Chapter 134
Elena's POV
The silence after my outburst pressed down on the room like a physical weight. My heart hammered against my ribs, every beat screaming that I'd crossed a line I couldn't uncross.
Isabella's face had gone pale, then flushed with color that spoke of barely restrained fury. Marcus sat motionless, except for the slight tightening around his eyes, his expression unreadable.
I forced myself to meet their stares.
"I never wanted anything from you. Not your money, not your status." My voice shook, but I didn't look away. "Damon left me standing there in front of three hundred people. He chose her. That's the truth, and you can't rewrite it no matter how angry you get."
"Elena—" Mom's hand found my arm, a silent reminder.
But I couldn't stop now. The dam had broken. "You're upset about the engagement turning into a joke? When did anyone ask what I wanted?"
Marcus's jaw tightened, but he said nothing. Isabella, however, wasn't finished.
"You still had no right to swap out the groom like you were changing accessories!" Her voice rose, sharp and shrill. "Do you know what people are saying? What's circulating through the pack?"
I almost laughed. Almost. "What they're saying about me? Trust me, Mrs. Vance, I'm well aware. But at least now I'm not the pathetic girl who got dumped in front of the entire Shifter elite. At least now I made a choice."
"A choice to humiliate this family!"
"No one ever considered me!" The words burst out before I could stop them. "So yes, now I'm only considering myself. I want everyone to know that I chose Caleb. That I wanted him, not Damon."
Isabella looked like she might explode. But what truly unsettled me was Marcus. His expression had shifted from anger to something colder. Calculating.
He was reassessing me. I could see it in the slight narrowing of his eyes, the way his shoulders settled back in his chair. The old Elena wouldn't have dared speak to him like this. The old Elena would have apologized, begged forgiveness, promised to make amends.
"You think you're brave," Isabella finally hissed. "But we can make your life hell. We can make sure you never work in this city, never—"
"You've been trying to destroy Caleb for years," I interrupted her, voice calm but clear. "Did it work?"
She blinked, thrown off rhythm.
"You locked him in that tower. Put those cuffs on him. Told him he was worthless." My throat tightened, but I pushed on. "And he's still here. Still standing. Still smarter and stronger than anyone thought possible."
I leaned forward slightly. "I won't give up either. You can threaten me all you want, but I'll survive just like he did. I'll find a way."
Isabella's face went from pale to an ugly red. "How dare you—"
"Mrs. Vance." Mom's voice cut in, sharp and cold. "Perhaps we should all calm down."
But Isabella wasn't listening. She stared at me like I'd struck her, hands trembling on the table. When she spoke again, her voice shook with barely suppressed rage.
"Is this what you think love is? Throwing everything away for a—a bastard who might not even—"
"Enough." Marcus's voice cracked like a whip.
Isabella's mouth snapped shut. The Alpha command in his tone was undeniable, filling the small room with suffocating pressure.
Marcus stood slowly, his gaze moving from me to Mom and back to Isabella. "We're done here."
"Marcus—"
"I said we're done." He didn't raise his voice, but the finality in it was absolute. "Elena has made her position clear. There's nothing left to discuss."
"You can leave," Marcus ended the conversation.
---
Marcus's POV
The girl had more fire than I'd anticipated. In all the years I'd known Elena Cross, I'd never seen her stand her ground like this.
It was… unexpected.
"This is a disaster," Isabella hissed once they'd left the booth. "She's openly defying us."
"She's choosing herself," I corrected, adjusting my cufflinks.
Isabella's eyes flashed. "Don't tell me you're actually considering accepting this farce—"
"What I'm considering," I said evenly, "is the reality of our situation. Damon ran. He abandoned his own engagement to chase after that stray, Scarlett. The entire pack witnessed it. We can't undo that humiliation."
She fell silent, though her jaw remained tight.
I pulled out my phone, scanning through the cascade of messages from yesterday. Damage control was already underway, but the gossip had spread like wildfire. Damon Vance's runaway groom. Elena Cross's shocking substitution. Caleb stepping into his brother's place.
Isabella said slowly, "If we acknowledge this… arrangement, we're legitimizing Caleb. Giving him status he's never had."
"He already has status," I replied, voice flat. "He runs my tech division. Every predictive model that keeps us ahead of our competitors comes from his team. He's made himself indispensable while we weren't paying attention."
That got her attention. "What are you saying?"
I pocketed my phone and looked her square in the eye. "I'm saying that Caleb is more useful to me than Damon has ever been. And maybe it's time we stopped pretending otherwise."
The color drained from her face. "You can't be serious. He's a bastard."
"Enough," I said sharply, cutting her off.
But Isabella wasn't finished. "Damon is still your legitimate heir. He carries the purest Vance bloodline—"
"And he's spoiled, reckless, and has the judgment of a child," I finished bluntly. "He threw away the family for a stray who'll never be accepted by the pack. Do you honestly believe that shows Alpha potential?"
She flinched as if I'd struck her.
I softened my tone fractionally. "I'm not saying Damon is irredeemable. But right now, in this moment, he's shown everyone exactly what kind of leader he'd be: impulsive and selfish. Caleb, on the other hand…"
Isabella's expression twisted. "So you'll just hand everything to—"
"I'll hand nothing to anyone who hasn't earned it." My voice dropped to a growl that made her step back instinctively. "But if Caleb wants to prove himself, to take on the responsibility Damon tossed aside, then I'll give him that chance. And if he fails, we'll deal with it then."
She stared at me for a long moment, something crumbling behind her eyes. "And what about Damon?"
"Damon will have to face the consequences of his choices," I said finally. "Just like everyone else."