Ashton's Betrayal, Her Unyielding Vengeance

is

the phone rang. It was Ashton. His voice, usually a

"I need you at the

raw pain of the tattoo removal still throbbed on m

when you disobey me. Your family, your safe houses, even Colonel Hall. They're all v

My heart pounded. He always knew how to hit where

tomb. Elodie was already there, perched on Ashton' s desk, her legs crossed, swinging casually. S

ial request. She wants a unique piece of jewelry. Something that truly embodies her grace and... her place by my side." He

igned with the Maxwell family crest. But it wasn't just any crest. It was the one he

s it to incorporate... a certain gemstone." He gestured to a large, flawless sapphire, glinting bl

re from his mother's wedding necklace. The

e to design a symbol of his union with another wom

red, "I heard you have such a unique talent for these things. A true artist, Ashton says. I simply must have

veiled jab. Mark my arri

course, Elodie," I said, my voice smooth, betraying none of

dull, clouded by a haze of pain and humiliation. Every line, every facet I sketche

hed the completed sketches across the t

er of something, perhaps admiration, crossed his face. "Remarkable, Iri

is, you've outdone yourself." Her eyes held a predatory gleam. "How long will it take to craf

ght. "And yes, I will be perso

xcellent. Make it

urning ember in the ashes of my heart. This was too much.

scraping harshly ag

s eyes narrowed, his expression turning to stone. Elod

Ashton asked, his

cisive movement, I tore them into tiny pieces. The shimmering blueprint

meone else to forge it for you. Someone who hasn't bled for your empire." I pointed a trembling finger at Elodie. "Someone who hasn't

ing into my still-tender flesh. "You dare defy me, Iris?" His eye

away everything for a political alliance. You chose power over loyalty. You chose

everything! Your life, your skills, your very exis

ll? I'm nothing to you, Ashton. A tool. A wea

s iron. "Let go, Ashton," I warned, m

hundered, his face inches from min

rious gaze with a cold resolve. "But a

and walked toward the door, my head held high, my blood pumping with a newfound, e

not walk out on me! You are bound to this

ying on my lips. "There is no blood, Ashton. Not anymore. And as for t

ed shut behind me, the sound of it ech

ar and exhilaration. As soon as I entered, my burner phone, the one A

r hand resting on his chest, right over his heart. Beneath

oo. The fire that had been rekindled inside me now blazed into an in

nd steady. "It's time. I need to disappear. Completely. All traces e

e?" His voice was

triumphant face on the phone screen. "And tell my uncle... tell