Page 12 of Tears of Ruin

I sighed, standing to collect the bowls. “You’re safe here. No one is going to hurt you. No one is going to expect anything from you. And you will never go hungry in Winterhaven.” My voice was firm, final. A promise.

He watched me closely, as if trying to gauge whether I truly meant it. “And if I wanted to leave?”

The thought sent a sharp, unexpected pang through my chest. But I wasn’t my father. I wouldn’t keep him here if he didn’t want to stay.

“You’re free to go whenever you choose.” I turned, meeting his gaze with unwavering honesty. “But where will you go?”

Noam flinched like I’d struck him. His walls snapped back into place so quickly it was like watching a door slam shut. “I—I’ll figure something out.”

I inclined my head. “Then I hope you’ll allow yourself the time to do so. No one will force you to stay. But no one will force you to leave either.”

Something flickered across his expression—doubt, hesitation, something I couldn’t quite name. But he didn’t argue.

Instead, he let out a slow, measured breath. “Okay.”

It wasn’t an agreement. Not yet. But it wasn’t a refusal either.

And for now, that was enough.

* * * *

“What are you going to do about the male?” Malachi asked as he strode into the kitchen.

That was a damn good question, but I saw right through the prince.

“What do you mean what amIgoing to do? Since when is Noam my responsibility?”

He watched me as I moved around the room, cleaning what was already clean. I really hated it when he did that, like he was staring into my soul. He had a gaze intense enough to make a person rethink their life choices. Thankfully, I wasn’t someone who withered under such scrutiny. For the past five years, I’d tried to blend into the background, to not be seen, but that didn’t mean I was easily intimidated.

I tried not to dwell on my upbringing, but if nothing else, it had forged a spine of steel in me. I was a natural-born alpha male. Very few could make me sweat.

“Then I guess I read things incorrectly,” he said. “I thought maybe—”

“Thought what?”

Not only did his features darken but his lip curled. “Do not speak to me in that tone, Richard. I might consider you family, but don’t test my patience.”

Malachi was a hard person to deal with. He rarely cracked a smile and joked around.

Neither do you. You haven’t freely laughed since before…

“My apologies.” I went back to wiping down the spotless counter. “I told Noam he’s free to leave any time he chooses.”

Malachi looked at me like I’d grown two heads. “You and I both know someone is abusing him. Are you going to let him return to his situation?”

“What do you want me to do?” I argued, frustrated with the fact I’d already grown attached to the tiny human. That had always been my problem. Defending those who couldn’t defend themselves.

A trait my father had loathed and probably the reason I’d done it.

Keep lying to yourself.

“He’s closed off, scared, and doesn’t trust anyone. You know as well as I do that pushing someone when they aren’t ready only causes further damage.”

I couldn’t stop thinking about the scars on Noam’s back, and I wanted to fucking kill the person who’d put them there. He couldn’t be any more than five-three maybe five-four, weighing around one hundred and ten pounds. Too small for anyone to lay a hand on.

And god, the fear that radiated off of him. I was waiting for him to either crawl under the bed or completely fall apart.

But what I couldn’t stop thinking about was how he’d huddled against the nightstand when I’d approached him the first time.

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