Lethal Temptation (by Michelle Ray) novel Chapter 174

174 The Poisoned Legacy

Lucian

We thanked Bella for her time and left, heading straight to visit Darian’s grandparents. It was already edging into the evening, but none of us wanted to drag this out. We were all eager to return to our mates the next day, and this was a box that needed ticking.

The moment the staff saw Darian, they opened the gates without question. I couldn’t help the surge of anger that hit me when I saw the house-well-kept, with workers moving around like clockwork. My mother’s relatives were scraping by, barely getting through each day, while these two lived in comfort funded by the same fortune my father stole.

He was a bastard. And every step through that property made my blood boil hotter.

Darian’s grandmother greeted him with a bright smile, but the second her eyes landed on me, it changed. Cold. Measured. I caught the flicker of disdain before she smothered it. I didn’t need to guess where Martha got her venom.

“What are you doing here?” she asked, voice sharp as broken glass. No welcome, no courtesy. Not even a seat offered. Her husband shifted uncomfortably beside her, clearly trying to keep the peace.

“We shouldn’t be entertaining him in our home,” she snapped, her voice cracking. “He took everything from

our grandson.”

I clenched my jaw. The audacity of this woman…

Darian cut in before I exploded. “Grandma, stop. My brother didn’t take anything from me. The company and the money belonged to his mother. He’s the rightful Alpha.”.

She shook her head wildly, refusing to accept it. “No, no, no. Don’t let them fill your head with lies. You should fight for what’s yours! Steel Corp belongs to-”

“Enough,” her husband said, cutting her off with a glare.

They were just like Martha and my father-twisted reflections of each other. Bitter. Entitled. Dangerous. And now I was certain: coming here had been a mistake.

“Please, Alpha Lucian,” the old man said, finally turning to me with something resembling decency. “Have a seat. Forgive my wife.”

But I was already burning on the inside. I forced myself to sit, not out of respect-but because I knew losing my temper here would give them exactly what they wanted.

This ends soon, I told myself. The moment we move them into the Nighthorn mansion, I’m selling this house. There’s no way Martha’s family will continue to live off me-not a single dime more.

And after this, I’m reviewing the entire staff chart at the mansion. Anyone loyal to her? They’re gone.

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174 The Poisoned Legacy

This was war. And I was done playing nice.

“Would you like something to eat or drink?” the old man asked politely.

Glan

I shook my head. I wasn’t here for hospitality, and I sure as hell didn’t plan to stay longer than necessary. I linked Darian silently. He got the message.

He cleared his throat and went straight to it. “Grandpa, we’re investigating Alaric Moongrove. He’s been threatening my mother, and we believe he’s returning to Goldenpeak to visit his child’s grave-the baby he had with her. That’s why we came. We need to know where the child was buried.”

Silence fell like a hammer.

Both of them froze. The old woman’s eyes shot to me immediately, sharp and accusing.

“We won’t say a word with him here,” she spat.

That was it.

I sat up, my voice low but deadly. “Your daughter is no longer Luna. You will watch your tone when speaking to me, old woman. Or I won’t hesitate to deal with you accordingly.”

She opened her mouth to retort, but her husband reached out and gripped her arm. His fingers dug in just

enough to send a message. I saw the fear in his eyes-he believed me. He should have.

“We don’t have all day,” I said coldly. “I want the answer. Now.”

The man’s voice was cautious. “We don’t know where the child was buried. That’s Martha’s secret to tell.”

A coward’s answer. I could see it in his eyes, in the way he avoided mine. He was lying.

“So,” I said, narrowing my gaze, “you don’t know? Or you won’t tell us?”

He hesitated. Then muttered, “We don’t know.”

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