CHAPTER 82

"You chose this path, Claire," Nathan continued, his voice now a low, dangerous growl. "I could have revealed my identity to you a thousand times, and it wouldn't have made a difference."

"You never would have believed me. You were so blinded by your greed, by your ambition to climb higher, that you couldn't see the truth right in front of you."

"You chose to betray me, to side with a man who fed you nothing but lies, and now you’re paying the price for your own ignorance."

Claire’s breath hitched in her throat, her anger now mingled with a creeping sense of guilt and despair. "But… but I loved you," she whispered, her voice breaking as if clinging to some last shred of hope.

Nathan laughed, a bitter, mirthless sound that sent a chill down the spine of everyone present. "Loved me? Is that what you call love? You didn’t love me, Claire. You loved what you thought I could give you—status, power, influence.

"You loved the idea of being married to a man who could elevate you, but when yo