a joke. She dropped out of school, we moved, and she never left the house again.

A month later she swallowed a whole bottle of sleeping pills, and they couldn't save her.

Three months later, the disabled guy assaulted another girl the same way.

The police found a diary in his house that recorded the name, time, place, and even the details of every girl he had assaulted.

It turned out he wasn't disabled at all.

He'd used the disability as a disguise to assault more than a dozen women.

Overwhelmed with grief, I wasn't careful and got hit by a truck, thrown through the air.

When I opened my eyes again, I was back at the moment the disabled guy knocked on our door.

He stood in our doorway, wearing that harmless, silly grin.

"Bella, is your sister home? I want to talk to her."

I stared hard at his face, then stretched out my short little arms and shoved him with all my strength.

"Get out! You're not welcome in my house!"

Section 1

Cornelius froze in the doorway.

That seemingly foolish face now held a flicker of shrewdness, so faint it was almost invisible.

He quickly slipped back into that dumb, pitiful look.

"Bella, do you hate me too?"

I blocked the doorway, gripping the doorknob for dear life.

In my past life, this exact expression had fooled everyone.

It made my sister let her guard down, and that was how he assaulted her.

"Yes, I hate you. Don't come back here again."

I tipped my head up and glared at him fiercely.

His eyes went red, his lips twisted, and he broke into tears.

"You all hate me, you all say I'm stupid, nobody will play with me."

Hearing the commotion, my sister came out of the kitchen and quickly pulled me back.

"What's going on here? Cornelius, come inside, don't stand out there crying in this heat."

Like he'd found someone to hide behind, Cornelius shoved me aside and threw himself against my sister.

He was a grown man now, half a head taller than my sister, and every time he'd grab her arm and nuzzle it like a little kid.

"Melody, Bella thinks I'm dumb and won't play with me. You play with me."

He'd knocked me down onto the floor, my backside aching from the fall.

But I couldn't spare a thought for the pain. I scrambled up and rushed over to yank him off her.

"Let go of my sister! You're not allowed to touch her! Get out!"

My sister let go of Cornelius's hand and pulled me to the side.

"Bella, what's gotten into you today? You always welcome Cornelius when he comes over, don't you?"

I pressed my lips together tight, tears swimming in my eyes.

"He's a bad person, I hate him, make him leave."

My sister frowned. "Bella, you can't be so rude."

Cornelius hunched his neck down, one finger stuck in his mouth like a three-year-old. The neighbors all called him a fool behind his back.

"Melody, I'm not a bad person. I like playing with you and your sister."

"Bella, I'm not stupid. My grandma says I'm just slower to react than other people."

He pulled the wet finger out of his mouth and reached to grab me, and I stepped back in disgust.

"Don't touch me!"

I screamed and dodged away, my voice so shrill it startled even me.

My sister froze, and Cornelius's hand stopped in midair.

Then he suddenly clutched his head and crouched down.

"Don't hit me, I'm not stupid, I'll be good…"

That was exactly how it went in my past life. The second anyone said something harsh, he'd instantly put on a frightened act to win sympathy.

My sister quickly crouched down and gently rubbed his back.

"It's okay, no one's going to hit you."

She shot me a displeased look.

"Bella, Cornelius has a brain injury. You're going to scare him."

She helped him sit on the couch. "Sit down, let me get you a glass of water."

"No, I don't want you to leave, I'm scared."

He gripped her arm tight and rubbed it hard a couple of times, leaving several red marks on her pale skin.

But excitement flickered in his eyes, and his throat bobbed.

"Then send Bella instead…"

"I'm not going!"

I lunged over and forced myself between them, kicking and hitting to shove him away.

"You stay away from my sister!"

A vicious look flashed in Cornelius's eyes, gone in an instant, replaced again by panic.

"Bella, don't hit me, I'm just scared, I want your sister."

My sister's expression shifted.

"Bella, why are you acting like this?"

"Apologize to Cornelius right now!"

"I won't!"

I stuck out my neck stubbornly.

"Bella Dickerson!"

My sister's voice went cold. "If you keep this up, Mom and Dad are going to be angry when they get back tomorrow!"

Cornelius's eyes lit up.

"Your mom and dad aren't coming back tonight?"

My heart lurched, and I was about to stop my sister, but she'd already blurted out, "They went back to our hometown, they'll be back tomorrow."

The corner of Cornelius's mouth curled into a sly smile, then vanished fast.

But I saw it.

In my past life, when he charged into my sister's room, this was the same smile.