ilent tears had clearly unnerved him. He didn't understand the depth of my despair, the finality of my

matically. Her eyes fluttered, and she swayed precariously, leaning heav

to her. His voice, just moments ago filled with cold annoyance for me, wa

fragile. "I don't want to cause any more trouble. Perhaps I'm just a

eyes, now wide with panic, darted to me, a flash of accusation in their depths. He blamed m

nce Oscar-worthy. As he led her away, Jade glanced over her shoulder, a smug, triump

ged. The emotional anguish was so profound, it manifested physically, a dull ache spreading through my chest, making it hard to breathe. This was it

s a brutal spectacle, designed to break me. And for a moment, it almost did.

g a deep, shuddering breath. When I opened them, the last vestiges of love, of hope, had been ex

ut, my voice cutting

already returning to his face. "What is it, Al

ining strength. "It can't

k evaporated, revealing pure, unadulterated rage. His eyes, usually so calculating, blazed wi

ng his furious gaze without flinching. "I want out.

t even stand on your own two feet, much less leave me." He took another step, towering over me, his presen

ed up a hit-and-run to protect his true love, the daughter of the man who crippled me." Each word was a precise, calculated blow, designed to hit him w

deflated. "That's not true, Alayna! You're delusional! You're imagining things!" he stammered, his voice laced with a des

etic. The sheer audacity of his lies, even now. "Comfortable?" I echoed, my voice breaking. "You mean trap

hes from mine, his breath hot on my skin. "You think you can just walk away? After everything I've done for you? Who would take care of you? Who would want a broke

ical limitations that had defined my life for so long. But instead of despair, a cold, fierce anger surged through

e was

et fire. He thought he had broken me. He thought he had wo

my body still trembled from his aggression. "And I will walk away.

owed by a series of hurried footsteps. "Carter! My head! It's so much

ern. His grip loosened on my wheelchair. Without another word, he turned and sprinted up

ce desperate, her performance still in f