Chapter 29: ²⁹: ruthless

I widened my eyes as I looked at his oh-so-nonchalant expression. I could not believe this man!

I took a threatening step towards him, my eyes spitting fire. "Damian Moonvel! Don’t try to act oversmart with me. You know exactly who she is, and you certainly know what you have done!"

"What? Why would I know her? Someone of that name has never done anything to me so why would I know her?" he asked, still maintaining that infuriatingly oblivious expression.

"Damian, I know you investigated my injury from that day and found out it was Maria who did it. That’s why you did that to her. Don’t even try to deny it now. And what about the card you left in my room? Are you going to deny that too, huh?"

The moment I mentioned the card, the ’I don’t care’ expression he jad on his face till now disappeared. He tilted his head back in annoyance before looking at me again.

"That was an impulse decision... one I shouldn’t have made," he said, shaking his head.

"Yeah, good that you’re finally feeling guilty for what you did. Almost killing someone just because they were mean to me isn’t cool!" I said, feeling slightly relieved that he had finally come to his senses and was guilty about it.

"One second," Damian interrupted, making me stop and look at him.

"The impulse decision I’m talking about is leaving that card in your room. I think I should have kept this from you... just like you kept it from me that someone had dared to hurt you."

I was speechless. This man... No, this impulsive, irresponsible man!

"Damian, are you crazy?! You think that what you did wasn’t wrong? The only thing you’re regretting is that you let me find out it was you who did it?" I asked in disbelief.

"Yes," he replied without hesitation. "She dared to hurt you, so she deserved to receive it back tenfold. Besides..." He looked straight into my eyes. "What I really want to talk about is how you lied to me. After everything we’ve been through together, you didn’t think I deserved to know something this important, Ath?"

He grabbed both my shoulders, his eyes searching mine, while I was left speechless by his word.

"Yes, you should know if someone hurts me," I admitted. "But I didn’t tell you because I was afraid you would do something foolish!" I pushed his hands off my shoulders and took a step back.

"And that’s exactly what you did!"

"Just like I knew you would, you went and did something utterly reckless. You straight away tried to kill her for just a little scruf she had with me! You took something that should have remained a small matter and turned it into a life-threatening incident!"

"What if someone traces that accident back to you, Damian? What will we do then?" I asked, my voice rising with every word.

"Do you even realize the price I’m already paying just to make my plan succeed? And you’re standing here trying to ruin everything I’ve worked for!"

I was no longer calm. The only thing I could think about was what would happen if the truth ever came to light.

Damian lowered his gaze to his hands before looking back at me his gaze meeting mine. This time, there was no teasing smile. Only rage.

"Then let it come to light!" he snapped.

"If that’s what it takes to stop this stupid plan of yours, then I pray to the Moon Goddess that it happens!"

He stepped forward again, gripping one of my shoulders with his one hand as he pushed me towards him. "You know there’s nobody who wants you to stop paying these prices more than me!"

I winced as his fingers tightened around my shoulder.

The moment he noticed, he immediately let go, concern replacing the anger in his eyes.

"Ath..." he whispered, his voice much softer now. "You know how I am when it comes to you. I care about you."

"No," I said, cutting him off before he could continue. "You don’t care about me. All you care about is what you want. Because if you truly cared about me, you would understand what this means to me."

"You would understand that this revenge is the only thing keeping me alive... and that I have to do whatever it takes to achieve it."

I could feel tears threatening to spill from my eyes. "Damian... my father was my life. He was unjustly killed while trying to protect our pack. My everything... my birthright... was stolen from me. The people I trusted the most were the ones who stabbed me in the back."

"So if you really cared about me..." My voice trembled despite my efforts to steady it. "...you would never say that you pray for my plan to fail."

"No, Athena, I didn’t mean it like that!" Damian said immediately, shaking his head. He reached for my hand, but I pulled it away before he could touch me.

"I know exactly what you meant." I took a slow breath, forcing myself to calm down.

"I have classes tomorrow, so I will have to leave right now . Besides..." I lifted my phone slightly. "My cab is here."

I turned around before either of us could say something we’d regret. We had argued over this from the very beginning. Neither of us had ever been able to change the other’s mind. And I knew I couldn’t force him to understand me.

"Ath..." Damian’s voice came from behind me, sounding far more strained than before. "I’m leaving for home tomorrow."

I paused for only a second.

"Have a safe journey," I replied with a faint smile without turning back. "And tell Grandmother... that I miss her."

With that, I walked towards the cab that had just pulled up, refusing to look back again.

.....(⁠~⁠￣⁠³⁠￣⁠)⁠~

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