On the outskirts, in an abandoned warehouse, a young woman was huddled in a corner, covered in blood.

Her fingers were bleeding profusely, and the torn-off nails lay scattered on the reddish earth. Drops of blood slowly fell to the ground.

She didn't know who had kidnapped her or for what purpose.

Either way, she had been locked up there for so long that she had almost forgotten who she was.

She wanted to die, but she couldn't.

Each time she was saved, the price was increasingly unbearable torture. Her pale skin didn't have a single unblemished spot, and even dying had become a luxury for her.

When she was first locked up, no one worried about her. She didn't know how many days she had spent in that state.

Just when she thought she would die of hunger and thirst in that place, those people finally appeared.

Romina Davila didn't know which days were a worse hell, the days when they didn't come or the days when they did?

The "good" side was that she could finally eat and drink, but the tortures that followed made her wish she were dead.

They would dunk her head into a tank of water, and only when she felt like she was at her limit would they pull her out.

They burned her body with red-hot iron, until her clothes fused with her skin, which was full of burn scars.

At first, when she was locked up, she imagined that someone would come to save her, but the wait only brought her disappointment.

The darkness and prolonged torture gradually destroyed any hope she had, and she began to become numb and disconnected from reality.

"Click."

The dull sound of a door opening echoed, but Romina didn't react, her head lowered and her body trembling even more.

Every time the door opened, it was a sign.

What would follow were more beatings and torture. Those who had kidnapped her would leave her a mess, covered in wounds, and then throw rotten food at her before leaving, repeating the cycle over and over again.

With her eyes tightly closed, if someone looked closely, they would notice that her eyelashes were trembling slightly.

But this time, for a moment that seemed eternal, no sound was heard after the door. Nor did the usual torture arrive.

With footsteps echoing on the floor, a pair of elegant high-heeled shoes stopped in front of the young woman.

Romina opened her eyes and looked at the heels with her mind clouded. Suddenly, as if remembering something, she raised her head sharply.

"Sofia!"

The owner of the heels was none other than Sofia Davila, Romina's sister, although from a different father.

And behind Sofia, was the figure that Romina had longed for so much: Felipe!

These two people were the most important in her life, they had really come to save her, they had found her!

Romina, making an effort to keep her eyes open, barely had time to feel happy before lowering her head quickly. She didn't want them to see her in that deplorable state.

She was afraid that her appearance was too horrible, afraid that Felipe would despise her, afraid that her sister would pity her.

However, Romina had no idea about the expressions on their faces.

The two stood there, looking down at her, contemplating a disheveled and shattered Romina on the floor.

"Sister, how have you been living here?" Sofia asked, with a mocking smile.

Only then did Romina notice that their expressions didn't seem right. There was no urgency in their gazes, but rather a malicious amusement.

"You... you!..."

Romina, seeing Sofia's expression, seemed to suddenly understand.

She felt like she was in a nightmare, shaking her head in a state of confusion.

She didn't want to believe it, but she had to face it. What was happening?

One was the person she loved. The other, her sister.

Had they conspired to kidnap her?

But Felipe always told her that he loved her, and Sofia was her favorite sister!

"How about it, dear sister? Do you like the little gift I prepared for you?" Sofia said, looking at her mockingly upon seeing the expression of pain on Romina's face.

Romina, shattered inside, murmured in disbelief: "What...?"

"My dear, foolish sister, don't you still know how you got here?" Sofia looked at her disdainfully.

"Of course, you've always been this naive. Otherwise, how would you have believed that Felipe really loved you?"

"Felipe?!"

"Felipe, you..."

Romina looked at Felipe, who was behind Sofia, with a look of astonishment.

Instinctively she wanted to confirm something, but seeing his expression of annoyance, she couldn't say a word.

Even if Romina were really foolish, she could now see the true faces of these two people. She couldn't believe it, but the facts were before her eyes.

"Why? Why are you doing this to me? You were the most important people in my life! Why are you treating me like this?"

Romina, on the verge of madness, shouted hoarsely at them both.

"Why? There is no why. Because you are nothing more than a disposable piece."

"If it wasn't because you married into the Echeverria family and were useful, do you think I would even remember your name? Did you really believe it?"

"If it wasn't because I lost in that dare, you wouldn't have even met me."

The words that Felipe finally spoke were like knives piercing Romina's heart.

She listened, desperate. It turns out that the person she was willing to give her life for had never loved her.

Their meeting was just a joke. Their relationship, just a tool.

Sofia, with an expression of satisfaction, didn't bother to hide it. She crossed her arms, looking at her mockingly.

"What did you think you were? Just waste that nobody wanted."

"It was useful enough that I took advantage of you once."

Sofia said, violently grabbing Romina's hair, forcing her to look her in the eyes.

"I don't know what Marcelo saw in you, but after so long, he's still looking for you."

"At first, I just wanted him to marry me. Once he did, I would be Mrs. Echeverria, and half of the fortune would be mine."

"Then I would give him clues about you, but I didn't expect him to be so obsessed, willing to hand over the Echeverria company in exchange for knowing about you."

"This is quite an unexpected twist. Tell me, sister, do you think he will come for you?"

"What a pity, if it wasn't because I don't want problems from finding you alive, I wouldn't bother letting you die."

"I wonder if, after seeing you in this pitiful state, he will still love you, dear sister."

The Echeverria family was one of the most powerful conglomerates, and Marcelo was its president.

He was also the man Romina had hated for years, whom she had desperately tried to escape.

And yet, for her, Marcelo was willing to give up the entire Echeverria company.

But even then, Romina only felt more hurt.

Marcelo had been so good to her, so much so that she almost believed she deserved it.

But even so, her grandmother...

Romina didn't have much time to think. She felt some hairs being pulled out by the roots, but with her hands and feet tied, she couldn't resist.

While Sofia dragged her, Felipe had already sprinkled gasoline all over the warehouse.

"Oh, by the way, since you're about to die, I'll tell you something: your grandmother's death was not Marcelo's fault."

"The trap we set for him was just so you would hate him and help us steal more secrets from his company."

"Wh... what?" Romina stared incredulously at the woman in front of her, dressed ostentatiously.

"That old woman's accident... we organized it."

Romina, her eyes red, listened to Sofia's words and reacted instinctively: "That can't be, the shadow in the photo was clearly Marcelo!"

"Tch, tch, sister, I thought you were smarter in these matters, didn't you realize I edited the photo?"

"Besides, in such a remote place, only the murderer could have a photo of the scene."

Boom!

It was as if something had exploded in Romina's head, and her whole world began to spin.

If everything she was experiencing was a punishment for not knowing how to judge people, then what had her grandmother and Marcelo done to deserve this?

Her grandmother was always the person who loved her the most, and now there were no remains of her body because of them.

And she herself had considered her grandmother's murderers as the saviors of her destiny.

Marcelo always loved her and supported her in everything, but she saw him as a beast.

And even worse, because of Sofia's intrigues, she had blamed Marcelo for her grandmother's accident...

"Grandmother... Marcelo..." Romina's body trembled violently, the chains on her wrists and ankles clanging against the floor with a dull sound.

She hated those two...

But even more... she hated herself...

"I won't forgive you! Not even in death will I forgive you! You deserve it! You won't have a good ending!" Romina screamed furiously, feeling her heart almost stop from so much pain.

She never would have imagined that Sofia would be capable of something as cruel as harming her grandmother.

And Felipe, the man she loved, the one who always said he loved her, had joined Sofia to destroy her.

"Who are you going to forgive, you idiot? You're about to die!" Felipe kicked Romina, who was already covered in wounds, and looked at her with contempt.

Romina, with blood running from her mouth from the kick, could barely speak: "Why...? Why kill my grandmother?"

Sofia looked at her coldly, excited by Romina's suffering: "Everyone who loves you deserves to die. Why were you born a high society lady and I a hidden bastard?"

"When that mother of yours, of short life, died, I thought I could finally surpass you. But that old woman decided to take you with her."

"Even though they sent you to the countryside, no matter what I did, I would always be the bastard, and you the lady!"

"And then, when I started seeing more of the world, I thought I would at least marry better than you. But Marcelo, that man who looked like a god, specifically asked to marry you!"

Sofia continued to speak with rage and frustration: "Marcelo! Why when you appear am I always the second best? I swear I wasn't going to make it easy for you! Everything that was good for you, I took! And what I couldn't have, I destroyed!"

Romina couldn't believe Sofia's hatred. Even though Sofia was the daughter of a mistress, she had always treated her like a sister. She never blamed her for the mistakes of the previous generation or looked down on her for it.

But all this had only served to sign her death sentence. Her whole life had become a joke because of that woman.

Romina just looked at her, full of sadness and hopelessness.

"Let's go now. Don't talk so much. If someone finds us, we'll be in trouble," Felipe, seeing the madness in Sofia, couldn't help but remind her.

Sofia, having vented her fury, regained her arrogant composure.

She smiled maliciously: "Well, everything is settled now. From now on, there will only be one lady, and the Echeverria family will be mine."

"Dear sister, enjoy your last moment of life."

They both turned around and walked out the door, throwing a lighter inside.

Instantly, the warehouse was filled with flames, and the fire began to spread rapidly.

Sofia watched the fire consume the warehouse with a cold smile.

Romina felt increasingly tired.

Her vision was starting to blur. She thought she saw her deceased grandmother in front of her.

She seemed to be smiling, with her same affectionate expression as always, while waving her hand, as if inviting her to follow her.

Suddenly, Romina saw Marcelo.

She couldn't look at him. He had always loved her deeply, and she had only responded by running away again and again.

She had never done anything worthy of the title of Mrs. Echeverria, and instead, she turned him into the laughingstock of everyone.

This was her life...

"Romi, Romi!"

Just when Romina was about to close her eyes, a desperate and familiar voice made her open them wide.

In the middle of the fire, a figure burst into the warehouse.

Romina saw the man running towards her through the flames, and she couldn't hold back the tears.

"Marcelo, what are you doing here?! Go away, run!"

She had hurt him so many times, broken his heart again and again. Why did he keep coming back?

He had already given up his dignity for her, left the Echeverria company, and now, entering the fire, he was giving up his life.

"Romi, I finally found you. Don't be afraid, I'm here."

Marcelo, seeing the woman in the flames, was desperate, sweating and anguished.

He wanted to free her, he wanted to save her, but there was no hope. Sofia and Felipe had not left him even the slightest chance of survival.

Marcelo pulled on the chains with all his strength, his hands burned into blisters, but he didn't let go.

He could only see Romina, ignoring the pain of the red-hot chains.

But those chains were not something that could be broken by hand. Marcelo couldn't free her.

"Go away, go away! You can't break the chains!"

Romina, seeing Marcelo's blackened hands, couldn't help but cry tears like beans.

But Marcelo didn't answer, he just kept pulling on the chains with all his might.

The fire was advancing rapidly, and they were both running out of air.

Romina didn't want such a good man to die with her. She looked at him, her eyes full of sadness.

"Go... Don't look at me, Marcelo. I don't deserve you to die for me."

Marcelo stopped, looked at her intensely.

"You are worth it."

"You know it, Romi. For you, everything is worth it."

Marcelo, seeing that he couldn't break the chains, gave up. The fire was everywhere.

He sat next to her and hugged her, wiping the dust off her face, firm and full of love.

"Sorry, Marcelo. I misunderstood you... I failed you... I regret it so much... I regret not having loved you before."

"I regret not having been a good wife, of having believed in Sofia."

"If there is another life... I swear I will love you... I will take care of you... I will give you children..."

Romina couldn't finish, because Marcelo pushed her hard.

When Romina looked at him again, she saw a large piece of glass falling from the ceiling and hitting Marcelo, covering him in blood.

"Marcelo!"

After a heartbreaking scream.

Romina woke up startled, with Marcelo's phrase echoing in her mind after being hit: "Romi, in the next life, look for me."

Romina's eyes filled with tears.

She murmured incessantly: "Marcelo, you shouldn't have come."

"Really? I shouldn't have come, but Felipe should?" A cold and distant voice reached Romina's ear.

That voice, Marcelo?

Could it be that they had both died and were together in heaven?

How nice, upon dying she could see Marcelo again.

Wait…

Why did this "heaven" look so much like her villa's room?

The villa was the home she shared with Marcelo, and he had even named it; he said that only when Romina was there, it was a home.

Romina, still incredulous and with her heart racing, turned her head to look beside her.

Upon seeing the familiar silhouette next to the bed, her mind went blank, as if lightning had struck on a clear day.

Her lips trembled, unable to make any sound for a long time, and her gaze was fixed on the figure in front of her.

"Marcelo, you…!"

Romina couldn't believe that the same person who had died with her in a fire a second before, was now in front of her, safe and sound.

"Romina, do you really not want to be in this house, don't you want to stay with me?"

"Or is it that, just to see Felipe, you're willing to gamble with your life?"

The man's voice, cold as ice, was full of heartbreaking pain.

"I'm warning you, Romina, don't think you can leave me!"

Without waiting for Romina to react, Marcelo left the room after leaving those words.

Romina was left alone in the room. She was confused, but upon seeing the familiar place, she finally regained her composure. Could it be… that she had gone back in time?

Or had all of the above been a dream? If it was, it had been too real.

Romina got up with effort and rummaged through the whole bed.

She took her cell phone from under the pillow, looked at the date, and indeed, she had returned to the first year of her marriage with Marcelo.

Upon seeing the thick bandage on her wrist, she remembered what had happened that same day in her previous life.

That day had been unforgettable for her. It was when, following Sofia's advice, she had hurt herself.

Sofia had told her that if she wanted to run away with Felipe, she had to make Marcelo hate her.

So she had done everything, causing chaos in the villa, disturbing the peace.

And once again, Sofia had been the one who had given her the idea: if Marcelo couldn't let her go, then she should threaten him with her death so that he would let her leave.

In her previous life, Romina had followed Sofia's words to the letter. Taking advantage of a carelessness of the servants, she had cut her wrist brutally…

Thinking about that, Romina touched her wrist and, with mixed feelings, looked out the window.

This time, I won't let them escape.

But... for now there is something more important...

She had to find Marcelo. She wanted to see him, she needed him so much.

In this life, besides Marcelo, no other man would have her attention.

Romina opened the door of the room and, taking only a few steps, ran into Victoria.

Victoria had taken care of Marcelo since he was a child, and out of affection for him, in her past life she had also been lenient with Romina.

"Miss, how is it that you came out of the room? You haven't fully recovered yet. Where are you going this time?" Victoria asked her worriedly upon seeing Romina so determined.

It was no wonder that Victoria asked that. In her past life, Romina didn't stop for a second.

She was always devising how to escape, and the servants lived exhausted.

Upon seeing the worry on Victoria's face, Romina quickly raised her hands: "No, no, Victoria. I won't leave the house. I just want to see Marcelo. Is he home?"

"Miss, the master went out."

He went out? Had she angered him?

"What do I do now? Where did he go? I need to see him, I have something very important to tell him."

"I don't know, miss. The master didn't tell me where he was going." Victoria shook her head, resigned.

Upon hearing that Marcelo wasn't there, Romina was immediately discouraged, she looked like a balloon that had been deflated.

"Miss, before leaving, the master asked me to bring you this soup. Drink some to regain strength."

Romina saw the soup in Victoria's hands, and suddenly felt like crying.

She had done everything to hurt herself and Marcelo, but despite everything, he still took care of her.

Romina stared at the fish soup in Victoria's hands for a few seconds, then, with red eyes, ran back to the room.

She was determined to call him.

She wanted to tell him how much she missed him, and with that, he would surely return home.

With the cell phone in her hand, she searched through her contacts, but didn't find his number. Instead, she saw a contact saved as "Felipe Super Handsome".

"How disgusting!" Romina, with a disdainful gesture, blocked the number immediately. "What bad luck!"

After not finding Marcelo's number, she remembered that she had never saved it.

Upon seeing Victoria at the door with the soup, Romina smiled sweetly at her.

"Victoria, could you call Marcelo for me?"

Echeverria Company.

Boardroom.

In the middle of a meeting, Marcelo showed no emotion on his face. In the tense atmosphere, the sound of his cell phone vibrating broke the silence abruptly.

Leonardo looked at Marcelo's cell phone, and an alarm went off in his head.

Every time they called from the Echeverria house, it was never good news. It was almost always some servant reporting that Romina had escaped again.

The last time was even worse...

He didn't dare to think about what might have happened this time. Quickly, he passed the cell phone to Marcelo.

Marcelo looked at the screen with the caller ID, and his heart sank. Could it be that that woman had done something again?

"Uh... Marcelo, are you coming home tonight?"

As soon as he answered, a soft and delicate voice slipped into Marcelo's ears.

Romina? How was it possible that she was calling him in person?

Was it so urgent that he returned home? What would she be plotting now to escape or to make him suffer?

It wasn't the first time that Romina had treated him this way, but always with the same goal: to force him to divorce.

"I have no other intention, just that I miss you. Could you come back tonight?"

In the villa, Romina was lying on the living room sofa, talking on the phone with unusual seriousness, and upon not hearing any response, she added hastily.

"I'm going."

No matter what her intention was, he was ready to face it.

Upon hearing Marcelo's response, Romina jumped off the sofa with a leap.

"Great! Then I'll wait for you, okay?"

The enthusiasm in Romina's voice reached Marcelo's ears, causing him to frown. For him, Romina definitely had some hidden motive.

He ended the call and the meeting continued, but the atmosphere in the room became more glacial with each passing minute. Everyone present felt that the temperature had dropped drastically.