A Beauty's Revenge

After a quick stop at her aunt's to check on her, Aurora headed to Charlotte's house. She took a deep breath before knocking on the door, her smile carefully poised.

But that smile faltered when she saw who had opened the door.

"How lucky I am! The husband himself has just opened the door. Hello, I'm here to see my cousin."

Jasper stared at her, his gaze cold and contemptuous.

"What for this time? Slit her throat or kill her outright?"

Aurora gave a sarcastic smile.

"How funny you are. But I think I'm allowed to visit my cousin, right? We're related, and between families..."

She glanced over her shoulder and saw Charlotte.

"Ah, there she is."

She slipped under Jasper's arm, ignoring his icy stare, and headed toward Charlotte. She made as if to kiss him, but whispered in his ear,

"We need to talk. Right now."

Charlotte, visibly annoyed, turned to her husband with a forced smile.

"Honey, I'm going upstairs to talk to my cousin for a while."

Jasper hesitated, his gaze flickering between the two women.

"Very well. If there's anything, call me."

"Don't worry."

Charlotte walked ahead of Aurora up the stairs, closing the door behind them once they reached the bedroom.

She turned to Aurora, arms crossed.

"So, I'm listening. What do you want to tell me that's so important?"

Aurora picked up her phone, pretending to check a message, and discreetly started recording their conversation.

"So, how are you? Is everything okay with your husband?"

Charlotte rolled her eyes, visibly irritated.

"Get to the point. I have better things to do."

Aurora smiled slightly, her gaze sharpening.

"What a way to greet your stepsister."

A heavy silence fell. Charlotte narrowed her eyes before replying, her voice icy.

"So you know."

Aurora nodded, her smile turning cynical.

"Glad to see you're not pretending you don't understand. Yes, I know. Ironic, isn't it? We're enemies even though we're stepsisters."

Charlotte moved slightly closer, her gaze becoming more menacing.

"It took me threatening Hilton's life for you to finally decide to do some research. Am I right?"

Aurora gritted her teeth, but remained calm.

"Yes, I admit it." But it's not as if I could have guessed that my father, the man I modeled after, was the second man in my mother's life. And you knew it. You used him to destroy me.

Charlotte burst out into a cold laugh.

"So? Did you come to complain? To whine? Isn't that what your dear mother is for?"

Aurora stared at her, her gaze turning icy.

"Our mother."

Charlotte raised an eyebrow, her smile fading.

"She hasn't been since she decided to abandon me. She chose which daughter she would keep, and as you know so well, it was you."

Aurora felt a pang of guilt, but she quickly pushed it away.

"And that's why you got your revenge by breaking up my marriage, threatening the lives of my loved ones, and continuing your shenanigans. But tell me, you can't really say you didn't have a mother, can you?"

Charlotte narrowed her eyes, suspicious.

"What are you talking about this time?"

Aurora smiled slightly.

"Aunt Myriam. Your adoptive mother."

Charlotte clenched her fists, her face hardening.

"She's not my mother. I don't consider her as such."

Aurora moved closer, her gaze becoming more intense.

"She fed you, watched over you, raised you... even if your behavior leaves something to be desired."

Charlotte suddenly yelled, "Shut up! I don't want to hear it! All she did was take back her sister's rejected child." And my father, let's not even talk about him, he completely vanished.

Aurora backed away slightly, but remained calm.

"Is that why you didn't even bother to visit her once after depriving her of her sight for a whole week?"

Charlotte stared at her, her gaze turning icy.

"She means nothing to me. So if you have nothing else to say to me, you can go. Besides, you already knew I was targeting you, not her."

Aurora took a deep breath, her anger boiling.

"So what? I'm supposed to believe that out of generosity or love, you didn't want to kill her? Let me laugh."

Charlotte smiled coldly.

"And yet, you're still alive, aren't you? Thanks to whom already... oh yes, Tyler Bennett. My husband's half-brother." You must be happy to have this ace up your sleeve, right? I have the handsome and dark one, you have the dangerous and wild one. If I can get rid of you, I can have both. One for a husband and the other for a lover. Wouldn't it be perfect that way?

Aurora burst into a cynical laugh before regaining a semblance of seriousness.

"That's true. I know Tyler is handsome, he's even hot. Your husband is just as handsome as him, but he has that little something extra.

Charlotte narrowed her eyes, intrigued.

"Please enlighten me."

Aurora stood up, approaching the door.

"The entire time I was married to Jasper, I loved him and only him. But now that we're divorced, I can allow myself to think about another man. Which isn't the case for you."

She opened the door, but Charlotte said in an icy voice,

"Enjoy your time with your friends, because trust me, it won't be long before I eliminate you and take everything away from you."

Aurora turned slightly, her gaze turning icy.

"You know, you have to understand something." Whether you criticize me to your husband, judge me constantly, or waste your time threatening me... I don't care. But try to touch those I love, even a little, and I'll become your worst nightmare.

With that, she left the room, slamming the door behind her.