Novel & Cerita Reclaiming Me

"But what if he realizes the person he truly loves is you?" I didn't expect Julian to be so gossipy, but I still responded seriously, "I'm finally living for myself today. Julian, I feel completely at ease every day and most importantly, I don't have any feelings for him anymore. So, why would I go back to him and gamble on an uncertain future?" I smiled and added, "I don't like taking risks." "Fair enough," replied Julian. His mood seemed to become better once he confirmed my stance. "Are you free?"

“You can go now.” I dipped my head slightly, stepping back toward the door. “Of course.” I shut the door behind me and leaned against the hallway wall for just a second, letting the weight of it settle over me. One step closer. One more silent victory. Selene and her brother had taken everything from me once—everything. They’d stripped me down, humiliated me, erased who I was, left me crawling. But every day I walked into that room, every day I handed her something with a smile, I was rewriting the story.

I deserve something at least, I deserve everything as compensation for his abuse but I will take enough that can get me out of this country, out of this life permanently. To my dismay, it was my father. A wave of fear covered me. "Papa?" I picked up with shaky hands. "You have two weeks, prepare for The Reclaiming" He ordered cryptically as usual. "I don't understand, is this another burial rite?" I asked confused. "Don't be a dumb bitch like your mother, Nica, The Reclaiming has nothing to do with Richard, he's dead. It's for your new husband, the one willing to take the burden of marrying a widow"

Wasn’t it? I shook my head hard. No. I couldn’t think like that. I had to hold on to my anger. I had to remember why I came back. The crown. Adele. Justice. Tyson’s Black Book. I needed to find it. I needed to stay focused. I finished dressing and looked at myself in the mirror. The mark was still visible, peeking above my collar. I pulled my hair over it, hiding it as best I could. Then I took a deep breath and walked out of the room.

“He’s gone.” “Alright.” I took a sip, warmth filling my body. “He said he’ll wait for you,” Mark added. “When you’re ready to forgive him, he’ll come back.” I smiled faintly, saying nothing. He’d wait? Sure, maybe he would, but I knew I wouldn’t. My life was too precious to waste on someone who had hurt me. My goal was to work toward a future without Enzo and his lies—a future full of freedom and respect for myself.

I slammed my eyes onto Colt and grabbed a fistful of his collar. “I’ll say what I need to say so it gets through her fragile little skull.” Then I pushed him away and stared down at Jesper, my gaze searing hot, boring into her narrow shoulders that shook with despair. “You are not my mate and you never will be. I’m rejecting you, Billie Jesper. Stay out of my way or I’ll make you regret ever having that fucking Moondream.”

With Celeste, Miranda, and Marianne at my side, I knew I could conquer anything, even that pesky so-called peace meeting that Mom and Ariana were planning. I won’t back down; I will reclaim my life, my strength, and do it all with pride, unapologetically. I am determined to put my family and the past behind me. Williams and Ariana would learn that I am not the girl they thought I was; I am a roaring flame of recovery, and they simply chose to provoke the fire. My new life was just beginning. “Do you think they are planning anything?” Mira asked me as we pulled up at Ray's mansion.

I didn’t know what part I’d play in his fight, but I knew our stories were tied now—bound by the same enemy, the same fire. I rested my hand against the glass, feeling the faint warmth of the rising sun. “He took everything from me once,” I whispered. “Now he’ll face what he created.” The words carried the calm of certainty, not rage. Because this wasn’t revenge—it was reclamation. The stillness that had haunted the morning finally lifted. And in its place was something unbreakable. I wasn’t just surviving anymore. I was coming back.

No new messages. They thought I was overseas. Gone. But I had never left. I'd stayed in the shadows of the city that once adored me, slipping through hostels, abandoned rentals, and late-night buses. And now, I was ready. It wasn’t revenge. It was reclamation. They had taken everything. My name. My place. My boy. Kelvin. My stepson. My mirror to a life I had tried to control and lost. My last thread to Michael—and to power.

But I will. I have to. Because I am done waiting for permission to reclaim what was taken from me. I am done accepting the official story. I am done believing that Stormdawn gets to decide what is real and what is erased. I am done being careful and patient and waiting for the right moment. My mother reached for me through the dark. And now I will reach back. No matter what it costs.