Chapter 38: Elizabeth's Truth

"You cannot hide the truth from everyone, Alejandro."

Don Alejandro let out a slow, heavy chuckle, turning to face Elizabeth with an amused smirk.

"Elizabeth, dear, you shouldn't be spitting such poison in my office." His voice was laced with condescension. "You barged in here just to share some stupid musing?"

He stepped toward her, dragging a finger along her bare arm, his touch lingering in a way that made her skin crawl.

"Tiffany will find out eventually," Elizabeth spat, shaking him off. "And when she does, you're a dead man. Haven't you heard what she did to your favorite?"

The Don's smirk faltered.

"She cut his fucking balls off, and now he's lying in a hospital bed, screaming like a child because he just lost his only ticket to the position."

At that, the Don erupted into laughter, patting his large stomach with both hands.

"What a waste of time, Elizabeth!" He gestured toward the door dismissively. "Get out, slut! I don't want to hear another word from you."

Elizabeth's hands curled into fists. She slammed them onto his desk, leaning in until she was inches from his face. "Our daughter is your heiress," she hissed. "Tiffany will be the next Alpha Don—not that son-of-a-bitch Yuan Lloyd Marquez."

The room shifted. The Don's expression darkened, his amusement gone. His hands snapped forward, gripping her arms so tightly she winced.

"Listen to me, slut," he growled, his voice low and venomous. "We both know Yuan is also my son. That means he has just as much right to the position as she does."

Elizabeth let out a bitter laugh, shaking her head.

"That boy is a product of your infidelity," she sneered. "And you know damn well the Alphas hate infidelity. It's a sin against the creed of the Brotherhood, Don Alejandro. If they find out about him, you won't just lose your power—you'll lose your head."

The Don's jaw clenched. Meanwhile, Elizabeth's laughter turned sharp and manic.

"They don't know Tiffany isn't your wife's daughter," she continued. "All they know is that she's a real del Cargador. But if they discover that Yuan is the bastard spawned from your affair with a politician's wife? Oh, Alejandro… imagine the humiliation."

The Don's face reddened with rage. "You crazy, hysterical bitch. Lucio will still marry his own sister, Tiffany," he snapped, cutting her off. His lips curled into a satisfied smirk.

Elizabeth froze.

"That's right." His voice was pure malice now. "By the time I'm done, no one will ever know the scheme I plotted with Yuan's mother."

He stepped closer, lowering his voice to a whisper.

"And what's more? No one will realize that Tiffany's real mother is her own personal assistant."

The blood in Elizabeth's veins turned ice cold. "Your monstrosity truly knows no bounds, Alejandro!"

The Don grinned. "Imagine how brilliant I am. Tell me, how does it feel to be so close to your daughter… but she doesn't even recognize you as her mother?"

Elizabeth's stomach twisted. "You're sick," she whispered, her voice shaking. "You're a disgusting piece of shit."

Alejandro shrugged. "So what? The Brotherhood doesn't know, and that's all that matters." His expression darkened. "Just like how no one knows what you did to my wife."

Elizabeth stilled. Her fingers twitched at her sides. "I didn't kill my best friend," she whispered, her voice barely audible. "You made me do it."

The Don's hand flew across her face. A sharp crack echoed in the room as Elizabeth staggered back, clutching her cheek. "Another word, Elizabeth," he said, voice dangerously low, "and it will be the last thing you ever say."

She stood there for a long moment, her body shaking, before slowly turning toward the door.

Then she stopped.

The Don barely had time to react before Elizabeth whipped around, a gun drawn from her bag. A cold, wicked smile spread across her lips. "I'm going to kill you, you son-of-a-bitch."

The Don grinned. "Come on, Elizabeth," he taunted. "We both know you're too weak to do that."

A gunshot rang out. The Don's leg buckled as a bullet tore through his flesh.

"Say that again, Alejandro," Elizabeth hissed. "Or I'll plant a bullet in your head!"

The Don screamed, clutching his bleeding leg. "Fuck you, you ungrateful slut!"

Before Elizabeth could react, Sebastian's fist slammed into her stomach.

She gasped, stumbling back, the gun slipping from her fingers. Alejandro snatched the gun and shot thrice. Elizabeth's body jerked violently, blood splattering across the floor.

The Don stepped over her, his chest heaving. "Fucking bitch."

***

SOUTHERN ISLA

The ground shook. The first explosion rattled the entire compound, ripping through the walls like thunder.

The Dragons stirred from their sleep, shouting in confusion.

"We're under attack!"

Marie grinned, watching panic spread across the faces of her captors. She chuckled darkly. "I bet that's Steffy, Teacher Greg. Do you feel scared now?"

"Shut up, bitch!" Charlotte snarled, grabbing Marie by the hair.

"That's enough, Charlotte," Lucio ordered. His face was tense, his grip tight around his gun. "Let's go see who the fuck is out there. And you," he sneered, "you're coming with me."

Marie glared at them, especially at Charlotte.

"When I get out of here," she hissed, "I'll be the one blowing your fucking head off, Charlotte."

Charlotte only scoffed at her rash comment.

Lucio grabbed Marie's arm and yanked her toward the exit. Just then, another explosion was heard as gunfire erupted outside.

A frantic voice shouted from the hallway. "Master Lucio! There's a crazy lady and an Alpha assassin throwing bombs all over the place! Our men are dropping—we need to get the fuck out of here!"