Chapter 210
Chapter 204
Tori’s POV:
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The woman before me bore little resemblance to the polished, calculating mother I’d known.
“Everyone back!” Hannah’s voice cracked as she raised something clutched n her trembling hand-a small glass vial that caught the fairy lights strung across the garden. “Since I’m suffering, none of you will have peace either!
My heart hammered against my ribs.
Lucas’s arm tightened around my waist, and I felt Duke surge forward in his consciousness, a warning growl rumbling through Lucas’s chest that made several nearby guests step back instinctively.
“Jack, Lucas murmured, his voice carrying Alpha command despite its low volume. “Get Tori to p>
“Don’t you dare!” Hannah’s shriek cut through the night air.
Her wild eyes fixed on me with an intensity that made my skin crawl. “She stays right where she is. Or I die right here, right now, and everyone can see what kind of despicable Omega Tori really is-one who’d let her own mother perish just to marry an Alpha p>
Her laughter erupted, sharp and unhinged, echoing across the stunned garden.
“That’s right! Let them all witness it! Then she’ll never wash away the blood debt, will she? Never p>
The crowd’s whispers intensified, a susurrus of shock and horror that made me want to sink into the ground. I felt hundreds of eyes on me, judging, speculating-believing her twisted narrative.
This was supposed to be my moment-our moment. Lucas and I, finally united before the entire pack.
And now…
Hannah. Grandma Eileen’s voice cut through the chaos as she stepped forward, her weathered face etched with pain and determination. “Please, dear. This is your daughter’s most important day. Whatever grievances you have, this isn’t-
“My daughter?” Hannah’s laugh was sharp, brittle, edged with hysteria.
“Where was this precious daughter when her mother was being hounded by debts, so desperate I was ready to jump off a building? Where was
she then p>
My stomach dropped.
She had called me-begged me for money to pay off her debts. But I’d refused. I knew gambling debts were a bottomless pit, an endless cycle
that would devour every moonstone I’d received as compensation.
So I’d said no and blocked her number.
But hearing her say it like this, in front of everyone, made it sound like abandoned my own mother to die.
I’ve been living in hell!” Hannah continued, her voice rising to a fever pitch. “Hiding from debt collectors, sleeping in my car, watching
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Chapter 204
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everything I built crumble to dust. And why? Because of her!” She thrustshaking finger in my direction. Because Tori Sullivan gets to play
princess while I’m forced to the streets p>
“That’s enough, Susan Shepherd’s voice rang out clear and strong as she maneuvered her wheelchair forward, Charlotte immediately moving to
her side.
“Whatever your problems are, they’re not Tori’s fault. She p>
“Susan?” Hannah’s face contorted into something ugly, a twisted smile that didn’t reach her eyes. “Oh, Susan. Sweet, naive Susan. How generous
of you to defend your enemy’s daughter p>
The world seemed to stop.
Susan’s face went pale, her hands gripping the wheelchair’s armrests until her knuckles turned white. “What nonsense are you spouting?
Hannah wiped more grime from her face, revealing the feature. “It’s me, Susan. Frost. Remember p>
She traced her fingers along her cheekbone, her jawline. “I had work done, of course, but surely you can still see the resemblance p>
The name hung in the air like a curse.
Susan’s expression shifted from anger to shock, her eyes widening as memory crashed over her. “No,” she whispered, the word barely audible.
Then louder, “No. That’s impossible. You can’t be p>
“Tori is William’s daughter,” Hannah’s-Frost’s-smile was terrible to behold. “And if you don’t believe me, we can always arrange a paternity test between Tori and William. DNA doesn’t lie, does it p>
My heart pounded so hard I thought it might burst from my chest.
Fear clawed at my throat. I could feel it building, the inevitable revelation that would shatter everything.
If I’d known it would come to this, I should have told Susan myself.
Susan’s gaze shifted between me and William, searching our faces.
Whatever she saw there-guilt, pain, confirmation-made her face crumple
“So you both knew,” she said, her voice hollow. “You already knew p>
“Tori is so fortunate, isn’t she?” Hannah’s voice dripped with false sweetness as she seized the moment. “So many people blessing her, loving her. Perhaps your daughter, resting in her grave, would be ‘happy’ for her too-
The words barely left her mouth before Susan moved.
A porcelain plate flew through the air with surprising force, striking Hann h square on the temple. The crack of impact was sickening, followed immediately by blood streaming down Hannah’s face.
“You have no right!” Susan’s scream was raw, primal. “No right to speak of my daughter! Never”
Hannah swayed, her hand rising to her bleeding forehead, then crumpled the ground. Lucas gestured sharply, and immediately two guards moved forward, dragging her unconscious form away.
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The silence that followed was deafening.
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I couldn’t bear it-couldn’t bear seeing Susan’s anguish, knowing I was the cause. My feet moved before my mind caught up, carrying me
toward her.
“Susan, I’m so sorry,” I whispered, reaching out to touch her hand. “I just-
My fingertips had barely grazed the back of Susan’s hand when she violently wrenched away.
Then her palm swung through the air with full force.
CRACK.
The sound echoed across the garden like a gunshot.
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