Chapter 374\u00a0<\/p>\n
Riley\u2019s POV\u00a0<\/p>\n
Finished\u00a0<\/p>\n
Morning sunlight spilled through the narrow gap in the curtains, casting a pale gold strip across my hospital bed.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Maybe it was the rest, or maybe the meds had finally kicked in, but my headache wasn\u2019t as sharp today. My mind felt less foggy, more\u2026 aware.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I got up slowly, slipped on the slippers Mia had brought me, and stepped out of the room. I just wanted some air. A moment of quiet.\u00a0<\/p>\n
But the universe had other plans.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Just as I turned the corner into the hallway, I heard a voice that grated on my nerves like claws on bone.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Sweet. Coy. Familiar.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Scarlett.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I looked up-and sure enough, there she was, walking shoulder to shoulder with Maddox.\u00a0<\/p>\n
She wore a white dress, her makeup light and watery like she was trying to embody innocence itself. A thick bandage wrapped around her forehead, and her whole posture screamed frail and delicate. The kind of look that begged for sympathy.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Her laughter died the second she spotted me. She flinched, like she\u2019d seen a ghost. And then, softly-so softly it made my skin crawl-she said, \u201cRiley\u2026\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Maddox paused too, his eyes flickering with something unreadable. Maybe guilt. Maybe pity. I didn\u2019t care to dig.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I stopped, just for a beat.\u00a0<\/p>\n
And then I kept walking. Right past them.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Like they were air.\u00a0<\/p>\n
But Scarlett, as always, wasn\u2019t content to be ignored. She edged closer with that same mock-timid expression she always wore when she was pretending to be fragile.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cAre you feeling any better?\u201d she asked. \u201cMaddox and I came to visit you\u2026 Where are you going?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I didn\u2019t answer.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Didn\u2019t even look at her.\u00a0<\/p>\n
But she kept inching closer. Kept needling at me with her fake concern. She wanted a reaction. She needed\u00a0<\/p>\n
one.\u00a0<\/p>\n
So I gave it to her.\u00a0<\/p>\n
14.29 Wed, Dec 31\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 374\u00a0<\/p>\n
I walked up, calm and measured-and slapped her clean across the face.\u00a0<\/p>\n
72\u00a0<\/p>\n
99 Finished\u00a0<\/p>\n
The sound echoed in the corridor like a whipcrack. Her dainty little body stumbled backward from the force of it, the pristine makeup on her cheek smudging beneath the vivid red of my handprint.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Maddox caught her before she could fall. His arm went around her waist, and with his other hand, he shoved me.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Hard.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat the hell is wrong with you, Riley?\u201d he snapped. \u201cScarlett came here because she was worried about you. And you just-hit her? Without even listening? What is wrong with you?!\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
His voice was raised, sharp with anger. A few nurses turned their heads as they passed.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I staggered slightly from his push.\u00a0<\/p>\n
And then I slapped him too.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cDon\u2019t touch me,\u201d I hissed.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The shock on his face was almost comical. His eyes went wide as if he couldn\u2019t believe I\u2019d actually done it.\u00a0<\/p>\n
But I wasn\u2019t done.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYou want to know what\u2019s wrong with me?\u201d I said. \u201cI want to know what Scarlett thinks she\u2019s doing, shoving her fake little \u2018wounded doe\u2019 act in front of me like I\u2019m supposed to care.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cShe knows I hate her. She knows I want nothing to do with her. But she keeps getting in my face. So yeah. I slapped her. And I\u2019d do it again.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd you-what the hell are you, Maddox? What gives you the right to step in like you\u2019re some noble protector?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
He just stared at me like I\u2019d grown another head.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The boy I used to follow around like a puppy. The one I used to call \u201cmy Maddox.\u201d My big brother figure. My first love.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He looked at me like he didn\u2019t recognize me anymore.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Hell, I didn\u2019t recognize him either.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019ve changed,\u201d he said finally, his voice tight. \u201cYou\u2019re not the Riley I knew. What happened to you?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I laughed. Laughed because if I didn\u2019t, I\u2019d scream.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019re really gonna pull that? Five years, Maddox. Five years locked up in a cell for a crime I didn\u2019t commit. You think that doesn\u2019t change a person?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYou let them throw me in there. You stood next to Zara and said nothing when she labeled me unstable. You defended Scarlett while I was in chains.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I stepped closer.\u00a0<\/p>\n
214\u00a0<\/p>\n
ed, Dec 31\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 374\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYou. Don\u2019t. Know. Me.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
72\u00a0<\/p>\n
Finished\u00a0<\/p>\n
Scarlett let out a trembling sob behind him, her eyes all glassy and wet. \u201cMaddox, are you okay?\u201d she whispered, conveniently loud enough for me to hear.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Then she looked at me again, tears brimming.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYou hit me. And now you hit Maddox? He came because he was worried about you, Riley. Is this how you treat people who care?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Her voice shook, her bottom lip trembling like a scared little pup.\u00a0<\/p>\n
But her eyes-\u00a0<\/p>\n
They were shining with satisfaction.\u00a0<\/p>\n
She was loving this.\u00a0<\/p>\n
She was playing the victim while I stood here, hands shaking with rage.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I raised my arm again. Just to watch her flinch.\u00a0<\/p>\n
She squeaked and darted behind Maddox, peeking out from behind his shoulder like some terrified cub.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cRiley\u2026 you\u2019re being so cruel\u2026\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Enough.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cLooks like the last lesson from the White Wolf wasn\u2019t enough for you-you want to experience it again?\u201d I stared him.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cEnough, Riley. Scarlett already told me-your White Wolf is just a black magic illusion. Stop lying to yourself.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Maddox grabbed my wrist this time, harder. His grip was tight, fingers digging into my skin.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He growled. \u201cNo one\u2019s going to put up with your tantrums forever. You lash out like this again, and don\u2019t expect me to just stand here and take it-\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Smack.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Another slap.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I used my free hand this time.\u00a0<\/p>\n
His sentence ended right there.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The crack of palm against cheek rang louder than the last.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He stood, stunned.\u00a0<\/p>\n
His jaw clenched. His eyes flickered, wild and unfocused.\u00a0<\/p>\n
3\/4\u00a0<\/p>\n
14:29 Wed, Dec 31\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 374\u00a0<\/p>\n
Then I hit him again.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Third time.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Harder.\u00a0<\/p>\n
33572\u00a0<\/p>\n
Finished\u00a0<\/p>\n
His head jerked sideways, and the flush that bloomed on his face was near violet. The once-pristine lawyer, the golden boy of the werewolf courts, now stood red-faced and speechless.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cStill want to act like my keeper?\u201d I said, eyes like frost. \u201cYou think you matter in this? You\u2019re not my mate. Not my Alpha. You\u2019re nothing.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I stepped around him.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI may not be loved in the Ebonclaw Pack,\u201d I said without turning back, \u201cbut at least I\u2019m still Scarlett\u2019s sister. On paper. And if I want to slap some sense into my baby sister, that\u2019s family business. You? You\u2019re just a spectator. Keep your nose out.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Maddox stared at me, open-mouthed, like I\u2019d gutted him.\u00a0<\/p>\n
His voice cracked when he finally managed, \u201cYou hit me\u2026\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
There was disbelief there. Hurt. Like I\u2019d just killed something sacred.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He\u2019d once been everything to me.\u00a0<\/p>\n
And now?\u00a0<\/p>\n
He was a stranger I couldn\u2019t stand to look at.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I said nothing.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Just met his gaze.\u00a0<\/p>\n
And in mine, he saw the truth-\u00a0<\/p>\n
That whatever part of me had once cared about him, had once thought he was a hero-\u00a0<\/p>\n
That part was gone.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Buried with the girl he helped send to prison.\u00a0<\/p>\n
And I was never digging it up again.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Joseph King is an editor and storyteller who ensures every chapter is clear, polished, and engaging for readers.<\/p>\n
Midnight Letters by Daniel Crowe 374 Chapter 374\u00a0 Riley\u2019s POV\u00a0 Finished\u00a0 Morning sunlight spilled through the narrow gap in the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[35],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-20648","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-pack-princess"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20648","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=20648"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20648\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=20648"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=20648"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=20648"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}