Chapter 8 The Last Illusion

Aurora's POV

Alpha Keith's face darkened, his eyes burning with anger as he stepped forward.

"You're sick, Aurora," he snapped, his voice cold and loud enough for everyone to hear. "You've always been mentally dark, full of jealousy toward Helen. You poisoned Vicky and tried to frame her!"

The words hit like claws, but I stood still, meeting his gaze without flinching.

It was always the same. Any truth I spoke was twisted into malice. Any pain I suffered was labeled jealousy.

They never cared about facts. Only about keeping their perfect image.

Luna Melissa quickly stepped between us, her voice shaky as she tried to soften Keith's attack.

"Keith, don't say such things," she whispered, though her eyes darted anxiously toward the gathering guests.

She was trying to save face, but not for my sake, it was for their reputation.

Alpha Frank's voice followed right after, calm and composed. "Aurora, if you were coming home today, why didn't you tell us beforehand? You caught us completely off guard."

I let out a cold laugh. The weight of their hypocrisy was so heavy, it was almost laughable now.

"You didn't know I was released from prison today?" I asked, my voice flat.

Frank rushed to cover his tracks. "If we had known, we would have sent a driver to pick you up."

I raised my chin slightly, letting my gaze sweep across them. "Oh? That's strange. Because Keith said you had prepared a welcome banquet for me."

"The crowd started whispering, everyone turning to each other in confusion.

"But this is Helen and James's engagement party, no one said anything about a welcome banquet for her." I heard someone say.

Alpha Frank's face stiffened. Luna Melissa's lips quivered. And Keith? Keith's face drained of color as he realized what he had exposed.

The truth was laid bare for all to see. There was never any welcome party for me. I wasn't here as their returning daughter.

I was nothing more than a shadow in the corner of Helen and James's engagement celebration.

My release from the werewolf psychiatric hospital didn't even deserve a side mention at this event. Their hearts were entirely with Helen.

At that moment, something inside me finally snapped with cold, clear certainty.

I had never been the alpha daughter of the Donald family.

Not truly. Not to them.

All my hopes, all my silent wishes for a place in this family, they had been nothing but foolish fantasies.

I turned away, wanting to leave this stage, this house, this life of lies behind me.

But as I stepped forward, Helen appeared, her timing as perfect as always.

She moved quickly, walking directly toward me in her haute couture gown, her glittering heels clicking against the polished floor.

The luxury wrapped around her like a second skin, reminding everyone of who the true princess of this family was.

Because of my injured leg, I couldn't avoid her in time.

Our shoulders collided, and the impact sent me off balance. My foot twisted beneath me, and sharp pain shot up through my broken leg.

I stumbled and fell hard to the ground, the sharp stab of my elbow slamming into the cold floor.

Gasps filled the hall, but not for me.

Instantly, Alpha Frank, Luna Melissa, and Alpha Keith rushed toward Helen, surrounding her like panicked guards protecting their most precious treasure.

"Helen, are you hurt? Are you alright?" Luna Melissa asked, her voice trembling as she held her arm.

Alpha Frank placed a steadying hand on Helen's shoulder, inspecting her carefully. "Did she hurt you?"

Helen, ever so delicate, shook her head, blinking rapidly, as if trying to hold back tears that weren't even there.

Alpha Keith's voice rang out sharply. "Can't you watch where you're going, Aurora?"

I looked up from where I lay on the floor, my elbow burning, my injured leg throbbing beneath me. But none of them so much as glanced at me.

They saw Helen being 'hit.'

They saw her stumble.

But none of them saw me fall.

I was invisible to them even as I was hurting on the floor.

I could feel the eyes of the guests locked on the scene. Some watched in shock.

Others whispered quietly behind their hands, pretending to look away while devouring every piece of the drama unfolding before them.

For a brief moment, I lay there, my palm pressed against the floor. I could have stayed down. I could have let them act like victims while I faded into the background, like always.

But not this time.

If they liked humiliating me so much, then I wouldn't protect their dignity any longer.

Slowly, I pushed myself upright. My arms trembled slightly from the pain, but my voice was steady.

Without a word, I rolled up my dress in front of everyone.

Gasps echoed across the hall.

Lining my arm were the scars. Angry red lines that never fully faded.

The marks left behind by years of beatings, silver burns, and restraints from my time in the psychiatric dungeon.

The evidence of everything they had hidden.

The guests stared, their eyes wide with shock and horror.

The whispers grew louder.

"My god, look at her arm..."

"Those are scars from restraints... like a prisoner."

"They made her live like this all these years?"

The weight of their gazes didn't bother me anymore.

Let them see. Let them see everything they had tried to bury.

Alpha Frank's face was pale now, beads of sweat forming on his forehead.

Luna Melissa's lips looked shocked, tears pooling again, but now her face looked more like fear than guilt.

Alpha Keith clenched his jaw, his face tight with frustration, unable to stop the situation from spiraling out of control.

The guests no longer saw the perfect Donald family standing proud on stage. They saw the cracks. The lies. The cruelty.

But my emotions stood tall.

Because unlike them, I had nothing left to lose.