Lahat ng Kabanata ng RIGHTFULLY MINE : Kabanata 61 - Kabanata 70

OWEN'S POV I haven't been getting good sleep. Each morning I arrived at the office earlier than the last not to work but to sit in silence pretending everything was under control. But the reality was, that day changed me. I hadn't stop thinking about Zoe’s trembling voice when she spoke to me, her hands covered in blood and the fear in her eyes. Alexis’s voice kept replaying in my head too “Do you really believe I would get locked up here?”So when I opened the door and saw Zoe there I was frozen in shock.She sat at her desk going through papers like nothing was wrong. I caught my breath. I wasn’t sure if she was real. But she looked up and smiled.“Morning,” she said softly.I was still staring.She looked... better. Not like before all of this began, but not broken either. Her eyes looked worn out but she looked confident again. That strength I had always admired was in her posture, her hold on the pen and in the way she gazed at me.“You’re back?” I finally said, my voice roughe

ZOE'S POV ‘Granted bail? To someone who tried to kill me?’ I couldn’t move for a few seconds after the judge spoke. My legs went weak. My breath got caught in my throat. Alexis was granted bail. Not acquitted—no, not that. But she get to walk, breathe freely and smirk with that wicked calm like she always does. And that was enough to send shivers down my spine.I turned my attention to Owen who was motionless with his jaw clenched and his eyes blazed with anger. His hands were made into fists on the bench. His neck muscles stood out as he forced himself to calm down.The courtroom emptied fast. People gathered their things and whispered as they left. I stood still. Numb. Watching her. Alexis.Sitting there beside her lawyers. Smirking. Smiling with her chin tilted like she’d just won an award. Our eyes locked. She didn’t need to speak. I could read the message in her smug expression.This is just the beginning.And right then, something inside me cracked. Not with fear this time, bu

AUSTIN’S POV “You really still believe you can beat her? Get Alexis locked up?”I looked Owen dead in the eye letting the silence stretch after my question.He took his time responding. But I saw doubt in his eyes and the way his jaw clenched and relaxed as if he was searching for the right words. But he was struggling with more than just my question. He was also struggling with himself. Because my words weren’t just about Alexis or the case. They were a mirror.A mirror that asked: Do you really think you’re strong enough? Smart enough? Deserving enough to protect Zoe?Finally he said “We have enough to send her to jail.”He spoke with that fake calm people use when they are trying to convince themselves as much as the person they are talking to. I almost laughed. Not because it was funny—but because it was so easy. The seed of doubt was already in him. I just had to water it.I smiled at him but it didn't reach my eyes. “Then you better give it your all, Owen. Make sure your lawyer

ZOE'S POV My legs felt weak as I walked inside my apartment. The room felt heavy even with the windows open. It didn’t matter. Nothing felt real anymore. Austin was silent behind me. I sat down feeling worn out.He offered me something to drink. I wasn't even sure what. Water, maybe. I nodded and accepted it without a word. I just gazed at the glass. I didn’t drink it. I couldn’t. My mind was reeling, spinning between Alexis vanishing, the stunned look on Owen’s face in that courtroom, and the way I peeled his hands off me like they no longer belonged.“They should’ve seen this coming,” Austin said eventually, his voice breaking the silence like a crack in glass. “Owen... he was just being confident for nothing. He knew what Alexis was capable of. She’s escaped justice before. If he really wanted to protect you, he should’ve taken precautions.”I didn’t respond. Not immediately. What was there to say? Austin wasn’t wrong, and that made it hurt even more. Owen had assured me. He made

ZOE’S POV The apartment was quiet except for the sound of cartoons playing on the TV. “When is daddy coming?” Jamie asked with his eyes still glued to the screen, totally into the animation. “He should be here soon, honey.” I replied. I curled up on the couch holding a cup of tea I had almost forgotten. I was in my own world.I took my phone, scroll through contacts. I wanted to dial Owen's number. But then I stopped and tossed the phone on the couch.‘He probably won't pick up.’It had been over a week since Alexis disappeared—slipped away like a ghost from the courtroom steps—and ever since, Owen had been pulling further and further away.I tried to convince myself it was temporary. That he just needed time. That maybe he was busy, or maybe something was going on behind the scenes with the case. But deep down, I knew better.Owen was avoiding me.He still came to the office occasionally, but only for what was absolutely necessary. Meetings. Reports. The kind of things that didn