The Alpha's Villainess

Chapter Twenty

I was prepared this time for the onslaught of crazy sensory signals Alistair’s presence would give me. Instead of being hopeful or curious about the man who made me feel this way, I only felt dread inside. A deep, unknown fear of the pain I knew I would feel soon. The same that I’d seen Liam and Aurora experience upon breaking their matebond.

“Alistair... you already know about her?” Aurora spoke up quietly.

“I unfortunately had the displeasure of meeting her a few years ago, back during a routine tour of the territories. Or, rather, I was meeting with Liam Pyres, but for some reason, she felt it was her place to wrap herself around him like a snake for the entire conversation,” he said, recalling the encounter coldly. “It was as if she were showing off some kind of non-existent status, desperate to prove that she was worthy of attending a meeting meant for future leaders. Liam treated her like a of badge of honour he wore.”

His eyes then finally turned to me as he continued, sending a wave of nausea through me. “A day later, just as I was about to leave their territory for the next, I stumbled upon her by accident. Some poor maid was crying on her knees as Scarlett threatened to have her killed. It was over something trivial, like accidentally tearing one of her dresses, but she laughed like it was hilarious. The cries of the woman meant nothing to her. She just relished in having someone else’s life be at her mercy, bragging that Liam would do anything for her.”

I felt my cheeks burn and my eyes sting with tears as I helplessly listened, the aching in my heart worsening as the hate-filled words came directly from my so-called mate. I had no choice but to stand there and be accused of things I’d never done, at events I’d never been apart of. Yet I was forced into this body against my will and now these were my sins to bear. It wasn’t like anyone would believe me if I told them the truth. Aurora had already proven that reinventing myself as someone new was pointless, now making that approach impossible to try again. It would always come back to the same thing.

That I would always be the villain. That it was all Scarlett was.

...That it was all she ever would be.

“I was a slave of Easthaven since I was a baby, following the war with Ashburne,” Aurora said, adding her own story to Alistair’s experience. “I was tortured and abused for their own amusement. Blamed for things I didn’t even understand, because of a family that I had never even met. They all saw me as disgusting... useless... ugly trash. And because of that, they took everything from me.”

“Your family was from Ashburne?” Alistair then asked, surprised.

“Wait, do you know about her pack?” Victor replied.

Aurora tilted her head curiously and answered. “Yes. I’m the sole survivor, as far as I’m aware. But they never told me anything about where I came from.”

“It’s no wonder they kept you hidden and treated you so poorly then,” Alistair explained. “Your family is the reason why their Alpha at the time, Liam’s father, was executed. He was charged with breaking the Empire’s treaty, eliciting a war on an allied pack and committing war crimes. They must have been taking out their anger on you.”

“War crimes?” Victor asked, confused. “Why haven’t I heard about this before? About anything to do with Ashburne?”

He wasn’t alone. This was the first time I’d heard about this dark lore too. But it made sense that if neither Aurora nor Victor knew about it, then I wouldn’t either. The knowledge I had came only from what was written via Aurora’s perspective. If she never discovered the deeper truth of her upbringing with Liam, then the reader wouldn’t know either. In this case, we were only able to read history from the victor’s tale.

“Because you were too young at the time,” Alistair answered. “Father tried to not burden us with disturbing current events when we were children, but I knew something was wrong and found the answers myself. I was around six years old when Easthaven launched their attack on Ashburne without just cause. You were only around three at the time. The pack was then handed over to Liam’s uncle for leadership until Liam became of age at eighteen.”

So that was why Liam was an Alpha at such a young age. I’d just assumed it was because his father had died in the last few years, or that it was because of lazy story writing from the author since young Alphas were a common theme, but it was actually because his father was executed when he was a child. It was no wonder he hated Aurora so much – not that any of it was her fault.

He then turned back to Aurora and spoke gently to her. “I’m sure that if our father knew that someone from Ashburne had survived, he would have stepped in and freed you immediately. I’m sorry that we failed to investigate more thoroughly. You didn’t deserve the treatment you received, Aurora. From what I know, Ashburne was once a highly respected pack within Aeredale. You should feel proud of the family you came from.”

Even without seeing Aurora cry from his words, I knew how much they would affect her. She’d believed her whole life that she was treated like scum because of her birth family, that they were criminals or worse. Deserving of being wiped out in the war with Easthaven. She even resented them a little for the enslavement she was forced into. It wasn’t until much later in the book, when she learned the truth of the war and the origins of her magic, that she realised she had been wrong about them.

But Alistair had now single-handedly given her the answers she’d needed to hear, liberating her from her resentment so early on. She didn’t need to wait several more months now. He’d given her this immense gift without even realising just how much it would mean to her.

I watched as he spoke to her with such kindness, with a tone so soft and gentle. And it made me envious. It made me wonder what I’d done in my past life to deserve living in this hell now.

It made me feel... worthless.

Even without my intervention, Aurora would still be fine after today. She would continue to live her new amazing and magical life, supported by a loving mate and now a very much alive, caring brother-in-law too. She would reside in this palace, have all the luxuries at her fingertips, and it would truly be what she deserved. I knew better than anyone else here, having been inside her head, just how badly she needed this second chance.

But I would leave here today with nothing.

With no one.

Only given an aching pain and a hole in my soul that would remind me of just how unwanted I was.

...I didn’t understand why.

Why me? Why was I forced to become Scarlett? Shouldn’t she be the one facing the consequences of her actions now? To see the people she hurt and to take accountability for her crimes? It didn’t seem fair.

“I hope you understand now, Scarlett,” Alistair then said to me, his expression steeling once more. “Why I’ll never accept you. Why you’ll never be my mate or queen. You are unworthy.”

...Yeah... I guess I was...

Even in my past life, I wasn’t deserving of becoming a Queen or anyone important. I was just me. Just an ordinary girl. No one even remotely special. I’d wasted my life inside, hiding away and never opening up to anyone. Never putting myself out there or trying anything new. I blamed the world for failing me, when I’d clearly failed myself too.

Yes... I was unworthy. I guess Scarlett and I were the same in that regard.

Slowly, I then sunk to my knees, knowing where this was going next. The bile formed in the back of my throat, the nausea only getting worse, but I knew there was nothing I could do to stop it from happening.

I just looked down and silently waited. Like an innocent victim about to be sentenced for a crime they did not commit.

This was now my conviction.

“I, Alistair Reynes, eldest son of the Alpha King, heir of the Aeredale Empire, hereby reject....”