Chapter 203 My Worth

Arabella Westwood POV:

I sat on the bench with my elbows resting on my knees, my face hidden in my hands as I cried. My shoulders shook with every sob, and I had no idea how long I’d been sitting there when the doors suddenly opened.

Heavy footsteps hurried toward me, making me lift my head.

“Lucien! You came!”

I caught a glimpse of his guards stopping outside before the doors closed behind him. Lucien was already walking toward me, his attention fixed on my tear-stained face.

I jumped to my feet and raced toward him.

He caught me without hesitation as I jumped into his arms, wrapping my legs around his waist and burying my face in his neck, crying all over again.

I didn’t know how to explain what I was feeling. After everything I’d heard today, I’d been sitting there feeling terribly alone. And the moment I saw him, all I wanted to do was cry more.

He had come for me. A man who cared enough to leave whatever he was doing simply because I’d asked him to.

And right now, I didn’t need him to say anything. I just wanted him to hold me and let me cry for as long as I needed.

***

By the time I finally stopped crying, Lucien was sitting on the bench, holding me on his lap. I was facing him, with my legs still wrapped around his waist and my arms resting on his shoulders. I had no idea how long we’d been sitting like that, but he hadn’t once asked me to move.

I slowly lifted my head from his shoulder and found him watching me. He reached for a bottle of water beside him and held it out, but I shook my head.

“Not thirsty?” He cocked up a brow, but I shook my head again.

“All right.” He set the bottle aside and gently brushed the hair away from my damp cheeks. “If anyone walks in right now, they’ll think I’ve done something terrible to you. By the way, you know, I was quite fond of this shirt before you got it wet with your tears.”

I tried to give him an annoyed look, but my lips began trembling again.

“Oh.” His teasing smile disappeared. “That was a terrible joke. Forget I said anything.” He quickly leaned forward and kissed my cheek.

“Come on, sweetheart. No more bad jokes from me.”

I wanted to tell him I wasn’t that easy to upset, but I couldn’t trust myself to speak without crying again.

Lucien wiped the remaining tears from my cheeks with his fingers, then tucked a loose strand of hair behind my ear.

I sniffled and tried to stop my nose from running, but it was no use. After another unsuccessful attempt, I scrunched up my nose and looked at him helplessly.

He understood and glanced around, apparently searching for a tissue or handkerchief. Finding neither, he looked down at his shirt before offering me his sleeve. “Here.”

I blinked at him. “Seriously?”

“That’s what I can offer you right now, menace.” He said with a careless shrug.

Urgh. Did I have a choice? No! So, I opted for the damn sleeve and blew my nose. Yeah, I know. It was gross.

Not just anyone’s sleeve, mind you. I used the freaking Lycan King’s sleeve as a tissue. Yuck!

The whole situation was so ridiculous that I couldn’t help myself. I leaned against him and started laughing, my shoulders shaking as I tried to keep quiet.

Lucien pulled back slightly, trying to get a look at my face. “Darling, are you crying or laughing?”

“B-both!” I managed to say, which only made me laugh harder.

But somewhere in the middle of that laughter, I remembered my mother. The bald patch on her head, the four fingers she’d lost, and her back covered in scars from those fifty lashes.

My laughter died as quickly as it had started.

Oh, Mom. How much pain had you endured?

***

That day, I didn’t hide anything from Lucien. I told him everything I’d learned about my mother. How Chris had betrayed and rejected her, how Rick had used her, and the terrible things she’d suffered at the hands of the very people who were supposed to protect her.

Lucien listened patiently, without interrupting me even once. By the time I finished, I had gotten off his lap and started pacing around, too restless to sit still.

“So, what’s next?” he finally asked, leaning back against the bench. His golden eyes followed me as I walked.

I stopped and turned toward him. “I want to stay here for a while. I can’t just walk away and let Chris and Rick carry on with their lives as though nothing happened. They need to answer for what they did to my mother.”

Lucien studied me for a moment, then nodded.

“And there’s something else you should know.” I couldn’t help smiling a little. “Your mother…” he frowned, but I continued, “she tried to bind me with an oath. She made me promise to drop the investigation.”

That caught him completely off guard. “She did what?” He got to his feet. “Arabella, if she bound you with an oath, how the hell did you manage to—”

“Get around it?” I finished for him. He looked at me, waiting, probably wondering how I was still standing there perfectly fine after breaking the damn oath.

“Because your mother made one… very… big … mistake, Lucien. She thought she was binding a slave.” I lifted my chin. “But I was never a slave, Lucien. I was born an Alpha’s heir. Your mother tried to bind me as a slave, but her oath couldn’t hold me because that’s not who I am.”

Lucien looked at me for a moment before a slow smile appeared on his face.

“Then I suppose my mother has no idea what she’s dealing with.” He came closer and took my hand. “Do whatever you need to do, menace. Whether it’s Chris, Rick, or a dick, you won’t have to face them alone. I’m with you.”

And for once, I didn’t doubt him.

For years, everyone had treated me like I was worth nothing, and I’d believed them. But now I knew who I was, and I wasn’t going to let anyone decide my worth again.