I never expected Anita to break down in tears... this was not what I expected. I expected her to give excuses, say evil things about me, but she didn’t—rather, she was crying loudly while I just sat there, not knowing what to do.
After a few minutes, she got a grip of herself and began wiping her face. I looked at her, wondering why she was crying. Was she mourning me? Was this guilt? Or was she just acting, trying to get something out of me?
After a few minutes, she finally pulled herself together, sniffling as she wiped at her face with trembling fingers. She didn’t look at me at first, just kept staring at her hands.
"I’m sorry you have to see me this way," she murmured.
I nodded slowly. "It’s okay to let it out... don’t apologize for that," I said gently, though deep down, I wanted to scream at her. Tell her she was a terrible friend. Ask her why. Why did you hurt me like that, Anita?
She sucked in a shaky breath and finally met my gaze.
"I wish..." she began, her voice cracking. "I wish I never let jealousy take over me."
My brows drew together.
"I wish I never agreed to them," she added, her tone low with shame.
My heart skipped a beat. I leaned forward slightly. "Who?" I asked, careful not to sound too eager.
She hesitated, eyes darting around the empty room before she whispered, "My parents... and the triplets’ parents."
I kept my expression calm, but inside, everything felt like it was tilting sideways.
"What... what happened?" I asked, my voice low.
Anita hesitated again, like she was weighing whether to tell me the truth.
Then finally, she spoke.
"A week before Olivia’s birthday... Lady Fiona came to see me," she said slowly. "She told me she didn’t want Olivia for the triplets. She wanted me."
I swallowed hard. "Did she tell you why?"
Anita shook her head. "No. She just said Olivia wasn’t the right fit. That she needed me instead."
I could see the shame flicker in her eyes as she continued.
"I was going to say no," she admitted, "but then I thought about the way the triplets looked at her. The way they laughed around her, smiled just by hearing her name..." Her voice cracked again. "I wanted that."
She looked away. "Boys never looked at me that way. No one ever did."
And she was telling the truth.
Anita was beautiful—no doubt about that—but boys were never attracted to her. Not really. Not like they saw me.
She let out a bitter sigh. "So I told my parents what Lady Fiona said. I thought they’d talk me out of it. But instead... they encouraged me. Said they had their own plans too. That this could work in our favor."
My throat tightened. "And you agreed."
She nodded slowly. "Lady Fiona took me somewhere... I don’t even know where. It was a witch... they... they did something. They gave me something to drink, something to bathe in. They said it would help. That it would ’clean me’—make the charm stronger, make the triplets look at me the way they looked at her."
It wasn’t just betrayal.
I sat back slowly, trying to keep my hands from shaking.
Anita wiped her eyes again, her voice barely above a whisper.
"I regret everything," she said, her gaze fixed on the flickering fire. "All of it."
I stared at her, unsure if I was ready to believe her... unsure if I even wanted to.
"I didn’t get the triplets’ love," she said, her voice breaking. "Not even for a second. No matter how much charm or magic was used, they never looked at me like they looked at Olivia. Not once."
She finally looked at me again, and this time, her eyes were hollow.
"I lost my best friend," she whispered. "The only person who ever saw me... really loved me. And now she’s gone."
Her words hit like a punch to the chest.
"I regret hurting her. I regret every action, every cruel word, every moment I let someone convince me she didn’t deserve what she had. I regret listening to my parents. I thought I’d be happier if I had what she had... but I was wrong."
She placed a hand gently on her stomach.
"And now... I’m carrying babies who might not even make it into this world," she said with a broken voice. "I can feel it. Something’s not right. The doctors say I should rest, that I need to hope—but all I feel is this... fear."
I opened my mouth to respond—to say something, anything—but I paused.
Because just then, the front door opened.
Alpha Damien walked in.
His eyes landed on me immediately, sharp and annoyed. He didn’t say anything, just gave me a look that said you shouldn’t be here.
I turned back to Anita, forcing a soft smile.
"I have to go," I said quietly.
She nodded slowly, her hands folded in her lap, her eyes still wet. "Thank you... for listening."
I hesitated, then turned and walked away, Damien’s gaze following me the entire time.
I took the stairs back to the room I shared with Alpha Damien. We both stepped in, and I expected him to lash out... I was used to his lashing out, but he didn’t. Instead, Alpha Damien dragged himself to the nearest seat and slumped into it, shoulders hunched, face buried in his hands like the weight of the world was pressing him down.
I blinked, surprised. He looked... exhausted. Broken. Scared. This was the first time I had ever seen him .
I stepped forward slowly. "What’s wrong?" I asked quietly.
God, I was supposed to hate this man... so why was I worried?
Just sat there, breathing hard through his nose, refusing to meet my gaze.
I moved closer. "Alpha Damien..."
I crouched beside him, my voice softer. "You don’t have to keep shutting me out. Whatever it is... just tell me."
A long, tense pause filled the room.
Then, finally, he lifted his head and looked at me—his eyes red-rimmed.
"They’ve given me three days," he muttered.
I frowned. "Three days for what?"
He looked away. "If I don’t... they’ll kill Sofia."
My heart stopped. "What?"
"They still believe I care about her," he said bitterly. "That I’m still in love with her. They don’t believe I’ve moved on."