CHAPTER THREE: Elena

Every pair of eyes in the VIP suite was fixed on me. My real dark hair was out in the open. The cold air hit my skin and made me shiver. Phones flashed all around me. The laughter started low then grew louder and meaner. It felt like knives in my ears.

Ryder stepped back from me. His face went hard like stone. The warm bond that had felt so good in the suite now twisted painful in my chest. He looked at me with cold eyes.

“You really thought you could trick an alpha?” he said out loud. His voice was full of venom. “Pathetic. I should have known it was not her. A girl like you would do anything for attention.”

“Ryder, please,” I said. My voice shook badly. Tears burned my eyes. “I can explain. It is not what you think. The bond... you felt it too, right? When we were together. It was real.”

“Save it,” he snapped. He turned his back on me and pulled Victoria close. “She is obsessed. Unstable. Get this janitor out of here.”

The words cut deep. I felt the mate bond scream inside me. He had called me “mine” just an hour ago. He had opened up about his dad and the pack pressure. Now he acted like I was nothing. The alpha son chose his image and his perfect girlfriend over his fated mate.

I tried to speak again but the crowd pushed closer. Phones kept flashing. Someone laughed loudly. “The maid’s daughter is trying to hook someone rich! Classic.”

My phone would not stop buzzing in my hand. I ran out to the parking lot like Victoria told me. My legs felt weak. I leaned against the cold brick wall and answered.

“You idiot!” Victoria screamed through the phone. Her voice was full of rage. “Do you know what you did? My reputation is ruined! Everyone online is calling me the girl whose spot got taken by the cleaning lady!”

“It was an accident,” I cried. Hot tears ran down my face. “A girl bumped into me hard. The wig just came off. Please, Victoria. Do not do this.”

“Accident?” she yelled. “Martha is sick and you still screw up? The deal is off. I am calling the hospital right now and pulling all the money. Let your mom rot in that bed.”

“No!” I dropped to my knees on the dirty asphalt. Small rocks dug into my skin. “Please! She is dying. You know she is our dad’s mistake with the maid. But she is still my mom. Your half-sister’s mom. Do not let her die because of me. I will do anything.”

Victoria breathed heavy on the line. She was quiet for a long moment. “You are useless, Elena. Worthless. But if I pull the money now, people will know I was part of this mess. One more chance. Fix this or you are both dead to me.”

She hung up. I sat there in the dark parking lot. The bond in my chest hurt like a fresh wound. Ryder had felt it. I knew he did. But he still picked Victoria. The perfect alpha life over the poor girl he was fated to.

The next morning was hell. Everyone at school whispered and pointed at me. I kept my head down and walked fast. But Melissa and her friends caught me by the lockers.

“Look who it is,” Melissa said with a nasty smile. “The fake Victoria. Did you really think you could wear a fancy dress and fool the alpha son?”

“Leave me alone,” I whispered. I stared at the floor. My eyes were still puffy from crying.

“Oh we will,” Melissa laughed. She pushed me hard against the metal lockers. It hurt my back. “As soon as you crawl back to the basement where you belong. Cleaning our toilets like your maid mother.”

Her friends laughed. One of them took a picture. I did not fight back. I had no energy left. The worst part was still coming.

That afternoon Victoria found me and dragged me to a quiet study lounge near the library. Ryder was already there. His arms were crossed. His eyes burned with anger and something else. The bond pulled between us even now. I could feel it.

“There she is,” Victoria said. She pointed at me like I was trash. “Ryder, it is not my fault. She begged me for my invitation. She said she always adored you. I was just trying to be nice to the poor girl. I had no idea she would go crazy like this.”

Ryder looked straight at me. His jaw was tight. “Is that true? You used me? Lied about everything? I opened up to you in that room. I told you things I never told anyone.”

“Ryder, listen to me,” I said. My voice cracked. Tears came again. “Victoria made me do it. She offered money for my mom’s surgery. Martha is sick. Our dad... the billionaire... he got my mom pregnant and sent us away. Victoria is my half-sister. Same father, different mothers. She threatened to let my mom die if I did not pretend. The bond we felt... it was real. You called me yours.”

“Money?” Victoria gasped. She put her hand on her chest like she was shocked. “Ryder, look at her. She is unstable. Obsessed with you and our family. She has been stalking me for weeks trying to get close to you. I felt sorry for her but she turned into this nightmare.”

“Shut up,” Ryder barked at me. He stepped closer. His shadow covered me. He looked so tall and strong. The alpha son. “I do not care about your lies. I felt something that night but it was all fake. You are nothing but a common liar. The maid’s daughter trying to trap an alpha.”

“I was real with you,” I said. My eyes burned. “More real than she has ever been. The bond does not lie, Ryder. You know it.”

“Enough!” Ryder grabbed Victoria’s arm. His eyes stayed on me. They looked hurt and mad at the same time. “If I ever see you near my team, near Victoria, or anywhere close to me again, I will make sure you get expelled from this school. Do you understand? Stay away from me and my pack.”

I looked at both of them. Victoria had a small smug smile when Ryder was not looking. It made my blood hot. I turned and walked out of the room. My heart felt like broken glass. I found a small bench in the quiet courtyard behind the library and sat down. The bond still pulled in my chest. It hurts with every breath.

“It is quite the drama, is it not?” a voice said.

I looked up. Aiden Cross leaned against a tree. He was handsome with an easy smile. But his eyes looked sharp and calculating.

“I am not in the mood for jokes, Aiden,” I said. I wiped my eyes.

“I am not joking,” he said. He walked over and sat on the other end of the bench. “I saw what happened. Ryder rejected his own fated mate right in front of everyone. Pathetic for an alpha heir. He looked at you like you were dirt after feeling that bond. I could smell it on both of you.”

My head snapped up. “How do you know about the bond?”

Aiden smiled. “I have my ways. Wolves notice these things. Help me bring him down. You are the only one who got under his skin. He is distracted now. Angry. Losing focus on the ice and the pack. That makes him weak.”

“I do not want to be a weapon,” I said softly.

“You already are one,” Aiden replied. He leaned closer. “The whole campus is talking about you. They are scared of what you might do next. Go out with me. Laugh with me. Show Ryder you do not care about his rejection. Let him feel the bond tear every time he sees us together. Make the alpha regret throwing away his true mate.”

I thought about Ryder’s cold eyes. The way he chose Victoria. The pain in my chest. The rage felt good. It felt strong.

“Okay,” I whispered. “Let us make him regret it.”

Aiden’s smile got wide and sharp. “Good. That is the spirit. Now let us go start the show.”

My heart raced. This was dangerous. But after everything, after feeling the bond and losing it so fast, I wanted Ryder to hurt too. Even if it broke me more.