Chapter 49
I wasn’t sure what was more infuriating–Alaric’s calm indifference or Amira’s smug smile.
Maybe it was the fact that I couldn’t argue against it. I have no idea what Alaric was getting at.
I clenched my jaw, fingers curling around the goblet in front of me. Knox was silent, but I could feel his stare burning into the side of my face.
I could also feel Amira watching me, waiting for me to react, waiting for me to lose control.
I wouldn’t give her the satisfaction.
I lifted my chin, leveling Alaric with a steady stare. “Explain.”
He wiped his mouth with his napkin, then set it down with infuriating patience. His ice–blue gaze flicked to me, unreadable as ever. “The rival king will suspect any informants we send, but he won’t expect you.”
I didn’t move. “And why is that?”
+15
Alaric leaned back in his chair, the dim candlelight casting sharp shadows across his face. “Because you’re a Luna. And because you hate your sister. For some weird reason, he thrives on that.”
A cold, bitter laugh threatened to escape, but I swallowed it down. “That’s your plan? To use my hatred for Amira as some kind of political shield?”
Alaric smirked. “It’s effective, isn’t it?”
I wanted to throw my goblet at his head.
Amira, ever the actress, let out a soft, dramatic sigh. “Well, I suppose I’ll just have to trust my dear sister to keep me safe.”
I turned to her slowly. “You should be more worried about who I’m keeping safe from whom.”
She smiled sweetly, but her violet eyes gleamed with warning.
‘Don’t overstep your boundaries ‘it seems to say.
Knox finally exhaled, running a hand through his hair. “And what exactly do you expect them to do once they’re in the rival king’s court?”
Alaric’s gaze didn’t shift from me. “Gather information. Earn his trust. Find out what he’s planning.”
My stomach twisted. This wasn’t just dangerous, it was suicide.
But Alaric was right about one thing.
If Amira was close to the rival king, it meant I could watch her.
Know if she was a traitor. It meant I could control her. Blackmail her even.
I inhaled deeply, pushing down the swirl of emotions clawing at my chest. “Fine,” I said finally, the word tasting like poison on my tongue. “But I want something in return.”
Alaric’s lips quirked slightly. “Do you?”
I met his gaze without hesitation. “I want Amira to be stripped of any authority in your court. If she fails, if she betrays us, I want her fate to be in my hands.”
For the first time, something flickered across Amira’s face. A tiny crack in her perfect mask.
Alaric tilted his head, considering. Then, without looking away, he said, “Done”
Amira exhaled softly, like she had expected a different outcome.
I leased back in my chair, ignoring the way my pulse thrummed in my ears.
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Chapter 44
4
If this was the game Alati wanted to play, I’d play
But i wouldn’t just survive.
I’d win
After beakfast, I didn’t wait
1 followed Amira down the dimly lit corridor, my boots echoing against the stone floors. She knew I was behind her. I could tell by the way she walked tow poised, too deliberate, like she was waiting for me to speak first.
I didn’t give her that satisfaction.
Not until we were alone,
“Stop, I ordered.
She did Slowly. Turning around with a smirk already tugging at her lips.
“Al Amira said, feigning surprise, “Sister dearest, to what do I owe the pleasure?”
Lignored the irritation curling in my stomach. She was playing games. She always played games,
1 took a step closer, my voice low, “What did you do to him?”
Amira blinked, tilting her head. “Him”
Idenched my jaw “Alaric. What did you do to make him trust you?”
For a moment, she didn’t answer, She just studied me, amusement flickering behind those violet eyes.
Then, she sighed dramatically, “Why, Liana, you wound me, Can’t you believe that I simply… impressed him?”
I laughed, codd and sharp. “No. Because I know you. If it’s not charm, it’s poison, if it’s not that it’s something else. You can never do things yourself”
She lifted a hand to her chest. “And here I thought you’d give me a little more credit”
1 stepped forward, voice quiet but from “Tell me.”
Her smirk widened, like the was enjoying this too much. Like she wanted me to ask.
“I gave him something she murmured
My puse dammed against my ribs. “What?”
Amira leaned in, voler dropping to a whisper. “A secret”
1 flower hard. “What secret?”
61 emiler, dow and triumphant
And said nothing
#gence wreed between in
She was waiting for me to beg
8:30 PM.
Chapter 49
“Whatever you
told him,” I said finally, my voice steady, “it won’t matter.”
Her brows lifted. “No?”
“No,” I said. “Because I’m not letting you out of my sight. Whatever game you’re playing, Amira–I’ll end it before you get the chance. You won’t get the power that you want so badly. Not while I am alive.”
Amira sighed, shaking her head. “You always think you’re the smarter one.”
I didn’t blink. “No. I just know you.”
She laughed softly. “Then you should know, Liana…” Her smile turned cruel. “I always win.”
I stepped back, my pulse steady, my expression unreadable,
Then, I smiled. “Not this time.”
Amira let out a soft laugh, slow and mocking. “Oh, Liana. Sweet, delusional Liana.” She tilted her head, her violet eyes gleaming with cruelty. “You always say things like that. But tell me–has it ever worked?”
I clenched my fists. I wouldn’t let her get under my
skin.
She took a step forward. “You shouldn’t be so sure of yourself.”
I didn’t move.
She smirked. “Did you forget?”
Something cold slithered down my spine.
Amira’s voice turned soft, too soft. “The times when our parents would look at me and only me. How you’d stand there, hoping, waiting, thinking maybe today–maybe today they’ll acknowledge you.”
I stiffened.
She took another step forward.
“How they didn’t.”
Another step.
“How they never did. It was always me. Amira the smart one. Amira the beautiful one.”
I swallowed hard. I hated that she could see through me then and how she had perfectly made me trust her by being by my side. Hating on our parents for neglecting me.
Such a fine manipulator.
My voice was quiet when I finally spoke. “Why do you hate me so much, Amira?”
Her smirk didn’t falter.
Another step closer.
I took a step back.
She noticed. She liked it.
“I should ask you the same,” she mused. “But let’s be honest–we both know the answer.”
1 kept my expression neutral. “Do we?”
Her smile widened. “Oh, Liana. Poor, foolish Liana. You’ve always had everything.”
I laughed, sharp and bitter “You mean you always took everything.”
8:30 PM S
Chapter 49
“You had mother’s eyes,” she said. “That soft, innocent look. That pity–inducing beauty.”
Another step.
I took another step back.
She was toying with me.
“You had father’s approval,” she continued. “Not because he loved you–no, let’s not pretend—but because you made him look better. His perfect little mistake, the pitiful daughter he could flaunt to earn sympathy. They never cared about you yes, but they always used you to get what they want. While me, I was showered with compliments but never useful. It was disgusting.”
I forced myself to stay still.
“You had the pack’s attention,” Amira went on. “Even if they hated you, even if they spat at you, they still looked at you. They still cared enough to do so.”
I exhaled slowly. “And that bothered you?”
Amira chuckled. “You still don’t get it, do you?”
Another step.
I backed up–my spine hitting the cold stone wall.
Amira’s smirk turned triumphant.
She leaned in slightly, voice like silk.
“You always acted like you were nothing. Like you didn’t matter. But you did. You mattered to a lot of people. And that…. that is why I hated you.”
I swallowed, but I didn’t look away.
“I was stronger. I was smarter. I was the better daughter. And yet… yet they still saw you.”
Her violet eyes darkened, flashing with hatred.
“You always took up space, Liana,” she whispered. “You always existed. And I never wanted you to.”
Siience stretched between us.
Tight. Suffocating.
She tilted her head, studying my face.
Then—her lips curved, and she sighed dramatically.
“There. Are you satisfied now?”
I didn’t answer.
She grinned. “Oh?”
Another step.
I couldn’t move back any further as my back hit the wall.
I hated that she knew that.
Her voice dropped, mockingly gentle. “Are you going to cry?”
My jaw clenched.
the laughed softly, leaning even closer.
Booboo Our little girl losing Mommy’s attention
