Chapter 146

Elena’s POV My stomach dropped as all eyes in the courtroom turned toward him. Eric. The question that had tormented me for weeks; the one I couldn’t stop replaying in my head, finally came to a head: who would he choose? Me, or Sara? The silence stretched unbearably long. I could hear my own heartbeat thundering in my ears, my fingers digging into the edge of the table as if gripping it could somehow hold me together. Every muscle in my body screamed, waiting for his decision. Then he leaned forward, calm, collected, as though the world’s weight rested lightly on his shoulders. “I abstain,” he said. My brain froze. My hands went limp. Abstain? He… he abstained? No. That wasn’t possible. He had seen the evidence. Every single piece of proof Nova had painstakingly gathered was right there: documents, testimonies, recordings. He had watched Sara manipulate, intimidate, and lie. He had promised…he had promised me…he would make her answer for everything she’d done. And now he just… stepped