Spring Garden was the residential community where Howard now lived.
I went there with an unspoken purpose, distributing flyers for my laundry shop. Lured by the steep discounts, my target soon took the bait...
Howard's wife Bianca came to my shop. She was a gentle, soft-spoken woman who emanated the same aura as Christine. At first glance, I knew she was happy.
I suppressed my churning emotions and deliberately befriended her. Through casual probing, I learned some basic information about her. One day, while she was at work, I sneaked into her home.
I used her fingerprint to easily unlock the smart door. What lay before me was a home decorated with exquisite warmth. Every small, unremarkable detail spoke of the owner's love for and contentment with life.
That sweet wedding photo on the wall broke me completely! If not for that incident, the lady of this house should have been me...
Just as I was lost in emotion, I heard the sound of a lock being opened. I wanted to flee, but it was too late, so I had no choice but to keep playing the part...
9
"Huh, what are you doing home?" It was Howard who came in.
"I forgot something, so I took time off to come get it," I replied.
"Hehe, you're always so scatterbrained." He walked over and affectionately ruffled my hair.
A warmth I hadn't felt in so long poured from my head down through my entire body. I quickly turned away, hiding the tears that were about to spill: "Okay, I need to get back to work."
No one knew how much I craved his warmth, but I didn't dare stay. I was afraid I'd lose control.
"I'm heading back to the office soon. Let me give you a ride."
"No, I'm in a hurry."
"Hold on, put this on." He chased after me, wrapped a scarf around my neck, then leaned down and kissed my forehead. "It's windy outside, don't catch a cold."
With eyes full of tears, I ran for the door...
His tenderness and care at this moment were a blade cutting into my heart!
10
"Bianca, you're a despicable thief! You stole Howard's love for me, you stole the happiness that should have been mine..."
Back home, I rushed to the mirror and glared at my reflection with eyes full of jealousy and hatred...
A wicked idea suddenly flashed through my mind: if this face were destroyed, would Howard still love her?
I grabbed a knife and pressed it against my cheek. One hard slash, and this flawless face would be ruined. And the owner of this face would go to hell along with it...
Why should I languish in hell while you get to live so happily?
Come down—you should taste hell too!
In the end, I couldn't bring myself to make the cut. Just as the blade was about to pierce my skin, my reason woke up in time...
I dropped the knife, trembling with the horror of what I'd almost done.
I'd nearly become a terrifying monster!
11
"You know what? Something spooky happened a few days ago!"
When Bianca came to pick up her clothes, she looked troubled and told me, "I was definitely at work that day, but my husband said he saw me at home! He was worried I'd be cold, so he put a scarf on me. And the weird thing is—that scarf really did disappear!"
"Is this it?" I pulled out a paper bag containing the scarf.
"Yes! How did it end up here?" she asked in surprise.
"You accidentally included it with the clothes you brought in," I replied.
"If that's the case, then it's even stranger." She frowned. "That incident happened after I brought my clothes here! So the scarf was already here. Then what did my husband see at home?"
"Don't overthink it. Maybe he misremembered." I patted her shoulder. "Men get distracted when they're busy."
She didn't say anything else—seemingly accepting this explanation.
12
I walked Bianca to the door, smiling as I said goodbye.
After a few steps, she suddenly turned back. "Actually, I've known who you are for a long time! Before marrying Howard, I quietly did a background check on him...
"Including what's going on with you right now—I know basically everything. Your marriage isn't happy. In fact, it's terrible.
"You went out of your way to get close to me because you couldn't let go, right?
"But what's done can't be undone. Your chapter with Howard is closed forever! Hope, if you truly love him, then please don't disturb him anymore, okay?"
Her words hit me like slaps across the face.
By the time I came back to my senses, she was already walking away. I paused, then chased after her: "Bianca!"
"Is there something else?" She glanced back coolly.
"I... I wish you both happiness." I bit my lip. "I mean it."
She gave me a skeptical look, then a faint smile. "And I wish you better days ahead!"
13
There were no better days—only a deeper slide into the abyss.
From the moment I married Ray, my life had been nothing but darkness.
That night, he beat me again. He snatched Bella's tuition money to spend on drinking and gambling. When I refused to let go, he beat me savagely. Bella cried and tried to intervene, only to get hit too.
Bella's head struck a table, and a large bump swelled up instantly. I held my daughter, my heart aching so much I could barely breathe! "Ray, you're not human! I can't live like this anymore—I want a divorce! I'd rather die than stay!"
Ray paused, then sneered. "Fine, we'll divorce. But I have one condition."
I hadn't expected him to agree. Relief flooded me. "What condition? Tell me."
"Give me half a million, and I'll go sign the papers right now."
"Half a million?" I was stunned. I couldn't even come up with fifty thousand, let alone half a million. All the money I'd earned over the years had been drunk or gambled away by him.
"Ray, you're being unreasonable!"
"How am I being unreasonable?" Ray rolled his eyes. "I've given you my terms. Divorce or not, it's up to you."
He clutched Bella's tuition money and stormed out.
Leaving me in despair, beyond tears.
Then, my eyes lit up...
14
Kelly was an accountant who managed company finances. Using her identity, it shouldn't be hard to get half a million!
So one day, I drugged Kelly when she came to pick up clothes, and while she was unconscious, I sneaked into her company...
I could have easily transferred five hundred thousand, but in the end, I chose not to.
Because on her desk, I saw a family photo of Kelly. If I went through with it, wouldn't I be destroying her? Losing half a million in company funds would mean a long prison sentence. A husband losing his wife, a child losing its mother...
In short, her life would be ruined!
Building my happiness on someone else's suffering— I truly couldn't do it!
So, I changed my mind.
No—I pulled back from the edge. At the critical moment, my conscience held firm.
When Kelly woke up, she thought she'd just had a quick nap. She would never know what had happened while she was unconscious.
And she would never know how close she'd come to falling into a terrible abyss, never to see the light of day again...
One step toward heaven, one step toward hell!
15
Without half a million, I had no choice but to continue my miserable existence. The transformation game became my only temporary escape.
I drifted from one body to another, using stolen moments of warmth to soothe my empty, lonely soul...
My name was "Hope," but my life was pure despair!
16
One day, Ray actually managed a smile. He said he'd won some money and wanted to treat us to a nice dinner.
I didn't want anything to do with gambling money, but he was still Bella's father. The longing in Bella's eyes was more than I could refuse.
During the meal, Ray was unusually attentive, constantly pouring water and serving food—not unlike a proper husband and father...
At his urging, I had a little red wine too. Maybe because I hadn't touched alcohol in so long, I got tipsy fast. When I came to, I found myself in an unfamiliar bed, with an unfamiliar man beside me...
His name was Gavin, one of Ray's gambling buddies.
"Your husband ran out of money, so he used you to pay his debts," Gavin told me shamelessly.
I was stunned.
I knew Ray was a bastard, but I hadn't imagined he'd be this much of a bastard.
He'd actually handed over his own wife—the mother of his child—to another man's bed!
17
I had no idea how I made it home.
It was already late. Bella was still waiting for me. I fed her milk, and she tucked her in for the night. The sleeping pills in the milk took effect quickly. Once she was asleep, I opened the door and went out.
"Ray, have you lost your mind? How could you treat me like merchandise and sell me to another man?" I confronted him furiously.
"Hey, I had no choice," he shrugged. "If I didn't pay up, they were going to chop off one of my hands. Gavin's no saint—he'll do anything! We're married. Just think of it as helping me out..."
I stared at him, searching for even a trace of guilt.
There was none. Not a single ounce!
Only contempt, indifference, and disdain...
I went crazy. Truly, I went insane.
I screamed and hurled everything I could grab at him.
He lashed back with the most vicious insults. "Whore," "used goods," "slut"... every word pierced my heart.
But the most shocking thing of all—he let slip a secret in his rage...
The man who'd dragged me into those bushes and raped me all those years ago... was him!
He'd used that extreme method to destroy my reputation and wreck my relationship with Howard, all so he could have me!
Afterward, he'd used that same incident to nail me to a pillar of shame. Controlling me, flogging me, forcing me into submission as his slave beneath his feet...
18
The abyss has a bottom, but the human heart is immeasurable!
In that moment, no words could capture what I felt.
I grabbed the fruit knife from the table and charged at him wildly, but I was no match. He knocked me to the ground with a few punches and kicks...
When I came to, he was gone.
I sat amid the wreckage, sobbing uncontrollably...
Call the police? That wasn't realistic. It had been so long—there was no way to investigate anymore. My word alone would never be enough to convict him...
He knew I couldn't do anything to him. That was why he was so brazen, so utterly unbridled...
Now I finally knew what a demon looked like!
19
Heaven's net has wide meshes, but nothing slips through.
Not long afterward, Ray was arrested.
Every piece of evidence pointed to him murdering his gambling buddy Gavin.
When the police took him away, he screamed his innocence like a pig being slaughtered.
No one believed him.
No one except me.
20
Yes, Ray was innocent.
The real killer was me!
That day, I put on his clothes, assumed his identity, and lured Gavin out.
When Gavin wasn't paying attention, I knocked him out, then performed a minor "surgery" on him with a blade.
This surgery wouldn't be fatal, but it would make life worse than death.
I'd done my research—this man was a loan shark who had ruined countless lives. There was no need to be polite with scum like him.
When Gavin came to, he immediately called the police.
With both witness and physical evidence against him, Ray had no way to defend himself. He finally went where he belonged, though that day came later than it should have.
After he was imprisoned, I got the freedom I'd always dreamed of. To escape the shadows of my past, I left that city with my daughter and started a brand-new life...
My life finally had "hope"!
(End of Story 11: Parasitic Spirit)
*
"Two birds with one stone—brilliantly done!" Stan applauded. "I don't condone taking the law into your own hands, but that Ray was absolutely despicable! And Gavin too—they both got what they deserved."
"Absolutely, they had it coming," Cindy said, always quick to champion justice. "By the way, can you still transform? Ha, transform for me right now!"
"You probably won't be seeing that," Hope shook her head. "After Ray was arrested, my daughter and I moved away from that awful place. I still run a laundry shop, but I've lost that magical ability."
"Ah, what a pity!" Cindy said. "But at least you're free of that demon. I hope you and your daughter find happiness from now on..."
"Thank you. I'm sure we will."
"I'm like you—there's someone I can't have either, living in my heart." A woman spoke softly, her tone wistful. "But I'm luckier than you. I married a good husband. He loves me dearly and never lets me suffer the slightest. And yet, I still can't forget the one in my heart!
"We all have our regrets in life. Has anyone here ever wondered about something...
"Is there another version of me out there, living the life I want?
"I can tell you from personal experience—there is!
"I've met that 'me,' and she really does live the life I want! In her world, family, love, career—everything exists exactly as I've always dreamed...
"She's what people call a 'Doppelgänger'..."