Chapter 4 Like mother Like daughter

After my discussion with Alpha Calixto and his Beta, I headed straight for home. I chose to avoid the main streets as much as possible, wary of accidentally encountering anyone along the way.

I cursed myself internally as I hurried through the dimly lit alleys. How could I have been so reckless? Not only would I likely become the subject of gossip over the coming weeks, but I had also managed to inadvertently bind myself to one of the most feared and notorious Alphas in our community. That sobering thought was enough to clear my mind almost instantly.

As I navigated the expansive grounds and slipped into my home, I closed the side entrance door as quietly as possible, keen not to draw attention to my late arrival.

Voices filled with laughter echoed from one of the drawing rooms as I crept by. My face hardened when I recognized the familiar voices of my stepsister and stepmother, along with the occasional comment from my father.

A painful twist gripped my heart as the realization sank in that I felt completely disconnected from my once-loving father. With a resigned sigh, I continued down the hallway, clutching the bunched-up fabric of my wedding dress tightly to my chest. I had just reached the bottom of the grand staircase when the drawing room door behind me was suddenly thrown open, crashing against the wall with a loud bang that echoed through the corridors.

I jumped slightly, freezing in place as the overly sweet and familiar voice of my stepsister Eve reached my ears.

"Oh! Mom! Dad! Look who finally decided to come home!" Eve called out with exaggerated surprise, directing her words over her shoulder to the others. "I didn't even realize Anastasia was out! And just look at the time! The night before her wedding, no less! What will people say?" she gasped, clearly putting on a show for their benefit.

I spun around furiously, fixing Eve with a narrowed glare.

"Oh my! Look at your dress!" she exclaimed loudly. "It's completely ruined! How on earth do you plan to wear that for the ceremony tomorrow?"

Eve stopped in front of me, folding her arms as she surveyed my rumpled appearance with disdain.

I snorted quietly and leaned in to whisper in Eve's ear. "No wonder Brent couldn't wait to be with me, just look at the state of you," she sneered.

I clenched my fingers into fists, struggling to hold back Maine from lunging at Eve and making things worse.

'Don't just stand there and take this; that brat needs to learn her place. Let me teach her a lesson she'll remember,' Maine growled angrily.

'Maine, we can't. She doesn't have a wolf yet. You know the laws; it wouldn't be a fair fight, and the punishment—'

'Forget the punishment, Anastasia, let me just bite her a bit, maybe remove one of her limbs. At least then she'd have fewer appendages to cling to other people's mates,' she snapped viciously, trying to push forward.

I closed my eyes tightly, clenched my jaw, and wrestled against my wolf as Eve snickered.

"Awww, what's wrong? Is your little wolf angry?"

It didn't take long for me to regain control, with my wolf slinking off to sulk in a corner, growling menacingly. Soon enough, her rage subsided, leaving silence in its wake. I opened my eyes to glare icily at Eve.

"What do you think, Eve? You slept with my soulmate, the one who was destined to be my perfect match. I know you despise me, but that was uncalled for," I finally replied, my face calm and composed.

Eve frowned before her expression darkened, twisting into an ugly mask of spiteful anger.

"Unnecessary? I thought it was quite necessary. If only to show that I'll always be better than you. You parade around here thinking you're little Miss Perfect. Mark my words, Anastasia, I'll see to it that you're left with nothing by the time I'm through. I'm sick of living in your shadow," she hissed furiously.

"Anastasia! What is the meaning of this?! Why were you out so late?!" a slimy, sickly sweet voice called out.

Nerissa, my stepmother, emerged from the drawing room with my father close behind.

Reluctantly, I tore my gaze away from Eve and refocused on Nerissa. We stared at each other while Eve sauntered to her mother's side, tilting her head arrogantly as she faced me again.

"I needed to clear my head," I finally answered flatly, feeling like a spectacle on display with everyone's attention directed at me.

"Oh, but your dress came! How lovely!" Nerissa simpered, a poisonous smile playing on her lips.

"I'm surprised you didn't rush down to flaunt your new dress to your father before vanishing into the night doing who knows what," Nerissa continued with a flippant tone, her eyes gleaming with malice. I couldn't stifle my response and ended up snorting loudly.

"Parents? You've got it wrong... don't you mean parent? My mother passed away a long time ago, and you're not worthy of being mentioned in the same breath as her memory," I replied coolly.

Nerissa gasped, covering her mouth in mock horror as she turned towards my father with a look of feigned distress.

"You ungrateful child! How can you speak to your stepmother like that?!" my father blustered, his voice tinged with anger.

"Because she's like the wicked stepmothers you read about in fairy tales. She doesn't belong in this family," I said simply, tired of upholding the charade of a happy family. A family should be warm and inviting, offering comfort and security, not cold and unfriendly, forcing you to constantly watch your back without support.

His temper flared as he lashed out at the wall beside him before angrily advancing toward me, growling a warning. Eve rushed over, grabbing his arm and casting a sly smirk in my direction as she put on the false appearance of restraining him.

"Dad! Please! Calm down! Don't be upset! It's okay, we're used to her comments," Eve whined insincerely.

I glared furiously at the trio as Nerissa joined her daughter in this pathetic pretense of familial concern. How could my father not see through their charade?

Nerissa soothingly rubbed circles on my father's back before focusing her attention on me again. "Please, Anastasia, you know your father's health isn't great. Let's not provoke another episode with needless cruelty, hmm?" she pleaded in a syrupy sweet voice, but I didn't miss the smug smirk playing on her lips.

"You should look up to your sister's example, Anastasia. You might actually learn how to conduct yourself properly!" my father snarled.

"Learn what?" I asked incredulously, laughing bitterly. "Learn how to seduce and sleep with someone else's mate? Well, she certainly showed her talent for it when she was sleeping with my mate in her room upstairs!"

My words hung in the air, heavy and accusing, before a furious roar erupted from my father.

"How dare you speak about your sister that way?! There's no way she did something so despicable!"