Chapter 5
1528 Words
The sleek car glides smoothly through the streets, its polished exterior reflecting the afternoon sun. Behind the wheel, Yuuki sits with perfect posture, her eyes fixed on the road ahead. The three weeks of isolation have changed her, hardened her. Gone is the naive woman who entered that hotel room; in her place sits a steel-eyed mysterious woman.
As she approaches the Valencia mansion, a familiar sense of dread threatens to creep in. But she quashes it ruthlessly. She is no longer that weak, simpering fool. She is Yuuki Watanabe. And she does not cower.
The car rolls to a stop before the imposing gates of the Valencia estate. She waits, her fingers tapping an rhythm on the steering wheel. Seconds tick by, then minutes. The gate, which would usually have swung open by now, remains stubbornly closed.
Yuuki's eyes squint dangerously. This has never happened before. It's the same car she has been using so there's no way that the guard, the same one who has been working here for over a year, wouldn't recognize it. Her gaze shifts to the guard box, where she can see two security guards in uniform, their heads bent together in conversation.
As she watches, one of the guards looks up, meeting her eyes. A smug smile spreads across his face, and he elbows his companion. They both burst into laughter, the sound carrying across the quiet street.
Her jaw clenches. In an instant, she realizes that this is deliberate. Someone has given these men permission to disrespect her. And she has a pretty good idea who that someone is.
Cassandra Valencia, she thinks, her mind filled with contempt. Only Nero's sister would be stupid enough to do something like this.
One of the guards, emboldened by whatever instructions he's been given, swaggers towards her car. His face is a mask of arrogance as he approaches, clearly relishing his moment of power.
"Hey! If it isn't the ex-Mrs. Valencia," he calls out, his voice unnecessarily loud. "What are you doing here? Don't tell me you're here to beg the master to take you back?" He leans in closer, his breath fogging the window. "As a woman, you should have the basic self-respect, don'tcha think?"
His tone is full of mockery, his words clearly meant to humiliate. Yuuki remains still, her face impassive. This level of disrespect is unprecedented. Even when the Valencia family's disdain for her had been at its peak, they had always maintained a veneer of civility in public.
Because that is the Valencia way. Image is everything to them. Celine Valencia, Nero's mother, understands this better than anyone. No matter how much she dislikes her daughter-in-law, she makes sure Yuuki has the latest and best of everything. After all, Yuuki is still, officially, a Valencia.
But now? Now the guards feel free to disrespect her in full view of the affluent neighborhood. Yuuki can already imagine the gossip that will spread. The once-mighty Valencia family, so narrow-minded that they can't even tolerate a woman who has been married and toiled for their family for over four years.
Yuuki sneers inwardly. Really brainless!
The guard, apparently dissatisfied with her lack of reaction, presses his face closer to the window. "Open the gate," Yuuki says simply, her tone hard.
The guard's eyebrows shoot up in mock surprise. "What was that? Hey lady, this place isn't somewhere that any Tom, d**k, and Harry can come and go as they like, okay?! You have to receive an official invi-"
Yuuki turns, fixing him with a gaze so cold it could freeze hell itself. The words die in the guard's throat as he meets her eyes. In that moment, he feels a primal fear grip his heart. This is not the meek woman he had been told to expect. This is something else entirely.
"I won't say it again," Yuuki's voice is scary.
Without another word, he turns tail and runs back to the guardroom, nearly tripping over his own feet in his haste. Moments later, with a loud beep, the large black iron gates swing open.
As Yuuki's car glides through, the guard who had approached her shivers and take a subconscious step back. He is visibly shaken, his face pale. His colleague pushes at his shoulder, clearly confused by the sudden change of plans.
"Hey! What's the deal, man?!" the other guard asks, "Wasn't the plan to make a scene and embarrass her before finally letting her in after she breaks down?"
The first guard shakes his head vigorously, still looking spooked. "Nah man... f**k that."
"Why?" The other one frowns.
"That woman... forget it. You shouldn't provoke that one..."
Yuuki pulls to a stop in front of the winding staircase. She notices the additional cars parked around, realizing whose cars they are, she sneers. She comes down from the car, envelope in hand. However, instead of heading into the main house, she goes round the back, to a lone building to the side behind the mansion.
She pushes the double doors and steps in. Instantly, the chatter stops. Five pairs of eyes turn to look at her.
In the room, Nero stands cool and expressionless, flanked by his mother and sister. Celine, with her head held high and nose in the air, looks over with clear disdain in her eyes. Cassandra, phone in hand, is glaring daggers at Yuuki. From her furious expression, it's evident she's just received word of the guards' failure to humiliate her sister-in-law at the gate.
To the side stand two men. One is Li Muchen, Nero's secretary, right-hand man, and Beta. In the four years of her marriage, Yuuki has rarely seen Nero without him. It's an unusual sight in this day and age. Since the Fading, when werewolves lost most of their wolf instincts, they no longer live in packs. They have all now integrated into human society, hiding in plain sight. It's rare to see a Beta, especially one as capable as Li Muchen, working under a powerful Alpha instead of pursuing his own path.
Beside Li Muchen stands Eric Anderson, Nero's longtime childhood best friend and fellow Alpha. He shouldn’t be here, but her knowledge of the kind of person he is makes it no surprise to her. He is here to watch the show.
Yuuki takes it all in, her face a mask of indifference.
"Well, you took your sweet time, didn't you?" Cassandra breaks the silence, her voice shrill in the cavernous room. "My brother told you to come in the morning, and you're just showing up now? How dare you keep him waiting?"
Yuuki ignores her completely, walking towards Nero. His eyes follow her movements, but Cassandra blocks her path.
"I'm asking why you didn't come at the time you were supposed to!" she screeches, face reddening with anger.
Finally, Yuuki deigns to look at her. "I didn't want to," she states simply.
No excuses. No apologies.
The room falls silent, shock evident on every face. She didn't come in the morning because she didn't want to? Even though it was her beloved Nero who asked her to? Is this really Yuuki?
Eric whistles lowly in the background, a hint of admiration in his eyes. Cassandra, on the other hand, looks as if she might explode.
"Who the hell do you think you-" she begins, but Yuuki simply sidesteps her, continuing her approach to Nero.
Coming to a stop before him, Yuuki's voice is cold as she asks, "Where is it?"
Nero raises a hand, and Li Muchen steps forward. From seemingly nowhere, he produces an old, rectangular wooden box. It's worn with age, its original design long since faded. The box is small, no larger than the length of Yuuki's palm.
"Here you go, Ms. Watanabe," Li Muchen says, his tone polite and his demeanor respectful. But Yuuki knows better. It's all a carefully crafted facade.
Ms. Watanabe. Not Mrs. Valencia. Even though the divorce isn't finalized. It's a subtle jab, deep enough to draw blood but not obvious enough to warrant a reaction. In the past, Yuuki would have had to swallow her anger. But not today.
Li Muchen has always given off a particular vibe to Yuuki. A cunning fox, she had thought initially. Always polite and proper, but to be the ruthless Nero Valencia's secretary and right-hand man, he couldn't be a simple character. And as a Beta, known for their wit and cunning, it's no surprise.
He gives the illusion of someone who could feed you poison with a smile. A very tricky individual. Though she cannot see any indication from his demeanor, her senses tell her that he holds deep disdain for her. Case in point.
As she takes the box from him, their eyes meet. Behind his clear glasses, Li Muchen's eyes are unreadable, his face set in a polite smile. But after four years of interacting with him, Yuuki can sense the deep disdain he holds for her. It matches, she knows, the feelings of every other person in this room.
No, Yuuki thinks, amending her earlier assessment as she stares into those cold, calculating eyes. Not a fox.
A snake.
- Writer
