~ Lucian’s POV

The moment Bella stormed out of the room, the silence was deafening, broken only by the sound of my own ragged breathing. I stood there, frozen, staring at my hands. They were trembling. These were the same hands that had almost killed her.

The image of her face flashed before me—her wide, tear-filled eyes, her trembling lips, the sheer look of betrayal etched into her every expression. It was as though she had been ripped apart from the inside, and I was the one who had done it.

I clenched my fists, my nails digging into my palms, but it did nothing to ease the suffocating weight...