The Heiress's Comeback-Chapter 243: [ Volume 1] Chaper - What if it’s me?

Ryan’s gaze sharpened, as though remembering something he wished he could forget. "When my parents died, Ray took up their mantle. Became everything he never wanted to be. He’s so protective... sometimes, it’s smothering. But he does it because he thinks he has to."

There was a darkness there, one Esme hadn’t seen in Ryan before. "You know, for me, it’s Jay who’s always stood up, who shields me from anything that might hurt me. For Jay, it’s Kai who’s his protector. And for all of us... it’s Ray. He’s like the shield none of us asked for but can’t imagine living without. If someone wanted to hurt me, they’d have to get through three walls of brothers first. That’s the family we’ve become. Unbreakable, for better or worse."

He laughed, a hollow sound. "Sometimes... sometimes I feel like I stole their sky, trapped them in my world. But other times... I think I did what I had to, for all of us."

Esme’s voice was soft when she finally broke the silence. "So, that’s why you learned more than just medicine. You learned poison, too, didn’t you?"

Ryan’s gaze flicked up to meet hers, and something dark glinted in his eyes. His lips curved into a smirk, one that wasn’t quite warm, nor kind. "Of course. What did you think, Esme? That a protector alone is enough in this world?" His tone shifted, took on a razor-sharp edge. "Too many protectors... it gives people the wrong idea. Makes them think they can toy with us, exploit us."

His voice dropped, that smirk darkening further. "In this world, sometimes you need more than shields. You need someone who can be a destroyer, someone who knows how to end things, not just preserve them."

Esme chuckled, her laughter bubbling up suddenly and spilling into the night air. "Oh my," she said, wiping a tear from her eye, "I really did jump straight into a den of sharks, didn’t I?"

Ryan turned to her with a smirk, his expression sharpening in the dim light. "A den of sharks? You make it sound like I’m the dangerous one here." His voice took on a teasing edge. "Besides, I’d say it’s more like you walked into a den of lions."

"And why is that?" Esme asked, tilting her head with a playful smile.

Ryan’s gaze met hers, eyes glinting with a mix of humor and something darker. Esme shrugged with a careless smile. "Well, I don’t know how to swim, you see. And yet, here I am, jumping straight into the deep with a pack of sharks. Can’t exactly slip away now, can I?"

Ryan chuckled at that, the sound low and rich. But as his laughter faded, his expression shifted, turning contemplative. "You know, I once thought about killing you, too," he said, the words falling from his lips almost casually.

Esme’s laughter stilled, her gaze narrowing as she studied him. She looked at him with a quiet intensity before asking, "Then why didn’t you?"

Ryan shook his head, a half-smile curving his lips. "No, you misunderstand. I thought about it before I met you. Not after." 𝘧𝑟𝑒𝑒𝘸𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝓁.𝘤𝘰𝓂

Esme wasn’t surprised, not really. She’d known from the beginning that Ryan didn’t care for her—not in the way one might expect from a husband. Their marriage was a contract, signed and sealed without ceremony or sentiment. In fact, she hadn’t even met him until months later, and even then, it was only by necessity. She’d been sick, bedridden, and suddenly there he was, standing over her with that unreadable expression, a stranger who wore the title of her husband.

Before that, he’d been little more than a name and a few grainy photographs she’d glimpsed by chance. And even now, seeing him there beside her, the night wrapping them both in its quiet stillness, she felt that same strange distance. She thought of him as her husband, but only by name.

Ryan exhaled, looking out into the dark expanse beyond them, his voice lowering with a sort of raw honesty Esme hadn’t heard from him before. "I don’t want to understand it, Esme. I don’t need to know the how or why. But the day you stepped into this house... everything shifted. I don’t know if it was luck, or some hidden trick of yours. It’s like some ripple you created just by being here."

He glanced down, hands folded, knuckles white. "My brothers—before you, I was always on edge, watching their every move. They were tough on the outside, sure, but... they were fragile. Worn down by every demand, every expectation put on them." He paused, lips pressing into a tight line. "But now..."

Ryan’s voice softened, as if even saying it made him feel a mix of disbelief and relief. "Now they laugh, Esme. I hear them laughing when you’re around. Real, careless laughter that I haven’t heard in years. I can see it—Kai can actually smile without it looking forced. Jay doesn’t have that guarded look in his eyes all the time. They’re safe. And, for once... I don’t feel like I need to carry the weight of everything on my own shoulders."

He looked at her with an unreadable expression, his gaze flickering, just for a moment, between gratitude and the faintest vulnerability. "Now, when I work, when I have to leave, there’s not this constant worry eating away at me. I know they’ll be alright. That they have something... someone else to ground them."

Esme held his gaze, seeing the way his usual calm front slipped away in that moment. She had never expected to hear this from Ryan, especially not like this.

Esme stayed silent for a moment, her eyes narrowing as she studied Ryan’s face, the play of shadows accentuating the hardened edge of his jawline. When she finally spoke, her voice was low, probing. "You’re the one who poisoned Jenny, aren’t you?"

Ryan’s face barely flickered; his expression as steady as stone. But there was something almost sharp in his gaze as he looked back at her. "Is there any doubt?" he replied quietly, his voice a murmur against the cool night air.