Chapter 53
Chapter 53
ALEXANDER
+25 Points
I had got off the phone with Cole…he said they were on their way back. I thought I’d use the time to speak sense into Bella before they arrived. I didn’t want Faye walking in on the
conversation.
As expected, Bella shifted into defense mode the moment she walked into my office. She had been standing in front of my desk for the last ten minutes, pacing back and forth like a caged wolf, her hands flailing as she ranted.
“I cannot believe you’re treating me this way, Alex!” she snapped, her voice pitched high with frustration. “After everything we’ve shared, after all the loyalty I’ve shown, this is how you repay me? Dismissing me like some nuisance while she…” her mouth twisted in disgust at the word…“while she gets to do whatever she wants.”
I sat still in my chair, leaning back slightly, hands folded in front of me. I let her words spill out, uninterrupted. There was no point in arguing with Bella in that mode; she thrived on the drama, needed the chance to spin her own narrative. If I tried to stop her now, she’d only turn sharper, louder, more insistent. So I waited.
Finally, she paused, drawing in a breath as if expecting me to bend, to soothe her, to give her
what she wanted.
“Bella,” I said calmly, “I told you yesterday I would investigate what happened, and I did. I took it seriously, despite the fact that you have a history of provoking others. I asked questions. And do you know what I learned?”
Her lips pressed into a thin line, but she said nothing.
“That Faye didn’t attack you,” I continued. “She didn’t even want to fight you, even though you taunted her. You challenged her, and pushed her to the ground in front of the entire pack and forced her hand.”
Bella’s eyes rolled so hard I almost thought she’d injure herself. “Of course she lied to you.
She had to. She…”
My patience snapped. My voice dropped lower. “Don’t insult me, Bella. Faye didn’t tell me a damn thing…not a word. She never mentioned it. I found out by asking others. They all saw you, remember? You disrespected her, again, and now you have the audacity to come here and lie to me, claiming she attacked you? What did you think was going to happen?”
Her mouth fell open slightly, shock flickering across her features before morphing into
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