Fated To Three Betrayed By All Until She Rose (Leilani) by Ahvahh novel Chapter 14

**Healing Slowly But Surely**
By R. Joseph

**14 Rage and Hatred.**

**Caelum.**

I stood there, rooted to the spot, as I watched Leilani enter the house. Her posture was regal, head held high, back straight as if she were a queen surveying her domain. It was an impressive sight, yet it did little to quell the storm brewing inside me.

Oddly enough, my feelings towards her were not fueled by anger. Sure, I felt a flicker of irritation at the public humiliation she had just dealt me, but that was a mere ember compared to the heavy weight of unease that now settled in my stomach like an immovable boulder.

Fear gnawed at my chest, a relentless creature clawing its way to the surface, urging me to chase after her. My body still tingled with the echoes of our previous encounter, her presence sending shockwaves through my very being.

There was something undeniably different about her now. She seemed weary, almost closed off, and I hated myself for wanting to break through that wall. I longed for her to look at me the way she once did, as if I were the sun, the moon, and all the stars in the universe combined. Not the way she had just moments ago, with disdain etched across her features.

“She hates us,” my wolf, Ashen, lamented softly, but I quickly pushed his voice aside. No, there was no way Leilani could harbor hate for me. It was simply impossible.

“Caelum, I’m so sorry,” Chalice interjected suddenly, her voice slicing through my thoughts. She wrapped her arm around mine, her gaze fixed intently on the spot where Leilani had just stood. “I know she’s angry with me, but I never anticipated she would take it out on you. Please, don’t punish her!”

Her electric blue eyes shimmered with unshed tears as she looked up at me, and in that fleeting moment, the chaos surrounding Leilani faded into the background.

I pulled her closer, enveloping her in a warm embrace, though I couldn’t help but notice it lacked the searing intensity I felt when I was near Leilani. I had never experienced that wild, uncontrollable desire with Chalice—the overwhelming urge to consume her, to touch her, to claim her.

“I won’t punish her,” I assured, shaking my head.

“Really?” Chalice’s voice was sharp with excitement, and I couldn’t help but smile at her enthusiasm.

Out of the corner of my eye, I caught Kael and Gavin rolling their eyes, clearly displeased that I would let Leilani off the hook so easily. But at that moment, it was more important to me to honor Chalice’s wishes than to act on my own impulses.

“I’d do anything for you, my princess,” I said, my gaze drifting away from my brothers.

Chalice’s smile lit up her face, so radiant that it crinkled the corners of her eyes. Then, she pulled back slightly, pecking my cheek before murmuring, “Let me go talk to her. She must still be feeling awful after what happened last time.”

“What happened to her last time was her own doing. You don’t need to keep inflating her ego!” Gavin interjected, his tone sharp as he stormed off without waiting for a response.

Chalice, however, paid him no mind as she glided gracefully into the house, her hips swaying effortlessly.

I watched her disappear, my heart a tumultuous mix of emotions, before turning to my brother Zevran, the one who had brought our mate back into our lives.

Our mate.

Zevran remained as still as a statue when I approached him, showing no sign of acknowledgment as I draped my arm over his shoulder.

“She’s asking for us to reject her,” he said suddenly, causing both Kael and me to freeze in disbelief.

Leilani was asking to be rejected?

That notion was preposterous!

She had loved us fiercely, lavished her affection upon us long before we ever noticed her sister. There was no way she could simply turn her back on us like that; it was utterly inconceivable.

But then I remembered her words, echoing in my mind with painful clarity. “…you’re also stupid and a coward. You go around kissing my sister but you do not have the decency to reject me and get rid of this mate bond once and for all…”

Those words rang in my ears, a stark reminder that this was no jest. She truly didn’t want anything to do with us anymore.

But I should be relieved, right?

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