Chapter 706
[ 493 words ]
Chapter 706:
The face that had once seemed so gentle and compassionate looked monstrous on the screen.
There was no escaping the fact that Rola was guilty.
“Ethan, if you erase the surveillance footage, we can still turn this around,” Philip urged. His aged voice echoed through the room, laced with equal parts temptation and warning. “Agree to it, and I’ll have Rola testify against Ivy so Ivy bears the entire blame. Rola can save her reputation, and you can reunite with Lianne, make her your Luna, and put all of this behind you for a peaceful future.”
I stared at him, unable to believe what I was hearing. Put everything behind us?
W𝗲 𝗎𝗽𝘥𝖺𝘁𝘦 𝗲𝘷𝗲𝗿𝗒 𝘸𝗲е𝗄 𝗼ո 𝘨𝘢𝘭𝗻o𝘷𝗲l𝘴.𝖼оm
A future built upon lies would be nothing more than an illusion standing over Lianne’s father’s grave.
“I won’t do it.” I cut him off without hesitation. “I won’t destroy the evidence, and I certainly won’t rob Lianne’s father of the justice he deserves.”
Philip sprang to his feet in a rage, pointing a trembling finger at me as he shouted, “Fine! If you’re determined to see this through, then get ready to collect Rola’s body! At her age, once she goes to prison, she’ll never walk out alive!”
I lowered my eyes, hiding the turmoil within them. I answered quietly, “If Rola truly ends up imprisoned and suffers because of it, I won’t be unaffected, nor will I ever be able to live peacefully beside Lianne. But none of that is enough to justify twisting the truth. Once Rola is incarcerated, I’ll do everything within my power to make her remaining days there as comfortable as possible.”
With those words, I turned and walked away.
By the time I made it back to my hotel room, night had fallen completely.
My heart felt unbearably heavy.
On one side of the scale stood Rola, the woman who had raised me. On the other stood Lianne, the woman I wanted to love and protect for the rest of my life.
Whichever side I chose, the agony of that decision felt raw enough to suffocate me.
I did everything I could to behave normally, carrying on with my work and conversations as if nothing had happened, but the crushing gloom surrounding me was impossible to hide.
“Ethan.” Lianne walked over from behind and gently rested her warm hand on my shoulder. Her voice was tender, filled with concern. “I saw you go to the resort’s meeting room earlier. Did someone come to see you? Does the pack need you to handle something urgent? If that’s the case, don’t worry about me. Go back and handle your responsibilities. I can take care of the children here.”
I turned to meet her gaze, looking into those clear eyes overflowing with worry.
For a brief moment, countless words begging for mercy on Rola’s behalf rose to my lips, only for me to force every one of them back down.
How could I possibly say them? How could I ask her to forgive the woman who murdered her father?
.
.
.
If you find any errors (non-standard content, ads redirect, broken links, etc..), Please let us know so we can fix it as soon as possible.