Page 103 of What We Don't Say: Part Two

“I thought it did nothing,” he says. “He acted like the paper existed whether I agreed or not.”

“He wanted everyone to believe that.” Zana slides one document from the folder and places it on the table. “The form was real. The authority he claimed after the expiration date was not.”

I recognize the seal before I read a word.

The sandwich turns heavy in my stomach. My fingers go cold around Theo’s hand while the old porch rises around me, complete with the officer’s careful voice and the dead key in my palm.

Theo feels the change immediately. He sets down his coffee and folds both hands around mine. “It expired,” he says quietly. “You are here with me.”

“I know.” My voice is thinner than I want it to be. “I can see the date. My body still remembers the other version.”

Zana leaves the paper where it is. She points to the expiration clause, the missing signature, and the blank space where the order should have been converted. Garrett knew I would believe the seal before I questioned the man holding it.

Calliope

A shadow moves across the narrow pane beside my office door. Theo looks up first. His fingers tighten around mine, and the warmth leaves his face so quickly that I know who is there before I turn.

Garrett stands in the hallway with a folder beneath one arm. His suit is dark, his tie perfectly aligned, and his expression carries the same polished concern he used whenever he wanted cruelty to sound reasonable.

Every section of my bracelet lights within seconds.

Sloane’s comes first, followed by Idris'. Dash’s flares bright enough that I know someone nearby has already warned him.

Garrett knocks once and opens the door before anyone answers. Zana rises and steps between him and the coffee table, her body angled so she does not block my view of the hallway.

“You were not invited into this meeting,” she says.

Garrett barely looks at her. His attention settles on Theo beside me, then shifts to our joined hands.

“I am here because an active violation has been brought to my attention.” He lifts the folder slightly. “Calliope is in direct contact with an Omega covered by a protection order.”

The moonstone at my throat vibrates sharply. My shoulders draw inward, and my hand begins to loosen around Theo’s as obedience hooks into the part of me that still wants to be good when an Alpha sounds certain.

The vibration breaks the first pull.

I press my thumb against the stone and hold on to Theo.

Zana takes the folder from Garrett’s hand. He allows it because he still believes the papers will control the room once she sees them. She opens the first page, checks the date, and turns to the second.

“This expired months ago,” she says. Her tone is flat now, all warmth gone. She looks toward me instead of Garrett. “Theo did not sign the supporting statement. The court never converted the temporary restriction into a full order.”

I hear her. My body remains on the porch for another breath, waiting for someone to tell me I am no longer allowed inside my own life.

Garrett notices my shaking hands. His eyes soften for the people gathering in the hallway, and the performance settles over him with practiced ease.

“Calliope has a documented pattern of instability around pack transitions,” he says. “Her proximity has repeatedly worsenedTheo’s distress. The Alphas around her are encouraging the attachment because it gives them access to an Omega who can't make informed choices.”

Theo presses closer to my side. His scent sharpens, sweetness turning fragile beneath the coffee and paper.

Zana closes the folder. “Leave the office.”

Garrett keeps his gaze on me. “She is clinging to a structure that has already moved beyond her. Allowing this to continue isn't kindness.”

The moonstone vibrates again. This time I feel the command hiding beneath the words.

Be respectful. Do not make a scene. Let the Alphas handle it.

My knees shake when I stand, and the edge of the coffee table catches against my leg. Theo rises with me, his hand still locked around mine, while Zana shifts enough to remain between Garrett and the couch.