Contract With The Alpha King novel Chapter 3

"Be specific, Regor," Elijah drawled. The man was clearly enjoying this.

"Miss Milina, the wife of the patriarch of the Rosenthal family, and Miss Elise Rosenthal, Miss Fiona’s younger sister, who is set to inherit the Rosenthal fortune, are here. They want to speak with Miss Fiona," Regor replied, his eyes cold and unreadable.

Fiona’s heart sank. The mere thought of facing her mother and sister filled her with a familiar, suffocating dread. It was as if a vice was tightening around her chest, squeezing the air from her lungs.

"I will talk to them," she said as she turned to Elijah. "And I will consider your proposal, Your Highness."

Elijah’s smile widened, but there was no warmth in it, only a predatory gleam. "Good. Very good. Now, go on. Show them what you’re made of." He dismissed her with a wave of his hand, the gesture as sharp as a blade.

Fiona forced herself to follow Regor, her pulse thrumming.

As soon as she stepped into the room where her mother and sister were waiting, the air thickened with tension. Fiona barely had time to register the scorn etched on their faces before her mother’s hand shot out, a sharp crack echoing through the room as it connected with Fiona’s cheek. Pain exploded in her head, her vision blurring as the force of the slap whipped her face to the side.

But Fiona didn’t have time to react. The moment she raised her hand to the burning skin, Elise lunged forward, her eyes blazing with fury, her hand raised to strike. But this time, Fiona was ready. She caught Elise’s arm mid-air, her grip ironclad, stopping the slap just inches from her face.

The room seemed to freeze in that moment. Elise’s eyes widened in shock, but before Fiona could say a word, Milina’s hand shot out, slapping Fiona hard across the other cheek. The sound echoed like a gunshot in the room. Fiona staggered back, releasing Elise’s arm as the sting of the blow seared her skin.

"How dare you touch your sister!" Milina spat, trembling with barely contained rage. "Let her go this instant!"

Fiona frowned but let her sister’s arm go.

Seeing this, Milina added, "What have you done, Fiona? Your father is livid! Do you have any idea what you’ve unleashed?"

Fiona slowly turned her head, locking eyes with her mother. The shock was fading, replaced by a cold, steely anger. She had expected this—had braced herself for it—but the reality of their hatred still cut deep. "I’m doing what I have to. I can’t stay here anymore."

"You’ve brought shame on our family!" Elise hissed. The younger sister, the golden child who had always been favored, stared at Fiona as though she were filth. "Father might kill you for this, and I can’t say you don’t deserve it!"

Fiona met Elise’s glare, the exhaustion of years of mistreatment weighing heavily on her. Elise, the perfect daughter with the ability to heal, had never known suffering. "What do you care, Elise? You’ve never cared about what happens to me."

Elise’s eyes narrowed to slits. "Don’t play the victim, Fiona. You’ve always been the problem in this family. Always causing trouble, always on the outside looking in. Everything was fine until you opened your mouth. Why couldn’t you just endure like the rest of us?"

Fiona’s chest tightened with a surge of anger. She wanted to strike back with words that would wound as deeply as the ones that had scarred her for years, but she forced herself to remain calm. She looked at her mother and sister, their faces twisted with contempt, and the memories rushed back with crushing force—memories of being the unwanted child, the one who was never good enough.

Her father had been relentless in his criticism, his words like knives that cut her down at every turn. No matter what she did, it was never enough. Elise, with her healing abilities, was the golden child, the one who could do no wrong. Fiona? She was the one who bore the brunt of their father’s anger, his disappointment, his desire to break her spirit.