Betrayed By One. Bound To Three-Chapter 51: The Grumpy One.

The triplets’ room was quiet, though not in an uncomfortable way.

The windows had been left slightly open, allowing the cool night air to drift inside. From somewhere beyond the pack house walls came the distant sounds of guards changing shifts and the low murmur of voices carrying across the training grounds.

An oil lamp burned on the wooden table beside the bed, its yellow light casting long, soft shadows across the stone walls.

Ronan sat on the edge of the bed, leaning forward with his elbows resting on his knees. Kael stood near the window with his arms folded loosely across his chest, staring out into the darkness beyond the courtyard.

Edris occupied the chair beside the table, one leg crossed over the other, looking as relaxed as a man could be while clearly thinking about several things at once.

For a while, none of them spoke.

The quiet between them was familiar.

Then Kael finally exhaled under his breath.

"Selena is still angry with me."

Ronan glanced up at him.

"Give her time to cool off," he said calmly.

Kael shifted slightly near the window, his gaze still fixed outside.

"I think she hates me now."

That drew a quiet snort from Ronan.

"Selena does not hate you."

Kael frowned faintly.

"You sound very certain."

"I am."

Edris spoke this time.

"Selena is capable of anger," he said calmly. "But hatred is not part of her nature."

Kael said nothing.

Ronan leaned back slightly on the bed.

"Besides," he added with a faint grin, "you have always been the grumpy one."

Kael turned toward him immediately.

"I am not grumpy."

Edris raised an eyebrow.

"You refused to speak to either of us for two days because Ronan finished the last of the roasted rabbit."

Kael frowned.

"I caught that rabbit."

Ronan laughed.

"You caught three rabbits. You were angry about the principle."

Kael opened his mouth to respond but Edris continued calmly.

"You also nearly started a fight with that rogue group near the river because one of them laughed too loudly."

"He was mocking us," Kael argued.

"He was drunk," Ronan corrected.

Edris added,

"And there was the time you glared at that merchant for half an hour because he tried to cheat us on the price of blankets."

"He was cheating us."

Ronan shook his head, amused.

"You see?"

Kael looked at both of them in disbelief.

"I am not grumpy."

"Of course not," Ronan said through lingering amusement.

"You simply communicate with the world through intimidation."

Edris added mildly,

"It is a very distinctive personality trait."

Kael shook his head in mild frustration, though the corner of his mouth twitched despite himself.

After a moment the laughter faded, leaving the room quieter again.

Kael’s expression softened slightly.

"I really like Selena," he admitted quietly.

Both of his brothers looked at him.

Kael rarely spoke about his feelings, and the seriousness in his voice immediately caught their attention.

"I like being around her." He hesitated briefly before continuing. "Everything feels... calmer when she is near."

The admission seemed to surprise even him.

For a moment he looked down at the floor before finishing quietly, "I want to be with her all the time."

Silence settled between them.

Ronan’s expression softened with quiet understanding while Edris simply watched him thoughtfully.

Kael finally exhaled again.

"I should not have spoken to both of you the way I did earlier."

He glanced briefly between them.

"I was frustrated."

Edris shook his head once.

"I understood."

Kael frowned faintly.

"You did?"

Edris leaned back slightly in his chair.

"I feel the same way sometimes."

Both brothers looked at him.

"When she is with one of you," he continued calmly, "there are moments when control becomes... difficult."

He paused briefly before finishing.

"But that does not mean we act on it."

Kael exhaled slowly, some of the tension leaving his shoulders.

Ronan leaned forward slightly.

"What happened at dinner?"

Edris reached for the glass of water on the table and drank before answering.

"I spoke with Loretta."

Kael’s attention sharpened immediately.

"And?"

"I told her that if she attempts to start a rumor about you, I will expose her pregnancy to Selena."

Ronan’s eyebrows lifted slightly.

"And the rest of the pack."

The room went quiet.

Kael stared at him for a moment.

"You believe that will silence her?"

Edris nodded.

"Yes."

He paused briefly.

"But Loretta is not the one I am uncertain about."

Ronan tilted his head slightly.

"Silas."

Edris inclined his head once.

Kael frowned.

"I still do not understand why Selena refuses to expose them and remove them from the pack house."

Ronan glanced toward him but did not answer.

Edris spoke instead.

"She may have her reasons."

Kael crossed his arms more tightly.

"What possible reason could justify allowing them to remain here after such betrayal?"

Edris studied him calmly.

"That is not for us to decide."

The words were not harsh, but they were firm.

"Our responsibility is simple."

Kael looked at him.

Edris continued.

"Until Selena chooses to act, our duty is to support her and protect her."

Ronan nodded quietly in agreement.

Kael did not argue further, though the tension in his posture remained.

For a moment, silence returned to the room.

Then Ronan spoke again.

"I went to our former house today."

Both brothers looked at him.

Kael’s brows drew together.

"Why?"

"I wanted to see it."

His voice was calm, but something in his expression had changed.

"What did you find?" Edris asked.

Ronan leaned back slightly.

"The property has been sealed."

Kael frowned.

"Sealed?"

"For demolition."

The words landed heavily in the room.

Edris straightened slightly in his chair.

"Demolition?"

Ronan nodded.

"There were markings placed along the boundary stones. Official ones."

Kael stared at him.

"Who ordered it?"

Ronan shook his head slowly.

"That is what I tried to find out."

He paused before continuing.

"The only person who could legally authorize that would have been the king."

Selena’s father.

The late Alpha.

Silence followed.

Kael’s expression darkened slightly.

"But he is dead."

"Yes," Ronan said.

"Which means only two people could have issued the order in his place."

Edris’s eyes narrowed faintly.

"Selena."

Ronan nodded.

"Or the late king’s beta."

Silas’s father.

Kael ran a hand slowly through his hair.

"Why would Selena order the destruction of our home?"

Edris did not answer immediately.

Instead he seemed to be considering something else entirely.

After a moment he said quietly,

"There is something else."

Both brothers looked at him.

Edris’s gaze had turned thoughtful.

"Have either of you seen the late king’s beta since we arrived?"

Ronan frowned slightly.

Kael shook his head slowly.

"No."

Edris leaned back again.

"Neither have I."

The realization settled slowly between them.

Silas’s father had been one of the most powerful wolves in the pack.

His absence should have been noticeable.

Yet somehow none of them had questioned it until now.

Ronan spoke quietly.

"We should find out where he is."

Kael nodded once.

"And see if he is the one that ordered the demolition."

Edris’s expression had become thoughtful again.

"Yes."

The decision settled easily between them.

Just then, there was a knock on the door.

The sound was not loud.

But it was deliberate.

Measured.

All three brothers went still.

Kael’s head lifted slightly.

Ronan stood slowly from the bed.

Edris did not move at first.

The knock came again.

Patient.

Waiting.

Ronan moved toward the door.

When he opened it, Silas stepped inside the room without waiting to be invited.

His posture was composed, his expression calm in the way a man looked when he believed he was entering a conversation rather than a confrontation.

His eyes moved slowly across the three brothers.

The room seemed to grow colder.

For a moment, no one spoke.