Orion's POV
Silence hung in our shared bedroom like a physical weight. Kaelen paced near the window, his silhouette sharp against the afternoon light. Ronan sat on the edge of his bed, elbows on knees, head bowed so low I could barely see his face. And me? I was sprawled in the armchair, staring at the ceiling as if it might offer answers to questions I didn't even know how to ask.
How had everything gone so catastrophically wrong?
"I can't believe we let this happen," I finally said, my voice sounding hollow in the quiet room. "We just stood there while Damien took her."
Kaelen's jaw tightened. "We had no legal grounds to stop him. He bought her contract."
"She's our mate," Ronan countered, looking up with reddened eyes. "Our wife. That should count for something."
"Not after we treated her the way we did," I said bitterly. "Not after we drove her to run away in the first place."
