Fated To Three, And I Broke Them All

Gigi:

Ragnar had made me answer the call and put it on speaker.

He didn’t let me know that he suspected me. He simply wanted to hear what Verity was going to say.

I had no idea what was going through his head. Ragnar never revealed what he was thinking.

The moment I answered, Verity nearly stopped my heart.

Before I could say anything, Ragnar pointed at me, silently ordering me to keep quiet and let her continue.

"I went upstairs, Gigi. I even used the code you gave me, but I couldn’t do it."

My stomach dropped.

"Even though I know I should have. You’re the victim. Because of what my brother did to you, I feel like I should spend the rest of my life at your feet, doing whatever you ask. But I just couldn’t do it."

Verity started crying on the other end.

Ragnar’s brows drew together.

The look he gave me was so cold and severe that my entire body began to tremble.

I wanted desperately to tell her to shut up, but that would only make Ragnar more suspicious.

So I stood there miserably while Verity kept talking through her tears.

"I wanted to find out who Ragnar could have felt the mate bond at that ball we briefly attended. But before I could do any of that, I searched for my brother. Then I saw the evidence against him, and I just..."

Her voice broke.

"Please forgive me. I’m really sorry. I’ll do anything else you ask. I’ll spend the rest of my life making up for what my brother did to you. I’ll wash your car, clean for you, do whatever you want, but please don’t ask me to betray my boss again. Please."

She was sobbing as though I had forced her into that attic at gunpoint.

Ragnar said nothing.

He didn’t allow me to speak either.

He simply ended the call.

And that was it.

All I could think was that I should have gone home when I had the chance. If I had left earlier, I could have avoided this entire disaster.

But now Ragnar was standing directly in front of me, his hands planted on his hips.

For the first time, he looked at me as though I had genuinely broken his trust.

"I was worried," I blurted.

Then I remembered the piece of paper.

I had written his code down for Verity.

If she still had it, Ragnar could easily find it and recognize my handwriting.

How could I have been that stupid?

I could have just told her the code verbally.

"You stole my code, Gigi."

My blood ran cold.

"You went behind my back and pressured an innocent woman, someone who already believes she owes you because of her brother, into spying on me. Then when she got caught, my brother protected her, and you turned against him too."

Ragnar’s voice remained controlled, which somehow made it worse.

"And even then, you didn’t tell me that you were the one who sent her. Instead, you stood here trying to convince me that my brother was lying."

Of course Ragnar wouldn’t look at any of it as an isolated mistake.

He connected every piece, one after another, and laid each of my actions out in front of me like evidence.

"That’s exactly why I kept telling you your brother was lying. I didn’t want you thinking badly of him, like he was the one who gave her your code. But how was I supposed to admit any of it when you already suspected me? You spent the entire day looking at me like I was guilty of something."

The words spilled out of me in one breath.

I knew this was the moment that mattered. If I wanted to prove I wasn’t some horrible person, I had to do it now.

I had to answer every question Ragnar threw at me.

"Why did you give her my code?" he demanded, pointing toward the door. "And why would you put an innocent woman in that position?"

Every time he called her innocent, something burned inside me.

One incident involving my brother had changed everything.

Now Verity was suddenly innocent in everyone’s eyes. The same woman people had once criticized and judged was slowly working her way into everyone’s sympathy.

"I didn’t force her, Ragnar. Do you really think I’m that kind of person?" I asked, pointing at myself.

"When I found out you had found your fated mate, I was devastated. I was crying, and she saw me. She offered to help on her own."

I wanted to scream, but I caught myself.

That wasn’t how I spoke to Ragnar.

So I lowered my voice, even though it trembled.

"What was I supposed to do?"

"What do you mean, what were you supposed to do? You should have come and talked to me directly," he shot back, pointing at his chest.

"Really? I can’t say anything to you now, Ragnar?" My voice cracked. "Have you even looked at yourself lately? You’ve changed."

The hurt I had been holding back finally pushed its way out.

"I feel like I’ve been completely pushed aside. Ever since you found your mate, it’s like you’ve forgotten I even exist."

This time, I screamed.

Tears spilled down my face as I rubbed the backs of my hands against my cheeks.

"I made a mistake. I shouldn’t have suggested it to her. But she was just an ordinary person who saw me crying and felt bad for me. She was the one who offered. She knew the guests at ball had given you their numbers, so she said she could go and check."

My breathing grew heavier as I covered my face with both hands.

"How was I supposed to know she would sit there and start searching for other things too?"

I broke down completely.

"Everything is ruined, Ragnar. Everything. You look at me like I’m disgusting, and every day there’s some new accusation against me."

I swallowed hard, struggling to catch my breath.

"Gigi."

Hearing my name from him only made me scoff.

I turned my face away, making sure he could see how hurt I was.

"I think you should go home."

His voice was cold.