Chapter 25: Mirian’s Despair
Mirian stood still for a while, until her heartbeat slowed to a normal rhythm and her ragged breathing steadied. She took a deep, calming breath, trying to shake off the lingering sense of unease. But just as she was about to regain her composure, a hand yanked her backward, spinning her around to face a pair of furious eyes.
"Mirian!" a low, menacing voice growled, making her heart stumble once more.
"I– Cousin bro–"
Smack!
A stinging slap silenced her, leaving her cheek throbbing in pain. The blow was unexpected and caught her off guard, sending her stumbling backward. Her eyes welled up with tears as she raised a trembling hand to her burning cheek, her mind reeling with shock and confusion.
"You lied to me!" The furious face of her cousin loomed before her, his eyes blazing with a fierce anger that made her blood run cold.
"I– I didn’t–" she swallowed back her words as he began to step forward, his massive frame towering over her. Mirian’s heart trembled, as she shuffled backward, desperate to escape the wrath that seemed to emanate from his very pores. Her back hit the wall, and she froze, trapped, as her cousin’s eyes seemed to bore into her very soul.
"You didn’t? Yet you hid the fact that Luna Reana was seeing a servant?" He snarled, his canines and claws elongating as if he was ready to strike. The transformation was subtle, but unmistakable, and Mirian’s heart skipped a beat as she realized she was staring into the face of a predator. "You knew, Mirian. And you chose to keep it a secret."
Mirian opened and closed her mouth, but no sound emerged, as if her voice had been swallowed by fear. She quickly shook her head, desperate to placate his rising fury. Dread gnawed at her insides, its icy fingers wrapping around her heart, squeezing every air out of her.