From Substitute To Queen Chapter 113

Blair's POV

That day at the hospital, after Caelan and I talked, I did exactly what I promised - I returned to the treatment center.

I went back because I needed him to think I was changing.

These past few days, I had been the perfect patient. Attending every therapy session with a smile. Taking my medications without complaint. The staff thought I was making remarkable progress.

*I know Caelan must be watching me, so I have to perform better. Let him think I'm really changing, let him lower his guard.*

But today, everything changed.

I was in my room, reorganizing my clothes in the small dresser, when my hidden phone buzzed with an incoming message. The burner phone I kept concealed behind the loose baseboard - the one no one knew about.

James. That greedy, incompetent fool.

The dresser drawer slammed shut with significant force. A picture frame on top rattled dangerously close to the edge.

*Damn it, James! That greedy bastard! I knew I shouldn't have trusted him!*

I grabbed the frame before it could fall - a photo of Caelan and me from last Christmas, back when he still looked at me with affection instead of cold disappointment. My fingers gripped it so tightly the glass began to crack.

Then I hurled it across the room.

It shattered against the wall, sending glass fragments skittering across the floor.

I began pacing frantically, my hands raking through my hair with enough force to pull several strands loose.

*Now Caelan is definitely interrogating him. If he says something he shouldn't...*

*No, no, no! I can't let him ruin everything!*

A knock at my door made me freeze. "Miss Sterling? Is everything alright in there?"

I forced my voice to sound calm. "Yes, just dropped something. I'll clean it up."

"Do you need assistance?"

"No, thank you."

Footsteps retreated down the hallway. I waited until I was certain the nurse was gone before allowing myself to truly panic.

I collapsed onto my bed, clutching my head as the implications crashed over me.

*If Caelan pieces together that someone inside his pack orchestrated this...*

I forced myself to breathe deeply.

*Calm down, Blair. Losing your temper won't solve anything now.*

I stood and walked to the small mirror above my dresser, studying my reflection. My eyes were red-rimmed, my hair disheveled.

*I need to fix this before they can open their mouths. I need to make sure they stay quiet permanently.*

My hands were trembling as I retrieved my phone from its hiding place behind the loose baseboard near my bed.

I called someone.

A voice answered on the third ring - calm, professional, completely devoid of emotion. "Yes?"

"It's me. We have a problem."

"Explain."

"James was captured. He and his father need to disappear. Completely. As soon as possible."

A pause. "Both targets?"

"Yes. All of them. Leave no loose ends."

The line went dead.

Ten minutes later, I'd cleaned up the broken glass and arranged my appearance. My hair was neat again, my eyes no longer red. I'd even applied a light layer of foundation to hide the stress-induced pallor in my cheeks.

I picked up my phone again - the official one this time, the one the staff knew about.

The phone rang twice before his familiar voice answered. "Blair?"

He sounded tired. Exhausted, really. Probably from interrogating James.

"Caelan..." I let his name come out soft, almost whispered. "I hope I'm not bothering you."

"You're supposed to be in treatment. Why are you calling?"

"I am in treatment. The doctors said I'm doing well enough to maintain family contact." I paused, letting a slight tremor enter my voice. "I... I miss you."

Silence on the other end. I could hear background noise - papers shuffling, maybe footsteps. He was probably in his office, dealing with pack business.

"You should be focusing on your recovery, not on me."

"I know. But tomorrow is family visiting day, and I was hoping..." I let the sentence trail off, as if I couldn't bring myself to ask directly.

"Hoping what?"

"That you might come see me? I know it's a lot to ask, and I understand if you can't—"

"I'll ask if Katherine is free."

"Please don't trouble Katherine with the long distance."

"She doesn't mind."

"But I do." I let genuine emotion creep into my voice - not the desperate obsession I actually felt, but something softer, more sympathetic. "She's been worrying about me constantly since this whole situation began. I hate being the cause of her stress."

Another pause. Longer this time.

"Caelan," I continued, my voice growing smaller, more vulnerable, "do you know what it's like here? Seeing all the other patients with their families?"

"Blair—"

"Everyone else has their parents, their siblings, their children visiting. And I..." I let my voice break slightly. "I'm an orphan. You're the only family I have left in this world. If you don't come, I'll be completely alone."

I heard him sigh on the other end.

"Please," I whispered. "I know I've made terrible mistakes. I know I've hurt you and Sable. But can't you find it in your heart to give me one more chance? Just to see that I'm really trying to change?"

The silence stretched longer this time. I could practically hear him wrestling with himself.

*Come on, Caelan. You've always been my weakness, but your conscience has always been yours.*

"Think about what my mother would want," I said softly, playing the card I'd been saving. "If she were still alive, wouldn't she want you to support me during the hardest time of my life?"

"Don't." His voice carried a warning edge. "Don't bring your mother into this."

"I'm not trying to manipulate you!" I said quickly, though that was exactly what I was doing. "I just... when I'm lying here at night, unable to sleep, I think about her. About how she saved your life when we were children. About how she'd want us to take care of each other."

I let tears enter my voice - real ones, born from years of jealousy and desperation and the crushing weight of unrequited love.

"The doctors here say that family support is crucial for recovery. They say that patients who feel abandoned during treatment are much more likely to relapse." This part was actually true. "I don't want to relapse, Caelan. I want to get better. But I need to know that the person I love most hasn't given up on me entirely."

When he finally spoke, his voice was heavy with reluctance and something that might have been old affection.

"Blair... this is the last chance. If you're still playing games, if you're still lying to me..."

Victory surged through my chest, but I kept my voice steady. "I understand. I swear to you, I'm done with lies. I'm done with manipulation. I just want my brother back."

"I'll be there tomorrow afternoon."

"Thank you. Thank you so much, Caelan."

After he hung up, I spun around my small room, energy crackling through my veins like electricity.

I moved to my dresser and opened the top drawer, pushing aside folded sweaters and therapy workbooks until my fingers found what I was looking for - a small glass vial filled with clear liquid.

The sedative I'd been saving for days, carefully accumulated by pretending to take my evening medication while actually storing it under my tongue and spitting it out later. Enough to render someone unconscious for hours without causing permanent harm.

I held the vial up to the light, watching the liquid catch the afternoon sun streaming through my window.

*Caelan, my darling brother, you're about to discover just how far I'm willing to go to make you mine.*