Chapter 191

Lake POV

I stared at my phone screen, at the message I’d sent Ramon three hours ago. Still unread. The double checkmarks sat there in gray, mocking me.

*Ramon, please. Just let me know you’re okay. That’s all I need. Just one word.*

I’d sent five messages over the past two days. Five increasingly desperate attempts to reach him. And every single one sat there unread, ignored, like I didn’t matter. Like our bond didn’t matter. Like five years of connection had just evaporated.

I knew Rhodes had said Ramon needed space. That he was processing, working through his guilt. But this felt like more than space. This felt like abandonment.

My thumb hovered over the keyboard. I wanted to send another message. Something that would make Ramon understand how much we needed him. How much Ollie was suffering.

But what was the point? He clearly wasn’t reading them anyway.

I set my phone down and looked across the living room to where Ollie sat with h