Ezra was the youngest captain at the outpost. If everything went smoothly, he was on track for a promotion this year.

A happy marriage and a devoted spouse were points in his favor.

No matter how much he loved Denise, he would never let her destroy his image in front of his superiors.

In my last life, I loved him. I couldn't bear to see him caught in the middle, so I backed down.

But in this life, all that love had curdled into hate.

And hate gave me the freedom to squeeze every pressure point he had, to collect on the debt from my previous life.

I turned back to him, my voice ice:

"Fine. I'll go through with the wedding. But I need to see some sincerity first."

My gaze locked onto Denise, and I let a tremor of wounded pride creep into my tone:

"A wedding is supposed to be a joyous occasion. Instead, she told everyone I was sick on the happiest day of my life. That's not a joke. That's a curse. Even an enemy wouldn't stoop that low."

"What Denise Galloway did was absolutely out of line!"

I touched the handprint on my cheek where Mrs. Abbott had slapped me, and let the tears fall.

"Look, she misled my own mother-in-law into turning on me. She nearly destroyed my wedding. Don't I deserve an explanation?"

The older women in the crowd rallied to my side immediately.

Mrs. Abbott noticed the red mark on my face, and guilt crept into her voice as she spoke up for me.

"She's right! It was all Denise Galloway running her mouth, making me turn on my own daughter-in-law!"

"She owes us an explanation!"

Only then did Ezra notice the handprint on my cheek. Something flickered in his eyes. Concern, maybe.

But the moment I mentioned making Denise pay, that concern dissolved into hesitation.

I looked past him and turned directly to the commanding officers.

They responded without delay:

"Denise Galloway is demoted. One month of community labor."

The corner of my mouth curled.

"And she needs to apologize to me. Right here. In front of everyone."

Denise stood before me with tears brimming in her eyes, bent at the waist, and apologized.

Then, under a chorus of scorn from the crowd, she turned and ran off crying.

Ezra's gaze followed her retreating figure. His throat bobbed. He turned and said:

"She doesn't know her way around here. I'll go check on her, make sure nothing happens."

I let out a cold laugh and didn't stop him.