Chapter 117: Confrontation and Resolve
Chapter 117: Confrontation and Resolve
(Aria’s POV)
Elizabeth quickly regained her composure and took a deep breath. Her eyes flashed with renewed
determination as she straightened her shoulders.
“Alright, Aria, stop making a fuss,” she said, her voice carrying the unmistakable authority of a former Luna. “I know you’re still angry…”
She reached for my hand with practiced manipulation, her fingers cold against my skin.
“Aria, you’ve suffered during this time. It must have been hard carrying a pup alone,” she continued, her tone shifting to false sympathy. “Don’t worry, I’ll make sure Alexander compensates you properly and doesn’t let you suffer any grievances…”
I jerked my hand away from her grasp.
“I’m telling you for the last time,” I said with ice–cold precision. “This pup is not Alexander’s!”
I gestured sharply at the official document she was still clutching.
“The report clearly states ‘non–paternal‘ in black and white. Can’t you see clearly?”
Elizabeth refused to accept the evidence before her eyes. She shook her head vigorously, her perfectly styled hair coming loose from its pins.
“Aria, don’t think you can fool me with a fake paternity test report,” she declared, her voice rising with desperation.
The accusation hit me like a slap across the face. I responded with complete emotionlessness, my hand moving instinctively to protect my belly.
“Then open your eyes and look carefully,” I said with deadly calm. “This is an official hospital report with full legal validity.”
I pointed to the distinctive seal at the bottom of the document.
“It’s stamped with Silvercrest Hospital’s official seal. Forging paternity reports in our werewolf community is
a serious offense that can result in territorial banishment!”
Though Elizabeth continued shaking her head in denial, I caught the slight wavering in her expression. Her brow furrowed with growing uncertainty as the implications began to sink in.
“You can verify it yourself if you don’t believe it,” I added with bitter satisfaction.
When I insisted once more that the pup wasn’t Alexander’s, Elizabeth’s facade finally cracked completely. Her
carefully controlled anger erupted like a dam bursting.
“Then whose pup is it?” she demanded, her voice shaking with fury. “That means you were already pregnant before severing your mate bond with Alexander!”
Her eyes blazed with accusation and disgust.
“Yet you tell me this pup isn’t his. Do you seriously expect me to believe that?”
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Chapter 117: Confrontatio.
I felt exhaustion settling into my bones like lead. This conversation was draining what little energy I had left-
“Believe it or not,” I replied coldly, my voice flat and emotionless. “Just consider that I betrayed the mate bond…”
Before I could finish my sentence, Elizabeth flew into an absolute rage.
Her hand shot up and swept toward my face with vicious intent. I instinctively stepped back, barely avoiding the full force of her blow.
But Elizabeth’s sharp fingernails still caught my cheek, sending sharp pain racing across my skin. The scratching sensation made me gasp.
What shocked me most wasn’t the physical pain, but the fact that Elizabeth had actually tried to strike me. A pregnant she–wolf.
“What gives you the right?!” I shouted, my hand flying to my stinging cheek. “Just because of those words about mate bond betrayal?!”
My voice rose with righteous indignation.
“But I’m the one who was framed and trapped!”
Elizabeth’s former Luna composure shattered completely. Her face twisted with ugly hatred as she cursed me. with vicious words.
“Aria Summers, you’re utterly shameless!” she spat, her carefully maintained dignity dissolving into raw malice. “I thought you were decent, but you’re just like that scheming she–wolf Claire Watson!”
Her comparison to Claire hit me like a physical blow. I felt my chest tighten painfully, making me dizzy with sudden nausea.
The anger that had been simmering beneath my surface finally ignited into a blazing inferno.
“You’re also a she–wolf,” I shot back, my voice fierce with indignation. “Don’t you know anything besides shaming other females?”
When Elizabeth continued her relentless berating about betraying my mate bond during our union, something inside me snapped completely.
“If you want to know why I’m pregnant,” I said, my voice dropping to a dangerous whisper, “go ask Richard
Reed and Claire Watson if they dare tell you!”
Elizabeth’s face changed dramatically. The blood drained from her cheeks as she stammered in shock.
“You… you didn’t also with Richard…” she began, her eyes wide with horrified realization.
“Shut up!” I was so angry I began trembling, my entire body shaking with rage.
My chest churned with violent nausea. Never had a single name made me feel so physically sick.
The implication in her half–finished question made bile rise in my throat.
Elizabeth realized her mistake immediately. She pressed her lips together and fell silent, though her deeply furrowed brow suggested her mind was racing.
Her former Luna instincts were finally beginning to recognize the true implications of what I had revealed. I could see the wheels turning in her head as she pieced together the puzzle of Claire and Richard’s affair.
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Exhausted and thoroughly disgusted, I issued my final ultimatum.
“Leave,” I said with quiet finality. “I don’t want to see you again.”
My voice carried an authority that surprised even me. My wolf had finally found its strength.
+ Painte
Elizabeth reluctantly clutched the paternity report to her chest, her pack authority wavering for the first time
in decades.
“I’ll have the pack healers verify the authenticity of this paternity test,” she said weakly.
“Whatever,” I replied through gritted teeth, already turning away from her.
After Elizabeth and her entire pack entourage finally left Moon Valley Residences, I returned to my apartment on unsteady legs.
I leaned against the closed door, feeling the solid wood support my exhausted body.
Suddenly, overwhelming grief crashed over me like a tidal wave. The events of the day, the confrontation, Elizabeth’s accusations, and the physical attack all combined into an emotional tsunami.
My eyes burned with unshed tears that I had been holding back for far too long.
I could no longer maintain my composure. I covered my face with my arm as hot tears finally broke free, soaking my sleeve completely.
The release felt both devastating and cathartic. All the pain, frustration, and loneliness I had been suppressing poured out in silent sobs.
After crying until I had no tears left, I wiped my face and noticed my cheek was still stinging from Elizabeth’s
attack.
Using my mobile phone’s camera function, I examined the damage. Elizabeth’s scratch had left an angry red mark across my skin, though thankfully it hadn’t drawn blood.
As I dabbed the wound with antiseptic, wondering whether to apply a healing salve, my phone suddenly rang. The familiar name on the screen made my heart skip a beat. Dominic.
“Hello?” I answered, trying to steady my voice.
“How did the paternity test go?” his deep voice asked immediately, concern evident in his tone.
I could hear his sharp Alpha instincts picking up on something in my voice.
“Have you been crying?” he asked with growing worry.
I quickly deflected, not wanting to burden him with yet another of my problems.
“I might be catching a cold,” I lied smoothly. “I have some nasal congestion.”
Changing the subject before he could press further, I decided to focus on more practical matters.
“Dominic, I need you to investigate the Reed Pack’s current situation,” I said with renewed determination. “I want to add fuel to the fire.”
I suspected the Storm Pack was using their extensive business connections to manipulate territorial gossip networks. They were probably trying to bury Claire and Richard’s affair scandal through strategic media control.
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“Claire has awakened and lost her pup,” Dominic informed me, his voice carrying useful intelligence. “She’s now making quite a scene at the hospital.”
He paused, and I could hear the dark satisfaction in his voice.
“She seems confident she can claim the deceased pup was Alexander’s, since there’s no way to prove paternity of a lost pregnancy.”
The irony was almost poetic. Claire thought she was safe now that the evidence was gone.
But I smiled coldly, knowing I still held a devastating trump card that Claire was completely unaware of. The recording Dominic had helped me obtain of Claire and Richard’s most intimate encounter.
“Do you want to play your ace now?” Dominic asked, clearly reading my thoughts.
Though I worried about timing, his next words filled me with confidence.
“Whenever you want to play it is the best time,” he said with the assured authority of an Alpha King. “I can handle everything.”
Despite wanting to express my gratitude, I swallowed the words. I knew my debt to him had grown far beyond what mere thanks could ever repay.
“Yes, play it!” I declared firmly. “Since we’ve already torn off the mask with the Reed Pack, there’s no need to save face for them anymore!”
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