HEART BOUND

LEON!

(Season 1)

CHAPTER 45

Everyone was present in the living room. Liora's eyes kept flickering From Rhine who kept engaging her to Kalen who was sitting there like always, like nothing happened. Or maybe nothing really happened.

"pumpkin are you okay?" Kai asked when she noticed how distracted she was.

"I... I'm fine" she answered with a smile

"Li there is something we need to tell you" Zach said, he sounded worried and troubled.

"what happened?" Liora asked with a frown. Zach glanced Kalen before letting out a sigh.

"Emm...Ruben and Mrs Brown's sentence was today" he pause for a moment, waiting for her reaction..... He was a father to her for years after all. Even though he wasn't the best father.... She once saw him as a father.

"oh...." was all she could say. Yes she felt really bad that both of them ended up like that. But at the same time she was happy justice was finally given to her dead mother.

The room fell silent, the only sound the soft hum of the air conditioner. Liora's eyes dropped to her hands, her emotions warring in her chest. She felt a mix of guilt, sadness, and... relief. It was a twisted feeling, knowing Ruben and Mrs. Brown were paying for what they did to her mother, but it didn't erase the memories of the man who'd raised her. Kalen's gaze was like a weight on her skin, but she refused to look at him, unsure what she'd see.

"How are you feeling, Li? Really?"Kai's voice broke the silence, soft. The concern in his eyes almost had Liora undo. She swallowed, forcing a small smile.

"I'm... okay. Just... processing, I guess." Zach and everyone's worried gaze didn't ease, but he nodded, letting it drop... for now. What was left unsaid hung in the air like a storm cloud.

"There is more...." He knew what ever he was going to say would break her, but it was good she know...... "We found your father...... Your real father, Leon" Liora's breath hitched.

The room froze, the air thick with tension. Liora's eyes locked onto Zach's, her mind racing. Father. The word echoed in her head like a scream. Leon. Her real father. A stranger's name, a stranger's face flashing in her mind. The room spun, Kai's worried face a blur.

"What... what do you mean?" she whispered, her voice barely audible. Kalen shifted in his seat, his eyes burning into hers, but she didn't dare look at him...

He found her father? The man that left and was never there? The man she never knew was her father until four days back, when Ruben confessed it?.

"I guessed you would have a lot of questions, so I asked them to find him" kalen's voice was flat. He stared at her for a while before looking away

Liora's emotions surged like a storm, anger and hurt and curiosity swirling together in a toxic mix. Four days ago she never thought she would ever see the man who was really her father. They found her father, what was she supposed to say to him? Her eyes snapped to Kalen, his profile unreadable, like he was watching a show.

"And?" she spat, her voice low and venomous. "where is he?" The words hung in the air, loaded with a challenge. Kai's hand slipped into hers, a silent show of support, but Liora's focus was on Kalen, waiting for him to speak...

Kalen's gaze slid back to hers, his eyes glinting with something unreadable.

"He's alive, that's you can know for now." The words dropped like a stone in a well, ripples of shock spreading through the room. What is he saying. They found him and they don't want to tell her where he is? Is this a game or what?

"We know you're confused, but it's not the best time for you to meet him right now" Zach explained.

"Liora calm down, I'm sure they have a reason..... Maybe it is really not the right time" Rhine said worried that liora might break down, but Instead the opposite happened... Liora's anger flared like a match struck in a dark room.

"Not the best time?!" she repeated, her voice rising, incredulous. "You guys found him and you're deciding when I get to meet him? Who are you to decide?!" The words tumbled out, a mix of hurt and betrayal. Her eyes darted between Kalen, Zach, and Rhine, like they were strangers.

"Is this some kind of joke?!" She pushed up from the couch, her movements sharp, like she was about to bolt. "I want to see him. Now." The air was thick with tension.

Kalen's expression didn't shift, but his voice took on a hint of warning.

"Liora, you need to calm down. This isn't a game. We have reasons." Reasons. The word fueled her anger.

"What reasons?! He's my father! You don't get to decide this!" She took a step forward, Kai standing up beside her, trying to intervene.

"Li..." Kai began, but Liora cut her off.

"No, I want answers. Now." The room was a pressure cooker about to explode...

Rhine moved quickly, stepping between Liora and Kalen, her eyes pleading.

"Liora, stop. Just... stop. Let's talk about this calmly." Her voice was a gentle buffer, but Liora's anger wasn't dissipating. She glared at Kalen over Rhine's shoulder.

"Tell me where he is," she demanded, her voice low and dangerous. Kalen's gaze locked onto hers, unyielding. Everyone was shocked with Liora's reaction..... She was so sweet and calm, but at that moment, that wasn't the case.

"Not yet." The word hung like a challenge. Liora's jaw clicked shut, a storm brewing inside her...

Kalen stand up and casually walk away, like nothing just happened.

The air seemed to deflate with Kalen's nonchalant exit, leaving the others staring after him. Liora's anger simmered, confused by his lack of reaction. Zach sighed, rubbing his temples.

"Liora, he's doing this for a reason. Let's... give him space. We'll talk about this later." But the words fell flat, the tension lingering like a bad smell. Kai put a hand on Liora's shoulder.

"We'll figure this out, Li." But Liora's eyes were on the door Kalen had walked out of... She sigh in defeat. Tears dropped down her face but she quickly clean it. And walk away....

✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨

After the heat in the living room Zach went to kalen's study to confront about how blunt he was to liora. He wanted to handle the whole thing his way to avoid stressing Liora but Kalen just had to ruin everything. Zach burst into Kalen's study, irritation etched on his face.

"What was that, Kalen? Had to be so... detached?" He flopped into a chair, exasperated. "Liora's already on edge, and you just... dropped a bomb and walked away."

Kalen leaned back in his chair, eyes on the papers in front of him. "I wanted a reaction. Rhine said something about her being bipolar so.... ." The dry response only fueled Zach's annoyance.

"You're playing with fire, Kalen. She deserves to know what's going on." Kalen's gaze lifted, a hint of something like amusement in his eyes.

"She will. When I'm ready. As for now I've gotten what I want " Zach threw up his hands, knowing arguing with Kalen was like talking to a wall...

"You think it's fun using people in your games?. If anything happens to her you know I won't spare you" Kalen's expression shifted, a flicker of something cold and sharp in his eyes.

"I'm not playing a game, Zach. I'm protecting her. And you know exactly what I'm capable of." The air thickened, Zach's anger hanging in the balance.

"You better be right about this, Kalen." The warning was clear. Kalen's gaze didn't waver.

"I am." The study fell silent, tension crackling between them... The silence stretched, Zach's jaw clenched in frustration.

"You know what happens when you push people too far, Kalen." The veiled threat hung in the air, a reminder of old scars. Kalen's eyes narrowed, a hint of warning in them.

"I'm not pushing her. I'm guiding her." The distinction was lost on Zach.

"By shutting her out?" Kalen leaned forward, his voice low.

"By doing what needs to be done." Zach know Kalen never do anything with out a reason, but this wasn't right. One way or another the other liora will find out about everything. Not just about Leon but about them too

TBC