All Chapters of The Bride They Sacrificed: Reborn To Love And Kill: Chapter 41 - Chapter 50

The breakfast table, which had already been alive with warmth and laughter, somehow grew even louder, fuller, more chaotic, as if Elara’s food had unlocked something long dormant inside the Hale family. Felix and Lisa were now in the middle of what could only be described as a full-blown break current over the last remaining portion of food. “I saw it first,” Lisa said sharply, her fork already hovering dangerously close to the dish. “You touched it already,” Felix shot back, pulling the plate an inch closer to himself. “That automatically disqualifies you.” “That is not a rule.” Lisa snapped. “It is my rule.” Felix defended. Grandma Hale, Old Lady, as she was sometimes teasingly called by the younger ones when she got into her no-nonsense mode, sat at the head of the table completely unfazed. She wasn’t talking. She wasn’t reacting. She was just… eating. Methodically and calmly. As if the chaos around her didn’t exist. Seraphina leaned toward Nathan, lowering her voice but

In the end, the family came to a unanimous conclusion, though not without resistance, and more than one heated glare was exchanged across the living room. Lisa and Felix would go with Elara. There was no negotiating that part. Lucian had crossed his arms, leaning against the wall like a silent executioner, his expression alone enough to tell everyone his displeasure. If Elara was going back to the Vaughn family, she was not doing it unprotected. But he hated that he wasn’t the one going to protect her. So that was how, less than an hour later, Elara found herself seated in the back of the car, sandwiched between Lisa and Felix, the afternoon sun streaming through the windows as the city blurred past them. The drive to the Vaughn house was strangely loud, filled with the kind of noise that came from people trying very hard not to think too much. Lisa sat in the front passenger seat, occasionally turning around to glare at Felix, who was sprawled comfortably in the back like he

The Vaughn estate had always been grand. It was the kind of grand that swallowed people whole and spat them out smaller, quieter, and more obedient. Elara had learned that lesson early. From the moment she was brought into this house as a child, small, awkward, clutching a suitcase that had never truly belonged to her, she had felt it. The weight of the place. The way the ceilings stretched too high, as if even the architecture looked down on her. The way the marble floors reflected every flaw, every hesitation, every tear she had tried to hide. Walls lined with portraits of ancestors who had never smiled, as if cruelty itself had been bred into the bones of the house. She used to think the portraits watched her move. Their eyes seemed to follow her as she passed, cold and unimpressed, silently reminding her that she would never truly belong here. Not by blood. Not by choice. Not by love. Elara stood just outside the front doors for a brief moment, her fingers tightening at

The Vaughn family did not know how to let go of control. They never had.Control was the language they spoke, the air they breathed, the invisible leash they believed every person tied to their name should wear without question.It was how they loved, if it could even be called love. Ownership disguised as obligation. Authority mistaken for care. And obedience is demanded as proof of loyalty.Even now, especially now, they clung to it.Even after Elara had torn straight through their illusions, even after she had shattered the carefully constructed image they held of her, the quiet, grateful, disposable girl who should have known her place... they still stood there, frozen in disbelief, simmering with a fury they did not yet know how to unleash.They stared at the space she had occupied as if the air itself had betrayed them.As if reality had malfunctioned.As if she would suddenly turn back.As if she would apologize.As if she would lower her head again, soften her voice, and beco

Elara left the Vaughn house with Lisa and Felix at her sides in a good spirit.The massive iron gates of the Vaughn estate closed behind them with a heavy, final clang, as if sealing away not just the house, but the chaos, the violence, the screaming, the insults, and the burning rage that had filled every corner of those walls moments ago.For a second, Elara simply stood there, her heart still pounding so loudly she was sure the others could hear it. Then Felix unlocked the car, Lisa climbed into the passenger seat, and Elara slid into the backseat, letting the door shut behind her with a soft click.The silence lasted exactly three seconds.Then Lisa burst out laughing.Not a polite laugh. Not a restrained one. It was loud, wild, almost unhinged, the kind of laugh that came from adrenaline still flooding the veins and the sheer disbelief of having survived something explosive. Felix joined in immediately, throwing his head back as the engine roared to life, his laughter echoing i