Sold to Bastard Alpha after My Divorce!-Chapter 18

Aria’s POV

I stood in front of my cracked mirror, trying to tame my hair into something presentable.

Second date. Tonight. Seven PM.

Just thinking those words made my heart race. A smile crept across my face—the kind I couldn’t control even if I tried.

Kael wanted to see me again.

My uniform from Moonlit Velvet hung over the chair. I’d brought it home to wash—couldn’t afford dry cleaning. But tonight, I wouldn’t need it. Tonight, I was just Aria. Not the server. Not the Shadow Moon trash. Just... me.

I picked up my lipstick. The same pale pink I’d worn to the mating ceremony. My hand trembled slightly as I leaned toward the mirror.

Where would he take me? Somewhere expensive, probably. Somewhere I didn’t belong. But maybe that was okay. Maybe—

A strange sound cut through the wall.

I froze. Lipstick hovering an inch from my mouth.

Voices. Muffled. Coming from downstairs.

Our walls were paper-thin. I could usually hear everything—Serena’s arguments, Lyra’s phone calls, my mother’s... activities. But this was different. These voices were deeper. Unfamiliar. Male.

My stomach tightened.

I set down the lipstick. Pressed my ear against the door.

More voices. Louder now. Someone was shouting.

*Something’s wrong,* Artemis growled. Her hackles raised in my mind.

I reached for the doorknob.

BANG.

The door exploded inward.

I stumbled backward. My hip slammed against the dresser. Pain shot through my side.

Two men filled my doorway. Massive. Dressed in black uniforms I didn’t recognize. Their pheromones hit me like a wall—aggressive, dominant, threatening.

My lipstick clattered to the floor.

"Hands up!" one of them barked. His voice left no room for argument.

"Who are you?" The words came out shaky. Weak. I hated how weak I sounded. "What do you want?"

The second man grabbed my wrist. His grip was iron. Bruising.

"What are you doing? Let go of me!" I tried to pull away. Useless. He was too strong.

He yanked me forward. Toward the door. Toward the chaos I could hear erupting downstairs.

"Ask your husband," he sneered.

Husband?

My blood ran cold.

Finn. 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝔀𝓮𝒃𝙣𝓸𝒗𝒆𝒍.𝙘𝒐𝒎

They dragged me down the stairs. Each step jolted through my body. I couldn’t think. Couldn’t process.

The living room had become a nightmare.

More men in black. Everywhere. They were tearing through our meager possessions. Throwing cushions off the couch. Emptying drawers onto the floor.

My mother stood in the corner, hands clasped together. Begging.

"Please! We didn’t do anything! Please stop!"

No one listened.

Serena and Lyra were huddled on the couch. Their faces were pale. Terrified. When they saw me, their expressions changed.

Rage replaced fear.

"THERE!" Serena screamed, pointing at me. "That’s the bitch you’re looking for! Take her! Leave us alone!"

"This is YOUR fault!" Lyra shrieked. "Whatever you did, it’s always YOUR fault!"

The men ignored them.

"What is happening?" I demanded. My voice cracked. "You can’t just break into our home—"

"Shut up." The man holding me shoved me toward the center of the room.

I stumbled. Nearly fell. Caught myself on the edge of the coffee table.

The leader—a tall wolf with cold eyes and a scar across his jaw—stepped forward. He pulled out a folded document. Official-looking. Stamped with seals I didn’t recognize.

"Aria Nightfang?" He didn’t wait for confirmation. "By order of the Nightfang family estate, you are being detained for investigation of abandonment."

"Abandonment?" The word made no sense. "What are you talking about?"

"Mr. Finn Nightfang has filed formal charges." The leader’s voice was flat. Bored. Like he’d done this a thousand times. "You abandoned your marital home. Neglected your duties as a mate. Failed to fulfill family obligations."

"That’s insane! I filed for divorce! The papers—"

"We’re not lawyers." He folded the document. Tucked it away. "We’re just here to collect."

"Collect?" Horror crept up my spine. "You can’t just—"

"We can do whatever the Nightfang family pays us to do."

He couldn’t reach me directly anymore. The mate bond was severed. But he still had money. Connections. Resources.

"Take them all," the leader ordered, waving his hand.

"ALL of us?" My mother’s voice pitched higher. "But we didn’t do anything! This is between Aria and her husband!"

"Mr. Nightfang’s orders." The leader shrugged. "The whole family. Accessories to abandonment."

"That’s not even a real crime!" I shouted.

Men grabbed my mother. My sisters. They screamed. Fought. Kicked.

I watched in horror as they were dragged toward the door.

"ARIA!" My mother’s voice was shrill. Desperate. "This is YOUR fault! You had ONE job! Keep your husband happy! And you couldn’t even do THAT!"

"Mom—"

"I should have drowned you at birth!"

The words didn’t even hurt anymore. I was numb. Completely numb.

Serena twisted in her captor’s grip. "You’re going to pay for this! Do you hear me? YOU’RE GOING TO PAY!"

"I hope you rot!" Lyra spat at me as they dragged her past.

Sisters. Blood relatives. They’d throw me to wolves in a heartbeat if it meant saving themselves.

Then again, they always had.

Strong hands grabbed my arms. Pinned them behind my back.

"Move."

They pushed me toward the door.

Outside, the night air hit my face. Cool. Clear. Mocking.

Headlights blazed in our driveway. Multiple vehicles. Black vans with tinted windows.

And neighbors.

God. The neighbors.

Faces pressed against windows. People standing on porches. Everyone watching. Everyone witnessing our humiliation.

This was Shadow Moon territory. We were already the lowest of the low. But this?

This was a new kind of shame.

They would talk about this for weeks. Months. Years.

"Keep moving." A hand shoved between my shoulder blades.

I stumbled forward. My cheap shoes scraped against the pavement.

My mother was still screaming. Serena had started crying—big, dramatic sobs that echoed through the quiet street. Lyra cursed in a steady stream, her voice growing hoarse.

I said nothing.

What was there to say?

Finn had won. Again. Even with the mate bond broken, even with the divorce papers signed, he still found a way to control my life.

To punish me for daring to leave.

*Kael,* Artemis whispered. *We were supposed to see Kael tonight.*

Gone.

All of it, gone.

Would he wait for me? Would he think I’d stood him up? Would he care?

Probably not. Rebecca’s words echoed in my memory. *You’re just entertainment. A distraction.*

They shoved me toward one of the vans.

"Get in."

The door slid open. Dark interior. The smell of metal and sweat.

I climbed in. Had no choice.

My mother was pushed in beside me. Then Serena. Then Lyra. We sat in a row on the cold metal bench. Close enough to touch. Far enough to feel completely alone.

The men climbed in after us. Took positions by the doors. Guards. Making sure we couldn’t escape.

Not that there was anywhere to escape to.

"This is insane," my mother muttered. Her earlier hysteria had faded into something quieter. Darker. "Absolutely insane."

"I told you," Serena hissed. "I told you she would ruin us."

"Me?" I turned to face her. Something hot and bitter rose in my chest. "You think this is my fault?"

"It’s always your fault!"

"Finn is doing this! Finn! Not me!"

"Because you couldn’t keep him satisfied!" She leaned forward. Her face was blotchy. Mascara running down her cheeks. "All you had to do was spread your legs and smile. How hard is that?"

"Serena—"

"You had everything! A rich husband! A nice house! A daughter! And you threw it all away!" Her voice cracked. "Now look at us. Look at what you’ve done to us!"

I stared at her. At my sister. At this person who shared my blood but nothing else.

"I didn’t do this to you," I said quietly. "Finn did."

"Because of YOU!"

"Girls." My mother’s voice was sharp. "Enough."

Silence fell.

The van’s engine rumbled to life.

We started moving.

I pressed my forehead against the cold metal wall. Closed my eyes.