Chapter 79 Confession Under Duress
[Nyx]
A threat. A naked threat.
The guard's face changed.
"I..." He swallowed, "Okay. But you have to promise—"
"I promise nothing will happen." Selene immediately said, tears returning, voice becoming soft again, "Thank you. You're such a good person."
The guard turned to the computer, his fingers trembling as he typed on the keyboard.
"Room 304, three to four PM this afternoon." He muttered, "And the hallway... delete... confirm deletion..."
On screen, the surveillance footage showing Selene changing into nurse's clothes and entering Lilith's room was being permanently erased.
"Also room 310." Selene reminded, "Same time period."
The guard complied.
"Done." He said, his voice shaking with a mixture of relief and fear.
Selene tilted her head, studying him with those innocent blue eyes, her smile sweet enough to rot teeth. "What was in the footage you just deleted? Tell me."
The guard's face went white. "It—it showed you entering Miss Lilith's room at—"
SLAP.
The sound cracked through the quiet corridor. The guard's head snapped to the side, a red handprint blooming on his cheek.
"What did you see?" Selene's voice remained light, playful, but her eyes had gone cold.
"Nothing!" The guard's voice broke, hands trembling as he held his stinging face. "I didn't see anything, Miss Blackwood! I swear! I don't know anything—"
"Very good." Selene's smile returned, sweet and innocent once more.
She turned to leave, then suddenly stopped.
"Why are you so scared?" Selene's voice was light, almost playful, but there was something cold underneath.
Cold sweat broke out on the guard's forehead. His hands trembled visibly now. "I'm not—I didn't see anything, Miss Blackwood. I swear."
"Good." Selene's smile widened. "Thank you. You're such a good person. I'll have someone send you an envelope tomorrow. It contains your well-deserved compensation."
She turned and walked away, then suddenly stopped.
---
Her gaze fell on the USB port beside the monitoring console—there were signs of use, showing someone had recently inserted a flash drive.
Selene's expression shifted slightly. "Has someone been here?"
The guard froze, his face going pale.
"What—what did you copy?" Selene's voice turned sharp, dangerous.
"N-nothing! No one's been—" The guard stammered, unable to meet her eyes.
Selene didn't wait. She yanked open the drawer beneath the console, pulling out the USB drive the guard had hastily tried to hide. Her fingers moved quickly, plugging it into the computer.
The screen lit up. Folder names appeared: Room 304_15:00-16:00, Room 310_15:00-16:00, Corridor_15:00-16:00.
Her face went white, then flushed red with rage. "You—you copied it?!"
"I didn't know—Miss Blackwood, I was just following orders—"
"Shut up!" Selene grabbed the USB drive, her fingers closing around it. "This needs to be destroyed. Now."
She turned toward the door, clearly planning to leave with the evidence.
That's when Lysander kicked open the cabinet door.
The sound made Selene whirl around, her eyes wide with shock as we stepped out.
"Give me the drive, Selene." I said, my voice cold and level.
Her shock lasted only a second before her expression twisted into something ugly. "You were hiding in there? You—"
"The drive," Lysander repeated, moving to block the door. "Hand it over."
Instead, Selene's hand shot to her pocket. When it emerged, she was holding a syringe—the same type she'd used on Lilith.
"Stay back!" Her voice was shrill now, all pretense of innocence gone. "Or I'll—"
She lunged at me, the syringe aimed at my neck.
Too slow.
I sidestepped, my hand catching her wrist. One sharp twist, and the syringe clattered to the floor. She tried to wrench free, throwing her weight backward, but I'd already shifted my grip.
"You bitch—" She swung at me with her free hand, nails aiming for my eyes.
I caught that wrist too. Pulled her forward, off-balance. My foot hooked behind her ankle.
She went down hard, hitting the floor with a cry of pain and fury. I followed her down, one knee pressing into her spine, both her arms wrenched behind her back.
The whole thing took maybe five seconds.
"Get off me!" Selene thrashed beneath me, but I'd locked her shoulders at an angle that made movement excruciating. "You have no right—my brother will—"
"Your brother will what?" I leaned closer, my voice dropping to a whisper only she could hear. "Protect you after he sees what you did to his fiancée?"
Lysander had already retrieved the USB drive from where it had fallen. He held it up, checking it was undamaged.
"We have everything, Selene." He said quietly. "The footage. The recording of you threatening the guard. And now, assault with a deadly weapon."
Selene stopped struggling. I felt the fight drain out of her, replaced by something that felt like desperation.
"You don't understand," she whispered, her voice breaking. "She doesn't deserve him. Lilith doesn't deserve Damon—he's supposed to be mine! He's always been mine!"
Her voice rose to a shriek. "I'm his sister! I've been with him since we were children! She just showed up and suddenly she's more important than me? She gets to be his Luna? His wife?"
"So you tried to kill her?" My grip tightened. "Because you couldn't stand losing him?"
"He's MINE!" Selene screamed, tears streaming down her face now. "He's always been mine! We were perfect together until that bitch came along with her political alliance and her pretty face—"
She was completely unraveling now, her words tumbling out in a crazed rush.
"It should have been me by his side! I know him better than anyone, I love him more than anyone ever could! But no one sees it—no one understands that we belong together!"