KAELYNN LESTER POV:

I didn't look at Grant again. Whether his face showed shock, relief, or regret was no longer my concern. I pulled open the heavy oak door and walked out without hesitation.

The hallway was empty, the wall sconces casting a dim, yellow light. The lingering pain from my soul being torn still made my steps feel unsteady, but I kept my back straight.

I didn't go back to my room in the main building. Instead, I crossed the courtyard and headed toward the servant's wing. There, I would find my true "dowry"-the people who had come with me from the Lester estate, and the first traitor I needed to deal with.

I had two personal maids. One was the loyal Taryn Hayes. The other was the ambitious Brenda Hicks.

In my past life, it was Brenda who had put an herb that induces an Omega's heat into my water, leading to Grant's loss of control and my forced marking. She thought she could curry favor with Grant, perhaps even dreaming of climbing into his bed.

I reached the door to my suite in the servant's wing. It was smaller than the rooms in the main house, but it was more convenient for managing the servants who had come with me.

I pushed the door open. The room was lit. Brenda was sitting at the table, anxiously wringing her hands, clearly waiting for my "good news."

Seeing me enter, she immediately stood up, her face a mask of false concern. "My lady! You're back! Did the Alpha... did he mark you?" Her eyes shone with a mixture of eagerness and jealousy.

I looked at her coldly, saying nothing, and walked straight to the wardrobe in the center of the room.

My silence made Brenda uneasy. She followed me, probing, "My lady, did everything go smoothly? My herbs... they should have worked."

She actually admitted it. How laughably stupid.

"Herbs?" I finally spoke, my voice as cold as a winter lake. "You mean this?" I pulled a small sachet from my sleeve and threw it at her feet.

I had secretly torn this sachet from the hem of my nightgown and hidden it in my sleeve while I was confronting Grant in his bedroom. In my past life, it was this hidden sachet that had caused me to lose control in front of him.

Brenda's face turned deathly pale. She recognized the sachet.

"No... my lady, I..." she stammered, trying to explain.

"Taryn!" I ignored her and called out to the inner room.

My loyal maid, Taryn, immediately came out. She saw my torn nightgown and pale face, her eyes filled with worry. "My lady! What happened to you?"

"I'm fine," I gave her a reassuring look, then pointed at the trembling Brenda. "Tie her up."

Taryn hesitated for a second, but she never questioned my orders. She quickly found a rope and, amidst Brenda's screams and struggles, tied her securely to a chair.

"My lady! You can't do this to me! I'm your maid! You can't blame me for your mistakes!" Brenda was still screaming.

I walked over to her, crouched down, and grabbed her chin, forcing her to look at me. "Mistakes? No, I'm doing everything right."

"Did you think drugging your mistress and pushing her into the bed of a man who despises her would make you a phoenix?" I asked with a cold smile.

"I..." Fear filled Brenda's eyes. She never expected me to know everything so clearly.

"You're too naive, Brenda. To an Alpha like Grant, an Omega who throws herself at him isn't even worthy of being a plaything."

I let go of her chin and stood up, wiping my fingers with a handkerchief as if I had touched something filthy.

"Taryn, start packing. Pack up all the dowry from the Lester family. Not a single piece of jewelry, not a single silver cup, is to be left behind," I ordered.

"Yes, my lady," Taryn immediately began to work, her movements efficient.

Brenda looked at us in disbelief. "Packing? My lady, where are you going? The Alpha, he..."

"He and I have nothing to do with each other anymore," I cut her off. "As for you..."

I walked to the window and looked out at the dark night. "A servant who betrays her master is a liability."

I turned back to her and announced her fate. "Tomorrow at dawn, I will sell you to the lowest brothel in the city. I imagine the madam there will be very 'fond' of an 'ambitious' Omega like you."

"No-!" Brenda let out a desperate scream, her face ashen. This was a fate worse than death for her.

I ignored her wails, feeling no pity. There is no mercy for traitors.

I watched Taryn's busy figure and a new plan formed in my mind. "Taryn, bring out the dowry ledger. I need to check it."

Taryn retrieved a thick, leather-bound book from a locked chest. This, this was my most powerful weapon for striking back at the Freeman family.