Isla’s POV
The scandal broke like glass shattering in a silent room.
I did not hear it myself. I felt it.
The mansion woke tense that morning, like the walls were holding their breath. Staff moved faster than usual, voices hushed, eyes darting away when I passed. Doors closed more softly. Phones vibrated endlessly behind closed palms. Something ugly had entered Silverfang before the sun fully rose.
I sensed it in my chest before anyone said a word.
Chase was gone when I woke.
Not just out of bed. Gone gone. His side cold. His jacket missing from the chair. When I came downstairs, the dining hall was empty except for untouched breakfast trays. The silence felt deliberate, constructed. Protective.
Too protective.
I found him in the study an hour later.
The door was half closed. Voic
