Chapter 1293
“Elliana.” Rita’s voice trembled with mounting concern. Yet beneath her worries, something deeper stirred—an instinct that whispered her daughter possessed the strength to set everything right.
They had only just found one another again. Rita carried no memories of the past, no knowledge of her daughter’s life, but the trust ran absolute—pure, unshakeable maternal instinct. She glimpsed something familiar in her daughter’s eyes: that same unruffled confidence that had once breathed courage into others.
“Come on, Mom,” Elliana said, her voice calm as still water.
“Let’s see what all the noise is about.”
Rita wavered for only a heartbeat before nodding, a fragile smile touching her lips.
“Alright.” She made her choice in that moment—to trust her daughter without reservation, to let Elliana guide them through whatever storm waited below. Together, they descended the stairs.
Downstairs, they found Karlee sobbing into Amilia’s shoulder, painting Elliana as a vicious, contemptible monster. She didn’t stop there; her lies spread like poison, dragging Bexley’s name through the mud as well.
In Karlee’s warped retelling, Bexley had been a willing accomplice, egging Elliana on. The truth—that Bexley had desperately tried to defuse the situation—vanished from her account. Now Karlee demanded her mother deliver a savage punishment to Elliana and Bexley.
Amilia’s reckless past had exacted its price. A devastating illness years ago had destroyed her ability to bear children. Karlee was her first and only child, the sun around which her entire world orbited.
Over the years, Amilia had spoiled Karlee beyond reason, ready to pluck down the moon and stars if her daughter asked. She supported every whim blindly, never bothering to find out the truth beyond her daughter’s side of the story.
Inflamed by her daughter’s theatrical sobs, Amilia didn’t spare a second to ask questions. She wheeled on the bodyguards she’d brought with her, her voice thick with malice.
“Teach those two a lesson! I don’t care if you kill them or break them beyond repair—I’ll take full responsibility!”
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The moment Amilia heard her daughter was injured, rage detonated inside her. She’d rounded up more than a dozen bodyguards in minutes.
At her command, the bodyguards lunged forward, preparing to descend on Elliana and Rita like wolves. Levi threw himself between them.
“Amilia, stop! This is Dr. Atkinson—the specialist Kaleb brought to treat Edgar. If you hurt him, how will you explain yourself to Kaleb?”
While the Thompsons wielded enormous power in Yruzias, they understood the wisdom of showing deference to the royal family. But Amilia, spoiled by years of getting exactly what she wanted, looked down on everyone. She saw Levi as nothing but an orphan, despite him being the nephew of retired King Howell. She dismissed him entirely.
Amilia flicked Levi a contemptuous glance.
“Levi, I suggest you step aside,” she sneered.
“When have I ever let anyone who harms my daughter walk away unpunished? I don’t care who he is—he won’t leave this house breathing!”
She spun to the bodyguards and barked, “Attack! I want to hear them beg for mercy! And as for that Bexley…” Her eyes gleamed, venom dripping from every syllable.
“Shatter both her arms and legs!”
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