Chapter 1 The Night of the Contract Signing - I Blew Up Rita's Coffin

# Chapter 1: The Night of the Contract Signing - I Blew Up Rita's Coffin

The ballpoint pen trembled between Nydia Schmidt's fingers as she stared at the document before her. The mahogany conference table gleamed under crystal chandeliers, a stark contrast to the darkness of what the papers demanded.

"Sign it," Caesar Sims commanded, his voice echoing in the vast room of his mansion. His tailored suit, worth more than what Nydia would earn in five years, fit his athletic frame perfectly. "The substitute agreement doesn't leave room for negotiation."

Nydia scanned the document again, her stomach churning at the clauses. Page three, paragraph four: "The substitute bride shall mimic Rita Thompson's smile no less than 37 times daily." Page five: "Subject agrees to organ donation priority should primary beneficiary require transplantation."

"This isn't a marriage contract," she whispered, "it's a death sentence."

Caesar's jaw tightened. "Rita was perfection. You're merely the vessel to preserve her legacy."

The medical team waited silently by the door. Dr. Werner, a balding man with cold eyes, checked his watch impatiently. They were scheduled to begin the "compatibility procedures" immediately after the signing.

"I won't be harvested like an organ farm," Nydia said, her voice finding strength.

Caesar leaned forward, his cologne invading her space. "Your family's debt will disappear. Your brother's medical bills—paid. Your choice is simple: sign, or watch them suffer."

The security cameras in each corner of the room tracked her every movement. Behind Caesar stood his head of security, hand resting on his concealed weapon. There was no escape—at least not through conventional means.

"Fine," Nydia said, lowering her eyes in apparent submission. She picked up the pen and signed her name with deliberate strokes.

Caesar's smile never reached his eyes. "Dr. Werner will begin the preliminary examinations now."

As the doctor approached with a syringe, Nydia's demeanor changed. In one fluid motion, she gripped the ballpoint pen and drove it into Dr. Werner's neck. Blood sprayed across Caesar's white Armani shirt and custom jacket.

"What the—" Caesar stumbled backward as chaos erupted.

Nydia ripped open her designer dress, revealing what appeared to be explosive devices strapped to her torso. The security team froze.

"One move, and we all become abstract art on your imported wallpaper," she said coldly.

"You're insane!" Caesar's face drained of color.

Nydia laughed, a sound devoid of humor. "No, I'm prepared. Did you think I wouldn't investigate why the previous three 'substitute brides' disappeared? Or why Rita's ashes were cremated so quickly after the 'accident'?"

Caesar's composure faltered. "You know nothing."

"I know enough." She tossed a small vial toward him. "Caesar, did you know Rita's urn contains chili powder? Do you like the spice? I thought it matched her fiery personality."

His face contorted with rage and disbelief. "You desecrated her remains?"

"What remains?" Nydia moved toward the security system panel. "The woman in that coffin wasn't Rita. I found that out when I hacked your private servers."

She typed a code into the panel, and suddenly all screens in the room flickered to life, showing security footage from a basement laboratory. There, in a cryogenic chamber, lay a woman identical to Rita Thompson, surrounded by medical equipment.

"Your beloved Rita, version 2.0?" Nydia mocked. "Or is she version 12? I lost count."

Caesar's shock quickly morphed into something unexpected. Instead of rage, his eyes lit with fascination. He moved toward Nydia, ignoring the explosives.

"You hacked my quantum-encrypted servers?" He asked, voice tinged with genuine admiration. "Even my top security team couldn't breach those protocols."

"Stay back!" she warned.

The monitors suddenly flashed red, an alarm blaring through the mansion. The laboratory footage showed scientists in panic as a containment unit labeled "Schmidt DNA" merged with embryonic material.

"What are they doing with my DNA?" Nydia demanded.

Caesar didn't answer directly. Instead, to her astonishment, he dropped to one knee before her.

"You're nothing like the others," he said, eyes glittering with a manic intensity. "Rita was beautiful, yes, but predictable. You—" he gestured to the blood-spattered room, the hacked security system, the explosive vest, "—you're magnificently chaotic."

"This is not a romantic moment, Caesar," Nydia hissed.

"Marry me," he continued, unperturbed. "Not as a substitute. As yourself. You're worth ten of Rita Thompson."

Nydia stared in disbelief at the man kneeling before her, his expensive suit stained with his doctor's blood, proposing marriage while she threatened to blow them both to pieces.

"You're insane," she whispered.

"Perhaps," he conceded with a smile that didn't reach his eyes. "But I recognize value when I see it."

The alarm continued to blare as the laboratory footage showed something horrifying: a container labeled "Weaponized Embryo Development" with Nydia's DNA sequence displayed above it.

"What are you creating down there?" she demanded.

Caesar's smile widened. "Our future, Nydia. Our legacy."

Nydia's finger hovered over what appeared to be a detonator. "I'd rather leave no legacy than be part of whatever monstrosity you're planning."

The mansion's lockdown protocols engaged, steel shutters descending over the windows. Caesar remained kneeling, seemingly unconcerned by the explosives or the alarms.

"You won't detonate," he said confidently. "You're too curious now. You want answers."

Nydia's finger trembled over the detonator. "Try me."

"You destroy this place, you'll never know what connection you have to Rita. Why your DNA is compatible when dozens of others weren't." His eyes gleamed. "You'll never know why you were chosen before you were even born."

The words hit Nydia like physical blows. Her resolve wavered for just a moment—long enough for Caesar to notice.

"Come with me to the laboratory," he offered, standing and extending his hand. "See what you're truly part of. Then decide whether to blow us up."

The security monitors continued to show the chaos in the basement lab, scientists scrambling as something in the embryonic chamber began to pulse with unnatural light.

Nydia's mind raced. The explosives weren't real—merely a convincing prop—but Caesar didn't need to know that. Her real leverage was the information she'd gathered, the systems she'd compromised.

"After you," she said coldly, gesturing toward the door. "But remember, I can still trigger the mansion's self-destruct sequence I discovered in your systems. One wrong move, and your precious experiments become a crater."

Caesar's expression was unreadable as he led the way toward the elevator, the blood on his pristine suit now dried to a rusty brown. As the doors closed, enclosing them together, he whispered:

"You're going to make a magnificent mother to our creations, Nydia. Far better than Rita ever would have."

The elevator descended into darkness, taking them down to where the truth—and horrors—awaited.