Chapter 27: Denied Truth and Hidden Secrets
Chapter 27: Denied Truth and Hidden Secrets
(Olivia''s POV)
His body went rigid. The muscles in his jaw tightened as he turned to face me.
"Don''t you dare curse our daughter," he growled, his amber eyes shing with fury.
My heart shattered into a thousand pieces. Even now, faced with the emptiness of Lily''s room, he refused to
ept the truth.
"Look," I said, gesturing weakly toward Lily''s Memorial Portrait on the nightstand. "Look at her eyes, Ethan
The portrait captured our daughter''s sweet face, her innocent smile forever frozen in time. But it was her eyes that spoke volumes gazing directly at where her father should have been.
"Herst wish was for you to be there," I continued, tears streaming down my face. "She wanted her daddy at
her side for her final journey."
Ethan''s gaze flickered to the portrait, then quickly away. Something passed across his face – pain, perhaps, or the briefest moment of recognition - before hardening into cold denial.
"Stop manipting me," he snarled. "This is just another one of your pathetic attempts to get my attention."
I stared at him in disbelief. How could he twist my grief into something so selfish?
"Our daughter is dead, Ethan," I said, my voice breaking. "She died alone in that hospital bed while you were
with Victoria and Emma. The least you could do is acknowledge her now."
His nostrils red. "You''re lying."
"The funeral home has her body," I pressed on, desperate to break through his denial. "They''re waiting for your signature to proceed with the burial arrangements."
"Enough!" he roared, his Alpha voice reverberating through the small room.
I flinched but stood my ground. "She was your daughter too," I whispered. "Don''t let her memory fade without
honoring her properly"
Something dangerous shed in his eyes. His control snapped.
"I said ENOUGH!" Ethan bellowed, shoving me away with such force that I stumbled backward.
In his rage, he yanked at his Ancestral Moonstone Amulet, the jade pendant he always wore. The chain broke, sending the precious heirloom flying through the air,
Time seemed to slow as the pendant arced toward me. It struck my temple with surprising force, the sh. edge cutting into my skin..
The moment the amulet touched me, a strange sensation washed over me. A fleeting, iplete memory flickered through my mind a child''sughter, a sh of amber eyes, a promise whispered in the darkness.
Blood trickled down my face as I stared at the pendant now lying on the floor between us. The memory faded as quickly as it had appeared, leaving me disoriented and confused.
0000 #R
Cluster 27 Deind
Ethan lunged forward, snatching the amulet from the ground. His movements were frantic as he examined it for damage before slipping it back around his neck.
Without another word, he turned and stormed out of the room. The door mmed behind him with such force that Lily''s portrait trembled on the nightstand.
I copsed onto my daughter''s bed, my body shaking with sobs. The sheets still held the faintest trace of her scent - the gentlevender soap she had loved so much.
I curled into myself, clutching her pillow to my chest. The physical pain from my injuries was nothingpared to the agony of Ethan''s continued denial,
How could he refuse to acknowledge what was right in front of him? How could he dishonor Lily''s memory
this way?
My tears soaked into the pillow as exhaustion imed me. The emotional toll of the confrontation,bined
with my still-healing injuries, pulled me into a restless sleep.
In my dreams, I saw a young girl with emerald green eyes – a child who looked remarkably like I had at that age. She wore the same jade pendant that Ethan treasured so fiercely.
A boy approached her, his face blurred and indistinct. He ced an identical pendant in her small hand. closing her fingers around it.
"Wait for me," he whispered, his voice achingly familiar yet impossible to ce.
The girl nodded solemnly, clutching the pendant to her chest. "I promise," she replied.
I woke with a gasp, my nightgown drenched in sweat. The dream clung to me, its details already fading but leaving behind a sense of profound importance.
Why had the child looked so much like me? And why had she worn Ethan''s family heirloom?
I pressed my palms against my eyes, trying to make sense of the strange vision. It felt like a memory, yet I had no recollection of such an encounter from my childhood at the orphanage.
take effe
My head throbbed painfully, the cut from the pendant adding to my difort. I reached for the bottle of sleeping pills on Lily''s nightstand left there from the many nights I''d spent at her bedside during her illness.
I swallowed one dry, desperate for dreamless sleep. As the medication began to take effect, my mind continued to circle around the mysterious connection between the pendant, the dream, and my own past.
(Victoria''s POV)
The morning sun felt glorious on my skin as I sat in the Silvercrest Pack Medical Den''s garden. My discharge papers had been processed, and I was simply waiting for Ethan to pick me up.
The cuts from the champagne fountain incident were healing nicely, though I''d made sure the medical staff documented every scratch. Evidence of Olivia''s violence would serve me well.
"Enjoying the sunshine, Mrs. Frost?"
I froze at the sound of that sleazy voice. Rnd Warner stood before me, his cheap suit hanging loosely from
his frame. His bloodshot eyes and the sour smell of alcohol told me he''d been drinking.
"What are you doing here?" I hissed, ncing around nervously. "This is a private medical facility."
Rnd''s lips curved into an unpleasant smile. "I need another hundred thousand," he said bluntly. "By
24
<
Chapter 27 Bened Truths
tomorrow."
Iughed, the sound sharp and dismissive. "We had an agreement. You''ve been paid in full."
"The price has gone up," he replied, running a hand through his greasy hair. Intion, you know!!
My eyes narrowed. "Our business is concluded. I suggest you leave before security escorts you out
Rnd leaned closer, his breath hot against my ear. "What would the Alpha King say if he knew the truth about his precious daughter''s kidney not being a match for your little Emma?"
Ice flooded my veins. "My daughter needed that kidney," I whispered fiercely. "What mother wouldn''t do. everything possible to save her child?"
"A noble sentiment," Rnd sneered. "But we both know there''s more to it than maternal instinct.*
I straightened my spine, meeting his gaze directly. "You have no idea what it''s like," I said, my voice trembling with genuine emotion. "To watch your child suffer while that woman parades around as Luna."
"That woman?" Rnd raised an eyebrow.
"Olivia Winters," I spat the name like poison. "She stole everything from me. Five years ago, she drugged Ethan''s wine and seduced him. Their so-called marriage was built on deception"
Rnd''s eyes widened with interest. "And the child?"
"A trap," I said bitterly. "A calcted move to secure her position. Ethan would never have chosen her
otherwise."
"Yet he married her," Rnd pointed out.
I clenched my fists. "He had no choice. The packws demanded it once she was
pregnant."
Rnd studied me for a moment. That''s quite a story,” he said finally. “But it doesn''t change the fact that I know what really happened with the kidney transnt."
My heart stuttered in my chest. “What are you talking about?"
He smiled, revealing yellowed teeth. "My wife Patricia was a perfect match for Lily Winters. The tests
confirmed it. Yet somehow, those results were altered, and the kidney went to your daughter instead."
Panic wed at my throat. "You can''t prove anything."
"Can''t 17" Rnd pulled out his phone, disying a medical document. "Copies
of the original test results
make forpelling evidence. I wonder what Dr. Fletcher would say if questioned
under oath?"
My hands shook as I reached for my purse. "How much do you want?" I whispered, defeat coloring my voice
"I told you. Another hundred thousand," he replied, pocketing his phone.
The sound of tires on gravel made my blood run cold. Ethan''s ck SUV pulled into the parking lot visible from the garden.
"Leave. Now, I hissed at Rnd, my heart racing with fear. "I will give you the money this afternoon."
Rnd merely smirked, taking his time as he strolled toward the garden exit. I watched in horror as Ethan
emerged from his vehicle, his tall figure cutting an imposing silhouette against the morning light.