She Told Me to Shut Up,So I Let Her Empire BurnChapter 1
During an important company meeting, Kate Henson called on me by name.
She asked what I thought of Nelson Gilbert's collision-avoidance program.
I stood up, mumbled something about a stomachache, and walked out.
Because in my previous life, I'd pointed out a critical flaw in that program. Told them the whole thing needed to be scrapped and rebuilt from scratch.
Nelson, humiliated in front of the entire room, went out that night and drank himself blind. A wrong-way semi hit him head-on. Killed him instantly.
At the funeral, Kate comforted me with a steady voice. Said it was his own doing, that it had nothing to do with me.
Then she slipped poison into my drink at our engagement party.
As the toxin tore through me, her face twisted into something barely human.
"If you'd kept your mouth shut, Nelson would still be alive."
"You destroyed his future. Everything he worked for."
"Now you can join him in hell."
God gave me a second chance. Sent me back to the day of that meeting.
So this time around, I was keeping my mouth shut.
——
When I said my stomach hurt, Kate frowned.
Looking at her face, the memory hit me like a freight train. My own death. The poison eating through my organs, a fire that started in my gut and spread until every nerve was screaming. That sensation still clung to my body like a scar that hadn't fully healed.
And her expression. That mask of pure, unfiltered hatred. It was carved into my soul.
"Terry Dickerson, are you alright?"
Kate's voice pulled me back.
I shook my head. Said nothing.
Nelson stood up then, wearing that humble look of his as he turned to me.
"Mr. Dickerson, do you have any thoughts on my program? If there's an issue, please don't hesitate to point it out. I'm more than happy to take feedback."
His tone was earnest. His posture, deferential.
Every executive at the table turned to look at me, expectation written across their faces.
I stared at his young face and remembered. He'd worn the exact same expression in my last life. All humility and open hands. Then he'd gone straight to Kate to complain. Told her I'd embarrassed him. That I'd dressed down a graduate from an Ivy League program like he was some intern.
"I don't have any concerns."
I turned and walked out of the conference room.
The moment the door clicked shut behind me, whispers bled through.