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CHAPTER 89

Author: Shadyside2004
last update Last Updated: 2025-12-29 05:52:04

Elisa stumbled backward as though the floor itself had shifted beneath her feet.

“No,” she said quickly, the word tumbling out with a breathless apology that didn’t belong to it. “No—Leonard, I can’t. I won't do it.”

Her back brushed against the cold wood of the study’s desk, fingers curling against its edge as if it were the only thing keeping her upright. Her eyes darted briefly—instinctively—toward the infant still cradled in Leonard’s arms before returning to his face, already braced for cruelty.

“I can't do what you're asking of me,” she continued, voice trembling despite her effort to steady it. “You’re using him—using Luca—to force my hand, to blackmail me into agreeing to this. And God, you have no idea how much I want to say yes just to keep him. Just to be with my son.”

Her lips quivered. She swallowed hard.

“But I won’t betray Damian.”

Leonard’s expression didn’t change.

“I won’t,” she repeated, firmer now, as tears welled in her eyes. “I won’t destroy his company, his hard
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  • LOVE BENEATH RIVALRY    CHAPTER 113

    When Damian was done filling the form, he quietly handed the it back to Leonard.There was no triumph in his expression. No satisfaction. Just exhaustion—bone-deep, soul-heavy exhaustion that came from loving someone too fiercely while standing powerless on the sidelines of her suffering.Leonard took the form without comment.Without looking at Damian, he redirected it to one of his men, his voice low but firm.“Submit this at the front desk.”The man nodded and disappeared down the corridor.And then there was nothing.Nothing but the waiting.Time stretched in a way that felt cruel, warped—five hours that felt like five years, five lifetimes, five silent funerals rehearsed in the mind over and over again. The sterile white walls seemed to close in, the ticking of a distant clock echoing too loudly, as if mocking the fragile rhythm of the heart they were all waiting on.Leonard sat rigidly, his back straight, his hands clasped together so tightly his knuckles had gone white. He didn

  • LOVE BENEATH RIVALRY    CHAPTER 112

    Her lips were pale, almost blue. Her lashes fluttered once—barely—then stilled again.Leonard’s jaw clenched.In the car behind them, Damian was forced into a different vehicle with Leonard’s men, his protests drowned out by the slamming of doors. His wrists were free now, but the restraint was no less suffocating. His gaze never left the car carrying Elisa until it disappeared into the night, his chest tight, his heart pounding violently as dread clawed its way up his throat.By the time they arrived at the hospital, Leonard was already moving before the car had fully stopped.He pushed the door open and stepped out, Elisa still in his arms, his strides long and urgent as he rushed through the hospital doors.“Help!” Leonard called out, his voice echoing through the sterile halls. “I need assistance—now. She’s not breathing properly. She collapsed—she needs immediate attention!”The fluorescent lights were blinding. The smell of antiseptic burned his nose.Unbeknownst to him, as he s

  • LOVE BENEATH RIVALRY    CHAPTER 111

    Whilst the men were arguing, Elisa was struggling to breathe.It was not sudden. It was not dramatic at first. It crept in quietly, as though her body itself was betraying her in silence while the room was still filled with raised voices and unresolved hatred.Her chest tightened.At first, she thought it was panic. She had felt panic before — sharp, dizzying, overwhelming — but this was different. This was heavier. Deeper. It felt as though something inside her chest was folding in on itself, squeezing tighter and tighter with every shallow breath she tried to draw.Her fingers trembled as they pressed against her chest, clutching her heart desperately, as though she could physically hold it together if she pressed hard enough.Her vision blurred.The edges of the room darkened, tunnelling inward. The sound of Leonard and Damian arguing dulled, their voices warping into muffled echoes that seemed far away despite being only feet from her.She reached out.Her other hand lifted weakly

  • LOVE BENEATH RIVALRY    CHAPTER 110

    Leonard’s voice was low at first, deceptively calm, the kind of calm that sat on the edge of madness, something barely restrained. His eyes never left Damian’s face as he took a slow step forward, then another, invading his space deliberately.“Did you really think,” Leonard asked, his tone sharp with disbelief and something far uglier beneath it, “that I didn’t find out?”Damian stiffened, his jaw tightening, but Leonard didn’t give him time to respond.“Did you think I didn’t notice the multiple times you would sneak into my shared bedroom with Annalise?” Leonard continued, his voice rising just slightly now, each word pressing harder than the last. “Waiting for me to leave. Timing it perfectly. Lurking around like some obedient, innocent little boy just so you could see her. So you could stay long enough to satisfy whatever delusions and fantasies you had about having her.”Damian’s fists clenched at his sides.Leonard scoffed, bitter and incredulous. “Playing the naïve act. Playin

  • LOVE BENEATH RIVALRY    CHAPTER 109

    Leonard chuckled.It was not loud at first. It wasn’t explosive or manic. It was slow, deliberate, almost lazy—like he was savoring something sweet on his tongue. His shoulders lifted slightly as the sound left him, his lips curving into that familiar, cruel smile that had haunted Damian’s childhood and ruined countless lives since.“Did you really think,” Leonard said slowly, drawing out every word, letting it sink in, “that Elisa ever truly loved you?”Damian stiffened, his jaw tightening, his entire body going rigid as if bracing for impact.“She was using you,” Leonard went on, his smile widening, eyes sharp and merciless. “Every smile, every touch, every soft word you clung to like it meant something—none of it was real. She was doing exactly what I told her to do. Following instructions. Playing her role beautifully.”Damian’s fists clenched so hard his knuckles burned, his breath turning shallow, but Leonard wasn’t finished.“You really thought,” Leonard scoffed mockingly, a lo

  • LOVE BENEATH RIVALRY    CHAPTER 108

    The gunshot cracked through the room like a rupture in reality itself.Elisa's body was frozen.Completely still.She stood there, trembling, covered in blood that was not hers.It splattered her dress, her arms, her hands — warm, sticky, unmistakably real. Her fingers twitched faintly as if her body wanted to recoil, wanted to pull away, but her mind hadn’t caught up yet. Her vision blurred, swam, narrowed until all she could see was the unmoving form at her feet.The man who had tried to hurt her.Now dead.His eyes were still open.Staring.Empty.The sheer volume of blood made her stomach lurch violently. Her throat tightened, nausea rising sharp and uncontrollable as she swallowed hard, fighting the urge to vomit. Her knees trembled, barely holding her upright as the reality of what she was looking at crashed into her all at once.She couldn’t look away.She wanted to.God, she wanted to.But her eyes were locked on him, her body refusing to obey her desperate need to turn away,

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