The Queen's Back

her.

2

"Polly, I was so scared that after I died, I'd end up in hell. But it looks like I'm in heaven instead. By the way, is my mom here too?" Mona asked excitedly, though she could hardly believe it. After all, she'd said she'd rather fall into hell if it meant taking those two down with Maxwell had already gotten her revenge, so logically, she should be suffering in hell. But here she was, in heaven, feeling surprisingly happy. Then it hit her-what if Maxwell ended up in hell instead of her? The thought was like a dagger to her heart. She couldn't stand the idea of him suffering for her. Hearing Mona's words, Polly's hands shook, and the glass of milk fell to the floor with a loud crash. "Ms. Clem, are you okay? What are you talking about, hell? Don't scare me like that! And your mom's been gone for years," Polly said, her voice trembling. Tomorrow was supposed to be Mona's big day with Teddy, and Polly couldn't have her suddenly falling ill or acting strange. She touched Mona's forehead, checking for a fever, but everything seemed normal. No fever, so why is she talking like this?" Polly thought, confused. "My mom's dead? Then... where am I?" Mona glanced around, taking in her surroundings. This was definitely her home.

"Oh my gosh, Ms. Clem, you're home! And you're getting engaged to Teddy tomorrow! What's going on? I should get Mr. and Mrs. Clem and call a doctor," Polly said, starting to hurry out.

Mona quickly grabbed her arm. "I'm fine, really. I just had a bad dream." Mona wasn't sure what was happening yet and didn't want to worry her grandparents until she figured it out.

"You really scared me. If anything's wrong, you have to let me know right away," Polly said firmly before leaving the room. Sitting alone on her bed, Mona took in the familiar sight of her room. She grabbed her phone and checked the date. It was clear-she'd been given a second chance, right back to two years ago, the night before her engagement to Teddy. fate had handed her a do-over, she was determined to make sure the mistakes of her past list was dealing with tomorrow's engagement.

Since

diant repeat. First on First on her

After a refreshing shower and changing into her pajamas, Mona noticed a bruise on her forehead. It was from when Barbara had "accidentally" pushed her down the stairs. Looking back, it was clear it wasn't an accident. Barbara couldn't stand the idea of Mona and Teddy getting engaged and took her anger out on Mona.

Mona grabbed her phone and dialed Maxwell's number. The call rang twice before cutting off suddenly. Mona was stunned. 'How could Maxwell not answer? He was so devoted to me in my past life, even avenging my death,' she thought.

But then Mona remembered she never really knew when Maxwell had fallen for her. It might have been after her engagement to Teddy, so it made sense he wouldn't answer now. After all, in her past life, they barely had any

contact.

Mona quickly texted Maxwell, saying she needed to discuss something really important and asking him to pick up. After a few minutes, she called again, and this time he answered right away, She could hear loud music in the background as he said, "Hello?" Just hearing his voice almost made Mona cry. Thinking about everything he'd done for her in her past life, she felt an overwhelming urge to run to him and hug him tightly.

"Maxwell, it's Mona. I'm getting engaged tomorrow. Are you coming?" Mona wanted to say, "I wish it were you I was getting engaged to, but before she could, Maxwell cut her off,This content © Nôv/elDr(a)m/a.Org.

"Oh, I know all about your engagement. It's big news in Nathontown. But I won't be there-I've got other plans. Anyway, congratulations, Ms. Clem," Maxwell said coldly. Inside, he thought, 'I hope things fall apart between you two. The idea of watching the woman he loved get engaged to someone else was too painful to bear.

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"Congrats? For what? I'm not planning to get engaged to Teddy tomorrow," Mona said.

G

xwell could hardly believe his ears. Everyone in Nathontown knew how obsessed Mona was with Teddy, and now she was

he

wouldn't go through with the engagement?

ng with

excitement, Maxwell stepped out of the noisy room into the quiet hallway. "Mona, what did you just say? Say it, clearly," he asked, needing to be sure he wasn't just imagining things.

n the other end, Mona stood by the floor-to-ceiling window, looking out at the villa grounds. A wave of dizziness washed ver her, reminding her of the terrifying sensation of falling from the 88th floor. Her body trembled uncontrollably.

In the dark night, only a few street lamps cast a faint glow, much like the light in her heart. To her, Maxwell, her grandparents, Polly, and her best friend Ava Swanson were the only rays of light in her otherwise bleak life.

She had suffered so much in her past life, but now she had the chance to set things right. She was determined to make those who wronged her pay.

Gripping her phone tightly, Mona said, "I'm not getting engaged to Teddy. Will you come? If you do, I'll get engaged to you instead!" Her heart raced with nervous anticipation. She worried Maxwell might turn her down, especially since she wasn't sure if he had any feelings for her at this point.

When the silence stretched on and Maxwell didn't reply, Mona worried he was going to turn her down. Panicking, she quickly added, "I found out Teddy's cheating on me with Barbara. I want to make them pay and embarrass them both. If you agree to get engaged to me instead, I'll I give you my shares in the Clem Group. Plus, I'm not exactly unattractive, and my status is a good match for yours. You wouldn't be losing out by marrying me." After Mona's mother, Emily Clem, passed away, her shares in the Clem Group were split between Mona and Albert. Their father, Jeremy Simon, had only a small stake in the company, barely enough to make a difference, even though he was temporarily acting as the general manager. Most of the shares were still held by Mona's grandparents.

In her past life, Mona never understood why her mom left the shares to her and Albert instead of Jeremy. Now she had a guess. 'Maybe Mom found out about Jeremy's affair and made the will before it got worse, or maybe their marriage was just a business deal, and Albert was a surprise,' she thought. Once Mona sorted out the engagement issue, she planned to secretly get a DNA test with Jeremy to find out if Barbara had been lying. Even though she already had a strong feeling about the truth, she needed solid proof to back it up.