"What?" I expressed my disbelief.This is the first time he spoke in favor of me in public.
"I believe Luna. I'm convinced she's innocent," Ash asserted with clarity.
Darius's gaze towards us became shadowy and complex.
"Don't believe me." I mocked from behind, my smile tinged with sarcasm.
"Given the numerous times you've cast me as the villain, one more won't make a difference."
I attempted to walk past Ash to leave but he firmly grabbed my wrist. I turned around and found that he didn't look at me. Instead, he confronted Darius with a question. "In what situation does someone use death to claim innocence?"
"Don't be misled by her," Darius cautioned with a cold voice.
Ignoring him, Ash continued, "I was thinking about this all our way here. She is not afraid of death and she intends to prove her innocence by dying.When a person was so wronged by everybody that she prefers death to prove innocence, it means..."
He paused due to the sadness in his voice before he could resumed. "It means she has faced countless misunderstandings but she is unable to defend herself. She resorts to this extreme measure as her only proof. Darius, she tried to end her life in front of me after you left her, not one, in two times. She didn't wish to live any more."
Excellent! I finally understood what Ash was thought about as he keep looking at me for all the afternoon.
He might have misinterpreted my smile - the one I wore thinking about my leaving from here and going home - as a final relief from all those grievances.
I noticed Darius's fist tremble, a sign of his inner turmoil. A hint of pain flashed through his eyes.
I couldn't help but try to interrupt their speculation.But Ash suddenly pulled me towards the gates of the Vale family before I could say anything.
He insisted, "They don't believe you but I believe in you this time, Luna. Come with me."
"No," I brushed off his hand and said.
What I have done took Ash by surprised.Ash looked at me with astonishment in his eyes.I offered a cold smile."Stop playing the good guy, Ash. I don't trust you at all now."
Ash cared about me so much.Under his vigilant watch, I could find no way to take my life if I stayed with him.
This would hinder my plan of going home.
Provoking the already agitated Darius to kill me seemed like a better strategy.
As long as things were handled properly, it's possible to achieve the perfect ending I desired, where I could go home and he ended up in jail.
