Chapter 254 Clara wasn’t the person who saved me
Ethan’s POV
AM. My phone buzzed with Sophie’s frantic call.
Twenty minutes later, she burst through the emergency room doors, her face pale with panic.
I was sitting slumped outside the examination room, pressing gauze against my arm where they’d just finished stitching me up.
My head throbbed where they’d closed the gash on my scalp—eight stitches, mild concussion, they said. Everything hurt. Bruises covered every inch of my body, and my leg—fuck, my leg had a hairline fracture.
The wolf in me wanted to heal it all immediately, let my Alpha blood knit bone and flesh back together. But I couldn’t.
"Ethan!" Sophie dropped to her knees beside me, eyes wide with horror. "Oh my god, what happened? Who did this to you?"
I’d just gotten the painkiller injection, my fingers still pressing the cotton ball against the needle mark.
Two hours ago, not long after Aria left the bar, a group of men stormed into my private room.
It happened fast. They kicked out the security guards, locked the door from inside, and went absolutely feral. Smashing bottles. Swinging fists. Pure chaos.
The bar staff couldn’t break down the door. Someone called the cops. By the time they arrived, the attackers had vanished like smoke.
The police and bar management brought us here. Took our statements.
Based on our descriptions, the cops said it was probably a local debt collection crew—mobile, masked, nearly impossible to track even with security footage.
They filed a report, gave us some reassuring bullshit, and left.
I looked up at Sophie and for a second, everything blurred.
Years ago, back in college, I’d gotten into a similar mess. A friend’s stupid fight at a party landed me in the ER.
Aria had come running. Still in her pajamas, coat thrown over them, hair messy from sleep.
"Ethan, seriously? Can’t you guys handle things without fighting? Let me see where you’re hurt!"
Her voice echoed in my head, her image flickering before my eyes like a ghost. Then it focused, and I saw Sophie’s worried face instead, kneeling where Aria once had.
Sophie looked terrified.
My buddies started filing out of the examination rooms, complaining about their rotten luck while asking if I was okay.
I tried to stand but my leg screamed in protest. Took me three attempts to get upright.
Sophie grabbed my arm immediately. "Easy, easy."
"Man, Ethan, tonight was insane," said Mario, the guy who’d organized this reunion. His wife helped support him, her expression strange. When she looked at me, something flickered in her eyes—judgment, maybe. Or disgust.
She was the only one who hadn’t gotten hurt. Those bastards didn’t hit women. She’d been scared shitless at first, then tried to protect her husband, but someone held her back.
She didn’t think we were just unlucky. I could tell from her face. After hearing all the drama about me and Aria tonight, she’d probably figured it out.
Those men came for me. The others just got caught in the crossfire.
But nobody left. They crowded around, offering comfort.
"Ethan, man, relationship stuff is complicated. Don’t let what other people think get to you."
"Right? Everyone makes mistakes. You just... you loved too much, that’s all."
"I could tell you really cared about Aria. After all these years, you never mistreated her. If she’s being heartless now, maybe it’s time to let her go..."
Their words blurred together. Sophie’s face changed as she pieced together what happened.
When she realized Aria was involved again, she exploded. "Is that woman ever going to leave you alone? She’s a viper! A complete—"
"Sophie!" My voice came out sharp, cutting. "Shut up."
Even with my head spinning, my wolf snarling in pain, I couldn’t let her talk about Aria that way.
Nothing made sense anymore. The pain in my chest was worse than any physical injury, like someone had carved out half my soul.
No matter what Aria did, I couldn’t let her go. Couldn’t stand hearing anyone tear her down.
"Ethan..." Sophie’s eyes filled with tears. She was trying to defend me and I’d snapped at her.
"Hey, Ethan, don’t blame your sister," said Ryan, trying to smooth things over. "She’s just worried about you. Honestly? You and Aria were meant for each other. If things fell apart, blame Clara. She’s the one who seduced you, manipulated everything—"
The words hit me like ice water.
Ryan continued, oblivious. "Back when Clara’s friends kept asking about you, I knew something was off. Remember that dinner they set up? All they wanted to talk about was you. Like we were some kind of survey. Pretty obvious she was planning to go after you."
I barely heard him. Tried to move, to leave, but my leg wouldn’t cooperate.
Sophie grabbed my arm. "Careful, Ethan."
Behind us, Mario’s wife muttered under her breath, "Why should women take all the blame for men’s mistakes? Takes two to tango..."
Her husband shushed her quickly. Too late.
"One hand can’t clap," Ryan shot back with a bitter laugh, "but if someone’s scheming, setting traps, who can resist?"
"Setting traps?" The words yanked me back to reality. I spun around, nearly falling. "You’re saying Clara... she set me up?"
Ryan blinked, then nodded. "Yeah, man. Clara spent months asking people about you. If she just wanted to know you better, why not ask you directly? Sneaking around, gathering information—that’s textbook manipulation. Finding your weaknesses, using them against you."
His words resonated with the others. They nodded, agreeing.
Only I stood frozen, my voice dropping to something dangerous. "What exactly did she ask about?"
"I don’t remember everything—"
"Did she know?" My hands started shaking. My wolf pushed against my skin, wanting out, wanting to tear something apart. "Did she know about the person I was looking for?"
Everyone went quiet. Even Sophie stilled, eyes widening as understanding dawned.
"Oh shit, yeah!" Ryan’s face lit up with realization. "You used to tell everyone about that story, right? When you were a kid, got lost on that mountain, someone saved you?"
My chest tightened. Couldn’t breathe.
"Clara was obsessed with that story," Ryan continued. "Asked for every detail. Word for word, everything you ever said about it. What the person looked like, any distinguishing features—she made people repeat it over and over..."
The world tilted.
My body swayed and Sophie caught me. "Ethan!"
Everything went cold. My blood felt like ice in my veins.
I shoved Sophie aside and grabbed Ryan’s collar, yanking him close. My wolf surged forward, making my grip iron-strong. "You’re telling me the truth?"
"Y-yes! It’s true!" Ryan stammered, clearly confused.
I let him go, my hands shaking.
The air felt sharp in my lungs, each breath cutting like glass.
If what he said was true, there was only one possibility.
Clara wasn’t the person who saved me.