Chapter 45: You Think I’m Lying

Hayley’s POV

“Let’s get this straight before you go,” I said firmly.

“Hayley, why are you being so rude? Madeline’s clothes are soaking wet; she needs to change now,” Christopher snapped, his patience completely gone. Te bared his fangs, his sharp wolf eyes glaring at me like he was ready to tear me apart.

“If her clothes are wet, it’s her own fault. What does that have to do with me? All I want is some fairness,” I shot back, refusing to back down.

“You want fairness? Fine. Let’s go to Grandpa and see what he has to say.”

Even though the commotion in the backyard wasn’t that loud, it had still drawn the attention of several guests, especially since Christopher was a popular actor from a hit Netflix show. People naturally gravitated toward him.

Soon, a small crowd gathered around us.

Sensing the eyes on her, Madeline instinctively shrank into Christopher’s arms, and he held her close, clearly trying to whisk her away. I quickly stepped in to block their path. “I said you’re not leaving until we clear this up.”

“What’s going on here?”

George had arrived. Madeline was the first to speak, her voice full of pitiful emotion. “Grandpa, I feel so hurt.”

Seeing her soaked clothes, George looked concerned. “What happened? Why are your clothes wet? Someone get Ms. Kilmer a dry set of clothes, now.”

One of the servants hurried off to fetch her some clothes.

Christopher, casting me a cold look, turned to George and complained, “Grandpa, it was Hayley. She pushed Madeline into the pool. Luckily, I got there in time before anything worse happened.”

His words were like a bomb going off, sending waves of murmurs through the crowd as everyone turned to look at me, whispering among themselves.

However, George didn’t react to Christopher’s accusation. Instead, he calmly looked at me. “Hayz, tell me what happened.”

Feeling a bit wronged, I pouted and explained everything exactly as it had happened. “I didn’t push her. She jumped in herself.”

Christopher, clearly thinking I was lying to avoid blame, gave me a disappointed look. “Hayley, I must’ve misjudged you. You can’t even admit when you’ve made a mistake.”

I shot back, “What mistake did I make? Did you see me push her with your own eyes?”

Christopher froze, clearly realizing he hadn’t considered that.

The Kilmers had been long-time allies of the Southwells, with several generations of Betas assisting in managing the Midnight Pack. George had known Madeline since she was a child, and I figured he would probably take her side.

Madeline’s eyes immediately welled up with tears, which began falling dramatically to the ground, giving her the perfect image of a wounded victim.

George asked again, “Just tell me what happened. I’ll make sure it’s handled fairly.”

Hearing his words, Madeline’s tears only came faster.

“It’s fine… it was my fault… please don’t blame Hayley, I’m sure she didn’t mean it,” she said between sobs.

I couldn’t help but laugh at her performance—what a waste that she hadn’t become an actress.

Madeline kept insisting that George shouldn’t blame me, but her words painted me as guilty all the same. She was playing the role of the sweet, selfless girl while subtly making me out to be the villain. Classic mean girl tactics.

“So, you’re saying Hayz pushed you?” George asked.

Madeline didn’t speak, but she nodded ever so slightly.

“Grandpa, I didn’t—” I started to explain, but George cut me off and turned back to Madeline.