Secrets and Threats

Kael's POV.

The moment Aria stormed out of the room, I turned to Mara, my jaw tight and my patience hanging by a thread. Her smug expression only fueled the fire simmering in my chest. This wasn’t how I wanted things to go—not with Aria, not with her. Mara always knew how to twist a situation to her advantage, but this time, she had gone too far.

"You’ve really outdone yourself, Mara," I said coldly, my voice low enough to keep the maids outside the door from hearing. "What the hell were you thinking, showing up here uninvited?"

Her smirk deepened as she crossed her arms. "I was thinking that Aria deserved to know the truth. Or, at least, a version of it."

I took a step closer, towering over her. "You think this is a game? You think you can waltz in here, throw accusations around, and walk away unscathed?"

Mara’s expression faltered, just for a moment, but she quickly recovered. "Unscathed? What are you going to do, Kael? Exile me? Kill me? I’m her cousin, remember? If you so much as touch me, Aria will never forgive you."

I let out a low, dangerous laugh, shaking my head. "You think I’m worried about you? You’ve already burned every bridge you’ve ever had, Mara. Do you really think anyone would take your side if they knew the truth about you?"

Her eyes narrowed, but she didn’t respond. I could see the flicker of uncertainty in her gaze, and I knew I had her right where I wanted her.

"I told you months ago that it was over," I said, my voice sharp. "You and I? Whatever we had? It’s done. I never promised you anything, and you damn well know it."

"That’s not what you said," she snapped, her voice shaking slightly. "You told me—"

"I told you what you wanted to hear," I interrupted, my tone cutting through her words like a blade. "And that was a mistake. One I’ve been trying to fix ever since. But you? You couldn’t let it go. You had to cling to something that was never real."

Her face twisted with anger, and she opened her mouth to retort, but I raised a hand to stop her. "Before you say another word, Mara, let me remind you of something."

I pulled my phone from my pocket, unlocking it with a swipe of my thumb. Her eyes followed my movements, confusion flickering across her face. I scrolled through my files until I found what I was looking for—a video. Her video.

I turned the screen toward her, pressing play. Her face paled as the recording came to life: the two of us in bed, the dim lighting doing little to hide the intimacy of the moment. Her laughter, her whispers, her promises—they were all there, captured in crystal-clear detail.

"You wouldn’t," she whispered, her voice barely audible.

I raised an eyebrow. "Wouldn’t I?"

"You’re bluffing," she said, but the tremor in her voice betrayed her fear.

"Am I?" I asked, tilting my head. "You’ve already proven you’re willing to lie and manipulate to get what you want, so why shouldn’t I do the same? If you don’t walk out of this castle right now, I’ll make sure everyone sees this. Your family. The pack. Even Aria."

Her breath hitched, and for the first time, the confident façade she always wore began to crack. "You wouldn’t ruin me like that," she said, but the words lacked conviction.

"Try me," I said, my voice like ice. "You’ve spent your whole life playing games, Mara, but this is where it ends. You will go to Aria and tell her the truth—that I never promised to marry you, that I broke things off months ago, and that this little stunt was nothing more than a desperate attempt to hurt her."

"And if I don’t?" she asked, her voice small.

"Then I’ll make sure everyone knows exactly who you are," I said, slipping the phone back into my pocket. "And trust me, Mara, once this gets out, you’ll have nowhere to run. No one will take you in. Not your family, not your friends—not even your precious pack."

She stared at me, her chest rising and falling as she tried to steady her breathing. I could see the wheels turning in her head, weighing her options, searching for a way out. But there wasn’t one. Not this time.

"You’re a bastard," she spat, her voice trembling with fury.

"Maybe," I said with a shrug. "But I’m a bastard who keeps his promises. So, what’s it going to be, Mara? Do you leave quietly and clean up your mess, or do I take matters into my own hands?"

For a long moment, she didn’t move. Then, finally, she straightened her shoulders and forced a tight smile. "Fine," she said through gritted teeth. "I’ll do it. But don’t think for a second that this is over, Kael. You’ll regret this."

I stepped aside, gesturing toward the door. "We’ll see about that. Now go."

She hesitated, her eyes burning with hatred, but she didn’t argue. With one last glare, she turned on her heel and strode out of the room, her heels clicking against the marble floor.

I let out a breath I hadn’t realized I’d been holding, running a hand through my hair. The tension in my chest eased slightly, but the weight of the situation still pressed down on me. Mara might be out of the picture for now, but the damage had already been done. Aria had seen enough to doubt me, and I couldn’t blame her for it.

I needed to fix this. Somehow, I needed to make her see that I wasn’t the man Mara had painted me to be. But as I stood there, alone in the aftermath of Mara’s chaos, I couldn’t shake the feeling that this was only the beginning. The secrets, the lies, the tangled web we were all caught in—it was far from over.

And I wasn’t sure if any of us would make it out unscathed.