Fated To Three, Betrayed By All… Until She Rose. Chapter 181: Lost her

Kael.

Chalice scread like a banshee while being dragged out of the court room by Gavin, but do you know what else I felt besides frustration?

It wasn’t anger. It wasn’t disgust.

It was sha. Pure unadulterated sha!

And do you know what was most shaful?

The fact that Leilani turned to glance at us just once before shaking her head and turning away.

When I saw her do that, I felt like I had been doused with a bucket of icy cold urine. Like I had suddenly been thrown into a cocoon of embarrassnt. My heart fell to my stomach when I saw the fleeting mockery in her gaze before she turned away.

And goddess, I wasn’t mad at it. I wasn’t annoyed at all. I was simply ASHAD.

I wanted to go to her. I wanted to talk to her... to plead with her. But now, I had one dilemma, which was: what do I say exactly?

How do I apologize for all the years of torture? Of negligence? Of enabling Chalice’s deviousness?

How do I face her after all the things I’ve done and said to her? How do I look into those beautiful purple eyes that haunt my dreams without feeling like such a fool? A fool for easily believing the lies told about her... a fool for believing that she was a slut for so long...

’Because you’re a fool and a coward. In fact, you’re a foolish coward.’ My wolf answered in my mind, successfully twisting the knife deeper into my chest.

My heart ached as I watched her talking in hushed voices with her lawyer, and by the ti she was done— and I was courageous enough to take a step forward in her direction, Frostclaw had stepped in. He wrapped his arm around her waist, holding her close; and every second, every minute I stood here watching them together, chipped away at sothing in my heart.

It made my limbs go numb, made my breathing beco labored. And heck, it made want to die. I utterly, absolutely wanted to dig out the earth and bury myself whole.

I knew that I had no right whatsoever to be jealous, but I couldn’t help it. I couldn’t control the sudden possessiveness, the jealousy... the hurt gnawing at my chest.

Against my better judgent, I began to weave my way through the crowd to her. I vaguely heard her talking about sothing that had to do with a DNA test, and as if suddenly catching my scent, she turned around and cocked her eyebrows at , her voice cold and wicked as she drawled;

"Alpha Stormborn."

Alpha Stormborn not Kael. Not mate. Not anything informal.

Alpha Stormborn.

This girl sure knows how to hurt people with very polite words.

She sure knows how to pull out your heart, twist it and crush it under the sole of her feet by just throwing a few words around.

The corners of my eyes stung and I knew then and there that I could cry. That I was on the verge of tears because of a woman, and there was a great chance that I could ruin my reputation in that manner.

My hand shot out before I could stop myself, and then—

Frostclaw grabbed it.

Smiling, he said; "Are you fine, Alpha?"

"Do I seem unwell?" I snapped back, my voice sounding more aggressive than I had intended.

He tilted his head to the side, watching carefully. Then after a mont of silence, he finally shook his head and muttered; "You seem just fine."

But at this point, I was no longer paying him any attention. I didn’t even want to talk to him anymore as all of my attention was solely on the girl by his side— the girl who at the mont didn’t even spare a glance.

Her cold indifference hurt in more ways than I could explain, and my wolf— stupid and annoyed at — whined in my head.

I sighed. "I need to speak to you, Leilani."

She looked at one more ti then shared a look with Frostclaw. She hissed; "Okay, I’m all ears."

It took a mont to realize what that ant. That she wanted to talk to her right in front of this man, this man who wants my woman like a fish needs water, and I frowned.

"No, I an... I need to talk to you in private."

For a mont, she didn’t respond. She looked like she was about to turn down. My heart raced in anticipation, and goddess, if she says no, I would understand.

I swear I woul—

"Okay."

I gasped. "Really?"

"Yes, we’ll just talk outside." She said and with that, began to walk away without giving enough ti to get a grip on myself.

I followed her closely as she walked out of the courtroom and as we went, I couldn’t stop trembling. I couldn’t stop rehearsing the things I wanted to say to her; But upon our arrival at the parking lot, everything I had rehearsed flew straight out of my head and into the gutters, and I was left staring at her, with my mouth hung open like a ntally ill patient.

I stuttered; "Leilani, I- I... shit, I wanted to talk to you but now, I can’t bring myself to say the words."

She tilted her head to the side and cocked her eyebrows.

"Please stop looking at like that." I hissed under my breath as a sudden strange kind of heat began to spread across my face and ears.

Wait guys, am I blushing?

Jesus, am I?

Geez!

No no no, not now. Not here. First I wanted to cry, then this? This? How the hell is she even stirring emotions I never knew I had awake?

I dropped my head so quickly one would think I was a contortionist, scratched my neck and said in a low tone; "Please stop looking at like that."

"Like how?" She asked, her face scrunched up in confusion... and was that amusent? Is she revelling in my discomfort?

Before I could answer those questions, she took a deep breath and stepped back. And in that split second when she glanced away from , I snuck a quick peek at her pretty face and whispered;

"You’re looking at like I am stupid."

"With all due respect, Alpha Stormborn, you are." She drawled instantly; But I wasn’t mad. If anything, I took it as a complint.

A small smile played across my lips as her words echoed in my mind, but before I could bring myself to smile fully, I suddenly rembered how I had hurt her in the past. How she had begged for rcy, how she’d pleaded innocent.

And what was worse?

How I had refused to listen.

And my smile imdiately dropped.

I gulped and whispered; "Leilani, words cannot express how sorry I am. And heavens know that I do not expect you to forgive —us — so easily, so I have co up with sothing better..."

"Which is?" She snorted, interrupting ; But I didn’t miss the sharpness in her tone and the sudden icy edge which now laced her voice.

It stuck out to .

"Give a chance to prove how sorry I am to you. Give us a chance to make it right and to make up for all the things we did to you in the past... I am sorry, I really am; and after everything I just learned today, I’ve finally co to the conclusion that I was stupid. That I was wrong and I want to— no, need to— make it up to you."

She went quiet for a mont, watching carefully like I’d just sprouted a second head, and then in a voice that was as sweet as honey, she seethed; "You were indeed stupid, my Lord. But this isn’t Hollywood where there’s sothing called a happily ever after. This is the real world and I have long since co to terms with the fact that I do not wish to have anything to do with you or your brothers."

"Leilani—"

"I appreciate you trying to patch things up but there’s nothing left to patch. It’s all broken. So with that said, I’d love to take my leave now." She said,

She didn’t even wait for my response. She didn’t even wait to see the effects her words had on .

Goddess, I couldn’t even bring myself to react. I couldn’t move nor speak, but could only watch her walk away from whilst feeling like I had lost her this ti for real.

—that she was not just walking away from , but out of my life as well.

And then, I literally crumbled.