Chapter 214

Judy’s POV

My heart stopped when I saw the picture. They looked to be in a private area in the local coffee shop near the school. They were huddled in the corner, talking privately. I couldn’t take my eyes off the image when Nan texted again.

Nan: I stopped by on my way to work and I saw them together. What do you think they are doing together?

My mind instantly went to the worst scenario. Had Ethan somehow gotten to her and now he was courting her or something? Was Sammy dumb enough to believe the things Ethan says after everything she already knows about him? I had told her about the situation with me, Ethan, and Irene.

But did he somehow twist things and make it seem like he was the good guy in the situation? My wolf whimpered at the sight our her mate with yet another woman, knowing his intentions were not good. I hated that he still affected her, that my wolf clammed up every time he was near or every time he was mentioned. It helped being around Gavin for some reason; she felt more at ease, but still, the image of him and Sammy together, made her recoil a little.

“What is it?” Gavin asked; for a moment, I had forgotten that he was sitting right next to me, driving to the villa. I thought about lying to him and saying it was nothing, but I wasn’t sure my voice could carry the lie, so I decided just to tell him the truth.

“Nan went to a coffee shop before work and she saw Sammy speaking with Ethan,” I told him, my voice carrying a hint of worry, though I tried to mask it.

Gavin glanced at me with a frown before returning his attention to the road. His villa was nearing; I could see it in the distance.

“I didn’t think they knew one another,” Gavin said, his tone carrying something I couldn’t quite figure out. “When did he return to town?”

“I’m not sure,” I replied. “It must have been recent because I didn’t hear about it until just now either.”

He thought about it for a moment and then nodded slowly.

He pulled into his villa and parked the car, turning off the engine he turned to look at me.

“Stay away from him,” he told me firmly. “I’m not sure what he’s planning, but I don’t want you involved. Understood?”

My cheeks warmed and I nodded immediately.

“I don’t want any trouble with him. My ties with him are cut; especially now that Irene is no longer in his clutches and my father is out of prison,” I say with conviction. “But I’m worried about Sammy. She’s my friend.”

“If she’s in talks with him behind your back, that isn’t a friend,” he said, his eyes narrowed.

I thought about what he had said, hating that he was right. I mean, I did catch Sammy going through my things last night; was that because of Ethan? Had he asked her to snoop through my belongings?

The thought sent a wave of nausea through me, and I started to feel sick.

Gavin narrowed his eyes, scanning me carefully.

“What is it?” He asked.

“Nothing,” I said a little too quickly. I made a decision to not tell Gavin about Sammy snooping through my things. I mean, he just hired me to be the maid for the mansion, I didn’t want to ruin that for either of them.

“Judy—”

“I should get inside,” I say, taking off my seatbelt; his frown deepened. “Matt is waiting.”

I quickly got out of the car, glad that he didn’t reject.

I heard him getting out of the car, but I didn’t turn around to look at him. I only hurried forward and towards the villa doors.

“Oh, hi Judy…” I heard a soft and familiar voice saying as I entered the villa. I looked up to see Irene descending from the stairs. Her sleek blond hair was down, and one side was tucked behind her ear. She wasn’t wearing her usual glamorous clothing; she looked more casual with a T-shirt and a pair of jeans.

She also wore no makeup, though she was naturally beautiful and didn’t need the makeup, it was still strange to see her face so… Bare.

Irene and I ended up on good terms back at the resort, but we also hadn’t talked since returning so I wasn’t really sure where we stood now.

“Hey,” I said to her, waiting for her to reach me.

“I’m sorry I haven’t spoken to you since returning,” she said, biting her lower lip. “I needed some time to think about everything. But just know, I’m not mad at you for anything.”

I was relieved to hear that honestly.

“It’s okay,” I told her. “I understand. You don’t have to explain.”

“No, I do,” she said, tears filling her eyes. “I did some really awful things that I shouldn’t have done. All because I thought you were after Ethan… but I was so wrong. I mean… I basically poisoned my own brother—”

“You did what?!” Gavin’s voice cut through her words, and I watched Irene’s face go pale as she looked behind me, now noticing Gavin walking through the doors.

“D… dad… “she said, her voice coming out as nothing more than a whisper.

“Tell me I didn’t just hear what I thought I just heard,” he said through his teeth, his eyes flashing with anger. “Are you telling me the peanut butter incident months ago was because of you?”

I lowered my gaze, not sure what to say to resolve this situation; Gavin was furious, and his anger was rolling off him in waves. Irene was a stammering mess, not expecting that her father was only around the corner and could hear everything she had said. My heart went out to her, but still, she did essentially poison Matt and put his life at risk. Gavin blamed me for it, but then Ethan paid a maid to take the fall and Gavin had exiled her, damning her as a rogue.

That was months ago, so she was most likely dead by now. Not many can survive in rogue territory and live to tell the tale.

“I wasn’t trying to hurt him. I was just—”

“What exactly did you think was going to happen, Irene?” He asked, his tone deepening as he stepped closer to his daughter. “And what was the end goal?”

Irene’s eyes flickered to me and I wished that I could help her, but I wasn’t sure what to say. Irene was in the wrong for doing that to Matt since the beginning and nothing I could say would change that. She knew she was in the wrong as well, which is why her eyes showed no signs of malice, only guilt.

“I thought Judy was after Ethan at the time and I wanted her out of the way,” she said as tears filled her eyes.

“You could have killed your brother,” Gavin nearly growled; I could tell he was trying hard to keep his anger in check. This was his daughter, after all, not a simple wolf or enemy. But the anger he was feeling at that moment was clear to everyone in the radius. “Do you have any idea how stupid that was? All because of what… petty jealousy over someone who wasn’t worth your time in the first place?”

Irene flinched at his harsh words, but she knew he was right.

“It was selfish and tasteless,” Irene admitted, her bottom lip trembling. “I understand that now… I’m so sorry.”

“You nearly let Judy take the fall for something she didn’t do. I almost fired her because of it,” Gavin continued. “And that maid who did take the fall… did you convince her to do it?”

Irene shook her head, looking up at him.

“No…” she breathed. “I’m not sure why she took the fall but I didn’t talk to her at all. I have no idea what she was thinking. I promise…”

I believed her; I knew it was Ethan who had bribed her. He promised her money and protection but lied. After Gavin banished her from the pack and named her a rogue, Ethan cut ties with her completely. He gloated about it for weeks afterward and it made me sick to my stomach.

“I banished her from the pack, Irene. I turned her into a rogue. She’s most likely dead right now. That was an innocent life you destroyed. Matt might not be dead, but that doesn’t mean your actions didn’t have serious consequences.”

He glared at her for a long while as she shrunk in on herself. I wanted to reach out to her and tell her it was going to be okay; part of me wanted to protect her. But I knew I couldn’t… not when it came to this.

“I need you to go to your room,” Gavin finally said, stepping away from her. “I can’t look at you right now.”

She flinched as if he had just struck her in her face. But she didn’t argue. She turned her tear-filed gaze to me.

“I’m so sorry,” she whispered brokenly.

With that, she turned and hurried back up the stairs, leaving Gavin and me alone.