Fated To Three, Betrayed By All… Until She Rose. Chapter 222: His name

Leilani.

Morning did not co by quickly. In fact, it turned out to be the slowest approaching morning I’ve ever seen in my entire life; and as I slept within the cramped space of my car, I couldn’t help but be extrely hyperactive.

Why?

Because it was impossible for to not feel Zevran’s eyes on or the way his arm brushed against mine whenever any of us turned too much.

I could also feel his warmth, spicy and sweet drifting through the space between us, sending jolts and jolts of unnecessary tension bubbling through my veins and scorching my skin.

We suffered through the discomfort— and I say ’we’ because I knew that he was suffering too— for most of the night, and when the first rays of the sun finally slipped through the sky, it beca quite impossible to hide the relief from my face.

I turned to a sleeping Zevran and tapped his shoulders gently with the hopes of waking him up; And when he still wouldn’t budge, I tried again, only for a stifled gasp to slip past my lips when he suddenly grabbed my hand and pulled flush against his chest, his warm breath fanning my face as he rasped out;

"What is it?" He asked, sounding groggy.

"Wake up." I bit out, my heart pounding in my chest at the thought of being this close to him.

I didn’t want to but I could feel his hands on my waist, holding still. I could also feel the way his chest rose and fell rapidly against mine and hear the almost inaudible low guttural sound that slipped past his lips when I moved slightly, my inner hips brushing against the bulge in his pants.

He held for a second too long, his deep eyes swirling with sothing dark as he stared pointedly at my face; And after a mont— one that felt too long— he finally slowly let go and scooted backwards, his voice small as he whispered;

"You startled ."

But I was the more startled one.

However, because I felt too uncomfortable, I couldn’t bring myself to speak right away so I simply pulled the door open and stepped out, hating how hot my face was despite the cold air.

Zevran, as if to make matters worse, followed out and goddess, I hated that my eyes found his body as soon as he stepped out of that car. I hated that I found him good looking, that—

"It’s morning already," he said suddenly, snapping out of my daze, "...and I think it’s best we leave now."

I turned to fully face him then and surprisingly, all my earlier traitorous thoughts vanished as soon as I was brought back to reality.

I cleared my throat and folded my arms across my chest, my eyes eting his defiantly as I said; "Yes, we should leave."

"Do you want to go ho first or see your mother?" He asked , and at the mont, I began to wonder if I was sane for hating how quickly he was snapping back to the reality of my fucked up life.

How he seems so hell bent on making the already awkward situation between us less awkward...

His eyes darted from my face to my hair and I took a step back when he leaned forward to tuck a stray strand of hair behind my ear, his rough fingers grazing over the skin of my cheek as he did so.

And goddamnit! that made my face heat up in a way that made want to smack his head into my car’s bumper!

It made want to pretend to be an ostrich and bury my face into the sand!

I took another step away from him, not missing the way his face fell almost instantly as he watched move further and further away.

I shrugged; "Take to my mother." I said, and for a minute, he froze. He seed not to understand the words I’d just said until it settled sowhere in his head and he nodded.

And in a quiet voice, he muttered; "Okay."

Before we left, I went back to the sea, washed my hands and feet. I also took a mont to stare out at the vast water body while I wondered if this was the right decision to make.

If I indeed wanted to see the woman who was solely responsible for making my entire life a living hell right from the start.

The three made my heart race so much that I feared I would soon hyperventilate. And after successfully gathering myself together, I stepped away from the beach, walked up to Zevran who was leaving against my car and said;

"Let’s go."

His eyes roved the entire length of my body for a very brief mont and then he turned away without a word before stepping into the car. I followed suit.

And as we drove for the next hour plus, looking for our way back to civilization, we nestled in worlds only we could imagine.

The drive was quiet but it wasn’t awkward, and while I was sure he had his own things to think about, I spent my own ti dreading this eting with my mother, and at the sa ti, looking forward to the information I was sure to get out of her.

And I hope I do.

I really hope so.

—

Hey chat, I know that if I was to ask any of you for the first thing my mother said to as soon as she saw walking into her cell, none of you would correctly guess it, so I would spare you all the stress and go straight to the point.

She said; "You? You bitch? Are you here to make mockery of my situation?!"

And while that should sting, it didn’t. If anything, it gave reasons to not feel any form of sympathy towards her even after seeing her in such a disheveled state.

It made hate her for being so unfeeling towards and for hiding the entire truth about my birth from for so long.

My eyes stung with tears but they weren’t tears of sorrow. They were tears of anger— a barely concealable anger— and frustration.

I sighed and with shaky limbs, crouched before her so that we could be on the sa eye level. In a voice that was so cold— it even sent chills down my spine— I drawled; "Fancy eting you again, mother."

My mother frowned.

Often, I used to wonder why she never liked . I used to bother about why she would always look at like I was nothing but a piece of shit; And whenever she looked at in the way she was looking at now, I would feel bad.

But I didn’t now.

I smiled. "I didn’t co to make a mockery of you even though that is almost tempting to do. I ca to talk to you."

Mother paused as if she didn’t hear correctly, her eyes widening slowly as she took in the stony expression on my face.

For a mont too long, she didn’t speak. And just when I had begun to think that she wouldn’t, she finally said "I have nothing to say to you."

But I couldn’t help but notice how weak she sounded. I couldn’t hear the slight tremor in her voice.

My hand shook as I brushed her hair away from her face, my voice dripping with feigned concern as I whispered; "I can help you out of here."

She stopped and raised her gaze to et mine.

"I can drop all charges... I can make you a free woman once again."

All of those were lies ant to reach under her skin, and I was probably doing it right because then her lashes fluttered close. She dropped her gaze, staring at the floor while her breath ca in short quick pants.

"Please." She whispered softly, sounding like she was about to cry, and knowing that she was close to breaking gave the perfect opportunity I had been looking for.

I hissed. "Who’s my father?"

She froze.

Her eyes widened slightly and I could swear that I heard sothing akin to a gasp slip past her lips even though they never parted even for a second.

She slowly lifted her eyes to et Zevran who was quietly standing right behind and then she dropped her gaze to et mine.

"That’s a weird question, Leilani," she hissed, "you know who your father is."

For a mont, I was so enraged that the idea of smacking her face sounded pleasant to my ears. But pushing that thought away, I closed my eyes, heaved a sigh and asked softly;

"Do you wish to remain here?"

Her lips puckered. "No."

"Then tell the truth."

A mont passed... and two.

Silence.

She wouldn’t speak. She wouldn’t even look at .

Her sudden reaction was begging to grate on my nerves so I fished out the DNA results from my purse and threw it at her feet.

I knew that she couldn’t pick them up due to the clasps around her wrists but that was not the point here. The point was to let her know that I had carried out a DNA test.

And that I knew she was lying.

And true to my expectations, as soon as she saw it, her shoulders fell, her eyes widened slowly and she looked away.

"Mother?" I called out, hating the way my voice trembled; And at the sound of my voice, she turned to again, her eyes teary as she whispered;

"Ragna."

"Huh?"

"Your father is Ragnar."