Surprisingly, my brothers release Roman right away.

Roman leans against me, trying to hold himself upright so as not to appear weak in front of my family. We stagger toward a leather armchair, and he slowly lowers himself onto it. The swelling and bruises have worsened in the last few minutes. His right eye is almost fused shut and a rainbow of streaks color his chin.

As I turn to face my family, my gaze lands on my mother, who I hadn’t realized was standing ...