Chapter 187: Chapter 187: The Weight of a Brother
RAMON’S POV
Liam walked up to me, and handed me the bottle of whiskey. His hand was steady, as always, the kind of steady hand that had pulled me out of more fires than I cared to count.
I didn’t want to drink before, but I couldn’t stop myself from reaching out and grabbing the drink. My fingers brushed his, and for a moment I noticed how tall he stood, how broad his shoulders were under the simple shirt. Liam had always been the kind of man women noticed. Young maids blushed when he passed. Older women smiled with that knowing look. He carried himself with an ease I never had, and tonight it stung more than usual.
I brought the top to my lips, took a deep breath, before I drank from it. The whiskey burned down my throat and settled heavy in my chest. It burned so good that I closed my eyes just to relish in its effect, letting the heat push back against the cold knot of pain twisting inside me.
I took another swig, and another. At this rate, the bottle was going to be empty soon. The numbness spread slowly, but it could not touch the sharp ache in my heart.
My thoughts were numb. So many things to think about, yet I lacked the zeal to do so. Sonia. Liam. Ferins. The words kept circling, but none of them landed.
When Liam sat beside me, I didn’t feel it until he spoke.
"Ramon, what are we going to do?" He asked, his voice low and steady, the same voice that had talked me down from the edge more times than I deserved.
A simple question. One that shouldn’t be hard to answer.
Solutions, right? No matter how difficult a situation was, I was damn good with solutions.
But right now, I just couldn’t think. I couldn’t—I took from the bottle again, silencing the voices in my head that kept showing me images of Sonia smiling at someone else.
"You know I won’t do it, right? This is basically mother playing the moon goddess. If she hasn’t provided my mate, there’s no way in hell I’m taking one just for the heck of it," he said.
I could see what he was trying to do. Trying to reassure me and alleviate my worries. His words were kind, his tone gentle, the way he had always been with Sonia too. Protective. Patient. The kind of man who made women feel safe without even trying.
I appreciated the strategy, but it was like I mentioned before. I was too numb to think of a response. The pain in my chest tightened further as I realized how perfectly he fit the role everyone seemed to want for him now.
"Also, I don’t believe Sonia accepted this crap. She adores you. I think this is all a ploy by Ferins, but to what end?"
I heard him clearly. I knew he was expecting a response. A response I wasn’t going to give, because I didn’t have one. My throat felt too tight to speak.
However, when he stretched out his hand, that I could understand.
I passed him the bottle, and he drank from it too.
Sharing a drink. Something that was supposed to be normal in friendships had just been tainted in my mind.
It felt very much like passing Sonia to him. The same way it was playing out in reality. The image of Liam standing tall beside her, protective and steady, flashed in my mind and made the whiskey taste bitter.
"Coming from the guy who offered her to his beta?" That damn mocking voice in my head spoke the loudest.
I had a counter for that. It was then. When I thought she was a bratty bitch who needed a good humbling.
Back when I swore to do everything I could to bring down Ferins, including using his daughter.
How could I then tell anyone how all my plans had backfired.
It had gone from using my head to play the game, to answering to my heart.
Hey, but at least, I was thinking again.
"Hey Ramon, I’m really sorry about this. I hope you know I didn’t have a hand in this? I’ve also been blindsided."
"I know," I was finally able to say, my voice rough and low, the pain bleeding through every word.
I could feel the relief wash through him. Even though I had once questioned our friendship, Liam had never.
No matter what, he never acted differently towards me.
He didn’t play about me either. I was priority to him.
It should be the same for me, but I was a different kind of person.
I thought of the worst, and acted accordingly. That was why I needed time to think about this entire situation.
"Go home, Liam," I said, the words tasting like ash in my mouth.
"Wait, what?" He faced me, and as I lifted my head up, I could see the pain in his eyes. Those same eyes that had looked at Sonia with genuine care, the kind of protective warmth I had never given her until it was too late.
"You have to go home and see what this is about. Who knows what you might discover? I think I need to deal with this alone. You’re always somehow around in my toughest times. Whilst I appreciate that, we’re both alphas with heavy responsibilities. Solve yours, and I’ll solve mine."
"No way!" He protested heavily. "That just sounds like you’re trying to kick me to the side like you always do. It doesn’t make sense, Ramon. We’re both involved in this bullshit. We need to work together."
"No," I shook my head vehemently. "Things are just going to get too complicated at this rate. Let’s just think about this individually. Your pack needs you Liam. Go," I said, my voice cracking slightly despite my efforts to keep it steady.
"I’m not going anywhere, Ramon. Not until I get to the root of this madness."
He rose to his feet, and didn’t waste time in walking out of the room.
I sighed as the door closed behind him. My thoughts were back to being clouded and painful.
Drowning myself in the alcohol could probably work for the night. But what of when morning came?
I’d have a headache the size of ten packs, without a solution anywhere in sight.
That just seemed like stabbing myself with my own claws.
Instead, I chose to lay on my back and look up at the ceiling.
I had to believe that everything was going to be fine.
There had to be a silver lining to all of these bullshit.
If Liam was right, and Ferins had something to do with this, he didn’t get to escape.
He was going to hear from me. Maybe even at the dawn of the day.
All I needed was to rest for the night and make my move at the first light of day.
I was suddenly thrown out of my thoughts when my door opened, and I felt her presence.
"Why are you here, Lorena?" I asked without moving.
"I missed you," she said, drawing closer to my bed.
I had never allowed her on my bed. Sonia was the only woman I had allowed on my bed.
"Sonia," I whispered before I could catch myself, the name slipping out like a wound reopening.
"Sonia?" Lorena said, stopping just at the foot of the bed.
"Yeah," I replied, and straightened up. "Sonia is missing," I said, gauging her reaction.
"What do you mean, missing? I thought she was dead?" She said, a confused expression on her face.
Ivy wanted me to believe that this clearly confused woman was guilty of something heinous?
Nah, I didn’t believe it. I’d need solid proof to believe it.
"Ramon?"
"Forget I said anything," I said, standing up. "Let’s get something to eat."
I led her out of the room, grateful that at least I had my unborn child to give me some hope.
