Chapter 259: 0259

Callista POV

I had to bite back a laugh at the thought, though I still let out a soft chuckle to keep up the act. Jaxen seemed satisfied with that, helping me toward the bed before making sure I was comfortable on the edge.

Then he knelt in front of me again, gently taking my swollen feet into his hands and massaging them.

“Is this good?” he asked softly.

I nodded, giving him another sweet, devoted smile. “You’re just so good to me, Jaxen. Our child is so blessed to have a father like you.”

He let out a quiet, melancholic sigh, his hands still moving gently over my feet. “Well, I have to be. That’s my blood in there. Besides…” He paused, looking down at my feet for a moment. “I never had the childhood I deserved because of how strict and cruel my father was. But with this child, I feel like I finally have a chance to make up for it.”

When he looked up at me, he wore a sad, wistful smile, like he was already imagining all the things he would do differently with our child.

Internally, I rolled my eyes so hard it hurt.

My cheeks were practically aching from keeping up this pathetic, fake smile.

First, he had to go on about how excited he was to be a father, and now I had to sit here listening to his sob story about his childhood.

Honestly, did he ever get tired of talking about himself?

I eventually tuned him out, letting his voice fade into the background as my thoughts drifted back to Beta Darius.

He was my key.

My only real chance of getting close enough to the Alpha King’s inner circle to tear Lorelei’s little sanctuary apart from the inside.

And now, after everything I’d pieced together, I might have found the perfect way to do it.

A slow, genuine smile tugged at my lips as the pieces fell into place.

I really had to give my beloved sister her flowers. Not only had she managed to make the Alpha King obsessed with her, but there was now a very good chance she had saved the Beta himself when they were children.

Honestly, one would think she was the lucky daughter in our family, the one who was the real destined light.

Too bad she had a sister like me.

I’d already taken so much from her, starting with our parents, then her friends, and now her mate. And I wasn’t about to stop here. If Lorelei had unknowingly given me a way into Darius’s life, I intended to use it to take everything else she had, too.

Let her keep smiling while she still could.

I wanted her to watch me take it all, piece by piece, until she had nothing left but me to blame.

And then she could spend the rest of her miserable life at my mercy.

Until her very last breath.

“Mom,” I said softly the next morning as I walked into the living area, one hand clutching my belly as I made my way toward the seating area where she was having her morning tea.

The moment she spotted me, panic flashed across her face. She immediately turned to the maid standing nearby with the tea jug.

“Don’t just stand there, you fool! Help her!”

The maid quickly set the jug down and hurried to my side, carefully taking my arm as she helped me toward the empty plush chair directly across from my mother.

“Oh, Mom, you worry too much,” I said, making my voice sound weak and pitiful as I lowered myself into the chair, one hand resting delicately over my chest.

My mother’s sharp expression softened at once. “How could I not? You’re in the late stages of your pregnancy, Callista. You could give birth at any moment.”

“The doctor said I still have a few weeks,” I replied gently, looking up at her with a reassuring smile.

She waved a hand dismissively. “Oh, those are just estimates. They’re not always a hundred percent accurate. I mean, look at you. I gave birth to you a whole month earlier than planned.”

She lifted her porcelain teacup to her lips, and I smiled sweetly at her.

“Didn’t you used to say that was the Moon Goddess’s punishment for carrying a curse?”

The teacup stopped just before it reached her lips.

I watched the change in her expression, the way her face darkened as my words sank in, and a little thrill of satisfaction curled inside me.

God, I loved moments like this.

More than people realized, she really had loved Lorelei once. Probably still did, somewhere deep down. But I had manipulated the situation so much that feeling any warmth for Lorelei became a betrayal to me, which made her subconsciously hate Lorelei even more.

She had spent years trying to bury that shame, pretending it didn’t exist, but all it took was a few words from me to bring it right back to the surface.

“I’m sorry,” I said quickly, lowering my head as though I’d just made a terrible mistake. “I shouldn’t have brought it up.”

My mother let out a long, heavy sigh before setting her teacup back on its saucer with a quiet clink.

“You need to stop bringing up that… that thing.” Her jaw tightened, disgust creeping into her voice. “She only brings bad luck, and we don’t need that lingering in every space.”

“I know,” I murmured, keeping my voice small and vulnerable. “I’m just worried she’s going to try to hurt my baby again. You know what happened last time…”

My mother’s expression softened, but the concern in her eyes quickly gave way to a fierce, protective anger. “Sweetie, I know. That’s why we’re doing everything in our power to get rid of her once and for all.” She leaned forward slightly, lowering her voice as though she didn’t want the maids to overhear. “Even your father and the Alpha will be arriving here soon to discuss this matter directly with the Alpha King himself.”

She paused, her brows drawing together in frustration. “And I don’t want to sound disrespectful, Callista, but your husband doesn’t seem competent enough to handle any of this. I’m starting to regret letting you marry him. If only you hadn’t—”