Chapter 103

ISABELLA

The opening credits of the movie were rolling, and I was curled up on the couch with a bowl of popcorn in my lap. Spencer sat at the other end, quiet and still as always, his attention on the screen. It was strange how I’d grown so used to his presence. Despite the initial awkwardness, he had become a constant—like a silent guardian in the background. I appreciated him, though, even if he never said much.

I was about to pop another piece of popcorn into my mouth when my phone buzzed on the coffee table. I glanced at it, and my stomach twisted when I saw the name on the screen: Amanda.

Dominic’s mother.

The last time we spoke, things hadn’t gone well. She’d been hostile and accusatory, and I wasn’t sure I wanted to go through that again. But something in me pushed me to answer anyway.

I hesitated, then took a deep breath and pressed the call button. “Hello?”

“Isabella.” Amanda’s voice was tight, a little shaky.

“Hi, Amanda,” I replied cautiously, sitting up straighter. Spencer’s gaze flicked over to me, his senses always on alert.

There was a pause on the other end, and I could hear her breathing, as though she was steeling herself to say something. “The police... they’ve found something.”

My heart skipped a beat. “What do you mean?”

“In the forest,” she continued, her voice hollow. “They found a bone. It’s been... it’s been identified as Dominic’s.”

The world seemed to tilt under me. I sat frozen, unable to process the words. A bone? Dominic’s? I felt like I was being suffocated, the air too thick to breathe.

“They—they’re sure?” I managed to stammer, my voice barely above a whisper.

“They ran the tests,” Amanda confirmed, her voice strained with grief. “There’s no mistake.”

I didn’t know what to say. Shock reverberated through me, making my limbs feel heavy and numb all at once. Dominic... even after everything, I hadn’t truly processed that he might be dead. And now, this confirmation—this horrifying truth—was staring me in the face.

“I just thought you should know,” Amanda said quietly. “Even after... everything... you were a part of his life.”

I swallowed, my throat tight. “Thank you for telling me.”

The line went dead, and I stared at my phone, the words hanging in the air like a dark cloud. Dominic was dead. He wasn’t coming back. There was no closure, just... emptiness.

I was vaguely aware of Spencer shifting beside me. He didn’t say anything, but his eyes were sharp, concerned. I must have looked pale—like I’d seen a ghost.

“Are you alright?” he asked, his voice low, almost soothing in its calmness.

I blinked, struggling to find my voice. “They found Dominic... or what’s left of him.”

Spencer’s brow furrowed. “I see.”

For a moment, the weight of his words—or lack thereof—made me feel even more lost. I felt like I was drifting, like everything around me had suddenly lost its anchor.

Spencer leaned forward, his voice even quieter. “I’ll call the boys.”

“No, don’t—” I started, but he was already pulling out his phone, his expression set in stone. Spencer never hesitated when it came to my well-being, and while I appreciated that, I wasn’t sure I was ready to break this news to Asher, Jax, and Knox. But, of course, they needed to know. I was just... overwhelmed.

He stepped out of the room briefly, and I could hear him murmuring into the phone, his tone steady as always. Meanwhile, my thoughts spun in every direction, replaying Amanda’s words on a loop. Dominic. Dead. How was I supposed to feel?

Spencer returned, tucking his phone away. “They’ll be home as soon as they can.”

I nodded, feeling a lump rise in my throat. Tears stung my eyes, and I wasn’t even sure why. Dominic had caused so much pain, so much chaos in my life, yet the finality of his death was something I hadn’t prepared for. I wasn’t sure how to grieve someone who had betrayed me so deeply. Still, a part of my past—of who I used to be—was now gone forever.

Spencer sat back down, closer to me this time. “Isabella,” he said gently, “it’s alright to feel whatever you’re feeling right now. You don’t have to explain it.”

His words broke the dam inside me, and I buried my face in my hands as tears flowed freely. Spencer stayed silent, his presence steady, as though he knew this was a storm that needed to pass on its own. There were no judgments, no attempts to stop me from crying. Just a quiet understanding that sometimes, the only way through was to let it all out.

I didn’t know how long I cried, but when I finally looked up, my throat was raw, my eyes puffy. Spencer handed me a tissue, and I took it gratefully.

“Thanks,” I mumbled, wiping my face.

“You’ll get through this,” he said simply. “You’re not alone.”

I nodded, too drained to say anything more. The truth of Dominic’s death hung over me, but with Spencer’s quiet support and the knowledge that my mates would be home soon, I felt a small flicker of strength return.

As I sat there in the quiet aftermath of my tears, my thoughts wandered back to Dominic—not the version of him that had hurt me, betrayed me, but the version of him I had once loved. I didn’t often let myself go there, to those memories, but now, with the finality of his death weighing heavy on my heart, I couldn’t stop myself.

I remembered the early days—when things were good, even beautiful in their own way. We had met when I was still in college, and Dominic had this charm about him that was impossible to resist. He was funny, quick-witted, and for a while, he made me feel like the center of his world.

We used to spend our weekends taking spontaneous trips to little towns nearby, finding cozy cafes to hole up in for hours, just talking. I’d tell him about my classes, my dreams, and he would listen, really listen, like what I had to say mattered more than anything. We’d stroll through parks, holding hands, stealing kisses under the trees, laughing like we had all the time in the world.

One summer, we went to the coast—just the two of us. It was one of those perfect trips, the kind you look back on and think maybe, just maybe, life was simpler back then. We rented a tiny beach house, spent our mornings walking along the shore, and our evenings curled up under a blanket, listening to the waves crash against the rocks. I remember thinking that I could spend my life with this man, that maybe we had found something special.

And in those moments, I believed we had.

But somewhere along the way, things had shifted. It was subtle at first—missed phone calls, canceled plans. Then it became something darker, something I didn’t want to acknowledge at the time. He started pulling away, and I couldn’t figure out why. He became distant, colder, until the warmth and laughter that had once filled our lives were replaced by silence and tension.

Still, I tried to hold on to the good moments, thinking we could fix it. Thinking I could fix it. But I had been wrong. Dominic wasn’t the same man anymore, and I had been blind to the truth for far too long.

Now, with the news of his death, I couldn’t help but wonder if he had ever thought back on those days too. Had he remembered our happy times, or had he let them fade away as he sank deeper into the chaos that had eventually consumed him?

I sighed, wiping at my eyes again, though the tears had mostly dried. It wasn’t fair to hold on to the past like this, I knew that. Dominic was gone. He was part of my life, part of my story, but he wasn’t my future.

That belonged to the baby growing inside me, and to the three incredible men who had shown me what real love felt like.

Spencer shifted slightly beside me, as though sensing the weight of my thoughts. His presence was a quiet comfort, reminding me that while the past had its place, I was no longer alone in this world. I had a family now, and a future to look forward to, no matter what had come before.

I let out a slow breath, forcing myself to focus on the present. Dominic had been a chapter in my life, but that chapter was over. It was time to turn the page.