482: Ridiculous

Ridiculous

"Hmp! Good thing you know!"1

Another deep sigh slipped past Heaven's nostrils, darting her eyes between the brothers. She wanted to ask Dominic to give her a moment with Axel, but somehow, she thought it was better if Dominic would hear her thoughts about it. 

"Axel, I understand your feelings and I'm grateful that you are being angry in my stead." She smiled subtly, waiting for Axel to look back at her before she continued. "But… what do you want me to do? Don't you want me to forgive your brother? Or make him suffer to get back at him? Do you want me to drag this problem until we're both drained and helpless?"

Heaven fluttered her eyelashes, keeping her attention on him. "Axel, your brother and I… aren't perfect. We also make bad decisions and sometimes we make decisions that unintentionally hurt the people we love. But isn't that what life is all about? We make mistakes and learn from them."

"I won't deny the pain I went through the past few days and how I feel sorry for our baby." She placed her hand on her tummy. "But at the same time, I can't be that cruel to my husband and to myself. He forgave me, and I forgive him. Was it that disappointing to give people chances?"

"..."

"If forgiveness is weakness, then I'd rather be weak," she added with a confident smile. "I'd rather be weak with a heart than be a strong, empty shell."

Axel's frown deepened while staring at his sister. He opened his mouth, only to shut them again. How was he supposed to argue with her? If she forgave him for being so cruel, then what else could he do? That was her decision. 

It wasn't like Dominic was entirely a bad person. His brother was annoying at times, but he had been a good brother, overall. Axel and Dominic wouldn't have such a relationship if Dominic was just as greedy and dislikable as Silas. 

"I'm still disappointed," he remarked, glaring at Dominic. "My sister might've forgiven you, but I haven't! I'll make sure to tell you about Mom and Dad! I'll also tell Grandma about it so she can put you in your place!"

Heaven chuckled as she looked up, only to see Dominic smiling at his brother. 

"I'll take any punishment that will be given to me," Dominic nodded, shifting his eyes to his wife. "You might've forgiven me, but I also think I deserved to be punished harshly."

"Gosh. I told you there's no need for that." Heaven frowned, darting her eyes between the brothers. "I was at fault too —"

"Shut up."

"Stop."

Heaven nearly bit her tongue as Dominic and Axel spoke at the same time. Both of them looked back at her. 

"How is that your fault?" Axel was the first to break the silence. "My brother acted without thinking, so the person at fault here is him. Why do you keep carrying his sins?!"

"You did nothing wrong, love." This time, Dominic also spoke his mind. "Now that I think about it, I could've done better. So, I have to make up for you and the baby while atoning for my sins."

Sins...

"..." Heaven opened and closed her mouth, but her voice was stuck in her throat. How was she supposed to argue? The two of them looked so determined.

She sighed. "Fine. Whatever makes you happy," and waved dismissively.

A look of satisfaction appeared on Dominic's face while Axel also smiled approvingly. Seeing that Axel was smiling now, Dominic's eyes softened. 

"Thank you for taking her side and for keeping her company, Axel." After a few seconds, Dominic expressed his heart. "I really appreciated it."

Axel's brows rose, gazing at his brother with slight surprise. "I didn't do it for you! Hmp!"

"I know." 

"My sister is so precious, so I'd stay with her whether you ask me or not!" added Axel, setting his eyes to Heaven and smiling at her brightly. "Sis, I bought many buns and stocked them up in preparation for your discharge. Let's eat them all later!"

"Mhm. Sure." Heaven glanced at Dominic again, unable to take away the smile from the two of them. "Anyway, Dom, before I dress up, can you fill us in about the recent situation?"

"Hmm?" Both Axel and Dominic cocked their heads to the side. 

"I know everything was kept confidential, and Bear didn't bother telling me since I wasn't in the mood," she explained, scooting over to the side to give Dominic some space to sit on. "I think Axel and I should know what's up since both of us were discharged."

"But you should rest!" Axel argued in dismay. "I don't know what's going on, but I know it's stressful! Stay away from it."

"But I'd also be stressed out if I don't know anything," she argued back before looking up at Dominic. "You understand me, right? Please tell me. What happened after we were all admitted here?"

Dominic pressed his lips into a thin line as he studied the curiosity pooling in her eyes. Reluctance was apparent on his countenance, but since she asked, he thought they deserved to know.

"Well, where do I start?" Dominic sighed as he slowly sat beside her, darting his eyes between his brother and wife. His gaze then settled on her, knowing Axel was listening despite the hesitation in his brother's eyes. 

"What happened is, after you all got here, I was called to the station to settle some matters and make another statement." Dominic let out a sigh. "However, even when I told the truth, the investigation came up with a different result."

Deep lines appeared between Heaven and Axel's brows as they listened to Dominic's opening remarks. What did he mean by that? The three of them were certain the abduction was a setup for Dominic. 

"It turned out that apparently, Riley's family had a huge debt to the Red Scorpion Gang. And that Basti got dragged into it," Dominic continued, which made their eyebrows raise. "I wasn't satisfied with it, so I raised it to the Supreme Court. However, everything is moving slowly since many police officers were injured in the road accident on their way to Cakewalk County. Apparently, some drag racers kind of caused troubles, which explained their delay."

Dominic explained everything as much as he could. But the more Axel and Heaven listened to it, the more it sounded ridiculous and insane. They all knew everything was bullshit!

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