Betrayed by Blood, Claimed by the Alpha-Chapter 122

Betrayed by Blood

Kendra lay in bed, staring at the ceiling, her body rigid with anger. The soreness in her throat was a constant reminder of Cain’s brutality. Even now, she could feel the ghost of his grip, the way his fingers had tightened around her neck as if she were nothing.

She wasn’t nothing.

Her fingers trailed over the tender skin of her throat, and rage surged through her again. He had humiliated her. Worse, he had done it in front of others. In front of Avery.

Her jaw clenched. The mere thought of that girl made her stomach churn.

Avery.

She absolutely despised the girl. That servant girl. That nobody.

It made her sick, made her furious to think that Cain had chosen to defend Avery over her. Her. Kendra, the woman who had stood by his side for years. Who had done everything she could to prove her worth to him.

And yet, in one moment, with one act of violence, Cain had shown her exactly where she stood. Beneath Avery. Beneath a pathetic little girl who had done nothing but be in the right place at the right time.

Kendra shook her head, her hand grazing over her neck where Cain had held her. She could still remember the look in his eyes. The sheer rage that had burned within them. He had never looked at her that way before. Like she was worthless. Like she was beneath him.

But today, he had.

All because of Avery.

The humiliation clawed at her, suffocating and inescapable. This was worse than when he had banished her. At least then, she had still had her pride. She had still been able to tell herself that Cain had made a mistake. That he would regret casting her aside.

But now?

Now, he had thrown her away without a second thought.

Kendra’s fingers curled into the sheets, her nails digging into the fabric. I won’t be discarded like this. Not again.

The door swung open with force, slamming against the wall.

Kendra didn’t even flinch as her mother stormed in, her heels clicking against the floor sharply.

"What the hell were you thinking?" her mother snapped, her voice slicing through the air.

Kendra let out a humorless laugh, sitting up slowly. "Oh, here we go."

"Don’t you dare mock me, girl," her mother said. freёnovelkiss.com

Her mother’s face was tight with anger, her eyes dark with disappointment. "Have you lost your damn mind? Do you realize what you’ve done?"

Kendra’s lip curled. "Enlighten me."

"You provoked him." Her mother’s voice was a low hiss. "You humiliated yourself. You humiliated our family’s name. How stupid can you be?" She practically screamed at Kendra.

Kendra shot to her feet, her anger snapping. "Oh, I humiliated myself? Humiliated you, mother? I ruined everything?" She let out a bitter, shaking breath, hands clenching into fists. "No. Cain did that. He put his hands on me. He chose that servant over me."

Her mother’s mouth pressed into a thin line. "And you let him. You are the cause of this whole thing, you dumb bitch. He chose that servant over you because he saw through you. You’re empty! A fool is what you are! You can’t do a thing right no matter how hard you try." Carol spat out bitterly. She stopped closer to her daughter. "Tell me, what was the need to stop Avery there? Yeah, nothing. There was no reason. You just chose to play the fool. Do you actually have no idea how much we have on the line right now? You went ahead to provoke him and all because of what?"

Kendra froze, her entire body stiffening.

"Do you think lashing out will fix this?" her mother continued, her voice sharp as a blade. "Do you think acting like a petulant child will make Cain see your worth? You are ruining everything."

Kendra’s rage burned hotter, crackling inside her chest like an uncontrollable fire. She had spent her entire life being exactly what her mother wanted. Being ruthless. Ambitious. Desperate for Cain’s approval. And for what?

For this?

For him to toss her aside like she was nothing?

The fury she had kept restrained exploded. "You did this to me."

Her mother’s gaze turned to ice. "Watch your tone, Kendra."

"Or what?" Kendra snapped, stepping closer, her voice shaking with rage. "Let me remind you in case you’ve forgotten. You called me years ago and told me to make Cain my mate. My husband because that’s the only thing that will make my family proud. You wanted me to be his mate, and yes, I did fall in love with him, but you did this to me! Now what? What will you do? Beg him to take me back? Because that’s all I am to you, right? A bargaining chip. Something to keep your hold on the power you have?"

Her mother’s expression didn’t change. "You sound pathetic."

Kendra let out a cold, bitter laugh. "Pathetic?" She gestured wildly at herself. "Do you have any idea what it felt like? To have him choke me? To have him choose her over me in front of everyone?" Her voice cracked, but she didn’t care. "I was nothing to him. Nothing. This is even worse than when he banished me. Mother, Cain gripped my neck, he looked at me with a rage I’ve never seen. All for that servant."

Her mother’s stare was unreadable. "Then change that. If you keep obsessing about that servant, then you will get nowhere." Carol stepped closer, her gaze intense on her. "Your father has lost everything, Kendra. We are penniless."

Kendra sucked in a sharp breath.

Before she could respond, the door burst open again.

Maris, her maid, stumbled in, her face pale, breathless. "My lady—"

"What now?" Kendra snapped, her patience razor-thin.

Maris hesitated, then swallowed hard. "Alpha Cain was attacked last night."

The room fell into silence. Kendra’s stomach lurched at the news, her eyes widening. Cain. Attacked?

Impossible.

Cain was untouchable. He was a force of nature, a beast among men. No one would dare challenge him.

And yet—someone had.

Her mother reacted first. "Go to him."

Her mother stepped closer, voice low and urgent. "This is your chance to fix things. Show him you’re on his side. Show him you care. We cannot afford to lose Cain. He is the only one who can help us out of this crisis your father has created. Now, go before that wretch gets there."