bChapter /bb201/b: Blood band /bBetrayal

Chapter 201: Blood and Betrayal

(Elena ckwood’s POV)

Looking at the face in front of me, I thought it was perfect, but there was a strange feeling about it. bDespite /bsuspecting cosmetic surgery, I could still see a resemnce to my mother in Hazel Green’s features.

This exined the initial sense of familiarity I had felt when we first met. The bone structure was identical,

even if the surface had been altered.

I snapped back to reality and questioned her about her motives. “Since you and my mother are twins, why are you targeting me?”

Hazel’s face turned cold. Her elegant mask slipped awaypletely.

I pressed on, using her directly. “The Sandy Parker’s appraisal was switched by you. Do you not want the

Whitmore family to recognize me?”

My voice grew stronger with each word. The pieces were finally falling into ce.

Hazel admitted with a bitterugh, “I didn’t expect the Whitmore family to find you after so many years.”

She marveled at the situation with cruel amusement. “How your ‘insane‘ mother Dorothea Whitmore

recognized you is truly remarkable.”

“She’s your sister,” I retorted sharply.

Hazel’s eyes shed with resentment. “Sister? You’re so naive, Elena.”

She leaned forward, her voice dripping with decades of suppressed anger. “Despite our identical appearances, I was never treated equally to her.”

“Dorothea, being born a few seconds earlier, was the eldest daughter,” she continued bitterly. “She received all

the love and resources from our pack family.”

Her hands clenched on the table. “Because Dorothea was more charming, she was more favored.”

“While I, who wanted to prove myself, always fell short,” Hazel’s voice cracked with old pain.

Then she delivered the shocking revtion. “The person who was originally going to be mated to your father

was me!”

I was stunned by this revtion. My mind reeled from the implications.

Hazel confirmed it with a coldugh.“I was the first to know your father Samuel Whitmore.”

She slowly began removing herce gloves. “Why do I always wear these? Do you want to see?”

Her movements were deliberate, almost theatrical in their precision.

I was speechless at the sight of Hazel’s scarred and disfigured hand. “This is…”

The flesh was twisted and burned, clearly from severe trauma years ago.

“A fire burned my hands, and I can’t sculpt the most perfect works anymore,” Hazel bexined with /bbitter

resignation,

Chapter 201 Blood and Hetrayal

Her voice grew hollow with remembered pain. “It ruined my career as a bsculptor /bband /bbmy /bbchances /bof bbeing /bepted by the Whitmore pack.”

“While I was suffering, my sister was mated into the Whitmore family,” she continued bwith /bvenom. b“/bBetraying me by bonding with the Alpha I loved.”

The jealousy in her voice was palpable, decades of resentment pouring out.

Hazel then confessed to the ultimate betrayal. “So ah, the decision I regretted the least bthat /bbyear /bwas to switch you.”

I was shocked once again. The magnitude of her actions hit me like a physical blow.

“You’re the reason I was separated from my biological parents for over twenty years,” I whispered. “Raised by the ckthorne family instead of my real family,” I added, my voice trembling with emotion. Despite the revtion, I felt surprisingly calm. The truth, however painful, was finally emerging. Hazel nonchntly put her gloves back on. “Is that so? I don’t care even if the Whitmore family knows.”

“They owe me this,” she dered with cold finality.

As Hazel prepared to leave, I questioned her about her continued alliance. “You’re still supporting Sophia Rivers, aren’t you?”

“You know her,” I stated rather than asked.

Hazel paused but didn’t turn around. Her shoulders tensed at the mention of Sophia’s name.

“We are destined to be on opposite sides,” she dered without looking back.

Watching Hazel Green leave, I clenched my fists. The day’s revtions were difficult to process.

I was unaware of Hazel’s full past and whether there were misunderstandings involved. Her pain seemed genuine, even if her actions were unforgivable.

When Hazel said we were destined to be enemies, I felt a sense of regret. Was this due to our blood rtion through my connection to Dorothea Whitmore?

The weight of family secrets and betrayals pressed down on me like a suffocating nket.

(Marcus ckwood’s POV)

At the hotel, I was absentmindedly ying chess with Alexander ckwood. My mind kept drifting to Elena and our confrontation at the healing institute.

I made several mistakes, needing Amber Stone’s reminders to focus. Each wrong move reflected my scattered thoughts.

Alexander noticed my distraction and teased me. “What’s wrong? Elena isn’t here, and you don’t want to y chess with me?”

I denied it quickly, trying to cover/my emotional turmoil. “I was thinking about someone who had disappeared for many years.”

The lie came easily, but Alexander’s knowing look suggested he wasn’t fooled by my deflection.