Betrayal Ashes

Betrayed and Broken

Chapter 2

Anessa's Pov

“Strip.” Just this one command made me jerk up in shock, my eyes widening.

“What did you just say?” I asked, maybe I didn't hear him clearly.

“I said, strip. Don't make me repeat myself again, Anessa.” My husband, Alaric ordered, his voice cold as ice, his eyes shooting daggers at me. My hands went cold and clammy as I glanced around us. The corner of my lips trembled as I fought to keep my senses intact.

“W… What do you mean?” I shivered in fear, “There are a lot of people here. How can you tell me to strip in front of them? I'm your wife! You're the only one who's supposed to see my naked body!” I yelled at him, tears gathering at the corner of my eyes.

Alaric scoffed, “You should have thought about that when you opened your legs for another man. Take off your clothes. Now.”

“A… Alaric…” I stammered, shaking my head, “You can't do this to me. You can't! I told you I don't know anything about what happened!”

“Since you don't want to strip yourself down, let someone else do it for you. Someone! Hold that woman down and strip her of everything she is wearing.”

I grunted in pain when two men held me by my shoulders and kicked the back of my knees, making them hit the cold hard ground with a painful thud. They tore away the thin sheet that I wrapped around my body, leaving me bare.

“A… Alar…”

“Alaric.” A sweet innocent voice came from behind Alaric, interrupting me and I turned my head towards the source of the sound, staring at the woman who came in. She was Lily, a soft, docile and innocent young woman. She was the only daughter of the Grey’s, the third most influential family in the United States and she was Alaric's first love, the woman whom he wanted to marry.

Lily's soft footsteps echoed as she walked toward us, her innocent smile never leaving her face.

"Alaric." Lily repeated in that sweet voice of hers, placing a hand on his arm, "What's happening? Why is Sister Anessa on the ground like this, naked. Do you want her to catch a cold?!” Lily scolded, her lips pulled into a natural pout.

“Oh, Lily, you don't know how wicked this woman is! Can you believe that we caught her in bed with some drunkard! After everything my son had done to make her life better, she still betrayed him with a man thrice her age! She's nothing but a w***e who deserves to die!”

“But…” She began, her watery eyes glimmering.

"She deserves this.” Alaric stopped her from saying anything, “She betrayed me, and now she will face the consequences." His voice had an edge to it, sharper than I had ever heard it. My heart sank in my chest.

Lily smiled faintly, her eyes scanning me as if I were some sort of broken doll, "I understand." She said sweetly, "But maybe you should at least show her mercy. After all, she's already been caught."

Caught. That word sliced through me like a knife.

“This is why she is always taking advantage of you, Lily. You're too nice, this woman doesn't deserve to be forgiven.” Alaric finally turned to her, caressing her face with such warmth in his eyes that it made me stare at him in disbelief. He has never looked at me that way because from the very beginning, I was just a substitute, a substitute for Lily.

“Why…” I croaked out, trying so desperately to cover myself from their cold stares with my arms as I shivered, “Why don't you believe me? I didn't do it… I don't even know who he is! I don't!”

Alaric's eyes narrowed as he turned towards me, "You think I believe anything you say anymore, Anessa?" His voice was low and venomous, “After what you've done, after everything you've destroyed, do you really think I care about your excuses?"

Tears blurred my vision, as they began to fall from the corner of my eyes. I quickly realised then that no matter what I said, he wasn't going to believe me. All this embarrassment, stripping me down, he wasn't going to believe me.

"You’ve already made up your mind, haven’t you?" I whispered, a sad chuckle escaping my lips, “No matter what I did, I was never a good person, you all saw me as someone that you could throw away very easily, didn't you?”

Alaric’s jaw clenched, "Enough." He snapped, turning away from me and addressing Lily, "You were always right, Lily. I should have never let her fool me into thinking she was worthy of me." His words sliced through me like a blade, each one more painful than the last.

"You’re right, Alaric.” She said softly, her eyes meeting mine with cold amusement, "She’s always been a liar. She thought she could get away with betraying you, but now she’ll pay the price."

It took me a moment to process her words, but when I did, something snapped inside of me, "You... You did this to me, Lily, so why are you pretending?!" My voice was shaky, but there was a newfound fire in my eyes, "You drugged me. You made me enter a room with that man! You were the one who orchestrated everything!”

Lily’s smile faltered, but only for a split second. She stepped closer to me, tilting her head with feigned innocence, "You don’t have proof, Anessa. You have nothing so stop accusing me, it'll only make Alaric hate you more."

"That’s a lie!" I screamed, my voice raw with emotion, I couldn’t take it anymore. The anger that had been building up inside me finally exploded. I stood up from the ground, trembling with rage, and took a step toward Lily, "You think you’ve won, but you haven’t. I will never let you get away with this!"

Before I could get any closer, Alaric’s hand shot out, gripping my wrist with a force that left no room for escape. "Enough!" He yelled, his face twisted with fury, "You think I care about your accusations? You’re nothing but a traitor!"

My wrist burned with his grip, but I didn’t care. I pulled against him, trying to break free, but his hold was unrelenting.

Lily stepped back, watching us with a look of quiet satisfaction.

"You did this, Lily!" I cried again, my voice hoarse, "You ruined everything! You knew what you were doing when you drugged me!"

Alaric’s anger flared as he spun me around, his hand slapping me across the face with a sickening force. My head snapped to the side, and the sting of the slap seared my skin, but the pain in my heart was far worse.

"Shut up!" Alaric hissed, his voice low and dangerous.

I stood frozen for a moment, my cheek burning, my world spinning. Alaric slapped me… He just… He slapped me.

The rage inside me burned hotter than before. I couldn’t let this happen. I couldn’t let Lily get away with this. She had destroyed my life, she destroyed everything!

Fueled by a surge of anger, I lunged at Lily, my hands outstretched, ready to grab her and make her pay. But before I could reach her, one of the guards stepped in front of me, kicking me harshly in the stomach.

I gasped in pain, falling back to the ground, my breath knocked out of me. The sharp ache in my body was nothing compared to the fury in my chest. I wanted to scream, to claw my way through the pain and take everything back, but the men were already pulling me away.

"Throw her out," Alaric ordered coldly, "Now.”

“No! No, please! You can't do this to me! Alaric! I'm pregnant! I'm pregnant with your child! I'm pregnant!” I dropped the surprise that I had been keeping for a few days, hoping that Alaric would have mercy on me. I couldn't leave, just like this.

But what I didn't expect was the disgust that shone in his eyes, “You're pathetic. Throw her out.”

“Don't do that, Alaric. I'm also a woman like her, we can't let her leave like this. It's the family who will bear the brunt of news escaliate. At least give her some clothes to wear, okay?” Lily pleaded softly, swinging Alaric's arm.

“You're too nice, Lily. Very well, bring her some clothes to wear and then throw her out. I don't want to see this woman again!”

Once again, I was thrown out of the mansion like a sack of potatoes. I sat on the ground for a while as different emotions went through me but the one I felt the most was numbness. I blinked, trying to clear my blurry eyes. I had no tears left to cry, only a dry humourless chuckle escaped my lips.

After a while, I stood up walked until I found myself on an abandoned road. There were no cars in sight, just the wind rustling through the trees.

Then, the low rumble of an engine sounded behind me. As I turned, the car screeched to a stop, and the doors swung open. Two men jumped out, moving so fast I barely had time to scream before one of them grabbed me, lifting me off the ground.

“Let me go!” I shouted, thrashing wildly as I tried to break free.

“Shut up!” The man growled as he shoved me into the car. I struggled, kicking and swinging, but it was useless. I was no match for either of the two burly men. One of them raised a fist. I watched it come toward my face, and a second later, there was a burst of pain and everything went dark.

“Ugh.” I grunted when I came to as pain radiated through my body. My head throbbed, as did my shoulders. I attempted to move my arms, but my hands were tied behind my back.

So instead, I tried to open my eyes but some sort of material stopped me, it was a blindfold. Memories of what happened a few moments ago came back, I had been kidn*pped.