Chapter 131 The Most Painful Betrayals
“Skyla? She seemed perfectly fine when she was rescued this afternoon. How did she end up jumping again?”
On the other end of the line, Henry explained.
“After everything settled down this afternoon, she went back with her family. Apparently, something was said at home that she couldn’t handle, so she jumped. Before it happened, she sent a text to Sophia, and that’s how we found out.”
Felix’s brow furrowed, his face darkening. “How is she now?”
“She’s gone,” Henry replied. “A neighbor called the cops, and the body’s already been taken away. Sophia and I are at the morgue now, but she’s really not doing well. Mr. Rowe, you should come by.”
Felix ended the call, his heart sinking.
He turned to look at Abigail, who was chatting and laughing with Amy, completely unaware of the gravity of the situation.
For a moment, Felix didn’t know how to break the news.
When he returned from the call, his expression was grim, and Abigail immediately sensed something was off.
“What’s wrong? What happened?”
Chapter 131 The Most Painful Betrayals and it had to be Skyla.
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Amy, always cager to be in the middle of things, would definitely want to go check it out.
But it wasn’t the kind of situation where her curiosity would be helpful. Amy would just cause more trouble.
So, Felix decided to keep the news to himself.
“It’s nothing, just… I’m a little tired. Let’s get Amy home, yeah?”
Abigail could tell he was holding something back, and she guessed it was something he didn’t want Amy to know about.
She nodded, understanding.
“Yeah, it’s getting late anyway. We’ll get you home—got work
tomorrow.”
Amy clearly wasn’t quite ready to leave, but with both of them saying it was time, she reluctantly stood up.
They went down to the parking garage under Felix’s building to grab the car, with Abigail behind the wheel.
After dropping Amy off, it was already past midnight.
As they watched Amy head upstairs, Abigail turned to Felix.
“What happened? Is something wrong?”
Felix’s expression turned serious. “We need to go to the hospital. Skyla… she’s gone.”
Chapter 131 The Most Painful Betrayals The words hit Abigail like a punch to the gut.
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Her mind went blank, and for a moment, she felt as if she were
in a daze.
It took her a long beat to process what he had said, and when she finally did, her face drained of color.
That was a young person, a living, breathing person, gone before she ever really had a chance to live.
She hadn’t even been given a fair shot at life–how could it just end like this?
Felix noticed her shaking and gently placed a hand on her
shoulder.
“Can you drive? If not, we can get a ride service.”
Abigail shook her head, taking a deep breath and forcing herself to regain control. She started the car again and headed for the hospital.
On the way, Felix filled her in on everything Henry had said over the phone.
They rushed to the hospital, barely making it there in time. Before they even reached the morgue, they could hear the gut–wrenching sound of someone crying from the hallway.
It was Claire, Skyla’s mother.
“You left like this? How am I supposed to live without you?
Chapter 131 The Most Painful Betrayals everything away like this?
“You’re gone… so I might as well be too!”
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The grief was so raw, so intense, it hung in the air like a physical weight.
Abigail and Felix followed the sound of the crying and found Claire sitting helplessly on the floor outside the morgue, supported by police officers and Skyla’s father, Daniel.
Inside the morgue, under a white sheet, lay what they knew was Skyla’s body.
Her hand hung limply, pale and lifeless.
In the hallway, Sophia sat shivering on a cold metal chair, her head bowed. Henry was beside her, trying to offer some comfort.
Abigail rushed over and pulled Sophia into a tight embrace. Felix walked over to Henry and gave him a reassuring pat on the shoulder.
Seeing Abigail, Sophia broke down completely, tears streaming down her face.
“It’s my fault. If I’d just tried harder today… if I’d been more prepared… maybe we could’ve won the case and Skyla wouldn’t have…” Her voice cracked, rough and barely audible, her body shaking uncontrollably. She was gasping for air, and the pain in her words was palpable.
Abigail could hardly imagine the weight Sophia was carrying, as Skyla’s defense attorney, feeling like she had failed the young
Chapter 131 The Most Painful Betrayals Sophia’s grief that she was crushed by the p
pressure.
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Abigail’s own eyes filled with tears, unable to stay indifferent to the anguish in front of her.
She com
patted Sophia’s back, trying to offer some comfort.
“It’s not your fault. You did everything you could, Sophia. You’ve done your best.”
Despite Abigail’s words, Sophia couldn’t stop crying. Through her sobs, she handed Abigail her phone.
“This is the last message Skyla sent me,” she said, her voice barely above a whisper.
Abigail took the phone, and Felix leaned in to read along with
her.
[Sophia, thank you so much for everything you and your friends did for me today. You made me realize that not everything in this world is cold. But I’m sorry, I’m going to let you down. I can’t take it anymore. I’m so tired. My parents want me to just accept this injustice, for the sake of my reputation, but… if that’s the case, I’d rather just end it. Sophia, goodbye.]
Abigail’s hand trembled as she held the phone, Sophia leaning against her shoulder, finding what little comfort she could in her
presence.
Henry looked at Sophia, his heart aching for her, his own face darkening with worry.
Just then, Justin arrived, now in his police uniform. When he
Chapter 131 The Most Painful Betrayals “This is your case, right?” he asked.
Felix nodded.
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Justin sighed deeply. “It’s such a shame. A young life, like that. You all try to stay strong. Don’t blame yourselves too much.”
Felix’s concern only grew. “What happened? She was fine when I saved her earlier today. She went home with her parents… How could she end up…”
Justin shook his head, his expression heavy.
“After she got home, she had a big fight with her parents. They thought the case had blown up too much and that it would hurt her reputation, so they tried to convince her to drop it. They just wanted everything to blow over, to make it all go away.
“But the girl… she just wanted justice. Her father hit her. He yelled at her, said he’d warned her not to go out late, not to dress so provocatively. She never listened. And now… look what happened. She was crushed, couldn’t take it, and ran out. Not long after, she jumped from the rooftop of their building.”
The most painful betrayals often come from those closest to you.
In that moment, Abigail finally understood the meaning of that saying.
Just then, Skyla’s parents erupted into another argument.
Claire grabbed Daniel and started hitting and shouting at him.
Chapter 131 The Most Painful Betrayals
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“It’s your fault! You’re the one who said those things to her! If you hadn’t pushed her so hard, she wouldn’t have jumped! You took my daughter’s life from me–why wasn’t it you instead?”
Daniel shoved Claire to the ground in a fit of rage, his voice shaking with pain. “You think I’m not hurting too? She’s my daughter, damn it! But what else was I supposed to do? Everything I said, I said for her own good!”
