Rebirth of the Broken Luna A Second Chance at Luna's Heart novel Chapter 168

Chapter 168

SILVIA

We’d released her due to lack of concrete evidence, but I’d never forgiven her. I’d carried that hatred in my heart for six long years, blaming her for taking my child away from me. And now I was learning that the real killer had been standing right in front of me, playing the role of the grieving ex-lover while the destroyed my family from within.

You should have seen how pathetic he locked, Sophia had continued on the phone, apparently enjoying reliving Riley’s final moments. “Crying for his daddy, begging me not to hurt him. It almost made me feel sorry for him. Almost.”

I’d forced myself to step away from the door then, my legs trembling with the effort of staying upright. I’d stumbled down the hallway in a daze, my mind struggling to process what I’d just learned. Sophia was a murderer – not just of Riley, but of my own daughter. She’d been part of my family for years, I liked her when she dated my son, although I was one of the underlying factors that caused their relationship to go sour because I forced Xenois to mate Lumina because I wanted Lumina tied down in a city where I would draw the

I wanted Lumina bound and chained to a pack, she wasn’t a part of, mated to a man she didn’t love and making her life miserable as a whole because she didn’t deserve to be happy not ehen ny daughter was dead

But all this while, it had been Sophia who had been playing the victim while she planned her next kill. How did she even kill Xena? She wasn’t there then…or maybe she had done it, planted it on Lumina and fled. And it was done in the woods, near the cliff. Only with Lumina holding the murder weapon when we finally found them.

Now, sitting in my car with that same woman beside me, I had to use every ounce of self-control I possessed to keep from wrapping my hands around her throat. She was still playing her role, dabbing at her eyes with tissues and making soft sounds of distress that were meant to tog at my heartstrings.

I keep thinking I should have fought harder, she whispered as we pulled into my driveway. “Maybe if I’d been braver, if I’d tried to

follow them…

“You did everything you could,” I replied through gritted teeth, my hands white-knuckled on the steering wheel. “No one could ask for more from a mother protecting her child.”

The word mother tasted like poison in my mouth. This woman was no mother. She was a predator who used children as pawns in her twisted games, and I was going to make sure she never hurt another innocent soul.

We pulled up to my house, and I saw Samuel’s silhouette in the front window, probably wondering why I was bringing company home

so late.

My husband was a good man, gentle and trusting, he never liked me hurting Lumina or putting her down over and over but he also didn’t stop me or make her life more hellish. He left the dirty deeds to me.

My husband was too trusting for what was about to happen. But there was no other choice. Some things were more important than

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Chapter 168

protecting the innocent from ugly truths.

:)))

68

‘Come on,’ I said, helping Sophia out of the car with false solicitude. “Let’s get you inside where it’s warm. Samuel will make us some

tea, and you can rest as long as you need to.”

Sophia leaned on me as we walked to the front door, still playing the role of the traumatized victim. But I could feel the tension in

her muscles, see the alertness in her eyes as she scanned the surroundings. She was calculating, always planning her next move.

The front door opened before we reached it, and Samuel appeared with a confused expression on his weathered face.

“Silvia? What’s going on? I thought you were visiting Xenois at the hospital and checking up on Sophia.”

“Yes I did,” I said carefully, watching his reaction. “There’s been an incident. Riley is missing, and she needs somewhere safe to

recover.”

Samuel’s face immediately shifted to concern, his natural compassion overriding any questions about the unusual circumstances. “Of

course, of course. Come in, both of you. Let me get the guest room ready.”

–

I helped Sophia settle into our living room, making sure she was comfortable on the couch near the fireplace. The flames cast

dancing shadows across her face, and for a moment I saw something else there a coldness that she couldn’t quite hide behind her mask

of grief.

tea.”

“Samuel, could you put the kettle on?” I asked, my voice steady despite the storm raging inside me. “I think we could all use some

As my husband bustled off toward the kitchen, I moved toward the fireplace, ostensibly to add another log to the flames. But my real target was the heavy iron poker that hung beside the hearth, its weight familiar in my hands from years of tending fires.

Sophia was absorbed in her phone, probably checking to see if there were any updates about the search for Riley’s body. She had no idea that her carefully constructed façade was about to crumble, that justice was finally going to catch up with her after six long years.

I gripped the poker tightly, feeling its solid weight as I turned back toward the woman who had destroyed so many lives. My daughter’s face flashed before my eyes – Xena’s bright smile, her infectious laugh, all the dreams and possibilities that had been stolen

from her by this monster.

“Sophia,” I said quietly, my voice carrying a finality that made her look up from her phone,

She turned toward me with that fake concerned expression still plastered on her face, and I saw the exact moment when she realized what was about to happen. Her eyes widened, her mouth opened to scream, but it was too late.

The poker connected with the back of her skull with a sickening crack that echoed through the quiet room.

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Reborn From Regret A Second Chance at Luna’s Heart