An Act of Revenge

The Lancaster estate felt different in the days that followed.

Sienna no longer sought out Damien. She no longer tried to get him to talk, to see her. Instead, she did exactly what Isabelle had told her to do—she let him figure it out on his own.

And the silence between them stretched.

At first, she thought it would be unbearable. That the distance would drive her mad.

But surprisingly, it wasn’t.

Because for the first time since stepping into this world, she wasn’t the one chasing.

She wasn’t the one proving herself.

Damien, however?

He was struggling.

She saw it in the way his eyes lingered on her when he thought she wasn’t looking. In the way his fingers twitched, like he wanted to reach for her but held himself back. In the way his jaw clenched whenever she walked past him without a word.

But he didn’t break.

And neither did she.

At least, not until everything came crashing down.

It started at the charity gala.

Sienna should have known something was off the moment she stepped into the ballroom.

The atmosphere was different tonight—charged with something unseen, an energy that made the hairs on the back of her neck stand up.

She scanned the crowd, taking in the sea of tuxedos and expensive gowns, the clinking of glasses, the carefully curated perfection of high society.

And then she saw him.

Ethan.

Standing near the bar, watching her with a slow, knowing smirk.

Her stomach twisted.

Why is he here?

She had made it very clear the last time they spoke that she wanted nothing to do with him.

But as if sensing her thoughts, Ethan raised his glass in a mock toast, his smirk deepening.

Something was wrong.

A sick feeling settled in her gut, but before she could react, the hush of murmured conversations spread through the room like wildfire.

The crowd shifted, people pulling out their phones, gasping softly.

And then—

A woman laughed. A sharp, cruel sound that made Sienna’s blood run cold.

She turned just as Eleanor Lancaster—Damien’s mother—approached, her expression unreadable.

“You might want to check this, dear,” Eleanor said smoothly, holding out her phone.

Sienna took it cautiously, her pulse roaring in her ears as her eyes landed on the screen.

A headline.

A photo.

“Sienna Monroe—Caught in a Secret Affair? Exclusive Leaked Footage Exposes the Truth About the Lancaster Bride.”

Her breath stalled.

She scrolled, heart pounding, until she found the video.

Shaky but clear. Taken from an angle that made it look exactly the way the headline described it.

Sienna and Ethan.

From the gala.

Him leaning in too close. Her expression unreadable.

Taken at the perfect moment to make it look like—

Like she was having an affair.

Sienna’s stomach dropped.

No.

No, this wasn’t happening.

This was exactly what Evelyn had warned her about.

The setup.

The lie.

And now, it was out in the world for everyone to see.

Sienna sucked in a sharp breath, forcing herself to think.

She needed to get ahead of this. She needed to—

“Well,” Eleanor murmured, tilting her head. “This is unfortunate.”

Sienna tore her gaze from the screen, her hands trembling. “This is a lie.”

Eleanor hummed. “Maybe.” She glanced across the room. “But does he know that?”

Sienna followed her gaze.

Her breath caught.

Damien.

He stood near the entrance, his expression unreadable as he stared at her.

As he stared at the video.

The room spun.

Sienna moved before she could second-guess herself, weaving through the crowd, pushing past the whispers and judgmental stares until she reached him.

“Damien,” she breathed.

He didn’t look at her.

His gaze was still fixed on the screen, his jaw tight, his body rigid.

Sienna swallowed hard. “Damien.”

Finally, his eyes flickered up to meet hers.

And what she saw there made her heart crack in two.

Doubt.

Not anger.

Not betrayal.

But doubt.

As if, despite everything, some small part of him still wondered if this was true.

Sienna’s throat tightened. “You can’t believe this.”

Damien was silent for a long moment. Then—

“I don’t know what to believe.”

The words hit like a knife to the chest.

Sienna took a shaky step back. “Wow.” She let out a hollow laugh, shaking her head. “So that’s it? That’s all it takes?”

Damien exhaled sharply, running a hand through his hair. “Sienna—”

“No,” she cut in, her voice raw. “You don’t get to do this. Not again.”

Damien’s jaw clenched. “This isn’t just about us, Sienna. This is about my family, my business—”

“Oh, your family,” she snapped, eyes flashing. “The same family that has been trying to destroy me from the start? The same family that set this up?”

Damien hesitated. Just for a second.

But it was enough.

Sienna let out a breathless laugh, shaking her head. “Jesus, Damien.”

His hands twitched at his sides, like he wanted to reach for her but didn’t. “I just need time to—”

Sienna’s chest ached. “To what?” Her voice cracked. “Decide if you trust me?”

Damien inhaled sharply. “I need time to fix this.”

Sienna stared at him, her pulse pounding.

And that was when she realized—

He wasn’t going to fight for her.

Not really.

Because deep down, some part of him still believed she needed fixing.

Sienna swallowed hard, blinking back the burn in her eyes. “No, Damien,” she whispered. “You need to decide if I’m worth fighting for in the first place.”

The silence that followed was deafening.

Damien’s throat bobbed, his expression unreadable.

Sienna let out a slow, shaky breath. “I already know my answer.”

Then, without another word, she turned and walked away.

And this time—

Damien didn’t stop her.

—

This chapter is packed with high emotion, tension, and a major turning point for Sienna and Damien.