Raelynn's POV Taylor’s smile stiffened. “What do you mean… If this isn’t a misunderstanding, then what is?” I stared her down and said coldly, “You didn’t even look before you came in here accusing me of feeding Madam Salvatore the wrong food. Ms. Taylor, you say it wasn’t a careless mistake—so I really wonder what your true intentions were.” Taylor avoided my eyes and forced a laugh. “No, of course I didn’t mean to frame you. I just didn’t know you bought a proper meal, so it’s normal for a misunderstanding to happen, right…” Watching her put on that pitiful act again, I let out a cold chuckle. “Taylor, you never really intended to change.” Her face immediately crumpled, and she spoke with a teary voice, “I already said I only spoke out of concern for Madam Salvatore. You don’t have to keep coming after me.” Madam Salvatore looked at Taylor’s pitiful expression and tried to step in. “Why don’t you forgive her, Raelynn? Taylor really does seem to regret what she’s done. We can all see it.” I stayed silent. I believe people can regret things. Just not Taylor. She came back with her face thicker than concrete, clearly looking to stir things up. Forgive her? No thanks. “Raelynn, I’m sorry. I really know I was wrong.” Taylor stepped forward and tried to take my hand. I yanked my arm away from her. Every time she acted like this—fake sweet, fake soft—I felt like throwing up. But I knew that if I kept pressing this issue, Madam Salvatore would probably start thinking I was petty, overly sensitive, unforgiving. And people love to side with the weak. Taylor’s greatest skill is pretending to be the weak one. “Fine. I’ll forgive you,” I said, smiling at her with a blink. “But don’t you think you owe me something?”She looked nervous. “What do you mean, owe you?” “Three million. Not a cent less,” I said lightly. Taylor’s face changed. To the Midnight Pack, three million wasn’t much. But as an apology fee? That was something else entirely. Taylor clenched her teeth. “Why three million?” I smiled casually. “No reason. If three million feels too low, I’m happy to bump it to five. Just wire it to my account. Thanks.” There wasn’t much I could do to Taylor for now, so I figured I’d bleed her a little instead. She stood there biting her lip, unable to say yes or no. Her face was twisted with pain—and I enjoyed every second of it. Yes, I wanted her to suffer. Next time she thought about messing with me, maybe she’d think twice. I looked her up and down and smirked. “What’s wrong, Ms. Taylor? Don’t tell me you can’t even afford three million? That’s fine—I can lend it to you. Just make sure you pay me back.” Taylor glared at me, biting her teeth hard. “Fine. I’ll send it over later.” “Thank you for your generous contribution, Ms. Taylor.” Just as the words left my mouth, the door flew open. Aiden walked in with a bag of fruit. He saw Taylor’s tear-streaked face and frowned. “What’s going on?” “It’s nothing,” Taylor said softly. “Raelynn just told me to send her three million as an apology.” Aiden’s gaze turned cold as he looked at me. “Three million? Give me your account number. I’ll send it.” That killed my mood instantly. Of course. Childhood sweethearts. Taylor could just say half a sentence and he’d take her side. “How chivalrous of you, Mr. Aiden,” I said coolly.Aiden stared at me, voice low. “Taylor’s family’s been going through some things. Three million’s a bit much for her right now. I’ll pay you instead.” Of course I knew that. That’s exactly why I picked that number—to make her squirm. But if Aiden was going to step in like this, what was the point anymore? I smiled faintly. “No need. You can keep it, Mr. Aiden.” It’s not like I needed the money. Without another word, I turned and walked out of the room. Inside that room, I really was just an outsider. I kept walking and ended up at the hospital’s back garden. No Aiden. No Taylor. I felt a lot better. I wandered through the flowerbeds, letting the peace settle my mood—until I suddenly heard a commotion. I turned a corner and spotted a group of werewolves surrounding a young girl, grabbing at her. “What the hell are you doing?” I strode over and grabbed the hand of the one reaching for her, flinging him aside hard. The girl was trembling in fear. When she saw me, she darted behind me like I was her lifeline. The werewolf I threw off turned back, fuming, about to curse me out—but the second he saw me, he froze. His eyes roamed over me shamelessly, and he grinned like a pervert. “You’re real pretty. I wasn’t doing anything wrong, really. This little girl stole my money, I was just trying to get it back. I didn’t mean anything by it…” His gross gaze lingered on me, and the rest of the wolves around him looked me up and down with equally disgusting expressions. “Stole your money?” I turned to look at the girl behind me. She peeked out timidly. “I didn’t steal anything. It’s my money.”