A Widow's Poison, A Wife's Rebellion novel Chapter 955

Since playing nice clearly wasn't working, she had no choice but to tear things down.

She genuinely hadn't wanted it to come to this.

Before returning to Yoran Country, she had truly viewed the Hoggart family as her sanctuary. She had looked at Yardley as her beloved older brother, her real family.

And she had viewed Herbert as someone she could implicitly trust.

But the reality? Both Yardley and Herbert had let her down in the worst possible way.

"You belong here. You should come back," Herbert said into the phone.

"Should?"

Hearing that word made Starla want to laugh. What did 'should' even mean? Nothing in this world was a given.

When a person started believing someone else 'should' do something for them, it became dangerous. She wasn't born to be a pawn, and she certainly wasn't going to play the obedient slave.

"Amos is a madman," Herbert warned. "Don't associate with him."

"Right now, the people who are a danger to me are you and Yardley!"

Was Amos crazy? Absolutely. If he wasn't a little unhinged, he wouldn't be charging the front lines for her. Before, Amos hadn't known how to hit Yardley where it hurt. Now that he had the blueprint, he wouldn't stop until Yardley was bleeding out from a thousand cuts.

"Don't blame me for being ruthless," Starla said, her voice devoid of warmth. "You saw how I operated in Marina City. To protect myself, I'll do whatever it takes."

Everything she did was to ensure her own survival. When someone loved her, she cherished that love. But the moment they abandoned her, she learned to love herself fiercely.

"In Marina City, I genuinely thought about a future with you. I felt that hesitation, that vulnerability of actually falling for someone."

She had truly cared for him. Looking back, she realized why. When she had been at her absolute lowest, completely isolated with the entire Yelchin family against her, Herbert had stood by her side.

She had been entirely alone, fighting a one-woman war. It was when her emotional defenses were at their weakest.

Herbert had slipped in when she was vulnerable. She had cracked open the door to her heart, but at the first sign of betrayal, she had slammed it firmly shut.

Hearing her confession made Herbert's chest tremble. "Starla..."

"But it's a shame. Whatever gratitude I had for you, or whatever affection you had for me, it ultimately couldn't outweigh your greed."