Chapter 444 - 40 Lila Transformed
Daniel’s POV
I tensed, every muscle in my body coiled like a spring, ready to intervene if Sasha made any move toward Lila. The smug expression plastered across Sasha’s face suggested she believed she held all the cards in this twisted game, and perhaps in the corrupt judicial system she did, but I wasn’t about to let her lay a finger on the woman who owned my heart.
"Lila..." I stepped forward, my protective instincts overriding everything else, but she turned to face me with steel in her gaze that froze me mid-step.
"I gave you the opportunity to handle this situation your way, Daniel, and you failed miserably. Now we’re doing this my way, and you’re going to stay out of it." Her tone carried the unmistakable authority of someone born into the underground nobility, leaving no room for argument and rendering me helpless. I stood paralyzed as Lila redirected her attention to Sasha with lethal grace. "So you’re the infamous Sasha? I must say, I expected someone more... formidable."
"Well, aren’t you a spirited little thing," Sasha’s mocking smile spread across her heavily made-up face like poison. "Did you know you’re sleeping with my husband, sweetheart?"
"Your husband?" Lila responded with the kind of composure that came from years of navigating treacherous family politics. "I believe you’re mistaken. He’s your ex-husband. And I must commend your creativity. I’ve witnessed pregnancy scams, offshore account schemes, even arranged marriages for territory, but fabricating a judicial reversal? That’s certainly innovative."
"Oh, so he told you about our little situation, Daniel?" Sasha taunted, her eyes flicking toward me before returning to Lila like a predator sizing up prey. "Listen, darling, this isn’t some street con. He’s legally bound to me through contracts that run deeper than you could possibly understand, and soon he’ll grow tired of his common little mistress and return to where he belongs."
"Common?" Lila’s laugh was both elegant and cutting, the kind of dismissal that could destroy reputations in our circles. "I’m not the one standing half-dressed trying to manufacture drama in another woman’s home."
"Like what you see? I’m twice the woman you’ll ever be, sweetheart. And if you had arrived just minutes later, you would have found my husband exactly where he belongs." Sasha’s vulgar insinuations made my stomach churn with disgust.
"You know what, little girl," she continued with venomous confidence, "all he needs is one taste of what we had to remember what he’s been missing and come crawling back to real family connections."
"I sincerely doubt that assessment," Lila replied with unwavering poise. "He doesn’t appear particularly aroused by your theatrical display. Trust me, I’m intimately familiar with his reactions when genuinely interested."
The self-assured way Lila handled herself filled me with an unexpected surge of pride mixed with concern. "But allow me to clarify something about your pathetic divorce scam. It’s approaching its expiration date. The hearing is scheduled, and your entire charade will officially crumble. Everyone in this room knows the truth: your divorce was finalized years ago, and that document you’ve been parading around, claiming judicial reversal, is nothing but fabricated desperation, a last-ditch attempt to cling to someone who wants nothing to do with you. Your behavior is so pathetically transparent it almost inspires pity."
Lila’s comprehensive knowledge of the situation caught me completely off guard. I glanced toward Xavier, who gestured subtly for me to remain silent and let this play out.
"My, my, aren’t you an observant little thing? Almost intelligent for a nobody," Sasha sneered with increasing desperation. "Let me offer some friendly advice, sweetheart. Stay out of my way, because his parents are firmly in my corner. They’ll make your miserable existence even more unbearable until Daniel eventually abandons you for someone with proper bloodlines."
"That’s no longer your concern," Lila stated with the kind of finality that ended conversations in our world. "Now put your clothes on and remove yourself from my residence. Because this is indeed my home."
"You have nothing here, you pathetic social climber," Sasha laughed, lunging forward with her manicured claws extended toward Lila’s face.
With surprising fluid grace, Lila caught Sasha’s wrist mid-swing, pivoting elegantly as if executing a choreographed dance move. She raised her elbow and connected solidly with Sasha’s jaw. While Sasha doubled over from the unexpected impact, Lila maintained her iron grip on the captured wrist, yanked her forward and delivered a devastating kick to her midsection. Sasha collapsed to the marble floor as everyone watched in stunned silence.
"Please collect your belongings and leave immediately," Lila instructed with regal authority that would have impressed any family don. "I have zero tolerance for individuals like yourself—trashy drama queens who believe the world should bow because they can throw tantrums and manipulate corrupt officials."
"You worthless nobody, I’ll destroy you completely," Sasha snarled, scrambling to her feet and charging at Lila with renewed fury.
Lila simply sidestepped with dancer-like precision and swept Sasha’s legs, sending her crashing down again with embarrassing force.
"I refuse to engage in street brawling," Lila declared with icy calm. "But I cannot speak for Zoe’s restraint. Take my advice and salvage whatever dignity you might have left. Get dressed, leave with some semblance of class, preserve that surgically enhanced face, and when the hearing arrives, accept the divorce with grace. Go find some wealthy elderly mark to swindle while you still possess whatever looks you’ve purchased, because your entire world is about to collapse spectacularly."
"You bottom-feeding little bitch, I’ll ruin everything you touch," Sasha hissed through clenched teeth, her composure completely shattered.
Lila had struck directly at Sasha’s most vulnerable weakness—her desperate vanity and insecurity about her artificially constructed appearance.
When Sasha rose again to launch another attack at Lila, who stood her ground with unwavering confidence, Zoe intervened decisively, grabbing Sasha’s arm and securing her in a professional headlock.
"You know what? I’m exhausted by this pathetic display," Zoe announced, dragging the struggling Sasha toward the exit. Before leaving the room, she called over her shoulder with dark amusement, "Ivy, dispose of this trash’s belongings out the window. She can retrieve them from the street like the garbage she is."
As Zoe hauled the screaming Sasha through the apartment, Ivy followed through enthusiastically, tossing Sasha’s designer clothes, shoes, synthetic wig, and expensive purse out the floor-to-ceiling windows. Lila cast one final, unreadable glance in my direction before walking out with the others.
We followed the procession as Zoe roughly escorted Sasha toward the building’s exit. The elevator accommodated Zoe with her struggling captive, followed by Ivy, Lila, Gemma, and Ruby. We men took the second elevator, and panic began clawing at my chest with increasing intensity.
"What exactly does she know?" I demanded the moment the elevator doors sealed us in privacy.
"Everything, Daniel. We couldn’t keep any of it from her," Jude replied grimly.
"I’m completely finished," I groaned, slamming my head against the elevator’s polished metal wall in frustration.
When we reached the ground floor, Zoe was already marching Sasha through the lobby toward the street. Upon reaching the sidewalk, she pushed her roughly onto the concrete.
"There you go. You should consider yourself fortunate this is an upscale neighborhood. Look, nobody touched your pathetic belongings. Now gather your things and disappear before I change my mind and drag your face across this pavement like I’ve done to others who crossed the wrong people." Zoe’s threat landed with brutal effectiveness as Sasha stared up at her in genuine terror.
"This isn’t over, Daniel. Not by a long shot," Sasha shouted, then turned her venomous glare toward Lila. "And you, you little homewrecker, you can be absolutely certain you won’t end up with him in the end."
Sasha turned away and approached her scattered possessions littering the sidewalk. As she bent to collect her designer items, a car full of young men drove past, taking in the spectacle. The driver honked appreciatively, and as they passed, one passenger yelled out the window, "You need some serious work done, lady."
Sasha straightened up, giving them an obscene gesture as tears of rage and humiliation streamed down her heavily contoured cheeks. The men in the car weren’t the only ones finding entertainment in her downfall. Adler, unable to contain his amusement, decided to add insult to considerable injury.
"Hey there, miss, need transportation? There’s a patrol car right around the corner. Don’t worry about your hair situation—you can finish dealing with whatever happened to it later. Looks like there’s barely anything salvageable anyway," he joked, apparently referencing some previous embarrassing incident.
"You bastard," Sasha hastily pulled on her wrinkled dress while continuing to gesture obscenely. Fortunately for her remaining dignity, a passing taxi stopped at her frantic waving.
"Goodbye, trash," Zoe shouted with obvious satisfaction as Sasha furiously climbed into the cab.
Sasha had been eliminated from the apartment and our lives, but the damage to my relationship was already done. I faced an enormous challenge in earning my little one’s forgiveness, but I was absolutely certain I wouldn’t give up on her, no matter what it cost me.