Rejected by the Alpha, Claimed by his Brother Chapter 189: The Confrontation

The words were synonymous with a whisper, but they might as well have been a gunshot to my chest. My head snapped up so fast, I almost tripped.

Had she... spoken? For a brief, insane second, I thought I had imagined it.

Then she spoke again from behind the door. "What’s done is done."

A sharp, bitter laugh escaped before I could stop it.

What’s done is done? No. No, absolutely not.

I pushed up to my feet in one swift motion, the sudden movent making my head spin. My heart pounded in my ears, fueled by pure frustration and desperation.

She thought this was over? She thought I would just walk away?

"María José." My voice was rough, raw from emotion. "You’re finally talking to , and that’s what you have to say?"

I ran a hand through my hair, tugging at the roots in exasperation. Dios mío, give patience.

"No," I said firmly, shaking my head even though she couldn’t see . "No, you don’t get to just say that and expect to leave."

Another second of silence passed before she asked rhetorically: "Why not?"

Why not?

Was she serious?

I let out a humorless laugh, pacing a short line in front of her door. My muscles were coiled so tightly I felt like I might snap in half.

"Because you haven’t even heard out yet. You can tell to leave after, fine. You can curse out, slap , throw things at , I don’t care. But you are going to listen to first."

She said nothing. My pulse hamred in my throat. Still, she said nothing. I exhaled, pressing my palm flat against the door.

"Please."

For a mont, the world stood still.

Then, the sound of sothing shifting on the other side before another pause followed.

I could hear her sharp inhale. My stomach tensed. My breath halted as I waited... waited for her.

Then, just when I thought she might finally open the door, "There’s nothing to talk about." She said.

I nearly threw my head back and howled in frustration. Instead, I clenched my fists and forced my voice to stay calm.

"María José." I exhaled through gritted teeth. "I don’t know how else to say this, but I did not do what they said I did."

I pressed harder. "I don’t even rember doing any of those things. Because I didn’t. I was asleep for two days at my cousin’s place. Two days. Soone wanted this to happen. Soone wanted to ruin us."

Still, she said nothing. My chest burned.

I needed her to believe . I needed her to see that I wasn’t lying.

I leaned against the door, lowering my voice. "I made my choice a long ti ago, María José. It was never Rosa. It was never anyone else. I chose you."

However, she was silent still. Hence, I sniffed, trying to wipe the tears off my face when her soft voice ca chiming.

"Axel. A-Are you crying?"

I couldn’t hold it back anymore.

I lowered my head, trying to wipe my face as if that would make it better. But the mont I did, I felt my chest tighten, my heart breaking all over again. She was asking about it. She could hear it. She could tell.

I wasn’t crying. I wasn’t.

But then the door creaked. Just a bit.

And when I finally saw her face... really saw her face, my heart nearly stopped.

There it was. That monstrous scar Luis Miguel had been talking about.

It started from the bridge of her nose, slicing across the whole of her cheek, dragging a jagged line that marred the once-perfect symtry of her face. The skin was pale, the wound raw, and my stomach churned at the sight of it. My jaw slacked, and I staggered back, unable to tear my eyes away.

Her beauty... her beauty—was gone. I couldn’t believe it. The scar was a cruel, twisted thing, so sharp and so permanent. It made her face look... almost unrecognizable.

If only her wolf was awakened. I knew she had one regardless of whatever everyone else said, but if only it was awakened. That scar would disappear before an hour ran out.

The sight of it made my heart ache.

And it wasn’t just the scar... it was the way it changed everything about her. Her eyes, which used to sparkle with life, now looked... drained. Empty. Like she had been robbed of sothing precious, sothing irreplaceable.

Her beauty, the thing that had always captivated from the first mont I saw her—was gone. And the rage I felt in that mont... it wasn’t just rage. It was pure fury.

I wanted to scream. I wanted to tear apart the world around for doing this to her. I wanted to find whoever did this and make them pay for ruining the most beautiful woman I had ever seen.

I took a step forward, my fists clenched tight at my sides. "Rosa..." I said, my voice so low it was almost a growl. "I heard it was Rosa. Your damn sister who did this to you."

Honestly, It hurt to see the kind of woman Rosa had grown up to be. Ever since my confrontation with Don Diego, I knew she was selfish, but I never thought she was cruel.

So cruel to do sothing so horrible to her little sister. Soone to whom she was supposed to be a mother figure.

I could see the pain flash across her face—just for a split second. Then it was gone, replaced by sothing harder, sothing I couldn’t quite read.

"Yeah, Axel. It was Rosa, your lover who did this to . Now, will you take a picture and go give her a review of her handiwork?" She spat and I hadn’t been more surprised my whole life.

Did... Did María José just speak to like that? My María José? The sa one I knew? She had grown so balls, hadn’t she?