Three Alpha Bikers Wants An Open Marriage

Chapter 47: Chapter 47

Caden’s POV

I walked outside to meet my brothers, the night air hitting my face the moment I stepped out. The building behind me was quiet again, too quiet after everything that had just happened.

Cane was already there, standing near the steps with his arms crossed, his jaw tight. Gunnar leaned against one of the pillars a few feet away, his posture relaxed but his eyes alert, like he was still ready to tear something apart if needed.

The second I reached them, Cane turned to me.

"Has she calmed down?" he asked, his voice low but tense.

I nodded slowly. "She’s calmer. Not okay. But calmer."

Cane exhaled through his nose and looked away for a second, rubbing a hand over his face. "That was expected," he muttered. "She saw too much."

I glanced at Gunnar. He hadn’t said a word yet. His face was blank, but I could tell he was listening to every single thing we said.

Cane looked back at me, his eyes sharp. "Are you sure she’s not going to remember what happened years ago again?" he asked. "Right now she only sees Daphne as a monster. But if she remembers what happened ten years ago... then what Mother feared the most will come to pass."

I felt my chest tighten at that. I was already nodding because the thought had been eating at me too, but before I could speak, Gunnar cut in.

"She won’t remember," he said coldly.

I turned to him. His tone was flat, firm, like it wasn’t even a question in his mind. But I saw it anyway. Just for a split second, something flickered in his eyes. Fear. Guilt. Something heavier than both.

Cane noticed it too. We all did.

Silence settled between us again, thick and uncomfortable.

If all of this was heavy on us, it was much heavier on Gunnar. We understood that without saying it out loud. Ever since what happened years ago, he had never been the same. He became quieter, darker, more controlled on the surface, but we all knew how close he always was to losing it. That was why we did everything we could to keep him steady. That was why we were careful. Or at least we tried to be. freewebnoveℓ.com

I sighed and forced a smile as I turned fully to him, changing the topic "It’s been a long time since we did a fist fight," I said lightly. "Come on."

Gunnar didn’t even blink. He looked at me like I was wasting his time. "I’m not interested," he replied, then pushed himself off the pillar and started to walk away.

I was used to that look. Used to the way he shut down and walked off like nothing could reach him.

But I wasn’t ready to let it go.

I moved fast, closing the distance between us and swinging hard. My fist connected with his jaw before he could fully turn, and I felt the impact shoot up my arm.

He growled.

That low, dangerous sound told me I had activated him. Gunnar hated being hit. Hated losing control even more.

He turned sharply, throwing a punch back, but I dodged it just in time. What I didn’t see was the second one. It came out of nowhere and slammed into my side, sending me stumbling back a few steps.

I barely had time to regain my balance before he started moving toward me again, his eyes already darkening, his shoulders tense, his whole body ready for violence.

Then Cane was there.

He grabbed Gunnar from behind, locking an arm around his chest and pulling him back with all his strength. "Enough!" Cane snapped.

Gunnar struggled for a moment, breathing hard, his fists clenched, but then it happened. His body relaxed. His eyes shifted back to their normal color. The rage drained out of him like someone had flipped a switch.

He looked at me then, and the guilt hit his face instantly.

I hated that look.

Before either of them could say anything, he turned and walked away towards another end but still near enough for us to speak with, I rubbed my side where he’d hit me. Cane let Gunnar go and followed me.

"What the hell was that?" Cane demanded, shoving my shoulder and then punching me hard in the chest. "Why did you do that?"

I grinned slightly despite the pain. "That’s part of training him for resistance."

Cane stared at me like I had lost my mind. "That’s not training, Caden, and you know it," he snapped. "Nothing, no kind of training, is going to ease Gunnar. You’re just provoking him, and you know it could be fatal when you do that."

He was right. I knew he was right. I nodded slowly, the smile fading from my face.

"I know," I said. "But he can’t afford to lose control. Not now at crucial moments, I was just testing him."

Cane looked past me toward the building. "We’re taking Riley back to Obsidian Veil," he said firmly. "Whether Father likes it or not. She’s ours to protect."

My expression hardened. "Father can go to hell."

Cane nodded once. "We must never let him find out who she really is. The only people who know her identity are Ethan and his father. And that’s exactly why they’re desperate to have her by their side for when she awakens."

The word awaken sent a chill through me.

"She’s already unstable," I said. "She’s scared of us now. Did you see her face when she looked at us? She doesn’t see protectors. She sees monsters."

Cane clenched his jaw. "I know."

Gunnar finally spoke again, his voice low. "That’s why we leave soon."

I turned to him. "Soon how?"

"Tonight if we can," he replied. "The longer she stays here, the worse it gets."

I frowned. "She needs rest."

"She won’t rest," Gunnar said flatly. "She’s already planning how to run. I saw it in her eyes."

He wasn’t wrong. Riley always had that look when fear took over. The kind that meant she would rather risk everything than stay where she felt trapped.

"She doesn’t trust us even more now," I said quietly.

Cane’s expression darkened. "Then we make her trust us." freewёbnoνel.com

I shook my head. "It won’t be that easy. Not after what she saw today. Ethan pushed things too far, he knew exactly what he was doing, he triggered us right in front of Riley"

Gunnar’s jaw tightened at the mention of Ethan’s name. "He should be dead."

"And that," I said, looking at him carefully, "is exactly why we need all of us."

Silence stretched again.

After a moment, Cane straightened. "We need a plan. Father can’t know about her yet, if he finds out, he’ll come himself."

"And if he does," I said, "everything we’ve tried to prevent will happen."

Gunnar finally turned to face us. "It won’t come to that."

Cane studied him. "You’re sure?"

"I am," Gunnar said. "I won’t let it."

There was something final in his tone that made my stomach twist.

I stepped closer to him. "Gunnar, listen to me. If you start feeling like you’re losing it again—"

"I won’t," he cut in sharply.

"You don’t get to decide that," I shot back. "It happens whether you want it to or not."

His eyes flashed, but he didn’t argue.

Cane placed a hand on his shoulder. "We’ll handle this together," he said. "Like we always have."

Gunnar nodded once, then looked away again.

I glanced back toward the building, toward the room Riley was in. "She’s breaking," I said quietly. "Between Ethan’s confession, and what she witnessed tonight... she’s barely holding on."

Cane’s voice softened. "That’s why she needs us."

"She’s human," I replied. "And we keep forgetting that."

Gunnar’s jaw tightened again. "She won’t be human forever."

The words hung in the air.

"That’s exactly what scares me," I said.

None of us spoke after that. We all knew what was coming. We had known it for years. We had just been hoping we could delay it forever.

Cane finally turned toward the doors. "I’ll arrange the transport. Caden, stay close to her. Gunnar... stay away unless necessary."