Your Ex Moonlark

4

Tysm for reading! ILY!

Sophie's POV:

I stood frozen in place, my heart pounding in my chest. Every instinct screamed at me to run, but my feet wouldn't move. The weight of the situation felt suffocating. I had never wanted to come back to the Lost Cities, never wanted to be dragged back into the Neverseen's web. But here I was, standing in front of the most dangerous people I knew—and this time, they were offering something I could never take back.

Lady Gisela's eyes glinted coldly as she took a slow, deliberate step toward me, her every movement calculated to instill fear. Her presence was a heavy cloud, suffocating the air around us. "Sophie Foster," she purred. "Always so full of defiance. But you and I both know this is inevitable."

I clenched my jaw, forcing myself not to react. "I don't know what you're talking about."

She gave a short, humorless laugh. "You're still pretending to be above all this? Above the truth? Sophie, you and I have more in common than you care to admit."

A chill ran down my spine, but I wasn't going to let her get under my skin. "I don't share anything with you."

Lady Gisela's lips curled into a tight, cruel smile. "Oh, but you do. You just haven't accepted it yet." Her gaze flicked to the Black Swan agent standing beside her, then back at me, as though she could read my every thought.

I forced my stance to remain firm, though inside I was shaking. I wasn't her daughter. That was one thing I had always known for sure. But why did she keep saying it? Why did she keep pushing this idea?

Lady Gisela wasn't my biological mother. I had known that for a long time. My real mother had died years ago, and even though Lady Gisela had tried to manipulate me, to twist the idea of family into something dark and twisted, I had never accepted it. She had used me—used my abilities, my connections, and my past with the Black Swan, all in an effort to bring me to her side. But it had never worked.

At least, that's what I'd thought.

"Stop lying," I said, my voice cutting through the heavy silence. "I'm not your daughter. I'm not part of your plans. I never was."

Lady Gisela's eyes flashed with something dark. "You're still in denial, Sophie. How adorable. But the truth will come out in time. You'll see." She stepped closer, her voice dropping to a cold whisper. "You don't have to fight it. You don't have to keep resisting. This is your destiny."

My hands trembled, but I forced myself to stand tall. "I don't have any destiny with you."

Alvar, who had been lurking behind Lady Gisela, finally spoke up, his voice smooth, almost bored. "You know, Sophie, you're one of the most stubborn people I've ever met. It's honestly impressive how long you've resisted the inevitable."

His words cut through me like a knife, and I felt a flash of anger rise up. He of all people, standing there with Lady Gisela like this? The betrayal still stung, and seeing him now, allied with the very people I had fought against, made my blood boil.

"You're the one who betrayed me, Alvar," I snapped, my voice shaking with fury. "I trusted you. We were friends."

Alvar didn't even flinch. "Trust is for the weak," he said, the words laced with scorn. "You should have learned that by now."