Chapter 139

Ayleen retreated to her room, her heart heavy with guilt and exhaustion. She found Murat sitting on the chaise, his head hung low, staring at the floor. His knuckles were raw and bloodied.

Quietly, she fetched the first aid kit from the bathroom and knelt on the floor in front of him. Reaching for his hand, she began cleaning the wounds. He pulled back, glaring at her.

“I don’t need your help,” he muttered, his tone cold.

“Murat…” she whispered softly, grabbing his hand again. This time, he didn’t resist as she cleaned the blood and applied disinfectant, even though it burned.

“It’s necessary, or it’ll get infected,” she said, her voice impassive but her hands gentle.

Murat remained silent for a while, but the tension in the room was suffocating. Finally, he spoke. “If I hadn’t found out today, you were planning to keep this a secret from me, weren’t you?”

“No, I was going to tell Uncle Ibrahim as soon as he woke up,” she replied, her voice firm.<