The Bride Who Refused to Die

In my last life, Christine uploaded that video online, and the whole internet turned on me.

The parents lost themselves in their rage. Right there in the courtroom, they poured gasoline over me and burned me alive.

Even now, just the thought of how the flames ate through me down to the bone made my whole body tremble.

There was a flicker of satisfaction in Malcolm's eyes, though his face still wore that mask of righteous anger.

"Sandra, we've been together this long, and only now do I see what kind of cold, vicious person you really are! You're the head of the department. You're the only one with emergency access to the ward. If it wasn't you, then who else could it be?"

The families he stirred up were on the edge, eyes red, closing in on me like they wanted to tear me apart. They kept pressing closer.

"Everyone, stop!" Jack stepped in front of me, shielding me. "This is a hospital! Who gave you the right to act like this?"

As soon as he finished, a line of security guards appeared behind him, each holding a stun baton.

"What proof do you have that I set the fire?" I said. "Did any of you actually see me do it?"

Last time, I was labeled the killer without even understanding how. This time, I wasn't going to let them pin it on me so easily.

"Sandra, stop lying!" Christine snapped. "When I got off work yesterday, I saw someone sneaking around. That was you."

She wouldn't let go of it.

One of the guards, with dark circles heavy under his eyes, stepped forward, clearly irritated.

"Miss, you can't just accuse someone like that without proof. Our inpatient ward locks down at nine every night. No one goes in or out after that. The fire didn't start until eleven. What proof do you have that one of our patients slipped out and set it?"

Christine shrank back, visibly shaken by his tone.

Malcolm's expression darkened. Without a word, he pulled up another surveillance video.

In it, I was wearing a white coat, skillfully avoiding the nurses on duty as I slipped into the pediatric ward. Not long after, thick smoke started seeping out from the crack under the door.

The footage was crystal clear. You could even see the hospital patient uniform under the coat, the pant legs marked with several burned holes.

Even though I had seen all this before, the shock still hit me.

If the guards hadn't also pulled up footage from the same time showing me resting in my room, I might've started wondering if I was sleepwalking.

For a moment, everyone fell into confusion.

"How are there two of them in different places?"

"Which video is real?"

Even the furious parents hesitated, unsure what to believe.

Malcolm pointed at me without hesitation.

"I've been with her for ten years! You think I wouldn't recognize her? She's the one who burned the hospital. I'm sure of it!"