CHAPTER 6: EYES IN THE CROWD

CARA'S POV

As I stepped away from the podium, the air in the hall buzzed with scandal and stunned whispers. Eyes followed me, nig. I kept my head high, heart pounding like thunder beneath my chest.

I barely had a moment to breathe before Kyle and Layla tiptoed towards me. I almost missed them, but they managed to corner me near the corridor arch, their polished smiles cracking under tension as Kyle held my hand and pushed inside through the corridor, heading towards Maya's room.

The air was thick with murmurs and shifting bodies, but I ignored it, the crowd pressing from every side as I tried to make my way through unnoticed. But I felt it before I even saw it.

That familiar weight, that burning heat of disapproval. I turned my head slightly, and there he was. I caught a glimpse of my father's angry eyes, sharp and unmoving, fixed on me like I was a stranger in his world.

A chill raced down my spine. He didn't need to speak; his gaze said everything. Disappointment, betrayal, fury. I looked away, heart pounding, trying not to let it show on my face. Just then, from the corner of my eye, I saw Kyle and Layla weaving through the crowd, their eyes scanning, and then they saw me.

Just as I turned away from my father's burning gaze, Kyle's voice reached me—sharp and direct.

"Maya!" He called out, weaving through the crowd with Layla trailing just a step behind him. "We need to talk."

I forced a smile, though my chest was still tight from the weight of my father's stare. "Sure," I said casually, brushing a strand of hair behind my ear. "We can talk anytime." Kyle didn't slow his pace. His eyes didn't soften.

"No," he said, coming to a stop right in front of me. His brows drew together, and his jaw clenched. "We need to talk right now."

I blinked, momentarily thrown off by the urgency in his voice. The noise of the crowd faded into a dull hum around us. Layla stood beside him silently, her arms folded, lips pressed into a thin line. She wouldn't look at me directly.

"What's going on?" I asked, trying to keep my tone even, but my voice cracked slightly at the end.

Kyle glanced around, then leaned in, lowering his voice. "This isn't the place. Come with us now."

I hesitated, my fingers curled instinctively around the edge of my sleeve. Something about the way he said it... The way neither of them smiles... It felt like the floor beneath me was shifting.

Layla finally met my eyes, and there was something there—worry? Disbelief? I couldn't tell, but it made me take a small step back.

"Kyle," I said, barely above a whisper, "just tell me what this is about."

He shook his head. "I will, but not here; just trust me about what this is about." The weight in his voice left no room for argument.

But I tried to be in control of the whole situation, even though my wolf finds it difficult to speak to the same man that killed me. I swallowed hard, nodded, and let them lead me away from the crowd, toward a truth I wasn't sure I was ready to hear.

I swallowed hard, nodded, and let them lead me away from the crowd—towards Layla's room. "I need to hear the truth, even though I wasn’t sure I was ready to hear it."

I stepped into Layla's room, and for a moment, time folded in on itself. The scent hit me first: a bit of lavender and something warmer, like the old vanilla lotion she always kept by her bedside. It wrapped around me like memory. The curtains fluttered slightly in the breeze, just the way they used to when we'd lie on the bed talking late into the night, whispering secrets we promised never to tell.

My eyes drifted to the photo frame on the dresser, one of the few still standing. "I remember that picture!" I whispered inwardly to myself.

It held that picture of us, arms slung around each other, laughing like nothing in the world could break us. I thought I had a sister then, a real one. A sister who loved me the way I love her.

I turned slowly, the silence between us growing louder. Layla stood by the door, watching me, but said nothing.

"How dare you?" Kyle growled, his voice a mix of outrage and panic. "You bring up her death on our wedding day?" Kyle leaned in, eyes narrowing. "What game are you playing, Maya?"

I stared at them, two faces I once loved and trusted. Two faces that murdered me. Not Maya, but I wasn't ready to reveal that yet. So I played along.

"I did it to protect you," I said coolly. "To sift suspicion, who'd believe a grieving queen would expose the killers at a wedding? No one. That speech was covered."

They exchanged glances. The hesitation on their faces gave them away. They were buying it.

Layla exhaled, relief softening her brow. "I thought for a second you remembered something..."

Kyle smirked. "No one will ever find out, anyway."

My eyes widened in shock, and I tilted my head. "Find out what, exactly?"

Layla chuckled. "That we pushed her from the hotel window; she didn't fall like they all believed."

"She flew like an eagle," Kyle added with a wicked grin. "Straight down to her fate, we made it look like suicide; her goodbye note was a masterpiece." Kyle's face was etched with excitement. "We helped you eliminate your greatest fear; now Alpha Dane is left with no choice but to mark you as his true mate."

"Yes, Maya. We made her suffer before she kicked the bucket." Layla asserted,

"Ha-ha-ha!" They burst into hysterical laughter together.

My blood boiled, my wolf rage within me, my heart pounding in anger, every cell in me screaming for justice, for revenge, for truth, but I swallowed the storm rising in my throat and smiled.

"You two are smarter than I thought," I said, turning to leave. Behind me, they laughed. But just as I reached the corridor, a cold shadow blocked my path. Alpha Thane, Maya's father, who is now my father. Dressed in black, his presence was as suffocating as ever.

He stepped in front of me, too close, too calm. "Did you get my note?" He asked with quite a menace; I said nothing. But I'm definitely sure he's aware of everything, and I had to play along with him too.

"I warned you not to stir the pot, daughter." Daughter, a word that felt more like a chain than blood.

He leaned in closer. "I don't know what game you're playing, Maya, or should I say, whatever you've become, but hear me now, if you try to ruin what I built, I'll disownyou publicly, strip your title, and shatter your cub's future. Is that what you want?"

My fists tightened at my sides. "You said your plans would be executed now that Cara is out of the way," I said through clenched teeth. "Well, it would be done as you wish now."

His smile didn't reach his eyes. "Exactly. Which means it's time. "Time for what?"

"To get marked by Dane and crown your pups as the rightful heir."

My heart stopped when he dropped the bombshell. This is far beyond what I ever thought of. What is he trying to achieve here? What if he's not Maya's biological father? How can a true father push his only daughter to death?

"Maya, don't even try to breathe a word to anyone; the next fall won't be an accident." He walked away, and I stood frozen, but I wasn't afraid, because now, I know more than ever: Cara didn't die for nothing, and Maya? She's ready to burn this kingdom from the inside.