CHAPTER 57
LIANA’S POV
Of course it was her.
+25 BONUS
She was standing there with her arms crossed, a cruel smirk curling her lips while the two other women flanked her like some designer–packaged version of the devil’s entourage. Her eyes traveled over me with open disgust, making my skin crawl. She looked at me like I was filth. Like I didn’t belong anywhere near her world.
She stepped forward slowly, dragged a perfectly manicuried finger along my soaked arm, then grabbed me harshly by the wrist and yanked me into the center of the restroom like I was a pathetic showpiece.
“Why are you so shameless?” she sneered, tilting her head mockingly. “Clinging to your brother like a desperate little whore. Do you even have any pride left, or did you lose it the second he spread your legs and reminded you what a good little family
fuck you were?”
I stood frozen, lips trembling, and that’s when the first laugh came, from the girl on her right. Then the second girl followed, giggling like it was the most hilarious thing they’d ever heard.
Cynthia started circling me. “You seriously thought you could just slap on some glittery dress, get a pity mark on your neck, and suddenly become Luna? Bitch, are you delusional or just stupid?”
My throat tightened. I couldn’t speak. I couldn’t even move.
“Let me guess,” she continued, voice growing louder. “He told you he loved you? That you’re his mate? That you’re special? God, it’s honestly laughable. Do you know how pathetic you look, Liana? Do you really think you’ve won anything?”
She shoved my damp hair away from my neck, revealing Killian’s bite mark. “So he marked you. So what? He didn’t marry you. He married me. I’m the one who stood beside him in front of the Elders. I’m the Luna. I’ve been the Luna. You? You’re just the sad little girl who never got over her brother. Just a convenient fuck when he was lonely.”
Her words were like knives, slicing deep into places I didn’t even know could bleed.
“You’re not his equal,” she spat. “You never were. You’re not even in the same universe as him. You were nothing seven years ago, and guess what? You’re still nothing. Just a washed–up, used toy he decided to pick up again for fun. He’ll get bored. Men like him always do.”
“He’s divorcing you,” I said quietly, clinging to the only truth I had left.
She burst out laughing
“Killian? Divorce me? Oh, you poor naive idiot. He needs me. You think he’s going to throw away years of power, alliances, and status for what? a week little nobody who cries every time someone raises their voice? He’s running for alpha King. He can’t afford someone like you beside him. You’re a liability.”
I wanted to scream that she was wrong, that he loved me, but she wasn’t done.
“You know what’s really sad?” she said, pulling out her phone. “You’re still walking around like you have some dignity left. Like people don’t already know who you are. Wanna see?”
She tapped her screen and showed me.
It was the video.
The one from that night.
Seven years ago. The night he came into my room.
I saw my own face My own cries. My own moans. My hands in his hair. His lips on my throat. His body pushing into mine.
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+25 BONUS
Everything. All of it.
Cynthia’s voice dropped, venomous. “While you were too busy playing incest Barbie with your big, bad alpha brother, I was filming. Yeah. I taught this. Thought about sending it to your dad. actually, I did. Just a little clip. You know what happened next, right? He landed in the fucking hospital. Imagine if I’d sent the whole thing. Maybe a heart attack wouldn’t have been
enough. Maybe the grave would have been quicker.”
Her girls howled with laughter. I stood there, tears brimming, my body shaking.
“But don’t worry,” Cynthia continued, smirking, “I’m still holding onto it. and guess what? If you keep clinging to him like the pathetic side piece you are, I’ll play this little movie on the gala screen tonight. Let’s see how those alphas and betas respect you after they see just what kind of whore you really are.”
I opened my mouth to speak, to defend myself, to scream, but nothing came out.
“I mean seriously, how does it feel, Liana?” she mocked. “Knowing you’ll always be second place? That no matter how hard
you try, you’ll never wear that Luna crown? That all you’ve ever been to him is a fuck he regretted the second he zipped his
pants?”
“You don’t know him,” I whispered.
Cynthia leaned in close, her breath hot on my face. “No, sweetie. You don’t. You know the fantasy version he sold you. I
know the real one. The one who uses women like weapons and throws them away when they’re no longer useful. I’m the one
he needs. You’re just a ticking time bomb he’s keeping on the side until the campaign ends.”
One of the girls whispered something behind her hand, and Cynthia laughed again. “Oh, and get this, we warned him. His Beta, his Gamina, even I warned him what keeping you around would do. But he’s stubborn. He’ll learn. And when he does? When he finally comes crawling back? Don’t worry, I’ll make sure he never forgets just how far he fell for a broken little bitch
like you.”
I turned to run, to get out of there, but one of the girls stepped forward and slammed her heel down on the edge of my gown. I heard the fabric tear. I gasped, clutching at it as it ripped down the side, leaving me exposed.
And still, they laughed.
They laughed so hard I thought I’d vomit.
Tears streamed down my face. My entire body shaked.
I ran.
I didn’t care where. I just had to get out.
I could still hear their laughter behind me like a curse.
But the worst part wasn’t the water, or the insults, or the video, or even the tear in my gown.
The worst part was the tiny, brutal voice in my head asking one question over and over:
What if she’s right?
