Chapter 126 Hang Up

Chapter 126 Hang Up
Danika's Pov

Panic flooded my system. Without thinking, my instincts took over and I disconnected the call immediately, slamming the phone down onto the table face first. My hand remained pressed against the back of the phone, my fingers shaking so badly that my teeth were also clattering.

Lysander was beside me in an instant. The playful, lazy warmth was entirely gone from his face, replaced by a dark, intense protectiveness. He grabbed my shoulders, his large hands grounding me as he forced me to look up at him.

"Danika? Danika, look at me," Lysander demanded, his voice deep and incredibly firm. His eyes searched my face, seeing the raw fear painted across my features. "What is wrong? What happened?”

I couldn't stop my body from shaking, if anything, it shook even more. I gripped the edges of the desk just to keep myself from collapsing onto the floor, my voice coming out as a broken, terrified whisper.

"It's... it's my mother, Lysander," I choked out, the tears finally gathering in my eyes. "My mother is back.”

“Your mother?” He repeated, confusion on his face for a moment and then, realisation slowly dawned upon him. Knowing Lysander, he must have already known what I had gone through at the hands of my mother so I didn't really need to explain things to him.

He just pulled me into his arms, as we ignored the phone ringing on the table once more.

“It's okay. It's going to be okay, I'm here with you. Okay?” He said, his voice calm as he rubbed circles around my back.

I was still shaking, and to be honest, I didn't think I was going to stop shaking anytime soon, especially with the fact that they were still calling with no intention to stop. I know my mother, and I know how forceful she could be. If I don't pick up, she could call from now till I finally pick up, she doesn't have any qualms doing that.

The relentless vibration of the phone against the wooden table felt like an earthquake in the small space between us.

Bzzzt. Bzzzt. Bzzzt.

Lysander held me tighter and I could feel the rhythmic thump of his heartbeat under my palm. But even his presence couldn’t completely drown out the rising dread in my gut. My mother wouldn’t stop.

"Danika," Lysander whispered into my hair, his grip tightening protectively. "You don't have to answer her. I can block the number. I can handle this."

I swallowed the lump of bile rising in my throat. I looked up at him, my vision blurred by tears that refused to fall.

"No," I croaked out, my voice raspy. The shaking in my hands didn't stop, but the panic was slowly turning into another sort of emotion. I knew that if I didn't answer, it would make them feel like they have some sort of power over me.

"If I don't answer, she won't stop. She’ll think I’m afraid of her."

"Aren't you?" Lysander asked gently, not as a taunt, but with understanding.

"Terrified," I admitted, my fingers tightening on his shirt. "But I'm tired of running, Lysander. I'm tired of letting her rule my life even from afar. They've coddled Natalie so much that Natalie feels like she can do anything to me as long as they're backing her up and it's wrong. She destroyed my life just for fun. Besides, I need to know why she's calling me like this."

Slowly, I pulled away from the hug. The sudden lack of his warmth sent a shiver down my spine, but I sighed and turned back to the desk. However, Lysander didn't step away. He stood right behind me, his hand rested lightly on the small of my back.

I reached out. My fingers hovered over the green icon for a fraction of a second. ‘Just do it,’ I told myself. Then, I swiped the screen, brought the phone to my ear, and steeled myself.

Before I could even draw a breath to speak, the sharp, venomous voice of my mother cut through the line, vibrating with a familiar, suffocating arrogance.

"How dare you cut the call?!" she shrieked, the sheer entitlement in her tone making my stomach turn, "Just who do you think you are, Danika? How dare you hang up on me?!"