The Mate He Forgot Chapter 20

The Mate He Forgot Chapter 20

By the time Arabella arrived at the Echelon Pack’s estate, she was already pouting. No one came to open her door like 

they usually did. 

Annoyed, she shifted her purse to one hand and opened it 

herself. 

The moment her foot hit the ground, a force yanked her 

sideways. A thick blindfold was pulled over her eyes. 

Panic surged like ice through her veins. 

“Let go of me!” she screamed. “Do you even know who I 

am?! I’m Rhett’s mate–touch me and you’ll regret it!” 

Her shrill voice grated on the guard’s nerves. One of them delivered a sharp kick to the back of her leg. 

“Shut up. If you want to live, stay quiet.” 

That threat finally silenced her. Trembling, Arabella bit back her sobs as she was dragged through what felt like endless corridors. The air grew dense, harder to breathe. 

Then the blindfold was ripped away. 

Rhett stood in front of her, eyes like storm clouds. She 

flinched on instinct. 

“What’s wrong?” he said coldly. “Afraid? Or just feeling 

guilty?” 

He grabbed her chin roughly, forcing her to look at him. 

“Rhett?” Her voice quivered. “Why are you doing this? Why… 

why are you having me tied up like this?” 

“You really want to play dumb right now?” His grip tightened, 

making her wince. 

“I–please-” she choked, unable to speak clearly through the 

pain. 

Only then did he let go, tossing her backward as if her very 

touch disgusted him. 

“Still acting, Arabella? Still playing innocent?” 

“Where’s Isla?” 

The name sent a jolt down her spine. She stammered, 

backing away a little. 

“I–I don’t know! I swear, her travel arrangements were made by my parents. I wasn’t involved.” 

Rhett didn’t flinch. His expression was unreadable, like a wall 

of ice. 

“Really? Then maybe this will jog your memory.” He threw a 

phone into her lap. 

Arabella fumbled to catch it–and froze when she saw the 

messages. Her messages. 

The ones she’d sent Isla. 

Her face drained of color. 

“I just wanted her to stop chasing after you,” she whispered. 

“I was trying to protect what we had…” 

“I love you, Rhett. Even if you mistook me for someone else, 

even if you bonded with me thinking I was her–it doesn’t 

change the fact that we’re mates now!” 

“So you admit it,” Rhett growled. “You admit you chased her 

away.” 

Arabella’s eyes widened in panic. “Wait–I didn’t mean-” 

But it was too late. 

Rhett nodded to the Beta behind her. A moment later, a slap 

cracked through the air, landing hard against her cheek. 

She cried out. Blood pooled at the corner of her lip. 

“You lying bitch,” Rhett snarled. “You and your damn parents conned me–and you drove Isla away. And all this time you 

kept playing the victim like you hadn’t done a damn thing 

wrong!” 

“Seriously? She’s your own sister–and you had the nerve to 

send her wedding photos? What kind of sick person does 

that just to twist the knife?” 

Arabella looked up at him, and something inside her 

snapped. She laughed bitterly. 

“You think I’m the only villain here?” she spat. “You think 

you’re blameless, Rhett?” 

“Every awful thing I did to her–you let happen. You stood 

there, blind and proud, while she watched us sleep together, 

eat together, laugh together like she was nothing. You let her 

rot beside us in silence, and now what? You want to punish 

me for it?” 

“She’s my sister?” Arabella sneered. “And she was the woman 

you claimed to love?” 

“You didn’t even recognize her!” 

Rhett’s face twisted in rage. He lunged forward, hand closing 

around her throat. 

“You dare talk to me like that?” he shouted. “After everything 

you’ve done–you want to throw the blame back at me?” 

Arabella’s eyes bulged. She gasped, clawing at his wrist, but 

he didn’t loosen his grip. His fury surged, violent and raw. 

Seconds passed like hours. 

Only when her body slumped, face pale and motionless, did 

he let go. She hit the ground like a rag doll. 

For a moment, he stared at her in silence. 

Then he kicked her side lightly. Still breathing. 

“Good,” he muttered. “Don’t die just yet.” 

He grabbed a silk cloth from the table, wiped the blood from 

his hands, and turned to the guards. 

“Keep watch. Make sure she doesn’t die.”