The Billionaire's Chef Poisoned My Parents—Now It's His Turn

My billionaire husband has anorexia, and the only food he can stomach is whatever his precious little chef, Dahlia Powell, makes for him.

I fought. I screamed. In the end, I swallowed my pride for my daughter's sake.

On the surface, Dahlia played the innocent lamb, all smiles and deference. But the moment my back was turned, she prepared a feast for me and my parentsa last supper, as it turned out.

I ate sparingly and barely survived. My parents died in agony.

Afterward, Dahlia gasped and clutched her chest. "Oh no! I must have confused the fo-ti root with pepperthey look so similar! But surely you noticed the taste was off? Unless you're trying to frame me?"

The pain was unbearable. I wanted to tear her throat out with my teeth.

But my husband shielded her. He slid a forgiveness agreement across the table, his voice flat. "This wasn't Dahlia's fault. It was an accident. Besides, you should be grateful it was your parents who died and not us."

"You know I can't survive without Dahlia. Sign it."

When I refused, she threatened my daughter's life.

I signed.

My daughter was still forced to drink soup boiled with raw aconite.

I died choking on hatred and regret, the poison burning through my veins.

Now I've been given another chance.

When my husband slams that same forgiveness agreement in front of me, I hand the pen back to him.

"You're the one who should sign this."

0ne

"I'm just a chef who loves cooking. Mrs. Hansen is being paranoid!" Dahlia stood before me, eyes wide with practiced innocence. "But since you're so worried about competition, let me prove myself. I'll prepare dinner for you and your family tonight. Once you taste my food, you'll see there's nothing between Mr. Hansen and me."

She was smug beneath the simpering act. Her words dripped sweetness, but her expression screamed triumph.

I wasn't angry.

Because I realized I'd been reborn.

In my past life, I'd exploded at her right here. But Marcus had called me difficult, refused to even look at me. While I was out picking up my parents, he let Dahlia replace our nanny and cook an elaborate dinner.

I knew nothing.

Not until my parents collapsed mid-meal, writhing in pain. Not until my vision blurred and numbness spread through my limbs. Only then did I understandthe food had been poisoned.

I tried to call for help.

Marcus and Dahlia stopped me. They stalled deliberately, forcing me to watch my parents stop breathing. Then they used my daughter to make me "forgive" Dahlia's "carelessness."

My death. My parents' deaths. My daughter's death. All written off as accidents. Marcus bought off every relative who might have questioned it, and our lives were swept away like dust.

This time, I smiled.

"Fine. I'll go get my parents now. Have dinner ready when we return." I looked her up and down. "If you'd remembered your place from the startthat you're just a cooking toolI wouldn't have bothered arguing with you."

Her face flushed crimson.

I walked past her without another glance and drove to pick up my parents.

Two

When I returned, the table was covered with dishes. Just as lavish as before, just as appetizing. I'll give Dahlia this muchdespite her rotten soul, she really can cook.

When Dahlia saw me and my parents staring at the food with satisfied faces, she rolled her eyes and snorted, then grabbed the lunch box and headed for the door.

My parents couldn't stand her smug, arrogant attitude and immediately stopped her.

"You see your employers and don't even greet them? Rolling your eyes at uswhat's that supposed to mean?"

"Get over here and serve us while we eat, or I'll have you fired."

Dahlia rolled her eyes even harder.

"Drop the old-money aristocrat act. I'm not your maid or your nanny."

"When I signed my contract with Mr. Hansen, it was crystal clear: I cook for him alone. I serve him alone. I don't take orders from anyone else."

"If you have a problem with that, take it up with him. Stop putting on a show for me."

My parents were livid.

They were about to call Marcus right then, but I stopped them.

"Mom, Dad, you know Marcus has anorexia. Dahlia's the only one whose food he can eat, so she's a bit spoiled. Look, she's holding his lunch boxshe's rushing to deliver his meal. Don't make things difficult. I'm here. I'll take care of you."

Dahlia muttered, "At least someone knows how to behave," and left with the food container.

My parents were still fuming, but she was already gone. Under my coaxing, they finally sat down to eat.

To keep their spirits up, I ran around nonstoppicking out dishes for them, ladling soup, bringing tea, pouring water...

It wasn't long before both of them, faces darkening, collapsed from their chairs onto the floor.

I called out softly and rushed forward to check their pulses.

They were still breathing. Barely. I scrambled to grab my phone and call an ambulance.

Just like in my previous life.

No matter how I searched, I couldn't find the phone I'd left on the coffee table. I didn't need to think twiceDahlia had hidden it. Without panicking, I rushed toward the door, planning to find the neighborhood security or a neighbor who could call for help.

But the moment I reached the yard, Marcus and Dahlia blocked my path.

It was like seeing a lifeline.

"Marcus, quickcall an ambulance. Mom and Dad collapsed right after eating. Their pulses are barely there. If we wait any longer, it'll be too late."

"And call the police. They only got like this after eating Dahlia's food. She must have poisoned it. She's trying to kill us!"

Dahlia put on a stricken expression. "Impossible."

She ran into the dining room to inspect the leftovers, then turned back to Marcus with a wounded look.

"I know what happened. I was preparing raw aconite to make medicinal liquor for you."

"But when I was cooking dinner for Mrs. Hansen, I accidentally mistook it for pepper and added it in. Her parents must have eaten it and gotten poisoned."

"But I only used a tiny bit. Even if they really are poisoned, it won't be serious. So don't go saying things like 'it'll be too late.' You could send them to the hospital tomorrow and they'd still be fine."

"You're just using this to get rid of me, aren't you?"

I stared at Marcus, my expression shattered, defenseless.

"I'm not."

"I didn't. Dahlia did this on purpose. Please, just call an ambulance. Mom and Dad"

But before I could finish, Marcus cut me off.

"Enough."

"Dahlia didn't do it on purpose. Mild poisoning won't kill anyone. Why are you putting on an act?"

"I'll call an ambulance. But first, you're signing this liability waiver. I'm not saving your parents just to have you turn around and accuse Dahlia of attempted murder."

Looking at the familiar forgiveness agreement in front of me, I almost laughed.

In my past life, I'd been too panicked to think straight. Now I finally saw it clearly.

Dahlia had just left to deliver foodhow could she possibly have returned so fast, just in time to stop me from calling an ambulance or the police?

And this forgiveness agreement appearing out of nowhere? They were treating me like an idiot.

It all pointed to one thing: today's "last meal" wasn't an accident. Marcus and Dahlia had planned this together. Maybe my complaints about her had finally pushed him over the edge, so he let her teach me a little lesson...

That's why Marcus had been so calm in my past life. That's why he accused my parents of trying to scam Dahlia after they diedbecause he believed her. He thought a tiny bit of raw aconite couldn't actually kill anyone.

When I just stood there holding the agreement without reacting, Dahlia walked up and whispered in my ear.

"What? Finally figured it out? Finally realized this was all planned?"

"That's right. I can't stand you. Marcus and I are perfect for each otherwhy should you get to take my place just because you met him a few years earlier?"

"Either sign this agreement, take your money-losing daughter, and get out of the Hansen familyor watch your parents die right in front of you."

"And their deaths are just the beginning. Cross me, and your daughter's next. Then you."

I let out a long breath, glanced at my parents lying on the restaurant floor, and nodded.

"I'll sign. But I have conditions."

Marcus looked surprised. "Conditions? You're begging me to save your parents. Keep wasting time and they'll be dead. What conditions could you possibly have?"

I ignored him and continued.

"I want a divorce."

"Here's the agreement I drafted. I want all your assets, fifty percent of the shares, and full custody of Lily."

The moment I pulled out the divorce papers, Dahlia looked like she might cry from joy.

She'd been circling me for years, desperate for me to divorce Marcus so she could finally become the rightful Mrs. Hansen.

But Marcus hesitated. His brow furrowed, and he didn't agree.

Dahlia rushed to convince him. "Mr. Hansen, you can have more children. Why cling to these things? My body is a hundred times better than hers. Want a son? I'll give you a son. Want a daughter? Done!"

No matter what she said, Marcus wouldn't nod. He kept pushing the forgiveness agreement toward me.

"I never planned to divorce you. Sign this, and you'll still be Mrs. Hansen."

"Divorce isn't good for you, for me, or for the child."

Not good for you or the childwhat he really meant was it wasn't good for his assets.

I didn't need to say it. Dahlia realized it herself.

Her expression twisted. She glared at me, teeth clenched. "Serena, your parents are lying right there, barely alive, and you're using this to extort money from Mr. Hansen?"

"I only put in a little raw aconitejust enough to teach you a lesson. If your parents ended up like that, either they're faking it, or you knew all along and you're running a scam!"

"Is money really that important to you?"

In my past life, those words would've worked. I'd have gotten angry, taken the pittance they offered, and signed away everything. But I'd already died once. And death teaches you what actually matters.

Hurting myself to make Marcus regret it? That's the stupidest revenge imaginable.

So I didn't take the bait. I stepped around Dahlia and smiled.

"So what you're saying is Marcus can't possibly sign because he can't bear to part with the money?" I tilted my head. "But I remember what you told me. You said you're his most precious treasurethat he can't live without you, that without you his life would be worse than death. Surely he'd give up some material things for you?"

I let that hang in the air.

"Doesn't he want everyone to know you're the real Mrs. Hansen? Or does he just treat you like a cook he can replace anytime?"

The more contempt I poured into my voice, the worse Dahlia's expression got. She latched onto Marcus's arm, pouting, tearing up, doing her whole routine. He weighed his options. Then he signed.

But I knew his reasoning. It wasn't entirely for her. He could see I looked perfectly finenot poisoned at all. And the bodyguard he'd sent to find Lily still hadn't reported back. Nothing was going according to plan. If he refused to sign and I caused a scene, he'd lose far more than half his assets.

I tucked away the divorce agreement. Then I took the pen Dahlia offered, opened the forgiveness letterand didn't sign.

Instead, I handed the pen back to Marcus.

"Actually, I've been thinking. My signature on this is worthless. It needs to be yours."

I paused.

"Because those two people lying in there? They're not my parents. They're yours."