From Betrayal to Brilliance Her Rise to a New Life novel Chapter 387

**TITLE: Her Rise 387**

Athena had long ago made a solemn promise to herself, a vow forged in the fires of her past: she would never look back. The weight of her history had become a burden she was determined to shed, a heavy chain she refused to wear any longer. Each memory was a specter, a reminder of the pain she had endured, and she was resolute in her decision to move forward, leaving the shadows behind.

“Lewis, that’s more than enough! I won’t engage in this conversation any longer. The past is nothing but a shadow to me now!” Her voice rang out with fierce conviction, an echo of the bitterness that had taken root in her heart. Lewis had been the architect of her suffering, the one who had dragged their once-beautiful memories through the muck, leaving her with nothing but sorrow and regret in their wake.

Yet here he stood, or rather, here he was on the other end of the line, trying to piece together the remnants of their shattered relationship with hands stained by his own failures. All he accomplished was to tarnish every last cherished recollection that lingered in her mind like a fading photograph.

“If you’ve called just to rehash this, I’m hanging up. Let’s not waste each other’s time,” she asserted, her patience fraying like an old thread, ready to snap at any moment.

“Wait! I need to tell you something!” His voice shifted, desperation creeping in, laced with a hint of panic that sent a jolt of unease through her. “It’s about our child. I want to share everything I know.”

Athena felt fury surge through her veins, igniting a fire within her chest. How dare he bring up their child? If he hadn’t lost himself in his obsession with Nina, they wouldn’t have been estranged from their own flesh and blood for so long.

“Lewis, how could you even mention our child?” Athena’s laughter was cold, a bitter sound that echoed in the silence of the room like a haunting melody. Her eyes blazed with indignation as she clenched her jaw tightly, her heart racing with a mix of anger and hurt. “If you hadn’t been so consumed by your infatuation with Nina’s baby, you wouldn’t have taken mine away from me. I’ve spent all these years apart from my own flesh and blood!”

“Do you have any idea how it felt when I discovered Dion was Nina’s son?” The pain in her voice sliced through the air like a knife, each word laden with years of heartache. “I loved him as if he were my own for seven long years! If you’re just trying to manipulate me into helping you escape prison, you’re barking up the wrong tree.”

Athena’s mind raced, convinced that this was yet another one of Lewis’s schemes to pull her back into his tangled web of lies. She had no desire to listen to him any longer; every second spent in this conversation felt like a betrayal of her own resolve.

The line fell into a heavy silence, broken only by the sound of Lewis’s ragged breathing. After what felt like an eternity, his voice emerged, rough and low, filled with an urgency that made her heart race. “Athena, I’m not asking for your help. I know I’ve made terrible mistakes, and I’m paying for them. I understand that nothing can ever undo what I’ve done. But there are things I need to tell you—things that could lead you to our child.”

A frown deepened on Athena’s face, suspicion bubbling within her like a pot about to boil over. She remained silent, allowing the tension to hang in the air like a storm cloud, waiting for him to elaborate, her heart pounding in her chest.

“Please, come visit me tomorrow, and I’ll explain everything,” Lewis urged, his tone softer now, almost pleading, as if he could sense the walls she had built around her heart.

Athena felt her patience evaporate like mist in the morning sun, frustration coursing through her. “I’m hanging up,” she said firmly, her finger hovering over the disconnect button, ready to sever the connection that had caused her so much pain.

Just as she was about to end the call, Lewis’s voice sliced through her resolve like a blade. “Athena, the man you slept with all those years ago wasn’t me!”

Her heart raced, and she quickly pressed the phone back to her ear, disbelief flooding her senses. “What did you just say?”

She had searched for her child, believing him to be hers and Lewis’s. But now, the realization that he belonged to someone else—someone she didn’t even know—shattered her world into a million irreparable pieces. Everything she thought she knew was crumbling around her.

Athena felt lost, trapped in a whirlwind of confusion. She needed to know who that man was, but her memories of that night were shrouded in haze, distant and fragmented. She couldn’t recall any details, and the uncertainty clawed at her insides, leaving her feeling more vulnerable than ever.

In the tumult of revelations, Athena found herself standing at a crossroads, the weight of the past threatening to engulf her once more. The truth about Dion’s paternity shattered the fragile foundation of her life, forcing her to confront the very shadows she had vowed to escape. As her heart raced with a mix of anger and despair, she realized that the path forward was no longer just about severing ties with Lewis; it was about reclaiming her own identity. The betrayal cut deep, yet it also ignited a flicker of determination within her. Athena understood that to rise above this chaos, she must confront not only the man who had deceived her but also the painful fragments of her own memories that had been buried beneath years of denial.

With each breath, Athena felt the embers of her resolve rekindling. This was her moment to rewrite the narrative of her life, to reclaim the agency that had been stripped away from her by the choices of others. No longer would she allow the shadows of her past to dictate her future. As she prepared to face the unknown—both in the form of Lewis’s confessions and the identity of her child’s true father—Athena embraced the uncertainty with newfound strength. The journey ahead would be fraught with challenges, but she was ready to confront them head-on. With the promise of a brighter tomorrow glimmering in the distance, Athena took her first step toward liberation, determined to rise above the pain and forge a new path for herself and her child.

**What to Expect in the Next Chapter?**

As Athena grapples with the shocking revelation that Lewis was not the father of her child, the next chapter promises to plunge her deeper into the tumultuous waters of her past. The stakes have never been higher as she stands on the precipice of discovering not only the identity of Dion’s true father but also the implications that this knowledge could have on her life and her relationship with her child. Will she dare to confront the memories she has long buried, or will she continue to shield herself from the painful truths that threaten to unravel her?

With tension mounting, Athena must decide whether to visit Lewis and hear the rest of his confession, a choice that could either lead her to the answers she desperately seeks or further entangle her in the web of betrayal and deceit. As secrets begin to unravel, the chapter is set to introduce new characters and unveil hidden connections that could alter the course of Athena’s life forever. Expect heart-pounding revelations that will challenge her resolve and force her to confront the ghosts of her past, setting the stage for a gripping showdown between her desire for the truth and her instinct to protect herself and her child. The emotional stakes are at an all-time high, and readers will be left breathless, eagerly anticipating Athena’s next move.