Fated To Three Betrayed By All Until She Rose (Leilani) by Ahvahh novel Chapter 146

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

**Loss.**

Caelum.

A gnawing guilt consumed me, burrowing deep into my very being. It felt as if it were drilling through my soul, relentless and unforgiving, as I sat there, a silent witness to the painful truths being unveiled by Leilani’s lawyer.

“…We are also suing for bullying which made my client here suffer from emotional, physical, and psychological distress…” The lawyer’s voice rang out, each word striking like a hammer, relentless and true.

Every single word she uttered was a dagger to my heart, and I couldn’t deny it.

We had been cruel to Leilani—no, more than cruel. We had inflicted wounds on her that ran deep, and I was the worst offender.

Every time I recalled the torment we—no, I—had subjected her to, the way I had hurt her over and over again, all in the name of Chalice, a wave of shame washed over me. I felt like an utter fool, a disgraceful wretch… I couldn’t even meet her gaze, the weight of my actions too heavy to bear.

My heart raced, a frantic drum in my chest, as Leilani’s lawyer approached the judge, handing over a large brown Manila envelope. “These are the evidence of her abuse,” she declared, her voice echoing in the hushed courtroom.

I felt my body go rigid, frozen in place.

In that moment, clarity struck me like a lightning bolt. We were doomed to lose this case. I understood the extent of our cruelty, the inhumanity of our actions. If Leilani had preserved those documents for this very moment, we were finished. No judge with a shred of decency would allow us to escape unscathed.

No one could see the horrors we had inflicted on her and let us walk away unpunished.

Without a second thought, I stood up, disregarding the piercing stares of my brothers. “I don’t think we need to go into that,” I stated, my voice steady yet strained.

The judge raised an eyebrow at me, his expression unreadable, but he remained silent. In truth, we had the resources to fight this, to overturn the verdict. But I would rather face the gallows than inflict another ounce of pain on Leilani by pursuing that route.

“We plead guilty,” I declared, my voice unwavering.

Kael and Zevran appeared momentarily stunned, their expressions a mix of disbelief and confusion. Even Leilani seemed taken aback, her eyes wide with shock—though I couldn’t blame her.

“We did everything she accused us of and more. Let’s bring this to an—”

“Do you know what you’re saying?” Our lawyer hissed, his voice a sharp whisper as he shot me a furious glare. If I were a lesser man, he would have launched into a lecture about the ramifications of my decision. But now, he merely trembled, pointing to a paragraph in a document I had no desire to read.

“She’s suing you for two hundred million, and if you agree… you’ll need to pay that amount immediately. Do you understand that?”

I turned my gaze away, the weight of his words sinking in. “I do,” I replied quietly.

“Good. So allow me to do my job, Alpha, please. This isn’t worth losing that much money over.”

His condescending tone grated on my nerves, and in a surge of anger, I seized a handful of his collar and retorted, “She is worth losing that much money for. And just so you know, we’re not really ‘losing’ it. We’re paying for the things we did to her. This is our karma.”

Honestly, I half-expected Kael and Zevran to disagree with me, but when they both stood up in unison, echoing my sentiments in their own words, I was momentarily taken aback.

Leilani’s eyes widened as she turned to us, but after that initial surprise, she showed no emotion.

No joy, no sorrow. No anger, no frustration.

She simply leaned in and whispered something to her lawyer, who nodded curtly before returning to the judge, her voice icy as she stated, “The restraining order is necessary and should be signed too, because it is the only way my client feels she will be safe from them.”

I felt my heart drop.

Safe from us.

How could this be? Why did she feel that way?

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