Chapter 40|A Choice-less Situation.

**Isabelle’s P O V.

A few minutes passed after Leah spoke, she sat beside me, her eyes tinged with worry and misty with tears. It was quite obvious how she was feeling about her brother’s decision. The decision that’s tearing my heart as agonizingly slow as possible.

"I can't return to the Pack Manor." I admitted, my own ears couldn't recognize my voice. It was too husky from pain and my words were lowly spoken but rang with a finality that shouldn't be questioned. Couldn't even be questioned!

"Old Bea will help you overcome it. I will be by your side. I promise you this." She took my hands into hers by the wrist squeezing lightly, affectionately.

I shrugged my hands out of her grasp in a way that wouldn't hurt her, "You don't understand Leah. I can't stand by and watch your brother love another, marry another. I can't continue this, I can't live with this pain. I don't deserve any of it." I assured her, willing my eyes to cease from being weak. I watched as she disappeared into the closet.

"You don't have anywhere to go to Isa!" She exclaimed rushing back into the room with loads of dresses with their hangers on in her arms.

I stood my ground hard, "I'd rather be on the streets than bear witness to their wedding. My heart isn't that strong. It's already broken to smithereens, it definitely cannot withstand a harder blow."

My hurt was directed wholly at Alexander. How could me kiss me deep and hard as he did while leaving the house only for me to be stunned with news of him marking someone else? I felt the pain of the revelation all the way to the mark he's given me. It feels scorched.

The least he could've done was to let me in on what was truly happening. Not to assure me that there was a way out for us only to have the carpet swept right under my feet, but then what was I thinking? His betrothal to Arabella wasn't man made, it was a decree that couldn't be bended or reshaped. It had to be abided exactly as it was without any change incurred on it. It was a blood oath and no sane person jokes with one of those. At least, from what I've heard around the Pack.

"I can't leave you on the streets and you know that." Leah deadpanned, pushing more clothes into the box spread wide open on the bed. An idea seemed to pop into her head because she rose her kohl and mascara smudged eyes up with a wide eyed expression. "I know the perfect place to keep you comfortable if you're up for it? If you're truly against returning to the Pack manor, that is."

Curious, I asked "Where is it?" The realization that I truly had no where else to go hitting me over the head with a loud bang. Beggars can't be choosers.

"You've never been there but you'll be at your most comfortable. I promise you this, in fact, Old Bea will surely be in accordance with this. I'll let her know, you'll be safe with me, no need to worry. Should I tell Alex we're leaving?"

I thought for the briefest of moments before shaking my head slowly twice. I wouldn't want a repeat of last time. Trying to will myself to be stronger wouldn't work out if I put myself in his sight, I might melt and resist the temptation for more. For having him as mine.

"Don't let him know I'm leaving. We don't need closure," I paused, rethinking my decision. "Tell him how much I believed in him till the very end."

"If he wasn't my brother I assure you Isa I would've had his head brought to you on a pike!" She verbalized vehemently holding up a hanger in her hand, it looked like she was stabbing into the air with the object. I shuddered from the violence of the words and the action that followed after.

"Too violent. I don't wish for his death, I just wish for my own happiness and peace and I can't have any of that knowing he's with another. It kills me." I pressed the heel of my hand to the part of my chest that hurts the most. I could feel it raging.

The sound of her phone ringing cut our conversation short. She turned to me with a slight brow raise, "He's calling, should I pick up or..?" She let the last part hang in the air, the unspoken part of the sentence was quite obvious. To pick or to have him go to hell. The few weeks I spent in Leah's presence made me literate to her train of thoughts and there was always a tinge of violence here or there always waiting to be triggered.

I shrugged and quietly moved away from her to the side of the room where my phone was kept at. A few minutes into staring at my wallpaper I felt a hand on my shoulder. Surprised, I turned to a somber faced Leah.

Her expression told me that whatever was at the tip of her tongue obviously wasn't something that could turn out to be in my favor.

"Are you up for my offer? I have the perfect place in mind, I promise." She whispered against my face reassuringly, with a firm squeeze of her hand on mine Leah compelled me into following her.

I did mainly because I had no other choice. Left to me, I'd rather be in a place where nothing reminds me of him at all. But, as I said earlier, beggars cannot be choosers.

So I packed up all I needed, my phone included with the sole intention of having it returned to Francis after I get to my new temporary home. My brain went in circles trying to come up with what to do to keep me alive and moving, to have me busy and to help sustain my life. My main problem though is my inability to interact well with people. With the zeal to improve that skill, I followed after Leah who pulled my box with her and forced myself not to look back at the door and question my decision. She stopped by Ethan, told him something I couldn’t hear from the short distance between us.

I took in his nod, bade him goodbye when I got closer and he helped me into the black range-rover Leah hopped into. This time around I turned to stare at the building and felt a rush of nostalgia for what would’ve been if things didn’t turn out the way they did. With a sigh I accepted the turn of events and my fate.