Mated to My Fiancé’s Alpha King Brother

27 Chapter 27

Seraphina’s POV 1

For five years, my adoptive parents had vanished from my life completely-no calls, no letters. It was as if I’d never existed in their world,

which was exactly what they’d wanted when they threw me out.

The phone kept ringing. I let it go to voicemail, but immediately another call came in from a different number. Then another. My phone

buzzed with a text message, then another, the notifications piling up faster than I could dismiss them. 1

*Answer the phone, you little bitch.*

*I know where you work.*

*Nightshadow Industries. Don’t make me come there.*

My blood turned to ice. She was using different phones, probably borrowed from neighbors or friends, making sure I couldn’t just block

her number. And now she was threatening to show up at my workplace. I couldn’t let Elizabeth Knight storm into Nightshadow

Industries and cause a scene.

The phone rang again. This time, I answered.

“Hello, Elizabeth.”

“Don’t you ‘hello Elizabeth’ me, you ungrateful little bitch!” Her voice exploded through the speaker with such venom that I had to hold

the phone away from my ear. “Where the hell have you been for five years? Do you have any idea what you put us through? Disappearing

like some common criminal, embarrassing our family name!”

The familiar torrent of abuse washed over me like acid rain. Same Elizabeth, same vicious tongue, same complete inability to take

responsibility for her own cruelty.

“I’ve been building a life for myself and my son,” I said quietly, proud of how steady my voice sounded despite the way my hands were

trembling. “What do you want, Elizabeth? We haven’t spoken in five years. I assumed that meant you were done pretending to care about

my existence.”

But a harsh laugh that sounded like breaking glass. “Trust me, if I had a choice, I wouldn’t be calling you at all. But you need to come

home. This weekend. There are… arrangements to be made.”

“Arrangements?” I repeated, my voice rising slightly. “Elizabeth, I’m not coming back to Whispering Valley. Ever. I have a life here, a job,

responsibilities-”

she shrieked, her voice reaching that familiar pitch that had preceded so many

my childhood

an unwanted omega orphan and

Owe us!”

don’t owe you anything,” I said firmly, surprising myself with the steel in my voice.

never had been. You chose Valerie. You got exactly what you

00

114

is about, find someone else

Elizabeth’s voice changed, dropping to something low and dangerous that made my wolf

quality that made my skin crawl. “I know about your little apartment in the Riverside district. Most importantly, I know

my throat. “What did you just

Silver Moon Harbor Elementary. Such a

if something were to happen

phone slipped from my suddenly nerveless fingers, clattering onto my desk with a sound that

do anything except stare at the

in that

shaking so badly I could barely keep

son-” I started, but Elizabeth cut me off with a

who you’re

the respected wife of a

do you think they’ll believe if something

chest felt like it was being crushed in a vise, making it difficult to

now, businesslike, as if we were discussing

Seraphina? If you even think about

I have friends in many places. There’s nowhere you could hide

at my phone in complete silence. The office

glass. The familiar sounds of the building-air conditioning, distant conversations, the

muffled and far

than that. She’d raised me, after all, taught me exactly how far she was willing to

pregnant eighteen-year-old with nothing but the clothes on her back

capable of far worse

barely controlled anxiety, jumping

barely sleeping.

short. Every mile that passed on the familiar country roads brought back memories I’d spent

I pulled into the gravel driveway of the Knight house, my hands were shaking and my wolf

maintained on the outside while hiding

appeared to be a welcoming gesture. She was dressed in her Sunday

214

her makeup applied with careful

she called out, her voice warm and bright. “Oh, darling, look at you! You

the porch steps and pulled me into what felt like a genuine hug, her arms wrapping