Chapter 63: Chapter Sixty Two

Scarlett 

I stormed into the living room, flinging my school bag onto the couch.

“I can’t believe this! Expelled? Over her?”

My father entered, his face dark as thunder. “Sit. Down.”

I hesitated. I had never heard him use that tone before. When he shouted at me earlier, I thought it was just for show. I never realized he was truly angry.

“You’ve embarrassed this family,” he snapped. “Poisoning a student? Are you insane?”

“It wasn’t even that serious—”

“You could’ve killed her!” he roared. “Do you understand the gravity of this? If that girl’s parents file a lawsuit, your name will be dragged through every news outlet in the country.”

My mother stepped forward, her voice softer but no less firm. “Scarlett, why? Why would you do this?”

“She acted like she was better than us,” I muttered. “Everyone liked her. Even Eros—”

Dad’s voice dripped with bitterness. “Ah. So this was about a boy.”

I clenched my fists. “You wouldn’t understand.”

“I don’t care why you did it,” he said sharply. “You’re grounded indefinitely. No phone, no credit card, no social life. And you’re starting therapy immediately. Because if this is who you’re becoming, then we’ve failed as parents.”

Tears welled in my eyes. “Dad—”

“You’re lucky Athena is alive,” he cut me off. “Because if she wasn’t, you’d be facing charges in a courtroom, not a school hearing.”

Mom’s voice dropped to a whisper. “You need help, Scarlett.”

I sank onto the couch, the weight of their words pressing down on me. For the first time, I didn’t talk back.

As if my humiliation wasn’t enough, Eros arrived less than ten minutes later. The moment I saw him—saw the look on his face—I knew he was here to put the final nail in my coffin.

“Eros?” I forced a smile. “What a surprise. I didn’t expect you to be here.”

He didn’t return it. "I doubt you'll be pleased once you hear why I'm here," he said coldly.

I tilted my head, feigning innocence. "Oh? What could possibly make you look so... tense?"

"Athena." he said

My smile wavered. I stiffened, but I tried to play it off. "Athena? What about her?"

Eros stepped closer, his voice sharp as a blade. "Don’t play games with me. I know what you did, Scarlett. I know about the kidnapping."

My eyes widened before I let out a nervous laugh. "That’s ridiculous! Why would I have anything to do with that?"

"Scarlett, what’s going on here?" My father’s voice cut through the tension as he walked back into the room.

I took the opportunity to shift the blame. “H-He came here to accuse me of something.”

"Eros, what exactly are you accusing my daughter of?" Mom demanded, concern laced in her tone.

Eros turned to them, his voice unwavering. "Ask her yourself. She orchestrated Athena’s kidnapping."

A gasp escaped my mother. "What? That’s absurd!"

"This is a serious accusation," Dad said, his tone hard. "Our daughter would never do something so vile."

"Exactly!" I seized the opportunity. "You can’t just barge in here and make outrageous claims."

Despite the chaos, a flicker of satisfaction stirred within me. My parents were still on my side. No matter what had gone down minutes earlier, they refused to believe I was capable of something so extreme.

"Outrageous claims?" Eros scoffed, shooting me a look of pure disdain before turning to my parents. "You really believe your daughter would never do something that vile? After what happened at school—barely two hours ago? If she’s capable of poisoning Athena, I can assure you, she’s capable of what I’m accusing her of."

"That’s a serious accusation, Eros. You better have proof." My father’s voice was stern, unwavering.

Eros locked eyes with me. "I have evidence," he stated, his tone sharp.

Panic flickered across my face before I quickly masked it. My parents exchanged tense glances.

"Evidence? What kind of evidence?" My mother’s voice wavered slightly.

Eros didn’t break eye contact. "Enough to make sure everyone knows exactly what she did. The police. The media. Society." His voice was cold, deliberate. "Once I’m done with her, she’ll have no choice but to move somewhere as far as Antarctica just to escape the consequences."

I swallowed hard, my fingers clenching into fists. He was bluffing—he had to be. There was no way he could have concrete proof. But the way he spoke, the way he looked at me… doubt crept in.

After all, Mr. Colton and his security team had been dismissed and replaced with new personnel. Additional CCTV cameras had been installed throughout the school grounds. I would wager my entire family's wealth that Eros had orchestrated it all—the security team's removal, the surveillance upgrades, and perhaps even the camping trip. 

If Eros Belmonte wasn’t aware of what was happening in his own school, then no one else would be. He had eyes and ears everywhere.

My breathing quickened. My eyes darted toward my parents before settling back on Eros. "You wouldn’t," I whispered, my voice barely audible.

"Try me." He chuckled darkly. "Scarlett, should I show them the evidence?"

A suffocating silence filled the room. My parents stared at me, waiting—hoping—for a denial. But I said nothing.

"Scarlett… tell me this isn’t true." My mother’s voice trembled.

"Tell me he’s wrong, Scarlett," my father pleaded, his tone uncharacteristically soft. "Tell me. Now."

I lowered my gaze. There was no way out. A frustrated sigh escaped me before I finally muttered, "Fine…" I paused, inhaling sharply. "I was involved, but—"

My mother gasped, covering her mouth. My father closed his eyes briefly, his face turning red with anger.

"Scarlett! How could you?" My mother’s voice cracked in disbelief.

"You put another girl’s life at risk? Are you out of your mind?" my father roared.

"It wasn’t supposed to be serious! Just… a warning!" I defended myself.

"A warning?" Eros shot back, fury burning in his eyes. "She was terrified. She had nightmares. How far would you have gone if things hadn’t gone as planned? She could have died!"

"I raised you better than this," my father said, his voice cold. "Do you have any idea what you’ve done? Not once, but twice?"

"I didn’t mean for it to go that far! I just—I don’t know! I wasn’t thinking!" I blurted out, desperation creeping in.

"Don’t." Eros cut me off, his voice laced with disgust. "Don’t try to justify it. You knew exactly what you were doing. You wanted her gone because you couldn’t stand the fact that I don’t want you."

"I can’t believe this…" my mother murmured, turning away.

"You’re going to live on your grandfather’s ranch," my father declared. "Maybe there, you’ll learn some responsibility. Learn what it means to care for something, since you clearly have no regard for human life."

Shock slammed into me. "Grandpa’s ranch? That’s in the middle of nowhere! There’s no internet there!" I cried in disbelief. "Dad! That’s not fair!"

"No, what’s unfair is the trauma you caused Athena." His gaze hardened. "Do you think you deserve leniency? You’re lucky Eros came to us instead of going public. And even luckier that Athena didn’t press charges."

My defiance wavered. Frustration bubbled inside me, but I knew I had no ground to stand on. I turned to Eros, hoping for something—anything—but his face was unreadable. 

He had never looked at me with anything but contempt. And, like always, it shattered me.

"Thank you for not taking this public," my mother said to Eros, her voice thick with shame. "We are truly sorry."

"Thank you for your discretion. I promise you, she won’t go unpunished," my father assured him.

Eros let out a bitter laugh. "Don’t make promises you won’t keep," he said. "Because I know she’ll be back." He turned to leave but paused, glancing back at me with that infamous death glare. "If you ever go near Athena again, I won’t be so forgiving."

With that, he walked out, leaving me standing there as my world collapsed around me.