CHAPTER 83

CHAPTER 83
“Call me whatever helps you sleep at night, Erin,” I say calmly despite the fire raging inside me. “At least I don't have to beg for a man's attention.”
That is apparently the final straw. Without hesitation, she slaps me so fucking hard! Fortunately, before she can do some more, Cassian happens to walk by. 
“Both of you,” Cassian growls. “My office. Now!” 
I lift my chin and follow without fear. Beside me, Erin storms ahead, already sniffing dramatically. Tears gather in her eyes so quickly that I almost admire the performance. She is such a good actress!  
A few minutes later, we step inside the Alpha's office. The door slams shut behind us with a heavy thud. Erin doesn't waste a second.
“Did you see what she did to me, Alpha?” she cries, tears streaming down her cheeks. “She's vindictive because she can't have you! She's doing all of this for attention!”
I roll my eyes so hard they nearly disappear into the back of my head. “Oh, please, Erin. If I wanted him,” I continue, “I wouldn't need tricks.” Cassian goes completely still and I almost laugh at his reaction.  “Should I tell her about the time you kissed me in your room?” I ask sweetly.
“Enough, Vivienne!”
I arch a brow. Go ahead. Deny it. For several seconds, he says nothing. He simply stares at me as though I've suddenly grown another head. Then he clears his throat and looks away. Out of the corner of my eye, I catch Erin staring between us.
“Cassian?” she whispers.
His attention immediately shifts to her. “What the hell were you thinking, Erin?”
She blinks. “What?”
Cassian says flatly,  “I saw it happen.”
The color drains from Erin's face. For a brief moment, satisfaction warms my chest. Unfortunately, Erin recovers quickly.
“I only did it because she's trying to steal you from me!” she shouts. “She's constantly challenging me! Constantly looking at you! She's trying to take my place!”
At that moment, I laughed very hard. “Are you trying to be funny, Erin? Me? Trying to take your place? How can you say that when I am his mate?”
Erin looks at Cassian. “Is it true?” 
“It doesn’t matter,” Cassian replies. 
“Cassian, please. Tell me the truth! Is Vivienne really your mate?”  
“I said it doesn’t matter. I already choose you as the future luna of my pack,” he reiterates. Then Alpha Cassian glances at me. “Vivienne?”
“Yes, Alpha?”
“Apologize to Erin.” 
For a moment, I genuinely wonder if I've misheard him. Then anger floods through me. So, I fold my arms and glare at him.  “She humiliates me and I am the one who should apologize?”
“You are a servant,” he says evenly. “You do not have the right to retaliate.”
“I will never apologize for something I didn’t do,” I say. 
“Excuse me?”  
“You're not deaf, Alpha.”
Alpha Cassian raises his eyebrow. “Watch your tone, Vivienne!” 
“Or what?” I ask. “You'll punish me for refusing to worship the woman who keeps attacking me?”
“Vivienne!”
I point directly at Erin. “She is the problem!”  Then I point at myself. 
Cassian's control visibly cracks. “Enough!”
“You want me to apologize to Erin? Then you do it!” 
Without waiting for permission, I turn and head toward the door. However, I don’t make it two steps and pain explodes across my scalp. I scream and my body jerks violently.  For a split second, I think someone has stabbed me. Then I realize Erin has a fistful of my hair. 
“You arrogant bitch!” she screams while yanking my hair so hard. “You refuse to apologize after the Alpha ordered you to?”
“Let go of me!”
“Never!”
We crash to the floor and the impact rattles my bones. Fine. If she wants a fight. She's getting one. So, I grab a handful of her hair and pull hard. Erin shrieks and a vicious, high pitched scream fills the office. 
“Maybe you should apologize to me!” I snarl. My scalp burns at her grip. She is just so brutal! Alright…if I am losing hair today, so is she. 
“Stop!” Cassian shouts.
Neither of us listens. We roll across the floor like wild animals. Clawing. Pulling. Kicking. But then, years of combat training take over, and I slam my forehead forward. Erin screams and blood immediately appears near her hairline.  
I know I should stop, but the adrenaline rushing through my veins drowns out every rational thought. So I do it again. This time, my forehead collides directly with Erin's nose. A sickening crack echoes through the office. For one frozen second, neither of us moves. Then Erin lets out a shriek so loud it nearly shatters the windows.
“MY NOSE!”
I blink. Her nose looks... wrong. Crooked? Bent at an angle that no nose should ever bend. Even Erin seems horrified when her trembling fingers fly to her face. The moment she touches it, pure panic fills her eyes.
“No... no, no, no!”
I stare. Then realization hits me. Holy shit! Her nose is fake. A laugh escapes me before I can stop it. It starts as a snort. Then another. Then suddenly I'm laughing outright.
“Oh my God,” I mumble softly. 
Erin's head snaps toward me. “You bitch!”
She launches herself at me again. She just doesn’t learn her lesson. Apparently, having her nose broken doesn't make her smarter. Her nails slash toward my face. I dodge one swipe. Miss the second. And then I shove her backward. She stumbles into a chair, but then the chair tips over.
“ENOUGH!”
Cassian's roar shakes the walls but just like earlier, neither of us listens. Erin grabs a heavy book from his desk and hurls it at me. Unfortunately for her, I am able to duck, causing the book to sail past my head and smashes into a shelf behind me. 
“YOU RUIN EVERYTHING!” Erin screams.
“You're the one with the detachable nose!”
Damn it but it’s really a wrong thing to say. Her face turns purple and then she lets out a sound that doesn’t even sound human anymore before charging me again. This time, we collide hard and both of us crash into Cassian’s desk. 
Papers explode everywhere and a decorative lamp tumbles onto the floor and shatters. For a horrifying second, I think I see Cassian’s soul leave his body. Then his eyes slowly close. He inhales, exhales and then inhales again. When he opens his eyes, they are glowing. 
“I said enough!”