Chapter 204: 204 - my pain
204
~Lisa’s POV
The door closed with a heavy thud. Damon was gone. His brothers too. My hands twisted the sheets. My chest rose and fell too quickly.
I tried to breathe slowly, but my body refused. My limbs felt weak, heavy, as though I had run for miles. A strange emptiness sat in my stomach.
"Rest," I muttered. "They told me to rest. But how can I rest like this?"
I sat on the bed, the sheets twisted in my hands. My chest rose and fell too fast, my thoughts too loud to let me rest.
I rose slowly, my knees trembling, and walked toward the door. Pressing my ear against the wood, I listened. Nothing. No voices. No whispers. Just silence.
My hand hovered over the latch. Maybe if I stepped out, I would find answers myself. Maybe....
The door swung open before I could move. I stumbled back as Damon entered, his shoulders tense, his face grim. Kael and Rowan followed closely, their gazes sharp, their presence heavy.
Damon’s eyes softened the moment they found me. "Lisa... are you alright?"
I forced myself to nod, though my voice shook. "I’m fine."
Rowan’s eyes dropped to my stomach. "And the baby?" His tone was careful, almost rehearsed. "Is the baby well?"
Kael crossed his arms. "Yes, Lisa. Is the baby alright?"
A bitter laugh slipped from my lips. "Of course. The child. That’s all you see when you look at me."
his arms wrapped around me with a sudden, desperate gentleness. I froze for a moment, stunned by the warmth and strength of him, then slowly let myself sink into the embrace. His chin brushed the top of my head as he whispered, his breath steady against my hair.
"I’m sorry, Lisa," he murmured, his voice thick, low, almost breaking. "I couldn’t punish her. Not without proof. Not yet. All I could do was confine her. That is all the law, all tradition, allowed me."
I felt the brush of his lips press against my forehea, soft, lingering, carrying both apology and promise. His arms tightened as if he could shield me from the ache his words had left behind.
But his apology was a dagger turned in my chest. Confined. Not punished. Not banished. Not ended. Belinda still lived. She still breathed. She was only a wall away, locked but unbroken, still waiting for her chance. My stomach twisted painfully, my hand instinctively curling protectively over it.
I pulled back slightly, lifting my chin, forcing my tears not to fall. "So she lives. She breathes. And I am to feel safe?" My voice was steady, but underneath it trembled like a thread ready to snap.
Before Damon could answer, Kael stepped forward, his voice hard, eyes burning with that familiar stubbornness. "Belinda could never do such a thing." He almost snarled the words, as though the very accusation against her was an insult he couldn’t bear. "She has been loyal to us since childhood. She would not dare betray us like this."
My heart pounded in my ears, each beat like a drum of disbelief. Even now, after everything, they clung to her.
Rowan followed, his tone softer, but no less insistent, as though pitying me instead of believing me. "Lisa," he said carefully, his brows furrowed, "you must see reason. This cannot be her doing. You are letting fear blind you."
My eyes widened, burning hot with the sting of betrayal. Reason? They dared speak of reason when reason had nearly cost me my life?
"Reason?" I repeated, my voice cracking under the weight of anger before rising sharper, louder. "Reason is watching a woman try to end my life and still seeing you shield her. Reason is lying awake at night, knowing that she plotted against me, and still you defend her."
The words poured out, raw and shaking. Rowan flinched, his face flickering with guilt, but still he said nothing, choosing silence over siding with me. Kael’s jaw clenched tighter, his fists curling at his sides.
"You refuse to see the truth," Kael shot back, his voice rough, accusing. "Because you only trust Damon. Always Damon. As if the rest of us mean nothing to you."
I let out a bitter, broken laugh. "Trust? You want me to trust you, when all I hear from you are excuses for her? When you stand before me, not to shield me, but to shield Belinda?" My hand pressed harder to my chest, to the place where my heart hammered painfully. "You dare to speak of trust, when you cannot even offer me the simple loyalty of believing what I’ve endured?"
"And yes," I spat, tears streaming now. "Because Damon is the only one who ever stood beside me. You two? You doubt me. You defend her. And now you dare to ask for my trust?"
Rowan opened his mouth, but I cut him off, pointing to the door with a shaking hand. "Go. Both of you. Leave me. I don’t need your false concern."
Silence fell. My sobs filled the air, ragged and broken. Damon’s jaw tightened, his eyes pained, but he didn’t move. Kael’s nostrils flared, fury and frustration clashing across his face. Rowan’s head dropped slightly, his fists tightening at his sides.
But none of them spoke. I turned my face away, tears running down my cheeks.
"Go," I whispered. "Please... just go."
The room was thick with silence again. My chest heaved as I turned my face away from them, tears blurring everything. "Go," I whispered again, my voice broken. "Please... just go." Damon’s voice was low, steady but firm.
"Rowan. Kael. Leave us. I’ll calm her down."
Rowan put a hand on Kael’s arm. "Come." But I shook my head violently, my tears spilling harder.
My voice rose into a yell, sharp and pained. "No! Don’t stay, don’t come back, don’t pretend you care! I said leave! All of you, leave me alone!" My whole body trembled with the force of my cry.
Before I could draw another breath, Damon moved. In two strides he was at my side, his hands cupping my face, firm but gentle. My protest died in my throat as his lips pressed against mine. The kiss was sudden, sealing my words, silencing my pain.