Eighty five

Morgan’s POV

I had watched my ambitions slip through my fingers like grains of sand, all because of their foolishness. Rylan and his brothers but instead chose to align themselves with someone I deemed no good, beneath us: Eliza, an orphan with no idea of her potential. We had taken her in and given her a home and food. She was ungrateful and deserved nothing.

The chains rattled as I shifted, reminding me of my confinement. I had underestimated their loyalty, convinced they would see reason. But their hearts were clouded by emotions—the very thing that had always been my Achilles' heel. I had no room for that weakness. It was a luxury I could not afford. I had climbed up from nothing, clawing and biting through every obstacle, only to be prevented by my flesh and blood.

"I will not be defeated," I hissed into the shadows of my prison. The dungeon was cold and damp, just as bleak as my outlook. I envisioned my sons laughing with Eliza and celebrating their bond like a twisted family r