"She truly didn't know," Orion rasped, his voice straining.

"Does her ignorance wipe the slate clean? Is her not knowing going to magically bring my parents back from the dead?"

Consumed by a suffocating wave of rage, she fired the cruelest words she could find.

The moment they left her mouth, a flicker of regret hit her.

But she kept her gaze hard. "Do you honestly think I'm going to blindly believe a word you say anymore? If you want to play the hero and protect Amanda, go right ahead. But leave me out of it."

She would never agree to a settlement.

In her past life, these monsters had gotten away with it. Her parents' true cause of death had been buried forever, and she had died miserably.

Meanwhile, the real killers had lived in absolute luxury.

It was sick. It was unfair.

Lemira glanced at the front seat. "Pull over."

The driver remained perfectly rigid, too terrified of his boss to obey.

She turned a scorching glare onto Orion. "Let me out of this car."

"No. I'm not letting you go."

It was an immediate, guttural response. He physically couldn't let her walk away.

He had forced himself to stay away these past few days, praying that once the trial was over, the agonizing distance between them would close.

But seeing her out with another man tonight had shattered every ounce of logic he possessed. He didn't care about the consequences anymore.

Lemira gritted her teeth. "What exactly is your endgame here?"

"We are not breaking up."

A cynical laugh tore from her throat. "Are you even listening to yourself?" Orion's eyes were dark and utterly resolute. "I know exactly what I'm saying." Clenching her jaw, Lemira threw a vicious punch right at his face.

She put her entire body weight into it, her knuckles colliding brutally with his nose.

Fueled by sheer adrenaline and fury, she didn't hold back. A sickening crack echoed in the confined space of the car.

The luxury car instantly swerved and slammed on the brakes.

Seizing the opportunity, Lemira threw the door open, the driver's panicked shout ringing in the air. "Boss! Are you alright? You're bleeding!"

She didn't look back once. She hailed a passing cab and disappeared into the night.

Sinking into the back of the taxi, she rubbed her throbbing knuckles. They ached terribly.

But the physical sting was nothing compared to the suffocating agony tearing apart her chest.

He deserved it.

She felt absolutely no remorse.

He was the one who had taught her how to throw a punch like that. He had taught her how to take down her enemies.

She had been such a diligent student, never imagining that he would be the first person she used it on.

The irony was suffocating.

When Lemira returned to her apartment, the first thing she saw in the entryway was a pair of his shoes.

The dam broke. Everything she had been desperately holding back came crashing down.

She collapsed onto the floor and sobbed until she was entirely empty, her throat raw and aching.

Pulling herself together, she picked up the shoes and shoved them into the trash.

Their lives were never supposed to cross paths in the first place.

If that horrific crash hadn't

happened, her parents would still be would

alive. None of this nightmare be

have ever started.

MS

The next morning, Lemira forced herself out of bed and got ready for classes as

usual.

Out of pure muscle memory, she glanced at the dining table,

expecting to see the lavish brot

Orion always arranged for her.

It was entirely empty.

A brief pang of misery hit her chest, but she swallowed it down and composed herself.

She would get over him.

Arriving on campus, she headed straight to the team's headquarters to finish up some leftover administrative paperwork.

Pushing open the door, she found a familiar face waiting for her: Michel, the manager for the Reapers.

It had been quite a while since they last crossed paths.

Michel gave her an easy smile. "I heard you stepped down as Captain. Thought I'd swing by and see if I could poach you."

Lemira offered a polite smile. "Let's talk in the office."

She had been meaning to ask him something anyway.

Once they were settled, Lemira got straight to the point. "I have no intention of

joining another team right now."

"Really? That's a damn shame."

Lemira locked eyes with him. "I need you to tell me something. Who is King?"

Michel clicked his tongue. "If you're asking me like that, you've already figured it out, haven't you?"

Her gaze dropped to her hands. "It's Orion, isn't it?"

"Yeah. It's him."

The confirmation settled heavily in

the

chai m

Lemira leaned back in her

Lovel

a bitter, desolate smile touching her tips,

It was really him.

The man she had hopelessly idolized and crushed on in her past life... was him.