Hundred and fifteen

For a moment, I felt frozen, my stomach lurching. Was she trying to break me with this? Was she serious? My mind raced, trying to process what I had just heard, but before I could say anything, the words seemed to settle in my chest like a heavy weight.

“Murderer?” I echoed, the word sounding foreign on my tongue. The accusation was absurd. I wanted to laugh, to shout at her, but there was something about the way she said it, something dark and pointed in her eyes, that made me pause.

But I refused to show any vulnerability. I was done playing her games. I lifted my chin, meeting her eyes with unwavering defiance.

“And you’re insane if you think I’m going to take you seriously, Alexandra,” I retorted, my voice steady, even though the pulse of anger in my veins was hard to ignore.

Alexandra’s gaze hardened, her jaw tightening. Her fingers dug into the edge of the table, her nails scraping against the surface. I could see she wasn’t done yet. This was only the beginning of whatever twisted words she was preparing to throw at me.

She leaned back in her chair and crossed her arms, her eyes narrowing. “I’m not done with you, Sophia. You’ll see.”

I didn’t bother responding, my attention now fully on Henry. I could feel his presence beside me, his silence somehow louder than anything either of us could say. The tension was unbearable, but I refused to be the one to break.

I pushed my plate aside and stood, wanting nothing more than to leave the room. But before I could make my escape, I heard her one last time.

“You’ll pay for what you did,” she muttered, her words low but full of malice.

Her words hung in the air, heavy and suffocating, but I didn’t let them control me. I simply turned on my heel and walked away.

As I reached the door, I heard her voice again, but I didn’t look back.

“Don’t think you’re getting away with this, Sophia. Murderers like you always have to face the consequences.

I looked at Henry, my heart hammering in my chest, expecting some kind of reaction... anything to break the unbearable silence between us. But when I met his gaze, I was met with nothing but cold indifference. His eyes, usually full of intensity and unreadable emotions, were now empty, like a distant storm that had already passed, leaving nothing behind. There was no warmth, no hint of the connection we had shared moments ago. Just coldness.

I felt a sting of frustration, and I turned my attention back to Alexandra, who was still sitting there, clearly relishing in my discomfort. She was still trying to get under my skin, her smug smile growing with every second that passed without anyone saying a word.

“You think you’re getting away with this, don’t you, Sophia?” Alexandra’s voice sliced through the room, her tone almost gleeful now, as if she was in control of this situation. “But you’re nothing more than a murderer, and everyone will find out. Henry will finally see you for what you really are.”

The words were sharp, cutting, but I refused to let her have the satisfaction of seeing me flinch. I clenched my fists under the table, the anger bubbling up again, but I held it back. I wasn’t going to let her see how much her words affected me.

But then, to my surprise, the quiet tension in the room was shattered in an instant. Henry moved without warning, his hand coming down across Alexandra's face with a resounding slap. The force of it echoed in the dining room, and for a split second, I thought I had imagined it. But no... it had happened.

Alexandra recoiled, her hand flying to her cheek, eyes wide in shock. She opened her mouth to say something, but before she could, Henry’s hand collided with her face once more, this time even harder than before. The second slap was brutal, his anger pouring into each motion.

“Don’t ever talk about my brother again, Alexandra,” he spat, his voice low and dangerous, each word heavy with a promise that made the air crackle. “Or I swear, I’ll kill you.”

For a moment, there was only silence. The tension hung thick in the air, suffocating us all, as Alexandra’s shock turned to disbelief. She was frozen, her face red from the blows, her lips trembling as if trying to find the words to respond. But Henry didn’t give her a chance. He turned on his heel, leaving the dining room without another word, his footsteps echoing as he walked away, leaving me and Alexandra in the room.

I watched him go, feeling a strange mix of emotions... relief, fear, even confusion. But I couldn’t linger in that feeling for long. I turned back to Alexandra, who was still sitting there, hand clutching her cheek, her eyes wide and furious, but there was no more venom in her words. Not for now, at least.

I let a small smile tug at the corner of my lips, the first real one I had in hours. “You talk too much, Alexandra,” I said, my voice light and mocking, but my words were laced with something darker, something that felt like sweet revenge.

Her eyes narrowed as she glared at me, but I could see the anger in them was tempered now, perhaps even a little fearful. She was still recovering from the shock of Henry’s actions, but I knew that wouldn't stop her from trying to get under my skin again later.

With a final glance, I turned and walked out of the room, the sound of my footsteps leaving the heavy atmosphere behind me. The house felt suffocating, the walls pressing in with every step I took, but somehow, I found myself smiling. Henry had shown a side of him I had never expected to see, a side that terrified me in ways I couldn’t explain, but one that was now also deeply intriguing. He was unpredictable, dangerous, much like me.

But for now, I had nothing more to say to Alexandra, and nothing more to prove to anyone. I was done with the games, at least for the moment.

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