The Broken Heiress Returned For Revenge

CRUELLA

My heart shattered—no, it exploded—into a million jagged pieces the moment Ethan pushed me aside and strolled into the lecture hall with his friends. They were laughing. Laughing. As if everything that happened between us had been nothing more than a stupid joke.

That was when it hit me.

It was all planned.

How could I have been so blinded by what I thought was love? How could I let him close enough to loosen my guard? He never loved me. Not from the beginning. He only wanted what was between my legs, and now that he’d gotten it, he could finally show me who he truly was.

“Cruella! Cruella, are you okay?” Swayer’s voice cut through the ringing in my ears, but I couldn’t look at her. I couldn’t look at anyone. At that moment, I didn’t even know if I could trust her. Ethan had pretended to care. What if she had too?

“Cruella, come on—we can skip morning lectures until you feel better. First we need to take down that video.” Swayer reached for my hand, but I yanked it away, my chest constricting painfully.

“Don’t touch me!” I snapped. “You’re all the same! You humans are so cruel! How could I have been so blind?! How could I think my life would change for the better here?!”

The pain burst out of me in hot waves, like thousands of needles stabbing into my heart. I held my chest, trying to breathe, trying to hold myself together.

Swayer’s face softened with confusion and worry, but she stayed. Of course she stayed. She always stayed.

“Ella,” she whispered, “I know you’re hurting. And I’m sorry—I’m so sorry I wasn’t there to protect you. If I had known what Ethan had planned, I would never have suggested going to that party.”

Her words cracked something inside me, and suddenly the tears came harder. I wanted Greenville back—the bullying, the isolation, the cold stares. Anything was better than this humiliation. Back home, they called me useless. Here, they called me useless and a slut.

“What have I ever done to the moon goddess?!” I screamed, my voice raw. “Why didn’t you make me like one of them? Why give me such a cruel fate? Why didn’t you just kill me at birth?!”

Swayer didn’t let go even when I struggled. She wrapped her arms around me and held me tight, crying with me.

“I’m so sorry this happened to you, Cruella. I’m so, so sorry,” she whispered. She always treated me like a little sister, even though I was older. She didn’t understand what I meant about the moon goddess—but that didn’t matter.

“Don’t let them win,” she murmured as she rubbed my back. “Don’t show weakness. They want to see you defeated, but we won’t let them. I have a friend who can hack the original account and delete the video. Every repost will vanish too. We’ll skip lectures today, and tomorrow you’ll walk in there with your head high.”

Her words soothed me—just enough—and I finally raised my head. My face felt swollen, my eyes burning.

“Are you going to betray me too?” I whispered. The terror in my voice surprised even me. She was all I had left. If she turned on me too…I didn’t know what I would become.

“Of course not,” she said firmly. “You’re like my sister. And I hate that bastard for making you cry. Come on. Let’s go.”

We walked back to our room in silence. Yes—our room. We were roommates too.

“We have a test tomorrow,” I muttered as we stepped inside. “Are we really skipping classes?”

“We’ll study on our own tonight in the lab,” she said with an encouraging smile before pressing a quick kiss to my forehead. “Now rest. I’ll call my friend right away.”

When she left, the room felt too quiet, too heavy.

“What’s the point… everyone has already seen it,” I whispered to myself.

Still, I pulled out my phone. The site loaded instantly—and there it was. The first video on the playlist. My stomach twisted as I tapped it.

My face. My voice. My body.

My humiliation.

I remembered begging him to stop because it hurt too much. But now I understood why he hadn’t—because the camera needed its footage.

A notification popped up, dragging me out of my spiraling thoughts. A message. From Ethan.

“Hey babe, no hard feelings. I really enjoyed our night, can we meet up again tonight?”

My blood ran cold.

Was this the devil I’d been dating for two years? How had I not seen it? Of course I didn’t—he was sweet right up until I opened my legs.

“Fuck you.”

I sent it and blocked him instantly.

The door opened. Swayer walked in, smiling softly.

“My friend is already on it. The video will be down in thirty minutes,” she said.

I nodded weakly.

“Hey, cheer up. Sex isn’t something to be ashamed of. I’m just sorry it had to be with that asshole.”

“Easy for you to say,” I muttered. “You’re still a virgin.”

She gasped dramatically. “Ouch! I’m trying to help you, don’t bite me!”

Then she smiled again—sweet, soft, patient.

“I know what will make you feel better… chocolate cake!”

I didn’t respond. I just laid down and closed my eyes.

“Fine, or you can just sleep,” she sighed, crawling into bed next to me.

Her arm wrapped around me, warm and protective.

“Everything will be alright,” she whispered.

And for the first time since the nightmare began, I let myself believe her—just a little.