The Alpha's Silent Bride: Seventh Time's The Charm

~ RONAN ~

Roselle is curled up on the bed, trembling violently as her entire body shakes. My eyes dart from her to Irina, trying to make sense of what the hell is happening. Is she sick? Is that why she’s been so distant lately?

Irina rises to her feet and gives a slight bow. "She’s going to be fine," she says, her voice calm and reassuring. "It’s just an after-effect of her heat. I already gave her an injection to help, and it should start working in a few moments."

She gestures toward the nightstand, where the used syringe lies.

I nod, staring at Roselle, then back at Irina one more time. I move closer to the bed, sitting on the edge and gently pulling her into my arms.

"I’ve got you," I murmur against her hair, holding her trembling body against mine. "I’m right here."

Irina clears her throat. "I’ll have to leave her now in your care... though she’ll need the drugs. I’ll ask Elias to bring them over," she says, and then finally leaves the room, the door closing softly after her.

Roselle leans into me, quivering as she begins to break out into sobs — softly at first, then louder, a raw, broken cry that tears at something deep inside me. I pat her back gently, my hand moving in slow, soothing circles, but it feels useless. Fucking hell, is the hormone that bad to drive her this sober?

"It’s fine... it’s fine..." I try encouraging her, even though I know it’s hurting me deeply to hear her cry while I have nothing to do about it.

Shit.

It takes me seeing her this broken for me to finally realize that I... I’m worse at this relationship thing than I thought. What do I do to stop her... to comfort her?

My brain had only ever registered women as the exact type you flaunt with money, take out shopping, and do all the fun stuff with. But with Roselle, it isn’t that way... and I don’t know what to do in this case.

~ ROSELLE ~

Buried in Ronan’s arms, I listen to every word Irina says... or am I supposed to call her my mother? The mother I only just found out I have.

I have so many questions. Too damn many to throw at her.

How did everyone come to believe she was dead? Why did she leave? Why did she stay away for so long? And...

Fuck. I just can’t bring myself to ask. Because I’m afraid whatever her reason is will only make me even angrier. It just doesn’t sit right with me that while.

I never thought something could be this triggering, so capable of dragging my trauma back to the surface. Not in a fucking million years. I thought I’d moved past it. I thought Dr. Morrison had helped me climb over that wall.

But right now, it feels like a wound that had only just begun to heal has been ripped wide open all over again.

Two months of working on myself—on my emotions, my trauma, and everything I fought so hard to overcome—feels like it’s all gone down the drain.

And it fucking hurts. It fucking stings...

A broken sob tears out of me as I bury my face deeper into Ronan’s chest.

I’m trying to shut out the voices in my head, but they just keep screaming, growing louder and louder.

As I remember my own screams... my voice frantically begging to be heard. Signing while Warren yelled at me and hit me for using my hands. Watching Nova condemn every little thing I tried to do, only for Warren to beat me for it afterward.

The memories of that dark cell come crashing back, where the darkness became my only companion, the damp, suffocating smell clung to every breath I took, crusted spider webs hung from every corner, mold crawled across the cold stone walls, rats skittered through the shadows, and the silence was broken only by my own ragged breathing and desperate screams that no one ever came to answer. The countless nights I wished I could fucking talk. Every time I tried to force the words out, they only got stuck in my throat, frustrating me even more.

And then the insults... the pitying stares... the way everyone looked down on me...

And— No. No. No.

Stop. Stop. Stop.

I sob even harder, my body breaking apart with each ragged cry. It feels like my entire world has been violently flipped upside down in just three days. The worst part is knowing I have to start viewing Ronan through an entirely different lens now. He’s gone from being my safe space, my anchor, the one person who made me feel protected, to the man I should fear most. Because I can’t talk to him about any of this. I can’t pour out my fears, my confusion, or the way my heart is shattering. I can’t even see Dr. Morrison anymore to process what I’m going through.

Fucking hell... I’ll have to bury secret after secret after secret, layering them so deep inside me that they might suffocate me.

What aches the most is the crushing isolation. I can’t tell him. I can’t tell him about the pain that’s ripping me open from the inside. I can’t even tell Celeste. I can’t tell a single fucking soul. All I have is myself... and this suffocating silence.

"Do you want me to prepare a warm bath for you, and then we can have dinner... maybe see a movie together?" His voice is soothing, gentle against my ear, like warm honey poured over broken glass. "Would that help with how you feel?"

I shook my head slowly, tears still streaming down my face. "I... I don’t know," I whispered, my voice comes out a stutter, betraying my resolve. "I just don’t know... I don’t want it."

Dinner passes in a blur. Ronan is attentive, patiently trying to feed me small bites and making sure I take the medication Celeste brought. I feel a fragile thread of relief now, the shivering has finally stopped, and the effects of the injection seem to be subsiding. But I’m still not okay.

I force a small smile onto my lips, the kind I know he expects from me, the "normal" version of myself. Every muscle in my face aches with the effort. I nod at the right moments, laugh softly when he teases me gently, all while my mind screams in the background.

Later, he cuddles me close on the bed, pulling my body against his warmth, shutting my eyes tightly, trying to lose myself in the familiar safety of his arms. I replace the beautiful moment with memories of better days, letting his cologne drift over me like a comforting blanket. But the question is how long would I keep up with doing this?

~ RONAN ~

I watch her sleep at last, her body finally still except for the occasional hiccup that escapes her lips. I can’t shake the nagging thought Kael planted in my head. There’s something wrong with her. I hate admitting that bastard is right, but over time I’ve come to accept that Kael is the smarter one between us. If he says something is off with Roselle, then it’s real. I just don’t know what it is yet... and it’s fucking killing me to watch her go through this as an after-effect of the heat.

I mind-linked Elias earlier, and his explanation only made it worse. Because her wolf is still suppressed, the aftershocks hit harder. Irina is working on identifying the exact chemical they used on her, but I’m losing patience. Every time I see how volatile it makes her wolf, it drives me insane.

And I’m terrified for her future heats. What if this happens every time? What if she wakes up overwhelmed, broken, and terrified again and again? Hell... I can’t let that be her reality.

Her soft snores eventually fill the room, a gentle rhythm that eases the knot in my chest more than anything else tonight. At least she’s resting.

I pull her closer, wrapping my arms around her as she instinctively curls into the cocoon of my warmth. She adjusts and nuzzles until she finds the perfect spot, her head resting on my chest, her breath warm against my skin. Only then do I let my eyes close, exhaustion finally pulling me under.

"No, please... forgive me... Please... I never knew... don’t kill me..."

I jerk awake, heart slamming against my ribs. She’s mouthing the words in her sleep, her face twisted into a deep frown, brows furrowed in pain as she pleads. Her body is tense, muscles locked, and she’s shaking again—the same trembling that plagued her earlier.

"I love you, Ronan... but please... don’t kill me..."

I reach for her, ready to gather her back into my arms, but hearing my name on her lips like that stops me dead. My entire body freezes.