Betrayed by My Ex, Marked by His Alpha Emperor Brother novel Chapter 24

Chapter 24: Chapter 24

Elara’s POV

“She will report to the palace on Monday morning,” Kaelen stated, his voice flat. “She will serve as a senior assistant. Alongside Elara.”

The words landed like a blade between my ribs.

I stared at Kaelen. Then at Seraphine. Then back at Kaelen.

He couldn’t be serious.

But his face was carved from stone. No warmth. No flicker of recognition that he’d just handed my worst nightmare a position beside mine.

Seraphine’s arms were still half-draped around me. I could feel the heat of her body pressing too close, the chemical sweetness of her perfume invading my lungs. My skin crawled where she touched me.

Get her off us, Moonlight snarled inside my skull. NOW.

I stepped back. One precise, deliberate step. Seraphine’s hands fell away.

“Elara, darling,” she cooed, tilting her head with that same poisonous smile I remembered from years ago. “You look exhausted. Are they working you too hard? Poor thing.”

Poor thing.

The words hit a nerve so deep I nearly flinched.

She used to say that. Back at the academy. Back when she and Isolde would corner me in the corridors after the instructors had gone. Poor thing. Poor little nobody.

I was in my second year when it started.

Seraphine had transferred in from another province, dripping in expensive fabrics and her father’s name. She found Isolde within the first week. Two vipers recognizing each other across a crowded room.

And I became their favorite target.

It started small. Ink spilled across my assignments. My belongings disappearing from my dormitory. Whispered laughter every time I walked into a room.

Then it got worse.

Seraphine held my head under the fountain in the academy courtyard while Isolde kept watch. The water was freezing. It flooded my nose and mouth. I thrashed and clawed at her wrists, but she was stronger—always stronger—and she held me there until my vision went black at the edges. When she finally let go, she laughed. Actually laughed. Wiped her wet hands on her skirt and said, “You needed a bath anyway, darling.”

The lunch trays came next. Seraphine would wait until I sat down in the dining hall, walk past with her own tray, and flip it directly onto my head. Soup, bread, gravy—whatever the kitchen had served that day, I wore it. The other students watched. Some laughed. Most looked away.

No one ever helped.

The psychological games were worse than the physical ones. Seraphine would befriend me for days at a time. Sit beside me in lectures. Braid my hair. Tell me I was pretty.

Then she’d turn. 𝒇𝒓𝒆𝒆𝙬𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝒎

She once convinced me she’d arranged a study circle with several older students—people I desperately wanted to impress. I showed up at the designated chamber, nervous and hopeful and carrying extra notes I’d prepared.

The room was empty. Except for a note pinned to the door.

Did you really think anyone wanted you here?

Three years. Three years of that.

And now she was standing in the royal palace, her inflated lips curved into that same sweet, toxic smile, calling me darling.

I want to rip her throat out, Moonlight growled, pacing furiously behind my eyes.

I forced my breathing steady.

“Seraphine.” My voice came out flat. Controlled. “It’s been a long time.”

“Too long!” She clasped her hands together. “I’ve missed you terribly. You just vanished after the academy. I was heartbroken.”

Heartbroken. Right. The way a cat is heartbroken when the mouse escapes.

I turned to Kaelen.

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