In my previous life, my stepfather David Smith lost 300,000 dollars in gambling and also borrowed from loan sharks.
My mother begged me for help in tears.
I really couldn't bear it, so I took out all my savings of 300,000 dollars.
But later, David coaxed me into marrying his violent friend Buck Bell and got a dowry of 80,000 dollars.
It was just right as a gift for meeting his son's girlfriend.
And the day after I was forced to get married, my mother accidentally fell to the lake.
I was abused physically and mentally, and couldn't bear the torture, so I finally chose to commit suicide by jumping off a building.
When I opened my eyes again, I was back to the night my mother called me.
I could also read my mother's minds.
1
"Dora Jones, you haven't been home for half a year. I miss you so much. Can you come and see me?"
On the other end of the phone, my mother was choking with sobs and her voice was thick with nasal sounds.
But my thoughts were drawn far away.
I was reborn on the night before I could change my destiny.
In my previous life, my mother also cried and begged me to go home to see her.
At that time, I rushed back to the "home" where I didn't feel like I belonged.
But that time, I lost all my savings and my life.
David lost 300,000 dollars in gambling and owed loan sharks.
Looking at my mother's red eyes from crying, I gritted my teeth and took out all my savings.
But instead of thanking me, David put me in hot water.
He tricked me into marrying his violent friend and asked him for a dowry of 80,000 dollars.
The money was just right as a gift for his son's girlfriend when she came to visit him for the first time.
And my mother "accidentally" fell to the lake the day after I got married.
David and his son Chad Smith were living a carefree life with the insurance settlement of 800,000 dollars.
After I married the violent man Buck Bell, his mother deliberately poured hot oil on my legs to prevent me from escaping.
Because I didn't receive timely treatment, I could no longer walk.
Buck locked me in the bathroom, assaulted and scolded me in various ways.
I was physically and mentally tortured, and with hatred for them, I climbed up to the windowsill and jumped down.
I still shuddered when I thought about that year of abuse.
David, Buck and his mother caused me endless pain and made me feel hateful!
In the present life, I wanted them all to pay the price!
On the other end of the phone, my mother had already started sobbing.
I came to my senses and said to her, "I will be back tomorrow."
2
I left my savings card at home, bought a recorder, and went to David's house empty-handed.
Sure enough, David was extremely enthusiastic towards me as soon as I entered the door.
He had been married to my mother for nearly thirty years and always been extremely cold to me.
Later, my mother and he gave birth to Chad.
My situation in the house became increasingly awkward, so I moved out after graduating from high school.
Looking at David's flattering face and the wrinkles on his face, I almost couldn't help rolling my eyes.
And my mother was standing at the kitchen door, clutching her apron in her hands, with tears in her eyes.
I walked past David and went straight to my mother, hugging her tightly.
The moment I hugged her, I heard her voice.
"She is finally back. I just hope she can help David."
I was a little stunned. Those words didn't sound like something she said, but rather like what she thought.
I pushed her away a little, then hugged her tentatively again.
After I pushed her away, her voice stopped abruptly. After I hugged her, her voice rang in my ears again.
"Is Dora willing to help David?"
Just when I hugged her, I could hear her voice!
That was such a pleasant surprise!
My mother patted my shoulder, smiled and said, "It's good that you're back."
I smiled happily and went to the kitchen with my arm around her.
Just like in my previous life, while I was eating, David suddenly knelt down in front of me.
Then he started slapping himself and apologized to me with tears and snot.
He begged me to help him.
In my previous life, I hurriedly helped him up but didn't say anything.
At night, my mother came to the guest room, hugged me and cried, just begging me to help him.
Now, I looked at him coldly as he knelt in front of me with tears streaming down his face.
I didn't even ask him to get up.
He deserved to kneel. And I deserved his kneel!
But my mother was standing by, poking my waist again and again.
Seeing David rolling his eyes falsely and trying to pretend to faint, I quickly said, "David, I'm willing to help you."
He immediately knelt up and looked at me with shining eyes.
"But I really have no money now."
His face became visibly gloomy, then he stood up decisively and walked into the bedroom.
3
I grabbed my mother who wanted to follow him, and seeing her worried look, I almost couldn't help but tell her the truth.
But I couldn't.
My mother was over fifty years old and I couldn't upset her.
What's more, "rebirth" did sound like a fantasy.
"Mom, I've invested all my savings, so I can't withdraw them for a while.
"It's really not that I don't want to help him.
"How about Chad? Can he give David some money?"
There was a loud bang in the room, mixed with David's angry voice.
My mother seemed to be used to it and just shook her head at me helplessly.
"Chad has a girlfriend. You can't let him know about this.
"Dora, can you borrow some money to help David?"
I pretended to think for a while, then said to her, "I think I can borrow some money, but you have to go with me."
I planned to first take her away from David's house to ensure her safety.
"Mom, I'll talk to David later. We'll leave tomorrow.
"I'll go borrow the money, and then you come back with it."
Seeing that my mother was a little hesitant, I quickly added, "You know, I have been careless since I was a child. If you accompany me, you can supervise me."
Only then did my mother nod.
I felt relieved.
Then, I used the excuse of cleaning to hide the recorder in the living room.
After doing all that, David came out of the room.
Maybe my mother had already told him that, so he returned to his previous expression.
He smiled at me too affably.
I also gave him a fake smile and pretended to be harmonious with him.
While I was smiling at him, I was editing a text message.
I told Chad the news David didn't dare to tell him.
4
The next morning, I took my mother and left the house.
After going downstairs, I looked back.
David stood by the window, looking at us from afar.
I curled the corners of my mouth, hoping that the next time I saw him, he would be disabled.
After getting on the high-speed train, I sent out the text message I had edited the night before.
Chad didn't reply to me.
But less than half an hour after I sent the message to Chad, David called me.
The continuous phone calls revealed his anxiety.
I just blacklisted him.
Looking at my mother who was sleeping soundly, I took her cell phone, threw away the original phone card and replaced it with a new one.
That was not a long-term solution, but at that moment, I had no choice.
After I got home, I told my mother that David had gone to the countryside to hide and we would just have to wait for him to contact us.
My mother believed what I said without a doubt.
She urged me to borrow money every day and wanted to go home as soon as possible.
I could only find various excuses to procrastinate.
But what I didn't expect was that our life was interrupted before it lasted for five days.
The police came to the door.
It was David who called the police.
He said that he had not been able to contact his wife for a long time and suspected that she had been illegally detained by me.
I didn't expect him to call the police.
My plans were disrupted unexpectedly.
I had no time to care about the disappointed look in my mother's eyes when she looked at me. I could only explain to the police first.
After the police left, I decided to confess to my mother.
Of course, I lied to her that I had a dream.
I told her all about the tragic experiences I had in my past life.
I didn't expect her to believe me.
But she believed what I said and looked at me with eyes full of sympathy.
She even stood up angrily, shouting that she wanted to fight David.
Seeing her subconscious reaction, I couldn't control myself anymore and burst into tears.
She actually trusted me unconditionally.
She hugged me with concern as I cried, and at the same time, her voice rang in my ears.
5
It made me feel like I was falling into an ice cellar in an instant.
She said, "I believe in you."
But she was thinking, "I have to find her savings card and go back to save David."
Her tears fell on the back of my hand, burning my heart.
I choked up and asked her, "Mom, do you love me?"
She touched my hair, didn't say anything, but nodded.
But I heard what she was thinking.
"I love you, but Dora, you can never compare to Chad.
"I'm sorry. Chad can't live without his father. Will you forgive..."
I gently pushed her away and got up to get a tissue.
I didn't want to hear it anymore.
I had understood that she loved me, but she didn't love me the most.
So, I could be abandoned and deceived.
I wiped away my tears, smiled and pushed her to wash up.
As for acting, I could do it too.
While she was sleeping, I installed the mini camera I bought earlier at home.
Sure enough, as soon as I left the house, she started searching everywhere.
Watching her busy figure on the surveillance camera, I felt surprisingly calm.
I was waiting for her to find the bank card.
Seeing that she finally found the bank card I had hidden in the coffee jar, I took out my cell phone and called her.
"Mom, I was hit by a car and I'm in the hospital now.
"There's a bank card at the bottom of the coffee jar. That's all my savings. Can you bring it to the hospital?"
My voice was filled with helplessness.
The palms of my hands were wet with sweat.
After hearing that, she was stunned for a few seconds.
Then she said, "Okay, I will bring it to you."
I watched her close the door and leave.
I waited in the hospital until dark, but she didn't come.
It was not until that moment that I finally made up my mind to live only for myself in the present life.
6
My mother knew the password to all my bank cards, which was her birthday.
But she took the card without any money.
I installed the camera the night before and changed the bank card at the same time.
The bank card with money was actually with me.
Sure enough, my mother called me early the next morning.
She seemed like a different person, and asked me loudly, "Why is there no money in your bank card? Why are you so selfish?"
"Mom, I'm still in the hospital."
She paused for a few seconds, and then David's voice came from the phone.
"Dora, I'm telling you! If you don't give me the money, you'll suffer the consequences."
I didn't flinch and yelled at him.
"David, I'm making this clear today. Don't even think about taking a penny from me."
7
After that, the Smiths seemed to have disappeared.
I had a pretty comfortable time until I saw David and my mother at the door of my house.
After all that time, he was not crippled.
I clenched the pepper spray in my pocket and stopped three feet away from them.
They stared at me fiercely.
Then he threw a stack of letter paper at me.
"This is a detailed list of your expenses from childhood to adulthood. We don't ask for anything else. Just return the money to us."
I turned directly to the last page, and the total was 300,000 dollars.
I couldn't help but sneer in my heart. It was exactly 300,000 dollars to pay off his debt.
I threw the so-called "bill" in his face.
He was caught off guard and the letter paper scratched his face, leaving a bloody mark.
"Get lost! You want to blackmail me? You're dreaming!"