Contracted By My Ex’s Father In Law

*** ~~ IRENE POV ~~ *** The walls of the bedroom were suffocating, even though the windows stood wide open, letting in the night breeze. I lay curled on the edge of the massive bed that had never felt like mine, arms wrapped around myself as if I could hold the broken pieces together. Tears blurred my vision, soaking the silk sheets beneath me. My daughter’s face haunted me. Her tiny, perfect features, her cries silenced forever. Gone. Slaughtered for Amira. The name burned like acid, twisting my grief into a raw, jagged wound. My hospital gown was gone, replaced by a thin nightgown, but I felt naked, exposed, my soul ripped open. I clutched the pillow, my sobs choking me, my chest so tight I thought it’d burst. The door creaked, and my breath caught. Heavy footsteps. Trenton. His silhouette filled the doorway, dark and towering, his white shirt crisp against his slacks, his handsome face a mask of cold stone. My grief ignited into fury, my voice raw as I sat

***~~IRENE POV~~ ***Tonight, the grand hall was beautifully decorated and the light glowed under the chandeliers. Music swelled, a lively tune that filled the air. A banquet.A welcome celebration.For her.Amira. The celebration was already in full swing, a glittering spectacle to show the world she was back, whole and radiant, while I was left to rot in the shadows. I’d sworn I wouldn’t go, Not tonight. Not to watch them fawn over the woman who had bled me dry, who had stolen my life and left me hollow.The door opened without a knock.Trenton.He filled the doorway like a storm, his presence sucking the air from the room. His suit was black, sharp as a blade, his hair slicked back with cruel precision. His blue eyes raked over me with disdain, as if my very existence offended him.I ignored him, focusing on the coat I was knitting. “So now you're pretending I don’t exist?” he asked bitterly.I retorted coldly. “I don’t have to pretend when you’re already dead to me.”His jaw

*** IRENE *** I woke slowly, my head pounding like someone was beating a drum inside it. My body felt heavy… sore… like I had been dragged through hell and back. Where… where am I? I blinked, forcing my eyes open. A soft glow filled the room. It was dim, but I could make out silk curtains, a huge chandelier above, and a bed so soft it swallowed me whole. The sheets smelled expensive… clean… nothing like the cold stone floor of the pack cells. Then, memories hit me. The banquet, the jeers, the spitting faces, the rain, the car hitting me, and then... darkness. My stomach twisted. I tried to sit up, groaning, and pain shot through my ribs. A voice pulled me back. “Don’t strain yourself.” I turned sharply. A woman with stood near the bedside. A doctor in a white coat. She adjusted the IV connected to my wrist, she looked calm and professional. My throat burned as I whispered, “Where… am I?” She didn’t answer. Instead, she turned toward the far corner of the room. H

*** IRENE *** The night was cold, too cold. The road was wet, and I dragged my bruised body forward through the empty streets, shivering so hard my teeth clattered uncontrollably. It wasn’t raining, but the cold cut through me. My thin dress clung to my skin, and my left arm… it was still bleeding where the IV had been pulled out. The bandage had loosened, and now streaks of red mixed with rainwater, dripping down my fingers. I hugged myself tighter, my nails digging into my arms as if I could hold myself together. I couldn’t stop thinking about him. That stranger. I hated him. God, I hated him. That arrogant, cold-eyed man who looked at me like he owned me. Like my soul belonged to him. I hated the way my mind replayed the scene over and over—the way his arms felt when he caught me, how effortlessly he lifted me like I weighed nothing. His scent… damn it, even now I could smell it lingering on my skin, a rich, dark mix of smoke and something male, something dangerous

***IRENE ***"No way…" “Sh-she looks… different.”I catwalked slowly, each step sinking into the thick red carpet like I owned the ground beneath it. My black gown hugged my body elegantly, and the slit on the side revealed my long legs. My hair fell in perfect waves, and Lucy’s makeup magic on me hid every bruise, every scar. All eyes were on me. The same people who had spat on me, laughed at me, dragged me through the mud. Now their jaws hung open.Trenton noticed. He froze when he saw me, his grip on Amira's waist faltering. Amira turned too, her smile slipping, eyes widening in shock.Whispers grew louder.“Isn’t she the one Alpha Trenton rejected?” “She looks… unreal.”“How did she change so much?”I kept walking, ignoring everyone, until I was close enough to the dance floor. I didn’t speak. I didn’t need to. My presence said everything.And in that silence, I looked straight into Trenton’s eyes.He blinked like he was trying to wake up from a dream. I could see the confu