Chapter 4The $50 Million Jackpot: Bricked in a Wall, I Was Reborn to Destroy Them All

Using the hostel as a cover, I went completely incognito to claim my prize.

This time, I donated $10 million to charity.

After taxes, I had exactly $30 million left in my bank account.

I split the money into several different bank accounts for security.

Then, I deliberately flaked on signing the employment contract for the job I had lined up, and started preparing my applications for grad school.

But to my surprise, Madison still tracked me down.

"Harper, I heard from the professor that you broke your employment contract. Why?"

I was sitting in the hostel lounge, reading a textbook. I answered her casually, "I just decided I want to go to grad school."

"Are you sure you didn't win the lottery and decide to retire?"

I put the book down. "Look at my family. Do you really think I can afford to retire?"

"Right. Has your brother been harassing you lately?"

In my past life, Madison knew my family situation better than anyone.

She knew I had wildly sexist parents who favored boys, and a useless, deadbeat brother who leeched off them and fully intended to leech off me.

And yet, while constantly telling me how "sorry" she felt for me, she pushed me directly into the fire.

I shook my head, grabbed Madison's hand, and patted it. "My brother changed! He got a job at a massive tech company in Silicon Valley. I heard his starting salary is like $150k a year, and he has tons of girls chasing him."

Madison gasped, clearly not believing it.

I pulled out my phone and handed it to her.

She scrolled through. Jackson's Instagram feed was suddenly full of photos of him working in a sleek office, and pictures of him posing next to a luxury car.

I watched as she tapped to enlarge the car photo.

I leaned in. "What kind of car is that? I don't recognize the logo."

Madison pursed her lips. "That's a Porsche. It costs over a hundred grand."

I quickly snatched the phone back. "That's terrifying! If his salary is only $150k, how can he afford a car that expensive?"

Madison looked thoughtful. "Do you think he suddenly came into some money?"

Then she turned her head, looking at me with a faint, probing smile. "Harper, I saw a banner outside the gas station where we bought our tickets. It said someone won the $50 million jackpot. Who do you think it was?"

I picked my book back up and chuckled. "How should I know? Hundreds of people buy tickets there every day."

But Madison suddenly leaned in close, making my skin crawl. "Harper, I went to the gas station. I asked the owner for the physical description of the winner."

My heart gave a violent jolt.

Did she actually figure it out?