hapter 50


    I pped her. Once. Twice. A third time. Sharp, precise, and real.


    Ethan stepped in, grabbing my wrist. “Olivia, stop! What the hell


    are you doing?!”


    I yanked my arm back. “This is for lying. For sneaking around.


    For throwing yourself into a marriage that was never yours to


    begin with.”


    “She’s already on bail!” Ethan snapped. “What more do you


    want?”


    “To be treated like I’m not disposable!” I yelled. “You think I’ll just


    sit and watch you two y victim while I take the fall for your


    damn choices?!”


    “She’s not well,” he muttered.


    And like right on cue, Chole slumped to the side, unconscious


    from the stress and the p. Ethan caught her, arms trembling


    with rage.


    “Yes. Be her savior. Maybe I should faint next so you’ll


    remember I’m your wife.”


    He looked at me like I was the monster now.


    He didn’t say a word. Just picked her up and stormed off toward the crowd of people already parting like waves for his drama.


    I stood there in the wheelchair, surrounded by strangers,


    everyone whispering and staring.


    Alexander’s POV


    From the backseat of the car, I watched the chaos unfold at the


    airport entrance.


    Olivia stood alone in her wheelchair, surrounded by whispers,


    clicks of phone cameras, and that insufferable tension that only public drama could stir. Ethan had already disappeared into the


    crowd with Chole in his arms like some tragic hero in a bad


    stage y.


    I expected Olivia to look shaken, maybe even humiliated after


    causing such a scene.


    But she didn’t.


    She brushed her hair off her face, adjusted her posture in the


    wheelchair, and nced around like a queen surveying her


    kingdom. Her chin was slightly lifted. Her eyes calm. Composed.


    There wasn’t a single trace of panic in her bodynguage. In


    fact… there was a faint trace of satisfaction on her lips.


    My brows furrowed.


    “What is she… smiling about?” I muttered under my breath.


    Gai sat beside me, equally stunned. “She’s not upset.”


    “She should be,” Mike said from the passenger seat. “That was


    brutal.”


    “She looks like she knew exactly how this would go down,” Gai


    added, pulling out his phone. “Also… you should see hertest


    post. Here–look.”


    He angled the screen toward me. Olivia’s most recent upload was still fresh. A photo with Ethan’s silhouette in the background and a cheeky caption that said:“Trying to enjoy my


    post–trauma vacation… but some people just won’t take a hint.


    Anyone know how to remove emotional parasites? Asking for a


    friend. #NotSoEx #StillObsessed #DramaFreePlease”


    My jaw tightened. So it wasn’t just a coincidence. The timing, the setup, the performance in front of the crowd–she had


    baited Ethan and Chole perfectly. And made it public.


    “She posted this on the ne?” I asked.


    Gai nodded. “Right after Ethan followed her onboard like a lost


    mutt.”


    I sat back, connecting the dots. Her behavior, her restraint, her


    outburst at the airport… Even Chole showing up now felt too


    convenient. I was beginning to understand what Olivia was


    really up to.


    “Should we go help her?” Mike asked. “She’s still sitting there


    alone.”


    Gai agreed. “We can’t leave her like that. You should go.”


    I was about to open the door when someone else beat me to it.


    A woman in a tailored red dress–heels clicking, stride confident


    -appeared at the curb and made her way straight to Olivia. She


    looked like she belonged in a boardroom, not an airport pickup


    zone. Her long hair was tied in a tight braid, and her expression


    screamedpetence and authority.


    “I think that’s Olivia’s friend she talked about,” Mike pointed


    out.


    “I think so too,” Gai murmured, narrowing his eyes. “Olivia


    seems to know her quite well.”


    The woman bent down, said something quietly to Olivia, and


    Olivia chuckled before letting the woman help her into the back


    of a waiting car. No tension. No confusion. It was smooth.


    Effortless.


    nned.


    I turned my werewolf hearing toward the car as the engine started. Their conversation slipped into range just enough to


    catch it.


    “-Chole will definitely go crazy now. Once she finds out Ethan


    was on the ne and you were the one posting, she’ll lose it


    again.”


    “That’s the point,” Olivia replied, unbothered. “They want


    drama. I’ll give them one they can’t swallow.”


    “You are a genius, Liv.”


    “I don’t know about being a genius. But I will make sure to


    return the favor.”


    My jaw clenched as realization dawned.


    This wasn’t Olivia acting out of emotion. She wasn’tshing out


    like some wronged, impulsive ex–wife.


    She was Strategic. Deliberate.


    And it turns out… she was using Chole, on purpose.


    Olivia’s POV


    “Ava, would you stop turning your head like we’re being


    hunted by a rogue pack?” I said dryly as she checked the


    rearview mirror for the fifth time in two minutes.