Chapter 3- Whispers of Revenge

"Lara, what on earth happened to you these past two days?"

"Please, I just need three more weeks," I whispered, my heart hammering against my ribs violently.

"You're playing with fire, but I've already handled the board meeting. Everything your father left behind is officially yours again now."

My entire world tilted sideways in that single devastating moment. "You mean the hostile takeover can actually begin immediately?"

"Every share, every asset, every secret vault—it's all under your control. That monster Andre doesn't know what's about to hit him."

The line went dead just as Andre's footsteps echoed menacingly down the hospital corridor outside my door.

I shoved the phone under my pillow desperately, but Andre's sharp eyes caught my trembling smile, immediately

"What's got you looking so damn pleased with yourself?" His voice could have frozen the entire room solid.

"Nothing important happened while you were gone, I swear." My lie sounded pathetic even to my own ears.

He dropped a paper bag onto the table with explosive force. "You've been crying for days, now suddenly you're glowing."

"I told you it's absolutely nothing worth discussing right now!" The words erupted from my throat like fire.

Andre stepped closer until his shadow completely engulfed my hospital bed. "I know every single one of your tells, Lara."

When I remained silent, he grabbed my chin roughly between his calloused fingers.

"Do you actually miss having me inside you every night?"

"Not even for one second of my miserable existence."

His laugh was darker than the deepest pits of hell itself. "Then why is your entire body shaking like a leaf?"

"My body is not shaking because of you anymore."

"Your pulse is racing under my fingers right now, sweetheart." His thumb traced my jawline with possessive cruelty.

Andre leaned in until his breath scorched my skin completely. "Maybe I should remind you who owns this body."

"Don't you dare put your filthy hands on me!"

"I'm your Alpha, which means I can take whatever I want." His phone suddenly exploded with Tasha's ringtone at maximum volume.

"Your precious other Luna is calling you right now." His entire face twisted into something absolutely monstrous and terrifying. "Don't you dare start that nonsense with me."

"I hope her baby recovered beautifully from my liver donation." The words dripped with enough venom to kill armies.

Andre's eyes flashed with the kind of rage that starts wars. "You think this is some kind of sick joke?"

"I think it's beautifully convenient that you needed my organs." Each word hit him like a physical blow.

He spun around and stormed out without another word, slamming the door so hard the walls shook.

The moment his footsteps faded completely, I grabbed my hidden phone with desperate fingers.

I typed one single word that would change everything: "PROCEED."

The response came back faster than lightning itself: "We're ready to burn everything down for you, Alpha."

Exactly five minutes later, the door opened again with ominous silence that made my blood freeze.

It wasn't a nurse standing in that doorway anymore.

Tasha glided in wearing a designer coat worth more than most people's annual salaries.

"Well, well, you're still breathing after major surgery somehow." Her smile could have cut through solid diamond.

I said absolutely nothing while watching her every calculated movement.

She settled into the chair like a queen claiming her rightful throne. "Relax, I'm not here to finish what Andre started."

My eyebrows shot up in complete and utter confusion. "What are you talking about now?"

"I came here specifically to thank you for being so incredibly stupid." Her voice was pure silk wrapped around razor wire.

Every muscle in my body tensed for the incoming blow. "Thank me for what exactly, you vicious woman?"

"For handing me everything without even realizing what you'd done." She examined her perfectly manicured nails with casual indifference.

"You're talking complete nonsense and we both know it."

Tasha leaned forward until her eyes burned into mine completely. "The liver you donated wasn't even used for surgery."

My heart stopped beating for several terrifying seconds straight. "You're lying through your perfect teeth right now."

"My baby had a donor match three weeks before surgery. You were just backup insurance, nothing more than that."

The room started spinning around me like a deadly tornado. "That's impossible. Andre would never lie about something this important!"

"Ask him about the paperwork he forged using your signature." Her smile grew wider and more cruel by the second.

"They cut you open, took what they wanted, then threw away your sacrifice like yesterday's garbage."

Tasha stood and smoothed down her coat with theatrical precision. "You were never his weakness, never his Luna, never anything."

She paused at the door for one final devastating blow. "You were just the lab rat he kept in reserve."

The door clicked shut behind her with terminal finality.

But instead of breaking down into tears like before—

They think they've destroyed me completely and permanently tonight. They have absolutely no idea what's coming for them next.