Chapter 5

• Amara stood calmly, watching the chaos unfold around her. The smug satisfaction on her face was unmistakable as she spotted the couple she had been waiting for, Joshua and Lucy. The sight of them sent a thrill of anticipation through her. ‘This is it,’ she thought. It's time to expose them for who they are.’
• Joshua's expression was confused and concerned as he approached the scene. “What’s going on here?” he asked, his voice tinged with surprise. He hadn’t expected to walk into such a spectacle. His eyes darted between the paparazzi, the onlookers, and his mother, Karen, still sitting on the ground, nursing her bruised pride.
• “Mom, are you okay?” Joshua asked urgently, rushing to help her up.
• Her face twisted in anger. Karen pointed a trembling finger at Amara. “That stupid girl pushed me to the ground!” she wailed, trying to summon as much sympathy as possible.
• Joshua froze for a moment, his eyes narrowing as he glanced at Amara. He found it hard to believe. The Amara he or thought he knew would never have done something like this. She had always been gentle and kind to a fault, even when she had every reason to be angry.
• “How dare you do this to a former Luna?” Lucy’s voice sliced through the air, filled with anger and fake righteousness as she moved to help Joshua lift his mother. “Don’t you have any respect for your elders?” she added, glaring at Amara.
• Amara couldn’t hold back the laugh that bubbled up inside her. It was a laugh of mockery, tinged with disbelief at the audacity of the two people standing before her. “I’m truly amazed by your acting skills,” she said, her voice dripping with sarcasm. “Do you think I’m still that naïve girl who would fall for your lies?”
• Without waiting for a response, Amara turned to leave, her heart racing with exhilaration at how well everything was falling into place. But before she could take more than a few steps, Lucy grabbed her by the arm, pulling her back with a force that surprised her.
• “You have no shame!” Lucy shrieked, her eyes flashing with fake outrage. “After cheating on her son, you’re now attacking his mother?”
• Amara yanked her arm out of Lucy’s grasp and leveled a cold gaze at her stepsister. “Drop the act, Lucy,” she said, her voice calm but deadly serious. “I know the truth. I know you’ve been sleeping with Joshua behind my back.”
• The words hung in the air, sharp and deadly. The color drained from Lucy and Joshua’s faces as they froze, their eyes wide with shock and fear. For the first time, Amara saw real fear in their eyes. They hadn’t expected her to know, much less confront them so boldly in public.
• “Amara!” Joshua exclaimed, his voice shaking as he tried to keep control of the situation. “That’s a lie! I would never—”
• “What? That's Unbelievable!” Lucy added, her voice shrill with panic. She glanced around nervously, aware that the paparazzi were recording every word. “You’re making things up to cover for your guilt!”
• Amara folded her arms, a slight smirk playing on her lips as she watched them squirm. ‘This is exactly what they deserve.’ “Oh, really?” she said, her voice laced with sarcasm. “You two are accusing ‘me’ of being the liar? How interesting.”
• “You shameless girl,” Karen spat, her voice shaking with fury as she tried to salvage the situation. “After you’ve cheated on my son, you dare accuse him and your sister? Don’t you feel any shame at all?”
• The crowd around them murmured in agreement, still clinging to the narrative that had been carefully pushed in Amara’s past life. But this time, she wasn’t the victim. This time, she had proof.
• Amara smiled, feeling the power of the moment wash over her. “Actually,” she said, calm and measured, “I have proof.”
• The silence that followed her words was deafening. All eyes were on her now; even the paparazzi stopped clicking their cameras for a moment, anticipating the bombshell she was about to drop.
• Joshua and Lucy exchanged panicked glances, the color draining from their faces even more as they realized they were trapped. The calm confidence in Amara’s voice had them both on edge. ‘This wasn’t part of their plan.’
• Amara turned to the paparazzi, who were now hanging on her every word. She pulled out her phone and scrolled through her files until she found the video clips she had taken the night before. She had been prepared for this moment; now, it was time to turn the tables.
• “Here,” Amara said, stepping forward and handing her phone to one of the reporters. “I think you’ll want to take a look at this.”
• The reporter, eyes wide with excitement, took the phone and began watching the video. His face twisted in shock as he saw the footage, clear and undeniable proof of Joshua and Lucy in a compromising position the night before. The camera captured everything: their intimate conversation, how they looked at each other, and the kiss that sealed their betrayal.
• The other reporters crowded around, eager to see the video for themselves. Gasps and murmurs filled the air as they watched, their cameras now turned on Joshua and Lucy, who were frozen in horror.
• Joshua’s face turned a deep shade of red as the realization sank in. The plan had been for Amara to be publicly disgraced, for him to break their mate bond and move on with Lucy. But now, everything has flipped. They were the ones being exposed.
• Lucy’s mouth opened and closed like a fish out of water, no words coming out as she struggled to comprehend the gravity of the situation. This wasn’t how it was supposed to go. They had planned everything so perfectly. How had Amara turned the tables so easily?
• “You—” Joshua began, his voice trembling with anger and fear. “How could you—”
• “How could I?” Amara cut him off, her voice sharp as a blade. “Catch you in the act? You thought you could betray me, humiliate me, and I wouldn’t find out?”
• “You think this will change anything?” Lucy finally managed to croak, her voice shaking. “You think people will side with you after everything?”
• Amara took a step forward, her eyes locked on Lucy’s. “I don’t care who sides with me. What matters is that ‘you’ know the truth is out. You can’t manipulate me anymore and certainly can’t fool anyone else.”
• The paparazzi were buzzing with excitement now, their cameras flashing wildly as they captured every moment of Lucy and Joshua’s downfall. The reporters were already composing the scandalous headlines in their minds, knowing that this would be front-page news by the end of the day.
• Amara turned back to Karen, who stood frozen, her expression a mixture of disbelief and fury. The carefully constructed facade of her family’s perfection had crumbled before her eyes, and now, she was left with nothing.
• “Next time you decide to call someone shameless,” Amara said, her voice cold and sharp, “make sure you know who the real villains are.”
• Karen sputtered, but she could not defend her son or Lucy. The truth was laid bare for everyone to see.
• Amara gave one last look to Joshua, Lucy, and Karen, the people who had tried to destroy her, before she turned and walked away, her head held high. The satisfaction of their defeat gushed through her like a wave. She had won.
• As she strode down the hallway, the paparazzi still buzzing behind her, Amara felt a sense of freedom she hadn’t experienced in her past life. She had broken free from the chains of betrayal and exposed the truth for everyone to see.
• She was no longer the broken woman they had tried to make her. She was strong, powerful, and determined to reclaim her life.
• And this was only the beginning.