After being reborn, I make up my mind to stop chasing after my husband and daughter

Chapter 1

It was late 2044, and I was in my fifties, counting down my final moments.

Breast cancer had ravaged my body. My husband, Jared Holcomb, was desperately trying to save me, rushing to find the best doctors. But I was done fighting. I’d stopped eating for three days, not even taking a sip of water.

We’d been married for thirty years, but I couldn’t stand the thought of laying eyes on him one last time.

In the hospice room, I lay dying, my eyes tightly closed. Suddenly, familiar footsteps grew louder–Jared and our daughter, Yvonne, were approaching my bedside.

The doctor’s voice was heavy. “She’s stopped eating. You don’t have much time left.”

A thick silence filled the room. My remaining consciousness was fading, bit by bit.

Then I heard Yvonne whisper, her voice deliberately low, “Mom’s about to pass. When are you going to marry Tracy?”

Jared paused before responding, “We’ll see. Let’s get the funeral over with first.”

Yvonne sighed, “Mom wasted her entire life. I never understood what she was holding onto. She should’ve divorced years ago. All that stress just ate her alive.”

My heart felt like it was drowning in bitterness. The reason I’d stayed married was so simple–I wanted Yvonne to grow up in an intact family. I didn’t want her to deal with in–law drama when she got married someday.

Now, my stubborn persistence felt like one pathetic, cruel joke. Whatever, I was about to leave this world that had torn my heart to shreds. Finally, I’d be free.

“Quiet as she seems, she’s always been stubborn,” Jared muttered, his voice dripping with contempt. “It destroyed everything, including herself.”

What a sharp way to sum up my life.

real status. Finally, she’s gonna get what she

her big time. I’ll spend the rest of my life making it up to her,” Jared replied, his voice laden with

So, my years of sacrifice meant nothing to them. They only cared about the woman who’d wrecked my marriage, like she’d been

thought I heard a faint bell, like it was ringing far off in the distance. Exhaustion crashed over me, and I was spent and

blinding light sliced through the dark. Dazed, I

still sleeping?

standing by the floor–to–ceiling window, was my mom–who’d been gone for years–gathering up the curtains. Outside, the sun blazed bright, and the

Yvonne.” Mom walked over, playfully tapping my arm. “Were you up late reading romance novels again? I’ve told

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Chapter

and there she was. I grabbed her hand, felt its warmth, and clung to it like it was my lifeline.

said you were bored and asked me to come stay for a few days. I took the car

like a key turning in a lock. Just after Memorial Day in 2014, Mom had taken some time off,

“Go get Yvonne. Jared’s on his way home for supper, and I need to fire up that salmon before he walks in.” She

bought after we got married. It was 2014, and Yvonne

their own business. As the eldest son, he’d been running the company pretty

walked out to the balcony. The sun warmed my skin, and I wondered–had I time–traveled? Did fate take pity on me, seeing how I’d wasted my first

couple of guys were playing tennis on the community court, that easy,

my chin in my hand, watching. After a while, I let out a laugh. It seemed

worked.

as a stay–at–home mom, I’d now be heading out to pick Yvonne up, a

was my kid, but picking her up wasn’t just my

voice answered, “What’s up? You on

the couch, feigning a weak tone. “Ugh, my stomach’s been acting up.

“I’ve got a