The Heiress Revived from the Ashes.
Chapter 91 Too Late for Redemption
Finished
“Officer, I can testify! She tried to strangle one of our patients, and she stabbed someone with a knife! Please, you must arrest her at once! If you don’t, the entire hospital will be in chaos. It’s already causing panic among the patients and interfering with their treatment!” Willow said.
The officer gave a grim nod and reached for his handculs, ready to take Lauren away.
But just then, Alice forced herself up from the floor, despite the searing pain in her abdomen.
You will not touch my daughter!” she said, her voice fin and unyielding. Her eyes were resolute, her tone brooking no argument.
Five years ago, she had failed Lauren once already. She would not, and she could not, stand by and watch it happen again.
Even Elliot stepped forward. “My sister didn’t try to kill anyone, he said. His voice was tired, but his tone was unwavering.
Seeing both Elliot and Alice openly siding with Lauren Willow clenched her teeth so hard it hurt, but on the surface, she maintained her worried façade
Mother, Elliot, both of you were injured by Lauren! She tried to kill you on purpose! If she isn’t locked away, what happens when she wakes up? She’ll kill us all just like she tried today!”
Elliot snapped. His gaze turned sharp and cold as he barked, “Shut up! There was no murder attempt. I said no, so no it is. Officers, thank you, but this is a family matter. No need to trouble the police with it.”
Lauren’s body had already been pushed beyond its limits. She would not survive another stint in prison.
Even Elaine had testified and admitted that it wasn’t Lauren who left her in a vegetative state. Which meant Lauren had spent five years behind bars for a crime she didn’t commit.
The punishment she had endured had never been hers to bear. But she bore it all the same. A broken leg. A missing kidney. A healthy body shattered beyond recognition.
Lauren had once been the brightest student at Hoverdale First High School, but prison had robbed her of everything, including her future.
Now, watching Lauren’s frail body in Lucas’s arms, thinking of her suffering through those years of torment, Elliot felt his breath twist with pain.
“Elliot…” Willow started to speak again. But the dagger–sharp look Elliot threw her way made the words die on her lips.
The officers exchanged glances. It was not their place to meddle in another family’s affairs. After a cursory check on Alice’s and Elliot’s injuries, they gave a few instructions for immediate treatment and left.
As soon as they were gone, the tension holding Alice and Elliot together unraveled. Exhaustion swept in like a crashing tide. Alice, pale and bloodied from her wound, swayed. Then, with a dull thud, she collapsed in a pool of her own blood.”
Elliot’s face was pale as well. His legs buckled, nearly sending him to the ground after her.
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Chapter 91 Too Late for Redemption
Finished
quickly collected themselves and rushed to call for help ordering staff to take Alice and Elliot away For emergency treatment.
The moment they left, the room fell into silence.
Lucas looked down at the unconscious Lauren in his arms, his heart in a panic. Without thinking, he tried to lift her, wanting to get her immediate medical care. But Marilyn shoved him back with all her force like a mother bear protecting her cub. Her eyes blazed with Jury as she shouted, “Don’t think that saving Ms. Bennett just now makes up for what you did five years ago! You, the Bennett family, and Kenneth, you’re
all rotten to the core!
Marilyn’s shove sent Lucas stumbling. It was as if someone had ripped the soul from his body. Her words, sharp as knives, plunged straight into his heart. His lips trembled. He wanted to explain, to defend himself, but every word tasted hollow and empty.
His mind played back Elaine’s denial again and again. She insisted that Lauren had never harmed her. The memory struck him like a hammer, blow after blow, making his head pound as if it would split open.
Pain twisted through Lucas‘ expression, and his body shook ever so slightly.
Back then, he had been so sure and convinced that Willow was kind and innocent, that she would never harru her best friend, Elaine.
He had believed Willow was the one being framed.
And Lauren was always the stronger one. She had been the one who could endure anything. She was Willow’s elder sister. Surely, she could take her place in prison for five years. She would only be twenty- three when she got out. She would still have plenty of time to live her life,
Lucas had never thought that his decision would lead to Lauren being brutalized in prison, left disabled, her life completely rewritten.
Now, the truth was laid bare, and Lucas was left with nothing but regret. Regret so deep, he had no idea how to make amends..
Lucas stood there, frozen, as he watched Marilyn slowly crouch down and carefully lift Lauren onto her back. Every movement was so gentle, as if she were carrying the most precious treasure in the world.
With Madam Kate and Anna supporting her on either side, they made their way out of Elaine’s hospital room slowly and deliberately.
Lucas stood still like a statue. His gaze was hollow, his soul drowning in an ocean of regret and anguish.
Sunlight streamed through the window, casting its golden glow over him, but it did nothing to ease the cold gnawing at his heart. No warmth could reach him now. It felt as though his spirit had been wrenched from his body, leaving behind nothing but an empty shell. And in this hollow husk, guilt festered and -spread, consuming him until he trembled beneath its crushing weight.
“Lauren…” Lucas whispered, her name slipping from his lips in a hoarse murmur. A single tear welled at the corner of his eye, glimmering as it fell. For the first time in his life, he tasted what it was to be fragile.
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