Chapter 1 The Betrayal

Eliara's POV

The sterile scent of antiseptic clung to the air as I lay motionless on the hospital bed. My body was weak, my mind spinning, it's was as if I was hit by a truck and beaten half to death, suspended between fever dreams and the cruel sting of reality.

The slow drip of the IV and the beeping of the monitoring machine was the only sound filling the room until the buzz of my phone shattered the silence.

I blinked, a headache coming in due to the sound, my groggy fingers fumbling for the device on the tray beside me. My thumb hovered over the screen. A notification blinked at me.

*Alexander Lancaster spotted with mystery woman, are wedding bells off?*

My breath caught in my throat, my heart sank to my stomach, for a minute I doubted my sights, I even thought for a moment it might be another person entirely and not him but was I wrong.

I clicked the article with trembling fingers. The photo loaded slowly and agonizingly slow was it. And then the world stopped spinning, the words I use in deceiving and living in my own delusional bubbles burst.

No! No! No!

But no matter how many No's I say to myself, there they were, Alexander, the man I had loved for seven years and cared about more than myself and her, Serena, my adoptive parents real daughter, who is kind of my sister, in a sense. The long-lost daughter my adoptive parents had searched for in hushed whispers and desperate prayers. Which was answered.

His arm was wrapped around her waist smugly , her face tilted into his chest, and that smile. That soft, tender smile, the one I thought was mine.

The monitoring system or IV monitor, whatever the name is, beeped erratically matching my heart rate, my vision blurred and my head pounded as if ten nails were been Hammered into them.

I dialed him, Once, Twice, but it all went to Voicemail.

The silence was louder than any scream, it was the kind that happens but isn't needed and isn't a good one.

Then the phone rang again, my Mother.

My gut twisted. I answered with shaky hands. "Hello?"

"Darling," she cooed, false sweetness coating every syllable, it never means good whenever she is like this, either she wants something or it's trouble, "Aren't you going to congratulate your sister? She and Alexander, don't they make such a stunning couple, hmm?"

I couldn't breathe, the pain and betrayal was much, my heart hurts so much, my lungs burns.

"You knew?" I whispered, voice cracking like shattered glass, I hope I was wrong, just this once prove me wrong, "You knew about them?"

A pause. Then a sigh. "It's time you accepted reality, Eliara. Serena is our true real daughter. Alexander... he was never truly yours. You were just a placeholder so act like one and send your greetings."

Click.

The line went dead just like my heart, a cold painful chill ran through my whole body, I shivered.

A placeholder, that's what she called me and at this moment I felt like one.

That word echoed in my mind as my tears fell freely. I had given him everything, My loyalty, My heart, Seven years of my life, time and effort but what happened? I got discarded like an old dress in the back of a closet in return, I was easily replaced like a spoilt old cloth doll.

A knock came at the door, I didn't answer nor made a move.

But it opened anyway, and my friend, best friend's head peeped in, she is all smiles till she saw my face. I know I look pale.

Naomi stepped in, her eyes scanning my face. "Eliara?" Her voice cracked. "Oh God, what happened?"

I couldn't speak. I just handed her my phone, I didn't need to, all my problems and woes are in there.

She looked at the phone, her eyes widened like an anime character, very funny even bit I wasn't feeling it at this moment. And then she exploded.

"That bastard! How dare he" she hissed clenching her hands into a fist. "I swear, if I see him, I'll castrate him and feed it to him till he choked on it and die"

"Maybe she's right, she is definitely right" I whispered. "Not maybe, I think she is right, I was just something temporary something replaceable. I am.....I was just a... a placeholder."

"No," she said, gripping my hand firmly. "You are not disposable not replaceable, God! Fuck no, Eliara, you are the most loveable and the most beautiful person I have ever had in my life. And there is no fucking way we are letting them win, You deserve so much than that, what they did to you isn't right, they took advantage of you and your kind heart, you are not what that bitch and sorry excuse for a woman told you, you are my friend, my best friend, they will get what is coming to them, don't worry."

But in that moment, I wasn't sure I could win anything. I wasn't sure I could even stand, everything became blurry and I let out a heart breaking sob, she immediately came to my side, holding me and rubbing my back.

"It's alright sweetie, it's alright, we will deal with them, shushhhhh, stop crying, look at me, look at me"

I lifted my head up and look at her with tears still running down my face, am sure I was covered in snot but I didn't care, I was so heartbroken, it's as if my heart was thorn to shreds and scrubbed with sandpaper, I loved him, it hurts so much, so fucking much.

"Oh baby, stop crying they don't deserve your tears at all"