Chapter 12 The Rift Between Us

Elira stood frozen in the grand foyer, her heart pounding against her ribs as Damien's footsteps echoed through the house. He was leaving.

He knew the truth now.

He knew she was a witch.

And he was walking away.

Panic gripped her chest as she reached out instinctively. "Damien—"

"Don't."

The single word was like a blade to her heart.

He didn't look back. He didn't hesitate. He simply opened the door, stepped into the night, and vanished into the waiting car.

Elira's entire body trembled.

For the first time since she had married him, she felt truly alone.

Her powers stirred beneath her skin, reacting to her distress. The chandelier flickered again, a glass ornament cracked on the side table, and the windows rattled in their frames.

She forced herself to breathe.

If she lost control now, she could destroy everything.

But that didn't stop the storm brewing inside her.

The Other Woman

Damien didn't return home that night.

Or the next.

Elira waited, but he never called.

By the third day, the media had already started spinning their own narratives.

"Billionaire Damien Harrington and wife Elira on the verge of separation?"

"Is there another woman in the picture?"

Elira tried to ignore the headlines, but when she saw the photographs—Damien at a business gala, his arm around a stunning blonde socialite—something inside her snapped.

She teleported before she could stop herself.

One second, she was standing in their bedroom.

The next, she was outside the extravagant hotel where Damien's event was being held.

She clenched her fists. She wasn't here to cause a scene.

She just needed to see him.

To make him look her in the eyes and tell her this was truly over.

She strode through the entrance, her presence commanding. Guests turned, murmuring as she passed.

And then she saw him.

Damien stood near the bar, looking as effortlessly powerful as ever in his tailored suit. The blonde woman was laughing, her hand lingering on his arm.

Elira's blood boiled.

She didn't care if she was a witch. She didn't care if he thought she was a monster.

Damien was hers.

And she would not let him go.

A Confrontation of Fire and Ice

Damien saw her the moment she stepped into the room.

His entire body went rigid.

Elira ignored the stares as she approached. She stopped inches from him, her heart racing. "We need to talk."

The blonde socialite gave Elira a once-over, clearly unimpressed.

"Damien," the woman purred, "who is this?"

Elira's eyes darkened.

Before Damien could speak, the woman's champagne glass cracked in her hand, spilling golden liquid onto her designer dress.

She gasped. "What the hell?"

Damien's gaze sharpened.

"Elira," he warned.

But Elira wasn't looking at him. She tilted her head at the blonde woman, her voice eerily calm.

"Run along, dear. This conversation isn't for you."

The woman scoffed but, sensing the tension, quickly excused herself.

Now it was just them.

Damien exhaled, rubbing his temples. "What are you doing here?"

Elira crossed her arms. "You left. No call, no explanation. And now you're out here with another woman?"

His jaw clenched. "You lied to me for years."

"I never lied about loving you," she shot back.

Damien's eyes flashed. "No, you just lied about everything else."

Elira swallowed hard.

"You're a witch." His voice was low, controlled, but full of restrained fury. "You kept that from me. You let me think you were—" He stopped himself, shaking his head.

She lifted her chin. "Innocent?"

His eyes hardened. "Honest."

Her breath hitched.

The weight of what she had done pressed down on her. She had spent years building a life with him, a marriage built on secrets.

And now, he didn't trust her anymore.

"Damien," she whispered, "I was scared."

"Of what?" His voice was sharper now. "That I'd leave you? That I wouldn't love you if I knew the truth?"

Tears burned in her eyes. "That you'd see me as a monster."

Damien was silent for a long moment.

Then, his voice dropped to something almost broken.

"I don't know what I see when I look at you anymore, Elira."

Her heart shattered.

And for the first time in years, she realized—she might have already lost him.

The Council's Move

Later that night, Elira sat in the nursery, watching over her sleeping children.

Her mind was spinning.

Damien was slipping further and further away from her.

And if she didn't act soon, she would lose everything.

She was still deep in thought when the air in the room shifted.

A chill ran down her spine.

She turned sharply—only to find Mirella standing in the shadows.

Elira's hands clenched. "Not now."

Mirella smirked. "You think you can ignore us forever?"

Elira rose to her feet, her voice dangerously low. "I told you—I want no part of the Council's war."

Mirella sighed, moving closer. "And yet, here you are, losing control in public. Making enemies." She glanced at the children. "They're growing stronger, you know. Their magic is waking up. And soon, Damien will have no choice but to see the truth."

Elira's breath hitched.

"If you won't fight with us," Mirella continued, "then we'll take them."

Elira's magic flared in an instant.

The walls trembled, the lights flickered, and a dangerous wind swept through the nursery.

Mirella merely laughed.

"Good," she murmured. "Let the war begin."

And then she was gone.

Elira stood there, breathing hard, her heart pounding.

This wasn't just about Damien anymore.

This was about her children.

Her family.

And she would burn the world to the ground before she let the Council take them.

The Billionaire's Rage

Meanwhile, Damien sat in his penthouse, staring out over the city.

His mind was a warzone.

He had spent years building an empire, becoming one of the most powerful men in the world.

And yet, the one person he had trusted more than anything—

Had been lying to him all along.

His fists clenched.

His wife was a witch.

His children weren't normal.

And now, he was stuck between two worlds he didn't understand.

But one thing was clear.

If there was a war coming…

He would not be caught off guard.

He would find out everything.

And he would win.

Even if it meant destroying the woman he loved in the process.