After her rebirth
Chapter 82

Katniss glanced at the invitation and let out a sarcastic laugh, her eyes full of mockery.

She grabbed the invite, ripped it up, and tossed it into the trash can next to her.

"Are you nuts, asking me to be a bridesmaid? You want your wedding to turn into a funeral?" Katniss's face was ice-cold. "What if I get so jealous I stab you?"

Inviting an ex-fiancée to be a bridesmaid just to look all kind-hearted Clara really knew how to push her buttons.

"Katniss!" Clara's eyes were red, and she looked anxiously at Dylan.

A hint of fragile sadness crossed her face.

"Katniss, don't say that!" Dylan stepped in front of Clara, his tone softening as he spoke to Katniss. "This is a big deal for Clara. You're her only sister. Of course, she wants you there. Don't be stubborn and let people laugh at us." He just thought Katniss was in a bad mood, throwing a fit because her engagement got called off.

Clara looked a bit helpless, lowering her head timidly.

Katniss's eyes were cold. "Aren't I already a joke? My fiancé got stolen, and I still have to act like everything's fine and bless you? What did I do to deserve this shameless treatment?"

"Clara, I don't have a shameless sister like you. Get lost! Don't come near me and make me sick." Katniss's aura was icy, her pale face gloomy and cold.

"Clara, Katniss, what's going on?" Desmond's anxious voice came from the doorway.

Katniss looked up and saw Desmond striding in.

His eyes landed on the torn invitation on the floor, and he instinctively pulled Clara into his arms.

"What happened?" he asked.

"I wanted to invite Katniss to our engagement party, but she tore up the invitation." Clara's delicate face showed deep helplessness and fragility. She stopped talking, her eyes filling with tears as she buried her head in Desmond's chest. Her fragile and beautiful appearance evoked heartache without a word, making it seem as though the scheming and jealous Katniss had bullied her.

And Desmond's gaze was all too familiar to Katniss it was disgust, hatred, and incomprehension!

Katniss curled her lips in obvious disdain. "Don't put on a loving act in front of me. You just broke off the engagement with the me and now you're hooking up with my sister. Even if I have no shame, the Boleyn family still has some. Are all the girls in Luminous City dead? Why find a rival to be a bridesmaid? You two are really a perfect pair of scumbags. Stay together and don't harm others."

Desmond's heart trembled, anger and guilt growing simultaneously, causing a slight pain in his chest.

Unable to defy Carlton's orders, having an engagement with Katniss without explaining it to her was his fault, but Clara was innocent.

He didn't tell Katniss because he was worried she couldn't handle it and wanted to take care of her feelings.

Clara bit her lip, tears streaming down as she stood up from Desmond's embrace. "You can't force someone to love you. Before you came back, Desmond and I grew up together. I know this engagement was yours, and I sincerely wanted to bless you both. I tried to control and suppress my feelings for Desmond. I didn't want to hurt you, but I can't live without Desmond. Now that Carlton has agreed, Katniss, please forgive us, okay?"

When Clara cried, Desmond's heart broke.

Katniss's gaze was icy. "You think you're some kind of hero, almost moved to tears by your own sacrifice in this love triangle? How shameless can you be? Does your 'beautiful love' need to use me as a stepping stone to seem tragic?" She threw off the covers, gritting her teeth against the pain, and stood up. She grabbed the trash can filled with the torn invitation pieces and hurled it at Desmond.

"If you had told me the truth, I wouldn't have chosen you, Desmond!" Mira quickly stepped forward to support Katniss, giving her more strength. "If you want my blessing, wait until you're dead."

Desmond was hit by the trash can, his face turning pale. He opened his mouth, feeling he should explain something, but anything he said seemed pointless.

Mira, having heard everything, was also furious. "What kind of people are you? How can a girl be so shameless, stealing her sister's fiancé? Being a mistress and flaunting it in front of the legitimate one, you are truly shameless and vicious." Mira, still angry, looked at Desmond. "Your taste in women is poor, and you're a coward. Even my uneducated husband is better."

Then, Mira helped Katniss sit down, turned around, and forcefully pushed the two out, instructing the bodyguards not to let them in again.

"Don't let them disturb Katniss's recovery."

Only Dylan was left in the room. "Katniss, you don't seem like yourself right now."

Katniss looked up at Dylan, her lips pale as she forced a smile. "Since childhood, as long as Clara cried, she got everything. Everything she did was right. I couldn't fight. If I fought, it meant I was trying to take things from Clara, that I couldn't tolerate her."

After a pause, Katniss chuckled and continued, "Dylan, do you also think I should be Clara's bridesmaid? But does it really matter if I'm the bridesmaid? In the Manners family, I am so insignificant, less than a servant. Do others really care about me? The only one satisfied would be Clara, reveling in my humiliation and flaunting her superiority."

Dylan frowned slightly, looking at Katniss. "Katniss, you're overthinking. Clara is simple-minded and has no such malice."

"Do I have to accept it just because there's no malice?" Katniss's eyes suddenly turned cold, then she felt a wave of exhaustion. "Dylan, you should leave. I'm tired and need to rest."

Dylan moved his lips but said nothing in the end.

But as he stepped out the door and saw who was standing there, he paused and frowned. "Nathan, why are you here?"

"When Katniss had her accident, I was still at school doing experiments. I only found out last night and came to see her today when I was free." Nathan took out a handkerchief, covering his mouth as he coughed. "Dylan, isn't it too much to ask Katniss to be a bridesmaid? We all know how much she liked Desmond."

Seeing Nathan cough painfully, Dylan's frown deepened as he led him to his office.

After a moment of silence, Dylan said, "Desmond doesn't like Katniss, and he must be the Manners family's son-in-law. We can't let him go to outsiders. We gave Katniss a chance, but she couldn't make Desmond love her. So it's only natural for Clara to step in now."

"But you shouldn't have suggested Clara ask Katniss to be a bridesmaid!" Nathan was somewhat dissatisfied.

Dylan's eyes turned cold, his hands in the pockets of his white coat. "Since Desmond and Clara's engagement is set, it's better for Katniss to face it sooner. She needs to get used to Desmond being her brother-in-law. She should be able to let go! I'm not afraid to be the bad guy."